The Smart Way to Resolve Family Fights About Your Aging Parents

We’re looking at something we know is painful: family conflicts. Sibling battles.  Arguing with your aging parent. Do you have a dispute going on in your family?
As parents age, many problems can crop up among adult siblings and sometimes with the elder himself.  Many of these problems arise from financial issues.  Who is in charge of the money decisions?  Should Dad stop handling the checkbook or the investments?   Who is doing the work of caregiving?  That’s another frequent source of conflict. People in the family disagree about what to do and the fight is on.
When adult children don’t get along, they usually just avoid each other.  That works, sort of. Until the aging parent becomes difficult, infirm or has a crisis.  The siblings are then forced to come together to make important decisions.  Then, buried resentments, sometimes decades old, rear their ugly heads. A tough situation gets even more difficult.
Here at AgingParents.com, we are often approached by an exasperated son or daughter who is fed up with the parent, a sibling or a group of family members who are on the “wrong side” of a dispute.  People are polarized.  Ugly accusations fly back and forth.  Someone threatens to get a lawyer, or they do get one and the conflict escalates.
Is there a way out of these situations that does not involve spending resources on lawyers all too happy to bill for their time to advocate for each party’s position?
There is indeed.  However, the concept is somewhat new and most people never think of it.
Mediating Family Disputes
The way out is through mediation of family disputes.  We also call it elder mediation.  Here’s a brief video that illustrates the concept.
Most of us have heard of mediation one way or another, but we don’t usually think of it as a way to resolve disputes about aging loved ones or siblings who disagree about Mom or Dad.  Instead, we think of it as negotiating a way out of a labor dispute, a business matter or a divorce.  Mediation is growing and has application to adult families as well.
When the people involved are willing to sit down together, mediation is an excellent way to work through family conflicts, just as it is to work through conflicts in other settings.  Overall, research shows us that the success rate of using mediation to fix a dispute is about $75-80%.  Those are pretty good odds.  A successful outcome of mediation involves an agreement, which is written down and then becomes enforceable, just as any contract is enforceable.
In our experience as mediators at AgingParents.com, we find that the agreements people reach in mediation are not necessarily about one party paying another party money. Sometimes they are about who gets to be in charge of decisions, who will share the tasks of caregiving for an aging loved one, or when the next in line person should take over as the trustee of the family trust.  A recurring problem is that family members simply do not know how to talk to one another while remaining respectful, even if they disagree.
Family members resort to “silence or violence”.  That is, they may clam up when they get angry and this shuts off communication.  Or, they get aggressive, accusatory and end up shouting and name calling, which also shuts off communication.  A mediator, who is always a trained, neutral outsider, can help the warring parties avoid silence or violence and learn how to listen to each other’s views.  With help, they can reach common ground, share information and work out their differences with guidance through the process.  (We’d like to see Congress using mediators!)
The Pros and Cons
Mediation is not therapy and it’s not going to instantly fix your damaged relationships. If you hate your family member, you’re not going to kiss and make up just because you went to mediation.
It costs money. You are usually paying a private mediator by the hour or a flat rate. Savvy mediators can do their work by Skype or by phone for families scattered across states. That works too, though face to face is an ideal way to do this.
But, mediation can clearly help people in dispute come to agreement on specific issues, and this can restore peace. Seeking peace by this dignified means is definitely worth it.
If your family is at war and you think it’s hopeless, please do not give up.  Family members just might agree to try mediation,  and we can help you. Contact us at AgingParents.com and let us know about your family issues.  We’ll work to get the others involved to the bargaining table. Mediation just might be the best way to avoid further painful conflict and find the path to peace.
If your aging loved ones are making you crazy, consider getting a free complimentary strategy session at AgingParents.com.  We can help.
Meanwhile, we both send you our best.
Until next time,
Carolyn Rosenblatt, & Dr. Mikol Davis
AgingParents.com