When I was a child, Valentine's Day was a significant day. My mom purchased the small box of cards that I would print for all of my classmates; especially the one boy who I hoped would like me. As I grew up, Valentine's Day continued to have special meaning. Flowers would (or would not) show up in the workplace, dinners would (or would not occur), I would (or would not) have a special person to acknowledge on this date. Then I began to realize that I didn't really need this date to do something special for someone, or for myself. I could recognize myself or others anytime during the year.
The mother of a client was diagnosed with cancer about a month ago. There are four children, two sisters and two brothers, in the family who rallied to provide care for the mother in the way of day to day activities such as housekeeping, meal prep, errands, laundry etc. After about a month, the children decided to seek outside assistance because they realized that their mother's health will not improve and they cannot keep up the schedules of providing care for her, working, and caring for their own families.
In a meeting with the entire family, the mother kept stating, "I can't decide to do anything (receive outside care) until I know what is going on." The daughter most responsible for her mother's medical needs went into a long discussion of what the physicians had told her mother about the condition and the fact that it is terminal. The son most responsible for finances reassured his mother that there was no issue in paying for care and that he and his siblings want her to have more support than they can offer.
Many family members only see their parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles or other loved ones during the holidays due to distance, time and many other factors. It is often after this that I hear "mom and dad seem to be really going downhill". The holidays are a good time to visit family and to monitor ongoing ability to do everyday tasks.
By Pamela D. Wilson, The 
With aging comes the great likelihood that we will need a caregiver; someone to help with daily tasks and personal hygiene. Often it's not practical for family members and friends to provide all the assistance you or a loved one needs.
A client of mine suffers from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He had an accident ten years ago and is extremely anxious. He cannot stop thinking about the accident and often relives the event repeatedly. If you saw him you would see an attractive silver haired older man able to carry on an intelligent conversation and discuss world events with the best of us.