Grandson provides care for his 96-year-old grandmother to prevent her from being sent to a nursing home
Masterweb
17.03.2023 09:28
Source of the article: Source
A young man in his 20s, with a life full of possibilities ahead of him, has chosen not to date or get married to care for his 96-year-old grandmother full-time years. Chris Punsalan, a Filipino digital content creator living in the United States, has been caring for his “lola” (grandmother) since 2016, and he rose to prominence by posting care videos on his Instagram and TikTok.
Punsalan is a musician who creates beats for a living and sells his work on the internet with his social media as his portfolio. However, in 2019, Punsalan uploaded a different kind of video to TikTok that gave his followers a glimpse into the other side of his life as a caregiver for his grandmother. The video quickly went viral with over a million views in 24 hours. In March 2023, it had exceeded 25 million views.
Before immigrating to the United States, Punsalan’s grandmother worked as a public school teacher for 20 years and was always a positive influence on her grandson. Although Punsalan had a large family, as evidenced by his grandmother’s 90th birthday celebration, he explained that he became the primary caregiver because everyone had jobs and other responsibilities to take care of. It was also his way of repaying all the years his grandmother took care of him when he was a little boy.
Her ‘Day in the Life of a Caregiver’ video opened the floodgates, with Punsalan receiving loads of emails and private messages from people who loved her interaction with her grandmother or from people who are caregivers themselves. of their family members. The positive reactions convinced him to publish other videos on the same theme, because initially it was also a way to document the moments spent with his grandmother and to collect memories.
Be sure to scroll to the end of this article to see the full video 🙂
However, videos of Punsalan with her grandmother quickly evolved into showing care tips and exercise ideas for disabled elderly people. The videos are also a way for Punsalan to reach people who haven’t heard the language they speak for a long time. Punsalan and her grandmother speak Kapampangan, the seventh most popular Filipino dialect, spoken by at least 2.8 million people, mostly in Pampanga province in central Luzon.
“These videos are a way for them to connect with their culture,” Mr. Punsalan said. “Maybe they don’t live with their families anymore or their grandparents have passed away and they haven’t heard this music for a very long time. »
Punsalan is also aware of the criticism his viral video has garnered, with some wondering why he had to post his « good deed » on the internet. He explained that he used to document his life since he was a child and even before his grandmother’s health deteriorated.
In his interview with ABS-CBN, Punsalan said he was actually « confused and overwhelmed » by the public reaction to his viral video. However, critics haven’t stopped him from uploading more caring content, as young children have messaged him about how much he has encouraged them to take care of their parents or grandparents. parents.
Punsalan explained that caring for a family member can be isolating and he experienced this when his mother cared for them full time. He admitted he also struggled during the first few years of caring for his grandmother.
“It’s really hard to watch a family member you grew up with, who you knew was strong and independent, become so dependent on others. »
Few people can put their lives on hold to care for a family member. So this grandson is quite extraordinary for devoting his time to taking care of his grandmother. It shows how much he loves her, doesn’t it? Do you know anyone in the same situation? Tell him the story of this wonderful helper!
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