I truly thought I could do it myself. But eventually I started drowning in the details of my aging father’s care. One thing that bears mentioning up front: I took a 12-month leave of absence from my job so that I could devote myself full-time to his advocacy and care. This involved trying to find a satisfactory assisted living place, selling his house, cars and doing an estate sale, and then trying to coordinate doctors, durable medical equipment companies, pharmacies, home health, etc. The idea was to get him stable so I could resume my own personal and professional life. After 7 months of abject frustration and exhaustion, I finally hired Ariel. She didn’t take over the entire management of his care, she took over the parts that were making my life unmanageable.

I can’t even begin to say how wonderful it was to delegate some of the load to Ariel, and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was being taken care of. She is 100% reliable. She’s honest. She’s kind. And she’s worth every penny. Scrimp on anything but a geriatric care manager. It will save you a LOT in the long run.

Laura H.

I am grateful that Ariel helped me figure out the world of assisted living when my mom unexpectedly landed at my door step needing full-time, long-term care. I did not know the language of this arena nor did I know where to start. It only took 2 weeks from my first conversation with Ariel to the time we found a place that fit my mom’s needs and budget. It’s all a confusing process for those not versed in retirements, pensions, insurances, VA benefits, etc., and I would recommend seeking help from the experts, Ariel being one of them!

Ann W.

When we needed to find a Type B assisted living center for my mother, we didn’t know where to start. Ariel took the time to listen and ask the right questions before recommending a range of facilities — based not only on the level of care they provided, but also our budget, location, and my mother’s social needs and long-term outlook. She even found one that had experience with my mother’s very rare condition. She also answered our questions, coached us on what to consider, and diplomatically steered us away from places that wouldn’t have been a good fit. I think we’ve found the right place now — and it’s one we wouldn’t have even known about if we’d tried to do this on our own.

Sam S.

We discovered there is a whole world of eldercare with a language, practices, laws, all thrown at us while the family was facing the deeply personal challenges. In our case, my sister and I are helping my mom place her husband of 57 years in a long term care facility (dad is suffering dementia and long disability from a stroke long ago).

We suddenly became familiar with the Activities of Daily Living having never even heard the term 3 months ago. It is not that we lacked for information. Kindly advice from friends and information on resources via Google searches, yielded a blizzard of advice and resources. We even had an “insider’s perspective” since my sister moonlights in adult care as a speech therapist. The fear we had was we would make mistakes that will bankrupt the family and/or consign dad to some institutional hell (visions of American Horror Story or One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest). Our fears are grounded in reality.

Via a neighbor we heard about Ariel Rosenbaum and Texas Family Services and we called. She came out to talk to us and started with practical clear sense from the get go. It was clear that 1 hour spent with Ariel was worth endless hours of floundering. “I recommend these 3.” “Here is what to ask for…” “Go here for that.” “I can research that.” Turning her loose to explore the intersection between our insurance company, Medicare and Medicaid produced useful information within a day or two. Contrast that with our floundering around with what questions to ask and whether the answers we got were right or bogus (sadly not all the staff at your insurance company, Medicare, and Medicaid are knowledgeable).

Ms. Rosenbaum is personable, diplomatic, sympathetic, empathetic and a much needed objective point of view in what is a highly emotional fraught experience. She can and will deliver truth to mom, sister and brother when needed. Help set reasonable expectations. Offers options and a likely range of options.

Bottom line: You have a choice. Do It Yourself and you risk spending lots of time and money and take the chance you will get it wrong. OR hire Texas Family Services to help you, help the ones you love and get it right.

Paul C.

I am so glad I found this website when searching for housing for my grandfather. I was starting to get overwhelmed with all of the different places in Austin and what each one offered. I spoke with one of the advisors, explained my fathers financial situation and needs, and was given three places that might be a good match. The second retirement community we looked at was perfect. My grandfather is happy with his new home. It is also nice to know that they offer geriatric care management services. Thanks for all of your help. They helped make a tough situation easier.

Jennifer T.