When Wymon Johnson invited his older brother Obie to move into his one-bedroom apartment in Bakersfield, California, it was supposed to be temporary. But soon after, Obie got pneumonia. Next, he was diagnosed with a serious lung illness (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD), diabetes, and then kidney failure, all in 2010.
Johnson let his brother use the apartment’s single bed, and started sleeping on the couch. He had worked as a street cleaner for the city before being sidelined by an injury, and soon was taking care of Obie fulltime, helping him with insulin injections and pills as his vision faded, arranging dialysis and doctor’s appointments, helping him bathe and taking him to the podiatrist. Caregiving “is not what people assume,” he says. “It’s not just babysitting.”
Johnson earned minimum wage through a state program called In-Home Supportive Services that his brother was eligible for, due to his health problems. The brothers got by, but just barely. Every month, one check paid the bills, and the second went for food and rent.
Caring for his big brother was what Johnson did, for many years. He gave up dating and having a social life. He worried all the time. His blood pressure rose. “It’s very stressful,” he says now. “There’s an emotional toll, especially if you’re seeing someone get worse and worse.”
The brothers grew much closer than they had been as children, taking trips to the nearby Kern River to watch the birds and share lunch. “I think my brother being at home helped him live longer,” says Johnson. “I try to do things my mother would’ve been proud of—and momma would’ve wanted me to take care of him.”
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