10/28/2022
Living Above Care Giver Stress
As much as we love to care for our senior loved ones, even the strongest of people get burnt out from caregiving. It’s not common for family members who care for their elderly loved ones to identify as caregivers but acknowledging your role as a caregiver will help you learn how to live above the stress that comes with it.
It is very natural to feel stressed out and frustrated because you're human after all. Caregiver stress is more common than you think because caregiving stress is attached to other risk factors. Taking care of your loved ones may isolate you from your friends and lead to depression, the question becomes how do you deal with this? How do you handle being burnt out from caregiving?
Accept Help
It’s normal for you to feel like you must do everything, especially when the senior or sick person is a close family member. But the truth is, as a primary caregiver, there’s only so much you can do. To ease the work, you can make small but effective moves like scheduling your work, asking for help from others, or even better, hiring a nurse assistant.
Accepting help means being open to allowing other people to take some of the load off your back. If another family member or friend is willing to run that errand or take your loved one out on a walk, trust them to do it well and use that time to rest.
Don’t let go of your personal health goals
You had goals before you became a caregiver, but senior care is a big deal that can swallow up your entire life. If you find yourself feeling constantly tired, and overwhelmed, go back to your health goals and make time to do things for yourself!
According to Caregiver Action Network, 29% of the United States population are family members providing home care to their elderly, disabled, or sick loved ones. Out of this 29%, 25% reportedly have poor health. Taking time out to take care of yourself, go for walks, perform small exercises, and eat healthily, will help to improve your health more than you know.
Another common thing caregivers suffer from is insomnia. Lack of sleep is a common cause of many health issues so you must get some sleep. See a doctor and find out ways that you can sleep better. This will help you to wake up more energized.
Stay Connected to Others
Seeking respite by watching your favorite movie or going for dinner with friends while a home nurse looks after your loved one. Make long phone calls with family members who are out of town, or friends who aren’t close by, just make sure you stay connected to people you care about. Having someone you can share how you feel with is another great way to relieve stress. A friend to talk to and seek encouragement will do your mental health a lot of good.
Outsource
There’s a misconception out there that getting nurse assistants or external care is expensive but that’s untrue. There are so many ways to relieve yourself of stress and outsourcing care is one of the most effective.
There are affordable nurse assistants with only the best interest of your loved one at heart and you can rely on them to take care of your elderly just the way you would. If you think outsourcing complete care is a big step, you can start with the little things like errands, meal prep, or any other little task that will make things easier for you.
We can’t vouch for others, but we can vouch for our nurse assistants and our ability to take care of our loved ones just like you would.
In need of assistance taking care of your loved ones? We can help you! Our nurse assistants are available to help you with bathing, dressing, meal prep, errands, and light housekeeping. You don’t have to do it alone. We are here to help.
