If you’ve ever felt invisible as a family caregiver, you’re not alone. Caring for someone you love takes center stage, and you may find that your own needs are put on the back burner. A recent listening session, however, allowed us to find out firsthand what family caregivers say they need – and their feedback may surprise you. Here are some of the key findings and insights gleaned from these sessions.
How much extra time do you have on your hands? If you are like many family caregivers, carving out sufficient time to fulfill each day’s basic requirements may be hard enough. The thought of having regular intervals of downtime might seem unattainable.
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There are specific milestones we may experience in our lives that, though not automatically negative, are known stressors. Losing a job. Starting a new job. Getting married. Getting divorced. And one that we in the home care industry are particularly mindful of: the mental and physical effect on family members who are caring for aging parents.
The fear and isolation brought on by COVID-19 wreaked havoc on the wellbeing of older adults, with nearly half of seniors surveyed in a Kaiser Family Foundation poll stating that their degree of stress and worry was negatively impacting their own health. It is crucial to remain in regular and frequent contact with senior loved ones, in order to watch for any signs or changes which might signify a mental health concern.
There was a period of time when Mom only needed assistance for a few hours, several times per week. Then, as her needs changed, it became more beneficial to have a caregiver present to help her most days of the week while you provided care for her on the weekends. Now, you’re realizing Mom would feel most comfortable at home if she had someone present around the clock to make sure her needs are met and to help with any emergencies that may occur.
Returning home for the holidays can be a joyous occasion, but it can also bring to light changes in the health and well-being of our aging loved ones. If you’ve recently visited your parents and are noticing care needs during the holidays, such as Mom is becoming increasingly forgetful or Dad is not moving as well as he did last year, you’re not alone. Many adult children experience a holiday reality check – a time when family visits reveal a need for care that may have been overlooked throughout the year.
The holiday season is often associated with joy, festivities, and quality time spent with loved ones. However, for some individuals, especially seniors, the fall and winter months can trigger a form of clinical depression known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). This condition is more than just the winter blues; it can cast a shadow over the holidays, leading to feelings of sadness and nostalgia, particularly for seniors who reminisce about past celebrations with loved ones who are no longer present.
Receiving a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease is life-altering – for the person being diagnosed, of course, but just as much for his or her loved ones. It’s important for family caregivers to know how to process the emotions of caring for someone with dementia in healthy ways, and to allow themselves ample time to care for their own mental health and wellbeing.
If a person you love is fighting cancer, they may be suffering from a few unpleasant side effects of the cancer treatment they are receiving, and you will want to do whatever you can to help relieve these symptoms. Even though just being there with them to provide comfort and friendship is in itself extremely helpful, there are additional steps you can take.
If your siblings won’t help with caring for parents and you’re finding yourself trying to manage everything alone, you’re in good company. In fact, 50% of all family caregivers are caring for an aging loved one alone, according to a recently available report from AARP.
Though many older adults acclimate smoothly when a new caregiver comes into the home, and begin to enjoy a higher quality of life, there are some seniors who may continue to feel threatened. At CareFor, we’re especially sensitive to the feelings of a senior who is resistant to care. We’re skilled in helping to ease concerns and restore peace.
The holiday season is an ideal time to get together with friends and relatives, but it’s not exactly a relaxing time of year. The hustle and bustle of the holiday season, from shopping to parties to family get-togethers, can be incredibly stressful, and when you’ve got someone to provide care for, your own duties can fall by the wayside. CareFor wants to help with some holiday tips for caregivers to make the season a little less overwhelming.
It’s the most joyful time of the year! But, if you’re one of the millions of Americans who is caring for an older relative, the approaching holidays may seem more like the most overwhelming time of the year. Setting aside time for yourself may have dropped to the very end of your to-do checklist, but the home care specialists at CareFor would like to encourage you to think again and reprioritize your self-care! Self-care for family caregivers is vital not only during the holidays but also throughout the year.
COVID-19 cases in nursing facilities and assisted living facilities were devastating, as the virus spread like wildfire throughout our most vulnerable population in such close quarters. Because of this, many families made a decision to move their elderly parents home, which raised a number of challenges to be overcome.
Caregivers dedicate so much of themselves to the ones they care for – both emotionally and physically. It’s common to become wiped out and to start to experience feelings like indifference, exhaustion, and a withdrawal from the person in your care. Referred to as compassion fatigue or secondary traumatic stress, it can be detrimental to your own wellbeing but can also influence your ability to be as nurturing, warm, and caring as you should be for the person you’re caring for.
Family caregiver stress is inescapable, and in reality, not necessarily always a bad thing. Basically, as they say, “A diamond is just a piece of charcoal that handled stress exceptionally well.” Yet especially for family caregivers, the level of stress can rapidly escalate and become overwhelming, and if not handled effectively, result in serious health concerns.
Family caregivers give a tremendous amount of themselves to take care of their loved ones, frequently giving up their own desires and needs along the way. It may seem normal, then, to presume that caregivers would feel great about themselves, with a high level of self-esteem and sense of purpose.
A lot of us are trying to juggle numerous assorted responsibilities, and for family caregivers, it can feel similar to juggling flaming swords and knives. It’s natural for family members to become overloaded and to experience feelings of caregiver guilt when wanting to provide the best care for a member of the family. Guilt … Read more
You’re beginning to become concerned that Dad may possibly be in need of some professional help at home, and so obviously, you know just where to go for assistance, right? No? Take heart – you aren’t alone. Millions of people in the U.S. are facing the same predicament, and most people don’t know a lot about home care services until the need for care arises.
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Meeting the care needs of an elderly or disabled loved one is a physically and emotionally strenuous responsibility, and it’s vital for family caregivers to take routine breaks to rest and relax. These are the benefits of respite care. Respite care services provide relief from the everyday duties of caregiving, allowing family caregivers to also care for themselves.
Caregiving for an aging loved one, though incredibly fulfilling, can also cause family caregiver burnout. The 24/7 pressure of taking care of a loved one’s needs can rapidly escalate to a high level of stress which can lead to a loss of patience and emotionally charged outbursts, affecting not just the caregiver personally, but his/her senior loved one as well.
Dementia confusion, a typical occurrence in Alzheimer’s, can lead to recent memories being forgotten about or distorted, while memories from the more distant past usually remain unimpaired. This can cause prior periods of time to be more realistic to an older adult with dementia than the present. A person’s alternate reality can be his or her way of making sense of the present through past experiences.
If an aging loved one with dementia has voiced beliefs such as this, you may have thought to yourself that he or she was just in denial and reluctant to acknowledge such a concerning diagnosis. However, there may be another reason: anosognosia, or a person’s genuine unawareness that he/she is impaired by dementia.
Is your elderly loved one staying engaged with activities on a day-to-day basis, or is she stuck in a rut that mostly includes watching television, eating, and sleeping? Particularly during this time of quarantining and solitude, it can be challenging to maintain an active and involved way of life – but it is critically important for the health and wellness of older adults.
Are your elderly parents in need of help at home? Are you additionally attempting to manage caring for children and family at home? If so, you are part of the sandwich generation – a demographic of men and women, ordinarily in their thirties or forties, who have found themselves responsible for bringing up their own children while at the same time providing care for their older parents. The to-do lists of our sandwich generation are packed. Countless family caregivers not only work full-time, but they are additionally shuttling children to and from school and after-school activities and taking care of a household on top of their caregiving obligations. There are remedies to help caregivers, however, and the first step is becoming knowledgeable on how to make the situation more manageable.
Getting used to the idea that a senior you love requires assistance at home can be challenging. Even more challenging is talking about the need for a caregiver for elderly parents and getting them to agree that help is needed. If you have spotted changes in a loved one and you’re sensing the need to initiate a conversation about home care as a solution to ensure safety and independence in the home, try some of these conversation starters about a caregiver to broach the subject in a subtle, non-confrontational way.
Perhaps one of the most honorable decisions adult children can make is to open their home to an elderly parent. Our parents raised us when we were children, so it’s natural to reciprocate when it becomes less safe for Mom or Dad to live on their own. Yet there are a number of issues to … Read more
When we were kids, we were taught to share our toys as well as our parents’ attention, and those same feelings tend to carry with us well into our adult years. As remarkable as it is to have siblings, there also are times it can cause increased stress levels, such as when caring for aging … Read more
Many older individuals with Parkinson’s disease receive most of their care at home from loved ones, particularly during the course of the early levels of the disease. As a top provider of home care assistance in Austin, TX and the surrounding areas, we at CareFor recognize the unique concerns experienced by family members who are … Read more