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.
Here are several basic principles of respite care:
- Respite from everyday, ongoing care tasks means seniors still get the attention they need and deserve.
- Respite care provides family caregivers with care that is scheduled, short-term, intermittent and substitute.
- Respite care can be available from part of one day to ongoing, scheduled, routine relief.
How you can help a family caregiver:
- Offer to share caregiving duties. Even if you are only available to help out once in a while, it shows the family caregiver that you care about his/her health.
- Offer to provide support with the family caregiver’s own personal chores. Family caregivers have their own lives too, and taking time to manage their own laundry, grocery shopping, and housecleaning chores can be difficult.
- Pitch in for respite care services from a professional home care agency, like the CareFor home caregivers in San Marcos. In many instances, family members who live far away want to contribute to a loved one’s care. Helping to pay for respite care services helps not only the older adult, but the family caregiver too.
How family caregivers can find needed support:
- Ask for help. Other family members may want to help with caregiving, but aren’t aware of what help is needed. Involve them in the respite care plan so you can easily take time off when needed.
- When family members are not available, schedule respite care with a home care agency, like CareFor. Professional caregivers can help family care providers take the time away that they need while providing high quality care for their senior loved ones.
- Talk to the person in your care. A change in daily routine, such as bringing in a new caregiver, can be stressful for the senior, so take the following steps to alleviate any issues:
- Make sure you have a respite care plan in place in advance.
- Remind the senior on a regular basis that your break is coming up and someone will be coming to help him/her.
- Introduce the older adult to the new caregiver if he/she is not another family member.
- Stick to your plan. Taking regular breaks from caregiving is essential to your health. Make sure that everyone involved in your respite care plan is on board so that you can take time for your own self-care.
The bottom line is, no one can do everything alone, and there is skilled and compassionate help available through CareFor’s home care team! Contact us at (512) 338-4533 to learn about our home care in San Marcos, TX. To learn about all the Texas communities where we provide care, please visit our Service Area page.