When caregivers push themselves too hard for too long, that can lead straight to burning out. That’s something that you have more control over than you might believe. And a lot of the solutions involved come down to making sure that you have help and that you’re taking care of yourself as well as your senior.
Take Long Breaks and Take Short Breaks
Breaks are vital when you’re a caregiver. They allow your brain and your body to relax from the constant alert status that they’re in as a caregiver. You might not feel comfortable taking respite at first, but it’s something that you can learn to embrace. It will be a huge benefit to you and therefore also to your senior, because it allows you to come back to the situation as a rested caregiver.
Take Care of Yourself in Other Ways
There are other ways you need to be taking care of yourself, too. When you’re eating right, sleeping well, and exercising, it’s a lot easier to worry about those same things for your senior. You can do more for her and be a more effective caregiver overall when you’re ensuring that your needs are met on the front end.
Look for Ways to Get Some Help
Finding help is going to benefit your senior and you in multiple ways. For starters, home care providers are an essential part of the respite plan you’re going to be putting together. But they’re also going to be invaluable in terms of offering all sorts of assistance to your senior in tangible ways. Helping with household tasks, helping with meal preparation, and taking care of transportation and companionship needs all fall under the umbrella of how they can assist you both.
Consider Finding Someone to Talk To
As a caregiver you might have overlooked the emotional aspects of how you’re doing. You don’t have to know all the answers or have everything neatly stowed, emotionally speaking. It might help to have someone to help you with that. Talking to a counselor or therapist is a great way to make sure that you’re truly doing everything that you can and that you’re not being too hard on yourself.
Avoiding burnout doesn’t look exactly the same for every caregiver. But there are definitely things that you can do that can help you more than you might think, especially if you’re making them a consistent part of your plan.
If you or an aging loved one is considering home care in Elizabeth, CO, please contact the caring staff at SYNERGY HomeCare today at 303-953-9924.
