5 Quick Tips

When one of our loved ones gets ill or starts to need help, out of love and kindness, most of us want to step to the plate and help. Caregiving is rewarding and tiring all in one. Helping aging parents or loved ones is admirable but it can come with stress and resentment too, if you are not careful. How can you be the caregiver you dream to be and not lose your mind or patience? Here are 5 tips to help you navigate the path. 

5 Tips to Help Avoid Caregiver Burnout

Understanding your Role

When a loved one needs care and you decide you can fulfill the role, do you understand what your role is? How do you help and maintain your life caring for your family and work too? It is difficult to balance; however, it is very doable with organization and clear understanding of what you can do to assist your aging loved one. Learn the skills to help and also to be in sync with any professionals you may need to enlist as well. Keeping a caregiver journal is an excellent idea to keep things clear and help you stay on task with your role as a caregiver and to let others know what has been handled.

Have Realistic Expectations

Most caregivers, and you are included in this group, tend to be optimistic they can help their loved one recover from a stroke, surgery, or fall, and do everything possible to make their recovery comfortable and attainable. However, if mom or dad had a stroke, it is not your job to learn every detail on stroke recovery, but you need to learn enough to be able to communicate with the experts that mom or dad are recovering and be able to spot warning signs if things are not going as they should. For example, if mom or dad start to spike a fever, it could indicate they have an infection and medical help is needed. You need to be aware and know you are not expected to be an expert at every stage of a loved one’s recovery. Learn what your caregiver expectations and limitations are from the beginning. 

Understand the Power or Lack of Power

Sometimes you have to face the fact that you cannot control everything. Whether you lack the knowledge of what is happening healthwise with your parents, or you have personal life issues or obligations that keep you from performing all your caregiver duties, you cannot be in charge of everything. It is not easy to NOT have power or control over every aspect of being a caregiver. It is realistic. You need to adapt and learn to ask for help in situations you cannot handle or control. Remember, sometimes even rules, laws and restrictions can inhibit you from certain caregiver duties.

Talk with Other Caregivers

When you hear it takes a village to raise a child, the same is true for aging loved ones. It takes a community to work together to help older adults who have entered a new chapter of living. You need to be willing to ask other caregivers what works for them, and how to handle situations that are similar to yours. Support comes in numbers. Do not hesitate or be afraid to ask other caregivers for tips or strategies to help your aging parents. 

Learn to Relax

Everything you do will probably not be perfect as a caregiver, but it can still be rewarding and helpful to mom or dad. Remember if siblings or other family members weigh in their opinions, you have to do what is working for you. Don’t be afraid to smile and nod, and then do what is working for you and your loved one. However, the other side is don’t turn down family members that want to help or offer some useful advice to make your caregiving experience even better. 
If you would like more guidance on caregiving and aging, contact Ann Jamison at Senior Living Options. She is experienced with aging adults and how to find the best living arrangements for your parents at each chapter of the aging process. She has been a caregiver and has expert advice to help you have a positive experience while helping mom or dad.

Author: Ann Jamison

Ann Jamison is an experienced senior advisor who has successfully worked with hundreds of families to help them find the best care and home-like environment for themselves or their loved ones. Prior to launching Senior Living Options, Ann was an eldercare advisor for a national placement agency and served as sales director at a senior living community. Thanks to her 25-year career in advertising sales and marketing, Ann is able to discern between hype and reality for her clients. Ann recognizes that there are objective factors that need to be weighed when making a life-changing decision, but she can also assess the important softer attributes by getting to know her clients and by using the gut instincts that can only come through extended experience.