Caregivers have such an important role in society, and they make a true difference in the world around them every day. While rewarding, caregiving is incredibly hard work, and it’s easy for a caregiver to prioritize others so deeply that they often forget to take care of themselves.
You cannot expect to be at your best when you’re not feeling your best, and this is why the following self-care tips for caregivers are so important.
Caregiver Burnout
Caregiver fatigue, or caregiver burnout, is very real.
It’s a state of mental and emotional exhaustion that develops when all of a person’s energy is devoted to caring for someone else. Symptoms of caregiver fatigue include physical exhaustion, difficulty concentrating, feelings of hopelessness, poor sleep, lowered immune system, and irritability.
When left unchecked, caregiver fatigue can even lead to the development of anxiety and depression.
Balancing Emotions In Caregiving
Providing care to people with disabilities is meaningful work often taken on by caring and empathetic family members and friends. Keeping emotions in balance can be difficult at times, which is why learning tools for emotional centering is so important.
Tips for balancing emotions in caregiving include:
Spend time with friends or family away from caregiving
Not every moment of every day can be given to someone else, even if that’s what your heart wants to do. It’s important to keep in touch with yourself outside of caregiving, and an effective way to do this is to spend time with friends and family outside on your own.
Connecting with others is a positive way to reconnect with yourself.
Allow yourself to accept gratitude
Caregivers might feel like what they’re doing is “all in a day’s work” or simply expected of them, and it can be hard to accept the credit rightfully deserved because of it. Learning to accept gratitude and credit for your efforts is an uplifting and inspiring experience. After all, it’s a reward you’ve earned.
Find someone to share in decision-making
Caregiving involves plenty of important decisions, the result of which will have a real impact on another person’s life. That’s quite a bit of pressure to handle on a daily basis.
One of the most important tips for caregivers to remember is to find another person to share in this decision-making role. This way, you aren’t holding the entire burden of an important decision on your shoulders alone, and you’ll gain new important perspectives to ensure you’re making the right choice.
Distinguish between what is and what is not in your power to change
Not every situation is controllable, not even for the most dedicated caregiver. Learning to distinguish between what is in your power, and what is not, is important to lessening your mental stress.
Seek out your own support
Sometimes a little like-minded support makes a massive difference in feeling seen, feeling heard, and feeling back in touch with yourself.
Seek out those who can offer you support and use them as a sounding board to relieve any stresses you may be holding on to.
Keep Up With Regular Self-Care
Keeping up with regular self-care can mean the difference between keeping healthy and experiencing caregiver fatigue. Set yourself up with a self-care routine and treat it with the same importance as you would any other priority in your life.
Some actions that may go on your self-care list include:
Allow yourself breaks
No caregiver can expect themselves to be “on” all the time, without any sort of break they can use to collect their thoughts and relax their minds or bodies. While taking a break may lead to feelings of guilt for some, it’s one of the most important self-care steps you can take both physically and mentally.
Incorporate healthy physical activities into your daily life
The mind and body are deeply connected, and physical activity is crucial to feeling your best.
Taking 20 minutes out of your day for a walk or a run, spending an hour at the gym, or spending short periods working out around the house will positively affect both your body and your mind.
Eat a healthy diet
What you put into your body directly affects how it feels and how it performs. Eating a healthy diet ensures you’re nourishing yourself in the best possible way.
Get enough sleep
Sleep is critical to helping the body to recharge and reset after a long day. Getting enough sleep is one of the most important tips for caregivers to avoid caregiver fatigue.
Enough sleep should include around 7 to 8 uninterrupted hours per night.
Prioritize your own health needs
It can be easy for caregivers to forget about their own health needs, as they spend so much time prioritizing the needs of others.
However, when your health is neglected, you cannot expect to be at your best. Always prioritize your own medical appointments, medications, and check-ups first.
Ask for and accept help
While it may seem noble to take care of it all on your own, refusing to accept help actually does you a disservice.
Asking for or accepting help gives you time to dedicate a little extra care to yourself, which can be exactly what you need to be the best caregiver you can be.
How Day Habilitation Can Help
Caregivers need to take care of themselves, but finding the opportunity to do so can be easier said than done. This is where day habilitation can help.
Day habilitation programs offer respite to caregivers by providing a safe space for individuals with disabilities to spend time in a skilled and enriching environment as their caregivers take a little time for themselves.
Learn about day habilitation services in Las Vegas at Opportunity Village which can provide some respite for caregivers.
