Stop Caregiver Burnout!

Stop Caregiver Burnout!

It’s almost instinctive for some of us to give our all to care for our aging parents. They cared for us throughout our lives and now they are aging and needing our attention. We might find ourselves caring so deeply and losing the focus on our own needs.

We want them to know we care and appreciate them, yet how many of us really look deep on our own lives. Are we stressed out, burned out?

You might say, “But she is my mom, I should spend as much time as possible to care for her.” Is there a limit? Diana Beam, Founder of Keeping in Touch Solutions said most women caregivers have this Wonder-Woman mentality. We want to do it all, with a lengthy to-do list. It’s hard for any woman to try and do it all! You have your own responsibilities, schedule, job, and family and to top it off you have your aging mom. Where does that leave time for your own life? At the same time, your aging parents with Alzheimer’s disease can’t share your excitement or memories of yesteryears.

High stress can take its toll when caring for loved ones with Alzheimer’s.

Here are 5 ways to help relieve Alzheimer’s caregiver stress:

1.   Prioritize. Keep just five items in your to-do list daily. Plan ahead and scratch off nonessentials on your list. For example, pay your teens to do dishes or clean the house once a week or pay someone to clean for you. For meals, plan ahead with a shopping list and food to cook. You will save time by going shopping only once per week instead of running to the stores when you need an item or two.
2.    Say No to certain projects or volunteer work. You have to say no to certain projects in your children’s school or your local church. You can’t be involved in every bake sale or fundraiser. Learn to say no and don’t feel guilty about it. We go through seasons in life. This may be a season for you to take off from volunteering with boy scouts or youth group in church.
3.    Eat well, have enough nutrients and sleep. Have you caught yourself snacking all day because you have no time for breakfast or lunch? You didn’t pay attention to the food you consumed and have no nutritional supplements at all. Added to that, sleep does not come easy. Make sure you take time to eat a healthy breakfast and do not skip lunch or dinner. Healthy snacks like nuts and fruits can fuel you throughout the day. A long period of time without food will result in low blood sugar and cravings for sweets and non-nutritional food. Make time to rest and unwind for a good night’s sleep.
4.    Create a family support system. This may sound easy to some of us. But for some who have a non-supportive spouse or siblings, this may be a difficult area for you. Take time to ask for help from your spouse, children and siblings. Let them know the amount of responsibilities you have in caring for your aging parents. For siblings who do not have time to care, they could support financially. With enough financial support you may be able to get household help and other caregiving help. Your spouse and children could offer help at home and with your aging parents. Creating a support system will free you up.
5.    Keeping in Touch Solutions could be your solution. Keeping in Touch Solutions could be a possibility to unload some of your stress depending on your situation. Created by a former health care administrator, mother, and daughter of an aging parent, to provide you Peace of Mind. Your loved ones may have problems knowing which medication to take when they are already suffering with the disease. One of the best ways is to work with a health provider to help mom or dad with Alzheimer’s to come up with a system where they can color code or have scripted words that Keeping in Touch Solutions staff could use to get the message across through the telephone.

We believe in implementing safety measures and at the same time, give caregivers the relief needed from being overworked and stressed out.  Can you imagine what short breaks would do for “stress relief” for caregivers. Think of us as your “stress reliever”…

Our services include:
•    Daily Check-In Call – We call for you, when you can’t be there!
•    Emergency Notification – If we can’t reach your loved one, we call your emergency contact!
•    All Calls Recorded – And archived for medical use and follow up
•    American English Caller – Older adults can easily understand
•    Daily Mediation Reminder – Never worry about your loved one again!
•    Monthly Newsletter – Tips and information you can use to best take care of your loved one!
•    And more!

A daily check-in call could be the lifeline, the joy you give someone that makes the biggest difference in their perception of what old age is like.

Contact me at 317-480-1038 today. Let’s make a difference together.

I’m Diana Beam, Founder of Keeping in Touch Solutions. It is my heartfelt desire for every person to live a happy and healthy life in the place they call home, no matter what their age. You can’t put a price on peace of mind for your parents and yourself. It’s priceless . . . and significant.

For that reason, the goal of every Keeping In Touch Solutions program is to provide a caring connection and service that both the elderly and their caregivers can rely on to make living that good life easier.