Are You Caring for Yourself Emotionally as a Family Caregiver?
Caregiver in East Windsor NJ
As important as your physical health is to your success as a family caregiver, your emotional and mental health can have just as much of an effect. If you ignore this aspect of your own health, you may find yourself in dire straits just when your loved one needs you most.
Nurture Yourself
The power of a few minutes reading just for fun or luxuriating in a bubble bath is often underrated. It’s important that you find the little rituals in your day that nurture you and help you to feel pampered and taken care of. These little moments can help you to get through the tougher moments you can face.
Make Sure You Have a Strong Support System
Without a strong support network it’s all too easy to feel alone and isolated. Find a support system for yourself that helps you when you’re feeling down and celebrates with you when you’re feeling great. Your support network might include
- Other family members
- Friends
- Neighbors
- Support group members
- Clergy members
- Counselors or therapists
Acknowledge Your Feelings
When you try to ignore your feelings, they don’t go away. They’re far more likely to become bigger and more difficult to deal with, especially if they’re not the most positive feelings. It’s essential that you learn how to acknowledge those feelings and then let them pass. It does you no good to hold onto them.
Switch Negativity to Positivity
Being a family caregiver can often mean watching your elderly loved one deal with setback after setback. You can wallow in the negativity that this can produce or you can do your best to approach each situation with as much positivity as you possibly can. In the end, the positivity can help you far more.
Take Time Away Regularly
No one can do any job full-time without a break, yet many family caregivers expect this of themselves. Don’t fall into that trap. Work with your other family members, friends, and your loved one’s senior care providers to set up a schedule that allows you to have time away when you need it.
Look at your own self-care plan and adjust where you need to in order to keep yourself healthy.