March 10th, 2016

6 Reasons You Might Be Experiencing Caregiver Stress

Senior Care in Highland Park IL

Are you feeling stressed out but you just can't pinpoint where exactly the stress is coming from? As a family caregiver, it can seem sometimes like you're getting hit from every angle all at once. Trying to narrow down the source of the stress can help you to kick it faster.

Fear or Doubt

It's natural to be afraid for your elderly loved one, whether that's due to health or her living conditions. You might also worry that you're not making the right decisions, especially if your loved one isn't able to communicate clearly with you. Those types of feelings lead straight to a buildup of stress, so it's important to get a handle on them whenever possible.

Changing Roles

Your loved one has probably been pretty competent and may have even taken care of you quite a bit during your life. Seeing her now in much different circumstances can be really hard to do, even if she's doing well considering her situation. Your loved one may also be having difficulty dealing with some of these changes, such as being unable to drive by herself anymore, and arguments about those topics can cause stress.

Isolating Yourself

When you're caring for an elderly loved one, it's all too easy to feel like you're an island in your own little world. If you're caring for your loved one full time without much other help, these feelings are just exacerbated. You need to maintain the relationships that you have outside of your elderly loved one, even if it's just to maintain your own mental and emotional health.

Not Enough Time Alone

The opposite problem can be true, also. Sometimes you need to spend more time with others, but you should not overlook the healing that can come from spending time by yourself for a little bit, too. Whether you want time to meditate, exercise, or simply be by yourself, it's important that you schedule that time into your schedule regularly.

Guilt

Feeling guilty often leads directly to stress for most caregivers. Sometimes the guilt is related to feeling that they're never doing enough for their elderly loved one, but most often caregivers feel guilty for occasionally feeling frustrated or irritated with their elderly loved ones. Try working through those guilty feelings by talking with a friend or journaling to get them out in a healthier way. 

Around the Clock Care

In some cases, your loved one might need constant, around the clock care. No one can handle that kind of commitment on their own, so it's important that you have someone who can spell you. That can be other family members who help to care for your loved one or trusted senior care providers 
who can handle just about any situation flawlessly. It's important that you know that you don't have to do it all on your own.

If you're facing any of these reasons for dealing with stress and burnout, make sure that you resolve them quickly so that you can get back to caring for your loved one without being stretched to your limits.

If you or an aging loved one are considering senior care in Highland Park, IL contact the caring staff at Gentle Home Services. Call today (800) 860-9823.

---