Staying healthy while caring for your older adult requires regular self-care to recharge and de-stress. But it can be tough to find time to care for yourself. Suzanne Blankenship offers six practical suggestions to help you organize tasks, reduce your To Do list, and become more efficient.
Having the responsibility of care for an aging parent or relative is hard work. It’s not just the “work” but the emotional toll that it takes is hard as well.
The responsibility of eldercare cuts into time with your spouse, time at work, hobby time and – especially with the Sandwich Generation – time with your kids. But, most often, where it really takes a toll is time for yourself.
Self care for the caregiver is essential. It helps keep your mind, your feelings, and your attitude refreshed.
But how do you squeeze out time for yourself? Here are some suggestions.
Be organized
Use organizational tools to group together time commitments, regular outings, doctor appointments, etc.
For example, make doctor and therapy appointments on the same day. Order medications all at once. Pay bills with autopay or group due dates together so that only one bill pay session is necessary.
Visit at the same time every week or two weeks – ask your elder to make a list of items for you to do on that day (rather than call you every time they think of something for you to do). If needed, get them a “TO DO” pad.
Add something fun to the mix
After the doctor appointments, take your elder out for lunch, to see a movie, for a shopping trip to the mall or go to the library.
Do something that YOU like to do, not just something that that elder would like. This brings the stress level down from the “routine” eldercare.
Share the care
Sit down with family members and spread out the tasks. Even siblings who live distantly can help – they can pay bills, coordinate care, make appointments, etc.
When they come to town, they can run some of the routine errands too. Something simple like having a week off with no eldercare can refresh the caregivers.
Get help
Contract with a lawn maintenance service, get a house cleaner, hire a sitter for your elder during the day, find an automated medication dispenser.
There are ways to spread the work among helpers that can be reasonable in cost and, yet, dramatic in the time it frees up for you.
Delay the work
Make sure your parent knows that you will help with tasks, chores and errands – but you will help at a certain time or on a preset day. Being available all the time for random requests is stressful and a time waster.
Reward yourself
Find some way to reward yourself when your cup is overflowing with eldercare and life’s other responsibilities. Take a walk around the lake, go to the gym, run with the dog, get a pedicure, watch your favorite tv show, or just sit and breathe.
This is hard work and you deserve your recharge time. Only you can make it happen. You will be a better caregiver when you have made time to take care of yourself. Now, I’m off to play a game of solitaire…
You might also like:
— 3 Ways to Let Go of Guilt and Get Help with Caregiving
— 6 Ways to Stop Judging Yourself as a Caregiver
— 2 Ways to Manage Caregiver Emotional Stress: Tips from a Social Worker
Guest contributor: Suzanne Blankenship guides you through the journey of eldercare with practical tips, proven tools and a spoonful of laughter — all in a book you can read in one night. In her second decade of eldercare, Suzanne brings her experience to audiences across the country as a speaker, eldercare expert and author of How To Take Care of Old People Without Losing Your Marbles. Follow Suzanne’s blog at TheEldercareNavigator.com, on Facebook (Suzanne Blankenship – Author), on Twitter @suzblankenship.
Image: Qualicare Family HomeCare
This article wasn’t sponsored, but does contain affiliate links. We never link to products for the sole purpose of making a commission. Product recommendations are based on our honest opinions. For more information, see How We Make Money.
