March 12, 2020 by
If you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed in your role as caregiver, take heart; you’re in good company. Providing companion care services at home for aging parents is probably one of the most complex roles we can hold: highly gratifying on the one hand, while simultaneously frustrating and ever-evolving, frequently leading to feelings of doubt about whether we are up to the challenge and providing the most beneficial care.
It is why a number of family caregivers battle against some or all of these types of feelings:
- Guilt: You may feel like you’re not doing as much as you should to assist your parent, that you are selfish for wanting time away to yourself, or that you’re inadequate to provide the help your senior loved one needs.
- Helplessness: There are several circumstances when you simply can’t solve the issues your senior loved one is going through.
- Anger or frustration: This might be directed at yourself, other members of the family who seem as if they’re not doing their fair share, and even at your older loved one for causing you to be in this situation.
- Resentment: Particularly typical when caring for an individual who hurt or betrayed you in the past, it’s easy for those feelings to resurface when that individual is now in your care.
- Hopelessness: When a loved one faces a challenging diagnosis, for example, a chronic or terminal condition, feelings of despair can settle in that may result in despondency or depression.
Acknowledging these feelings, and accepting they are perfectly normal, is a good place to start. The following tips can also help:
- Share your feelings. Find a dependable friend, family member, or professional counselor to vent to, an individual who can provide an alternative perspective and help you to adjust your thinking to a more positive slant.
- Think about the advice you would offer a good friend. Sometimes, stepping out of your situation and picturing how you’d react to somebody else going through these feelings will offer invaluable insight. Provide the same encouragement you would offer to another to yourself.
- Find a companion care partner. Using the services of a professional companion caregiver provider, like At Home Independent Living, allows you to achieve a healthy life balance – something that is paramount to every family caregiver.
Contact our team of caregivers serving Syracuse, NY and nearby areas by calling (315) 579-HOME (4663) and let us walk alongside you with the top quality, personalized companion care services your senior loved one deserves – permitting you to take much-needed time for self-care. We’re always available to answer any questions you have, to provide beneficial resources specific to the challenges you’re facing, and to provide a complimentary in-home consultation to share how we can help.