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191. 6 Realistic Strategies To Help Caregivers Fight Burnout: Replay
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When talking to other caregivers, I found a striking similarity: Many of us felt ill-equipped after our loved ones were discharged from rehab. After my husband suffered a stroke on Christmas Day in 2022, I learned firsthand what many of my clients experience each day. Once he was released from rehab, I was given my husband’s medicine, told to install grab bars in the shower for safety, add a shower chair, and was sent on my way. My well-intentioned friends also advised me to make time for myself and to exercise. Easier said than done! When a loved one’s needs are significant, caregivers become overwhelmed and burnt out. Meeting our own needs feels less urgent and maybe even impossible.
The reality? I (and many caregivers) need a different type of support: realistic solutions for protecting our energy.
Here are my 6 tips for caregivers having a tough time:
- Make sure you have knowledge of helpful resources to ease your burden. Examples include meal delivery services, tele-health visits, medication delivery, and more.
- Establish a routine. This helps you stay on target and keeps you organized. This is especially important when administering medication is involved.
- Get dependable help. Whether that’s a family member or a professional, it can better help you tend to your own needs (and those of your other family members).
- Find respite in an overnight (or longer) break. Maybe your loved one has a respite stay with an assisted living facility so you can get a full night’s rest. Maybe you take a weekend off while your other loved ones pitch in.
- Work out a flexible plan with your employer. They may allow you to work from home or offer employee assistance.
- Rely on your friends and family. Maybe it’s for venting or reinforcements, but you can’t do this alone. Let them be there for you.
Topics discussed:
- Caregiver burnout
- How to support caregivers
- Caregiver resources
- Social Security Disability
- Respite
- Employee assistance
- Professional caregivers
Takeaways from this episode:
- Burnout can look like many things. Maybe you’re exhausted, scatterbrained, stressed, or crying more than usual. This is a sign to find support.
- Allsup is a service that can help people get Social Security Disability (SSDI). When people file on their own, it can take years for approval. Using a service like this tends to have a higher success rate.
- Know your own limits. There’s no shame in hiring help, especially if it promotes safety for your loved one.
- There are many resources for the time-pressed caregiver: meal delivery, medication delivery, tele-health, home health and more.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
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Mentioned in this episode:
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Surrounded by Love, one family's journey through stroke recovery: https://bit.ly/4cvCrrl
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