Caregiving Must Be Balanced With Self-Care.
Caregiving is a labor of love, with work hours that are unequalled to any other profession. There are no federal holidays, no paid time off and what’s a sick day? Many caregivers often neglect their own livelihood —disconnecting from friends and hobbies and even ignoring their own health. Sadly, caregivers are also not compensated for the long hours of work.
As caregivers, we can not wait until we have the time to start taking care of ourselves because it will never come. We have to make time to take care of ourselves — make time for self-care.
Self-care, we hear these two words often and they just fly over our heads because we think we can’t possibly add in time for such trivial tasks or we may even think self-care will require too much effort and money to even consider doing. But not so, both reasons not true.
Self-care is simply separating yourself from the physical act of caregiving to take care of yourself, to do something to protect your health and to do something that you enjoy.
How To Plan For Self-Care Needs:
Build Your Support Team.
Finding and building a support team during a pandemic can be difficult but not impossible. Start with those who have offered to help. Reach out to family, friends and church members. Explore safe options. Accept even small blocks of time, it can grow as your support team feels more comfortable assisting.
Discover Your Self-Care Needs and Wants
Make doctor visits a priority. Then make plans for your interests. We are all so different, we have many different interests. Some enjoy quiet activities like reading or puzzles, others like to socialize with friends and family, some like to take trips, some like to shop and some just like physical activities and exercise.
Think outside the box.
Living during the time of a pandemic can make things challenging. You must be creative and realize that many self-care tasks can still be done, with modifications.
Video monitoring of your loved one while you are in the next room or outside on the patio with friends is a safe option.
Arrange for Zoom meetings with family and friends for conversation and games. There are also many online groups who share your interests. Local road trips and outdoor gathering can be safely arranged. You can also finally take that online cooking class.
Schedule A Routine for Self-care.
Start making plans. Many of these tasks can be kept simple or made elaborate, remember you can start simple. You can carve out an hour, plan a half-day outing, and work up to a weekend getaway.
Put on your calendar weekly socializing events over zoom and you can also plan weekly or monthly get-togethers with friends over for an outdoor or indoor gathering.
You can plan for a couple hours a days where you separate alone into another part of the house to spend your quiet time alone, uninterrupted unless the house is on fire!
Remember, you only have one life, you only have one body. You must take care of yourself first. Caregiving and self-care can co-exist. Self-care is vital to the longevity of caregiving.
Consuela Marshall — Occupational Therapist, Caregiver
Today’s blog is inspired by an actual client case. Listen to the Caregiver’s Finding A Foothold Episode 17: Mr. Ruben and His Labor of Love.
The podcast is available on the FindingAFoothold.com website and on all major podcast streaming sites.
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Disclaimer: The podcast and blog are intended to provide basic information so that you can become a more informed caregiver. The information presented is intended for educational and informational purposes only and is not meant to serve as medical advice or replace consultation with any health care providers you regularly engage with. Transmission or receipt of any of this information is not intended to, and does not, create a therapist-patient relationship. This information is not provided in the course of a therapist-patient relationship and is not intended to constitute medical advice or to substitute for obtaining medical advice from a physician or therapist licensed in the state where your family may reside. We encourage everyone to consult with your physician or therapist to see if they are appropriate and safe for you.