How To Deal With Caregiver Burden
Many people have heard of caregiver burnout or are even familiar with the troubles of caring for an aging family member. Unfortunately, some caregivers feel they don’t have any control over their situation and don’t pay enough attention to their physical and emotional well-being and finances. This lack of self-awareness creates a place for burnout to develop.
You may feel as if you’re in control of your needs and your loved one’s needs, but it’s critical that you take a break from time to time to evaluate your situation to make sure you don’t push yourself too far.
Family caregivers can benefit from learning more about the burnout they’re experiencing and be more proactive about finding a happy medium between selfishness and complete sacrifice.
What Is Caregiver Burden?
Caregiver burden is a condition that typically affects family caregivers. It refers to the overall emotional, financial, physical, and social impact that caregiving can have on the caregiver. A few factors can increase a person’s risk for caregiver burden, such as spending hours providing care, financial difficulties, being forced to be a caregiver, being a woman, and social isolation.
Signs of Caregiver Burden
If you’re experiencing depression or dread, you are likely experiencing intensified caregiver strain as well as resentment. This is an important issue, especially if you’re going to bed at night in misery over the following day’s chores and waking up the next morning feeling unwilling to start your day. Caregivers who experience this daily dread eventually hate their daily routines even though they still care for the person they are providing for. Most caregivers resist suggestions for changing their daily routines because they feel like any change would be equivalent to giving up. As a result, these caregivers are unhappy for months until they eventually cannot physically or emotionally get themselves out of bed.
Caregivers should lookout for new or increased tendencies of yelling or emotional outbursts, which indicates compassion fatigue. If you’re experiencing changes in your mood, you should find alternative means of care to ensure your loved one is taken care of. You may resume your duties in the future, but the change in mood and depression usually point to an unsuitable care plan as well as an environment that’s toxic for you and your loved one.
Ignoring Burnout Comes With Consequences
Caregiver burden can cause serious health problems for caregivers. There are ways to reduce the negative impacts of caregiver burden, but in order to do so, the caregiver needs to acknowledge the situation and ask for outside help.
One key to avoiding caregiver burden is to find a realistic and sustainable pace while continuing to monitor our own physical and mental health. Some physical symptoms to look out for include neck pain, back pain, and severe headaches. Emotional symptoms you should be aware of include hopelessness and increased irritability. Pushing through these symptoms instead of addressing them and taking a break can increase the likelihood of a caregiver succumbing to caregiver burden.
Seek Help If You Are Dealing With Caregiver Burden
Caregiving is not an easy task. Caregiver burden can negatively impact even the healthiest and most skilled caregivers. Individuals who provide care on their own and don’t have an extensive support system to help need to be especially mindful of their own mental and physical health. Caregiver support groups exist that can provide assistance to help prevent caregiver burden. If a support group is not enough, counseling may be an excellent option to help you deal with the emotional and physical toll caregiving can exact on a caregiver.
Legal And Financial Planning For Nursing Home Assistance
Being a caregiver is not an easy task.
Often times as the physical and mental condition of an elderly loved one will progress beyond what a family caregiver can provide.
In these instances, families usually begin looking for a nursing home that can provide the 24 hour medical care their loved one needs and deserves.
Unfortunately, the cost of nursing home care is incredibly expensive.
In Michigan, the average cost of a nursing home is between $8,000-$9,000 per month. Many families worry about spending their entire life savings and losing the family home just to pay for nursing home costs.
Fortunately, you can protect your savings and home from nursing home costs by qualifying for nursing home benefits to pay for care.
To find out how, please read this article…
If you already know that you want nursing home benefits to pay for care, please call our office at (248) 613-0007 to schedule a free initial case evaluation to find out if we can help you qualify.
Schedule a free case evaluation to see if we can help you qualify for Nursing Home Benefits! Call us now at (248) 613-0007.
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