For Caregivers
Caregiving is intense and overwhelming for many people. However, some approaches can help to decrease the load on you, reducing stress and overwhelm, while giving you more time for yourself.
Our posts on this topic have covered many areas, extending far beyond self-care. You can see more in the individual sections or click the button for our summary post.
Self-Care
Self-care conversations have been done to death in caregiving. Some caregivers feel like this is one more thing they should be doing and aren't managing to.
I know this from my own caregiving journey. Self-care is nice in theory, but it's often almost impossible to pull off.
We've taken a different approach in our self-care content, focusing on what is actually realistic for caregivers in difficult situations. This includes our Capacity Model, ways to identify your needs, and the idea of self-compassion.
Other Important Discussions
The list below highlights some of our favorite and most popular pieces, ones that speak to specific caregiving challenges and practical solutions that work in the real world.
Getting Help
Caregivers often feel like they're going it alone, facing challenges that others can't see, much less appreciate. But, the demands are too great for you to meet alone.
To do this well and consistently, you need to find help. While doing so can be difficult, there are resources you can lean on.
Finances
Many caregivers struggle with finances. It's hard not to when you have an extra person to support and your ability to earn often decreases. You may need to cut costs or find unexpected ways to money as a caregiver.
There are also programs that can help with some expenses or provide other types of support. Some may even pay you to provide care.
Tools and Resources
The right tools make everything easier. Thankfully, there are plenty of products designed for caregivers and care recipients, including adaptive clothing and apps.
There are also powerful books for caregivers. Some of these focus on caregiving specifically, while others teach you valuable skills that help with caregiving.
Navigating the Parent-Child Dynamic
Caregiving is strongly relational. As such, the experience is strongly influenced by the connection between you and your parent.
We've covered this topic from multiple angles, including talking about difficult parents, the need for boundary setting, and how to navigate the lessons you learned as a child.