Avoiding Caregiver Burnout

When is it time to consider more help at home or moving on to assisted living?

The purpose of this article is to recognize signs of burnout as a caregiver!

This comes at a difficult time because we just experienced a tragic event through the eyes of a very tired family. While families desperately want to keep mom or dad at home, it is not always the best idea… because children are sometimes not as capable (or just plain busy), and the children sometimes wear themselves out while trying to do everything for mom or dad because there isn’t anyone to help share that burden.

It is with a very heavy heart that we mourn an amazing man, empathizing with his children after an accidental medication overdose that lead to his death.

“Dad was able to access his sleeping pills while I was outside for ten minutes.” ​

~Spoken by a loving and very tired daughter that forgot to put his medication away while she stepped outside to mow the lawn.

When assisted-living communities or adult foster homes provide the necessary care, you are able to be mom or dad's loving family – not the person managing medications or awkwardly assisting with shower time. You get to have lunch and play cards, instead of feeling an endless amount of exhaustion around caregiving.

In almost every instance, we have seen family dynamics improve exponentially when they decide to seek the help of assisted living, be it in a facility or a foster home.

But if you are the caregiver and you wish to remain the caregiver, please keep reading!

Here are six sign of caregiver burnout according to the AARP:

1. You feel furious one moment, and then sad or helpless the next.

2. You catch every bug that comes your way.

3. You’re snapping at everyone.

4. You know you should exercise, but you just don’t have the time.

5. You can’t remember the last time that you met a friend for dinner or a movie.

6. You’re the go-to caregiver. Always.

You can learn more about this here.

How to avoid caregiver burnout:

1. Find someone that you trust and talk to them about how you feel: friends, co-workers, neighbors, etc.

2. Set reasonable goals and accept that you might need help. You will need help!

3. Be realistic about your capabilities and remind yourself that you are, and should be, family first, caregiver second.

4. Maintain patience and love.

5. Make time for yourself! You cannot provide care and compassion if you are in a constant state of burnout, or if you don’t make time for yourself.

When providing care for our vulnerable adult population, one small mistake (a poor transfer, a medication error, a door left unlocked) can easily lead to serious injury or death.

Don’t let this happen to you or your loved ones.

Take care of yourself and please recognize that many times family is best suited to be family. Love on your loved ones and don’t be afraid of asking for assistance in the form of assisted living.

If you want to consider looking at assisted-living communities or adult foster homes, please get in touch and we can get you started. These communities are worth their weight in gold when you consider the number of times that we have seen relationship dynamics improve 1000% for the better when you get to be the loving daughter instead of the exhausted caretaker.

Our services are 100% FREE for you.

We are local to Southern Oregon and we have physically visited and graded each of your options. We have the insider information that you will want in consideration of making a change, if you wish to do so.