Honoring Family Caregivers

Family caregivers are champions who tirelessly devote time and energy to ensure their loved ones receive the support they need. Their work is often an act of love that happens quietly, behind the scenes.

National Family Caregivers Month is an opportunity to recognize the invaluable role that family caregivers play in our communities. They are the backbone of countless households, providing essential care that makes it possible for loved ones to remain at home.

Caregivers and What They Do

A family caregiver is anyone who provides unpaid care to a loved one, whether due to the person’s acute or chronic condition, disability, or aging. Such care can range from short-term support after surgery to decades of help for those with long-term or chronic illnesses.

According to the National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP, over 53 million Americans are family caregivers, which is more than 1 in 5 people. Most family caregivers live with or close to their loved ones. In the United States, women make up nearly 60% of caregivers.

Caregivers handle a diverse range of physical and emotional tasks that enable their loved ones to stay in the comfort of their homes for as long as possible. These tasks can include:

• Helping with Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) like overseeing and dispensing medications, assisting with dressing, and aiding with bathing.
• Managing Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs) like meal preparation, housework, and any required transportation.
• Coordinating healthcare appointments and medical treatments, and advocating for their loved ones’ care.
• Continuously educating themselves about their loved one’s condition to provide the best and most appropriate care and support.
• Managing health insurance details and payments.
• Tracking and managing finances.
• Providing regular emotional support to ensure their loved one feels safe and cared for.
• Ensuring legal documents like a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care and Living Will are up to date.

Caregiver Self-Care

Caring for others can be deeply fulfilling but also exhausting. Caregivers can become mentally, physically, and emotionally drained and even suffer burnout unless they prioritize self-care, even if that sometimes feels impossible.

“Burnout can happen super quick, especially when you’re taking care of a parent or a child with special needs,” says Legacy Therapist, Pilar Valenzuela Silva. “The frustration that can happen when your parent or child doesn’t listen to you is super challenging.”

Elderly people and special needs children are resistant to receiving help and as a caretaker, you know they need the help. Caretakers uproot their lives for caregiving and try to be present. Going to all the many appointments and feeling that they’re doing an inefficient job can affect the caregiver and their relationship with the person they’re taking care of. Recognizing that their well-being is as important as the care they provide their loved ones enables them to sustain their caregiving role over the long term.

Some suggestions for self-care:

• Taking regular breaks throughout the day, even if just for 10 minutes.
• Getting a full night of sleep, or the equivalent during the day if caretaking happens at night.
• Maintaining social connections with friends, which can help reduce feelings of isolation and provide support and encouragement.
• Joining a caretaker support group.
• Seeking therapy. Legacy Community Health offers behavioral health services to help caregivers navigate the emotional toll of their responsibilities.

If Needed, Ask Others for Help

Caregivers often feel pressure to handle everything themselves, which can lead to resentment and burnout. To prevent this from happening, it’s important to ask others for help. As much as possible, caregivers should engage other family members, neighbors, or community resources. They can share the load by delegating caretaking simpler tasks that others can assist with or even take complete charge of. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness, but rather a way to ensure loved ones receive the best care possible.

Those who have a caregiver in their life should know that small gestures can go a long way. Even simple acts can help caregivers feel seen and appreciated. Offering to take over a few hours of caretaking responsibilities allows caregivers to rest and have some much-needed personal time. Running errands like grocery shopping or picking up medications can also ease their load, as can cooking a dish that serves as a complete meal and provides leftovers too.

Caregiving can be emotionally challenging as well, so it’s normal to experience a wide range of feelings, even ones that might feel uncomfortable like anxiety, fear, frustration, grief, and even anger. These feelings don’t reflect a lack of love, but rather the heavy responsibility of caregiving.

Caregivers who feel any of these emotions should remember to be kind to themselves and recognize that there is no such thing as “the perfect” caregiver. If, however, these feelings become overwhelming, it’s a good idea to seek counseling and find a more productive way of coping.

Legacy Community Health’s team of psychiatrists, psychologists, and therapists offers a variety of support and treatment services. To set up an appointment call (832) 548-500 or go online to contact one of our many locations directly.

Caregiving During the Holiday Season

The holiday season can be both joyful and tough for caregivers, especially those caring for loved ones with cognitive impairments or terminal illnesses. Adapting holiday traditions to meeting a loved one’s needs can create a festive atmosphere while at the same time reducing stress and creating meaningful memories.

Perhaps a quiet, low-key gathering that accommodates a loved one’s comfort level is a good option or focusing on simpler traditions that won’t overwhelm either the loved one or caregiver. In any case, planning ahead avoids a frantic last-minute rush.

Legacy Community Health’s Support for Caregivers and Their Loved Ones

At Legacy Community Health, we believe that both caregivers and their loved ones deserve the best healthcare possible. We encourage all caregivers to ensure their loved ones receive regular checkups and appropriate medical care. Just as importantly, caregivers should prioritize their own health by scheduling medical appointments and checkups.

We offer a variety of services, such as Primary Care, Senior Care, Vaccinations & Immunizations, Endocrinology, Vision, Dental, Behavioral Health, and others.

If you’re a caregiver, reach out to Legacy Community Health by calling us at (832) 548-5000 or visiting us online. We are here all year around to support you and your family.