Caregiver Health: April is Physical Wellness Month and for those of you caring for an aging parent, disabled adult child, spouse, or anyone else, the toll it can take on your life is immense.
You may not think about it, or even notice the impact in the beginning, but it’s real.
Stress can affect everyone’s life. In fact, stress affects almost everyone today. Work pressures, financial worries, drive to succeed… just about everywhere you turn you will notice the impact stress has on your life, relationships, career, and, of course, your health.
Why would caring for mom be stressful?
Maybe this is something you’re doing out of a sense of love and affection. Perhaps it’s because you feel obligated, as though it’s your responsibility. After all, many parents sacrificed much for their children, even when those children were full-grown adults.
At first, you didn’t hesitate. You saw there was a need and stepped up to fill that need. At that time, it might not have seemed all that stressful. It was more a matter of stopping by and checking in on her a couple of times a week.
No big deal, right?
However, as often happens among many people, when they start dealing with challenges in life and receive some help, it becomes a bit easier to turn to help for more and more assistance, especially if that helper is willing and able.
Eventually, you may have found that helping your mom was becoming a daily adventure. You started swinging over to her house in the morning, showing up late for work, checking on her with a quick call at lunch that turned into a half-hour conversation, then routine visits in the evening.
Before long, your entire life seemed consumed by supporting her. And that’s where the caregiver-health and stress started creeping in.
Caregiver Health: How can you take better care of yourself?
With that increased stress, you will start feeling the effects physically. It might be tougher to sleep at night. You haven’t had time to exercise in months. Fast food or frozen processed meals could be your ticket to eat nowadays.
None of that is healthy. The older you are, the more these habits are going to negatively impact your physical wellness.
In order to take better care of yourself, you need time. Hiring home care to help look after your mother is the best way to get that time.
When you rely on the support of an agency, an aide could be there in the mornings or evenings to help your mother. Or any time you needed them. Then you can get back to looking after your caregiver-health a little, too.