We are going to discuss the importance of caregiving by taking care for fathers, mothers, partners, or relatives who are terminally ill or who have agreed to something easy. Not infrequently, it takes a long time so they can really recover. A few months, even several years, you can spend be beside them.
Your new duty can take up your life, and make you vulnerable to stress and frustration. Actually, in conditions like this, you also have to take care of yourself. Come on, see below what you can do to overcome it!
1. Difficulty and Importance of Caregiving
1. You won’t be able to do it alone. Do not ask for help immediately. You can really like this person you care for, so you want to accept them. If you care for your parents, Southeast Asian culture that requires dedicated children will make you responsible for doing what is best for them. You want to be the first person they see when they wake up, and the last person to be by their side before they go to sleep. You must also ensure that all matters relating to their care are under your supervision.
Unfortunately, you are not a robot or a sophisticated computer. You have limited energy and time. Do things that you think are essential, and trust others to be satisfied.
You must remember that besides you, there are also many who love the person you care for. Leave it like bathing or asking for a trip you can entrust it to other members of your family. Do not hesitate to accept help from others, for example, if your uncle wants to ask them to walk to the park for a few hours.
2. Your Frustration is Valid
When you become a caregiver, you will be asked to put the interests of the person you care for according to your own needs. This can make you frustrated. Especially if the person you care for – whether because of his illness or personality – is unacceptable because you sacrifice a lot for him.
You will feel bored, tired, angry, and want to be alone.
You are not selfish just because you have felt like this. You don’t stop loving your parents, your husband or wife, your spouse, or your brother just because of the hope that you can temporarily fight your head.
This is a sign that you are human. Do not give up.
3. Share Your Experience
Share your experience of with people or organizations who can understand Depression, cancer, Alzheimer’s, to paralysis of the body can affect anyone. The person you care for is definitely not the only sufferer; You are also not the only experienced human to treat someone with the disease.
Share your experience caring for and loving all this time with those who are in a similar situation. This can make you realize that you are not alone. In addition, you will have a place to complain or share information.
For example, if you are confused about your father’s tantrums who suffer from Alzheimer’s, you can ask fellow “caregivers” about what you should do.
Also look for organizations or institutions in your city that have an interest in the illnesses of the people you care for. With this organization, you can participate in raising public awareness about the disease. For example, when the organization wants to hold a Run For Diabetes competition or a Rock Against Cancer concert in your city, you can help them raise funds. Certainly beautiful to be a useful human being for others.
4. Make Your Loved One’s Your Strength
When you feel you are almost over your “threshold”, take a deep breath and exhale. Contact other family members, or your closest friends. Tell them honestly how you feel, and bring out the things that you’ve been buried or questioned. You need moral support to stay strong. Staying connected with family or closest friends can greatly help your business.
5. Take Your Time to Take Care of Yourself
Spending most of your time caring for others will not make you able to deny your own needs. You still need adequate rest, have a good night’s sleep, eat nutritious food, and have time for yourself. You still have the right to watch favorite TV shows, listen to pleasant music, and go to the mall once in a while. This is not at all selfish behavior. If you fail to take care of your own physical and mental health which can be help by clean house, you also will not be able to care for your loved ones to the full.
6. Make a Moment Full of Surprises
Make a moment full of surprises with the person you care for – even if his body is lying on a hospital bed.
Do not let the disaster that befell your loved ones make you miss the chance to have fun. Routine visits to hospitals, mandatory consultations to doctors, dialysis, physiotherapy, antidepressant drugs, anti-anxiety, antipsychotics: none of these can take away your right or the person you care for to do something fun.
Once in a while, take your parents to eat in a good restaurant. Invite your boyfriend to take a selfie while he is lying in a hospital bed. Put loud music in your grandma’s room, and invite her to karaoke dozens of songs. Remind yourself and them that there is always a reason to be happy.
Caring for people who suffer from calamities or are terminally ill cannot be done without caring for yourself, and your sincere love for that person. Hopefully, the tips above can ease your burden. Everything can always be okay.
By following this guide you can understand the importance of caregiving and the ways how you can do it.
Madawa is the place to find help, if you need help or want a caregiver in Thailand or Bangkok then you are in the right place Madawa offers elderly care, housekeeping, and other services to help you live in peace. We also offer English-speaking caregivers and other services.
Contact us for more detail!