Caregiving Corner: Five tips to get through a difficult caregiving day
By Medicine Hat News on August 11, 2017.
On a good day, caregiving can involve injections, meal preparation, feeding, and dressing. On a bad day it can mean a trip to the emergency room, not having home care show up, serious reactions to medication and anger and frustration thrown your way from your loved one. What do you do when it gets too much, when you feel like you just can’t take it anymore? When it happens, you might want to grab your shoes and coat and run away. I did that once. Well, I didn’t run away. I did go for a drive. I couldn’t stay in that room one second more with my husband yelling at me about my poor attitude. I was doing my best, I really was. I’d hit my tipping point when I had a run-in with my boss, had been working late putting together a funding proposal, trying to keep up with all the medical appointments and treatment schedules, and cope with the worry and fear about my husband dying. It got to me, it really got to me. And then he had the nerve to say I had a bad attitude. I got out of there before I said or did something I would really regret. I drove to the Toys R Us and bought a playpen for soon-to-be-born grandchild. I cried all the way there and all the way home. There had to be better ways to cope than running away. Here are five tips: Write Write about how you are feeling, whatever comes to mind, or even write a fiction story. Writing a blog can be very healing. Music When you are really frantic and worried, listening to some calming, spa-like music will help. If you are angry and frustrating, some loud rock might get you rid of the energy building up. There’s nothing like a sad country song to help you cry. Tears heal. Talking it out “Phone a friend.” Sometimes you need that shoulder to cry on and someone with a good listening ear to help you through some of these difficult days. You don’t have to go through this alone. Pound the pillow There is nothing like having a good, safe, scream and pounding session. Make sure you aren’t going to alarm anyone with the noise they may hear. Find your safe place, grab a pillow, and pound and yell as much as you can, for as long as you can. This helps release pent up energy and emotion and help clear your mind. Gratitude Moving into a state of gratitude is the quickest and most effective way to deal with a difficult day. Pretend to “breathe” in and out of your heart, and draw to your mind something that your are really grateful for. When you have that feeling in your heart, write down three to five things that you are grateful for. Lorna Scott is a caregiver strategist with The Caregiver’s Lighthouse, author of the best selling book Walking the Journey Together É Alone. She can be reached at Lorna@TheCaregiversLighthouse.com, 403-548-8437 18-17
