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Managing The Stress ~ Making The Decisions ~ Discovering The Meaning |
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Caregiving |
Solutions To Your Caregiving Situations Throughout Your Caregiving Years |
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2003 Family Caregiver Survey Results Your Experiences in Your Words
What advice would you give to a new caregiver?
Take it one day at a time and don't expect miracles overnight. Be patient and know your care recipient isn't to blame for much of what is happening.
Take care of yourself, and don't do too much.
The Internet is more useful than doctors.
Patience. Don't take on the job if you don't think you can handle it. One doesn't know this until they are into the situation.
Get all the information you can about your the problems you are facing. I find the Internet a wonderful source of information.
Make sure you know yourself and what you can and can't handle before you jump into the caregiving role.
Run!
My only advice would be to take things slowly once treatment is established, and to write down everything that would be important to accomplish both for the person and for the caregiver, and then to prioritize. Because if I knew I only had a short time left with my mom, I would have done things differently and I hope I don't always regret that.
Get as much help as possible, from any source you can, and make time for yourself and the rest of your family, so you are more refreshed when taking care of your care recipient
Be kind to yourself, don't be afraid to ask for help, get out as much as you can.
Read about the disease, get into a support group, make sure you take care of financial issues and know everything you need to know.
Have a sense of humor and make time for yourself.
Be patient.
Take care of yourself and don’t forget to laugh.
Take one day at a time and enjoy the time you have left with your loved one.
Be patient and take care of yourself first.
Pace yourself.
Be flexible--try to be organized but don’t be surprised if you have to change your plans.
Learn the rules but adapt them to your family’s culture.
Keep busy on some interesting hobby.
Join a support group.
Find out as much about the nursing home as possible.
Research information; join a support group; take time for yourself.
Don’t lose your sense of humor.
Make sure you have help and use it.
The more knowledge about what to expect from your patient the better; sit back and prepare for a bumpy ride; grab joy where you can as often as you can and don’t take a day for granted.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help; take care of your own personal health; have regular family meetings.
Listen, be patient and make sure you check out all services offered in the area. There are options and resources. Use them.
Get help. You’re not alone.
Consider what could go wrong and what to do if it does.
Seek help; go to a support group; learn as much as possible about your loved one’s disease.
Keep a positive attitude and keep things as simple as possible.
Seek out others who have been through what you are going through.
Try to introduce early on services such as day care centers, senior clubs, etc.
Learn how to meet bodily needs of patient; ask a professional to teach you.
Think it over very carefully before you jump in.
Don’t expect help from your siblings because you probably won’t get any.
When you feel overwhelmed, remember to breathe.
Make sure you get time for yourself as well as give quality time to care recipient.
Have patience, a big heart and lots of faith.
Make decisions that you can live with: You are important, too.
Get out/take care of yourself first; when you cannot do it anymore, then don’t.
Think long and hard prior to making commitment to having them live with you.
Patience--all falls into place.
You didn’t cause the problems; you can’t fix them.
Care for yourself.
It’s a labor of love and there are joyous times along with the bad.
Do the best you can but remember to take care of yourself; sometimes the people we care for would be happier in a home with others their age.
Pace yourself and be realistic about what you can do.
Don’t lose your sanity trying to be a martyr, doing it all yourself.
Ask for help; forgive yourself when it gets hard and you are tired.
Be sure to take care of your own health and spend time with other people.
Keep your focus; don’t get bogged down; you are doing service unto the Lord. Find a good support group; keep your sense of humor; keep in contact with friends and relatives to prevent isolation. If you could make any changes in your community that would help caregivers, what would they be? What advice would you give to a health care professional who helps family caregivers? What has been your greatest lesson learned as a result of your caregiving experience? |
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