Respite care can be as simple as having someone stop by to play games with your senior loved one while you step away. Or you may need someone to help with your loved one’s personal hygiene or prepare a meal while you take a break. Caregiving is often a full-time job, and family caregivers need to carve out time for themselves. Knowing about these five reasons family caregivers need respite care can help you see why you need to make this aspect of your loved one’s care plan a priority.
1. Manage Your Health Needs
Your loved one needs a caregiver who is physically and mentally healthy. Yet caregivers are at higher risk for developing health conditions, such as chronic back pain and depression, that interfere with their ability to perform their duties. Whether you need to go for your annual physical or check in with a counselor, you’ll have more time to care for your health when you have a respite caregiver available.
Caring for a senior loved one can be rewarding, but it can also be overwhelming for family caregivers who have other responsibilities they need to focus on. For these families, the perfect solution is Respite Care. Milwaukee families rely on our caregivers whenever they need time to rest, work, run errands, and even go on vacation.
2. Maintain Your Social Ties
If it feels like all of your free time revolves around caring for your loved one, it’s time to take a step back. Family caregivers who have wide networks of family and friends to lean on are less likely to experience burnout. Since caregiving can occupy so much of your time, it’s easy to turn down invitations from people in your social group to the point where they stop asking. With respite care, you can opt to have lunch with your best friend or go to a wedding, which helps you maintain your identity and social support.
3. Attend Work Events
Many caregivers today are still fully immersed in their careers. Having to skip a work conference or delay business travel can hold you back professionally. Making sure you have someone to help out while you manage your career helps you avoid having to make such difficult decisions. Whether you need to work late or meet a client after normal working hours, you’ll feel good knowing your loved one is in safe hands.
4. Ease Tension in Your Relationship
Feeling resentment or experiencing more frequent squabbles are sure signs that caregiving is starting to take a toll on your relationship with your loved one. Most caregivers start out in their roles with the hope that it will bring them closer to their loved ones. Yet you might find yourself starting to regret taking all of this on when you start to feel your relationship get strained. Taking time away from each other by hiring a respite caregiver gives you both the space you need to enjoy spending time together again.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by your caregiving responsibilities, you don’t have to manage everything on your own. Seniors can face a variety of age-related challenges. Though some families choose to take on the caregiving duties, there may come a time when they need a trusted in-home care provider. Families sometimes need respite from their duties so they can focus on their other responsibilities, and some seniors need around-the-clock assistance that their families are not able to provide. Assisting Hands Home Care is here to help.
5. Enhance Your Caregiving Abilities
Burnout can rob you of the ability to provide your loved one with compassionate and competent care. While your loved one is with a respite caregiver, you can also attend support group meetings and educational opportunities that teach you more about your role. You’ll also benefit from having a professional in your loved one’s home you can turn to with your questions. Rounding out your team of support allows both you and your loved one to benefit from having professional in-home care available on a regular basis.
You can boost your long-term effectiveness as a family caregiver by making self-care a priority, and adding a professional caregiver to your support team can help you accomplish that. One of the most challenging tasks of helping an elderly relative age in place safely and comfortably is researching agencies that provide Home Care. Milwaukee families can turn to Assisting Hands Home Care for reliable, high-quality in-home care for aging adults. We offer 24-hour care for seniors who require extensive assistance, and we also offer respite care for family caregivers who need a break from their caregiving duties. To learn about our high-quality in-home care services, give us a call at (262) 228-4467 today.
