When you find yourself suddenly thrust into a caregiver role, it can feel overwhelming. Making time for self-care is essential not only to be a caregiver for your loved one, but to ensure you’re also in good mental, physical, and emotional health.
For the healthcare providers, moms and caregivers caring for loved ones, it’s impossible to give your best if you’re not at your best.
These self-care ideas can provide inspirational and motivational tools to help you navigate what can be a somewhat challenging point in life.
This post is about how to make self-care a necessity, especially when you’re a caregiver.
This is a guest post from our friends at newcaregiver.org be sure to visit their site for more valuable information for anyone who finds themselves in a caregiver role.
Now let’s dive in.
Set a Schedule To Stay Organize
While it can be difficult to set a schedule that stays the same from day to day, having some regular flow can make things easier for both you and the person you’re caring for.
Things like regular schedules for sleeping and waking, having meals, and taking care of personal hygiene can all give structure to the day. This also creates an environment in which you can carve out time specifically for yourself.
Whether you’re working on a hobby, reading quietly, or even just setting aside time to take a shower undisturbed, ensuring there is enough time in each day for self-care will be essential to your overall health and well-being.
Eat Well
You’re likely providing nutritious meals for the person you’re caring for, and you should make it a point to eat well yourself.
According to Home Care Assistance, meal prep can be a lifesaver, and it can help prevent you from grabbing fast food or junk food when you’re rushed or overwhelmed. Stick with whole foods like whole grains, lean meats and dairy, and fresh fruits and vegetables to ensure you’re taking care of your body.
Drink plenty of water and resist the urge to overindulge in alcohol or caffeine, particularly energy drinks, which can keep you up at night and make you feel jittery.
Get Exercise
Making sure you’re getting regular physical activity will be essential to your role as a caregiver. In fact, if the person you’re caring for has some degree of mobility, you may be able to take walks together or participate in other forms of light exercise.
Set up a home gym if you can’t leave the house on a regular basis, but do try to maintain some out-of-house activity.
Being able to get outside and take a walk in the fresh air or meet a friend for a regular exercise date can help protect you from feeling isolated, and you’ll have the social support, as well as the physical activity, to keep you in good spirits.
Because if you’re a healthcare worker, mom or caring for a loved one, it can become mentally and physically draining.
Hire Help
It’s not possible to take care of everything on your own when you’re a caregiver, so hire out where necessary. For example, you might benefit from a grocery delivery service, housekeeping help, or lawn care.
Consider hiring a lawn fertilization service to maintain landscaping and keep the property in tip-top shape. You can read online reviews by searching, before calling service providers to discuss your needs and get written estimates.
Stay Connected
For your own health and well-being, set aside time for stress reduction techniques like yoga and meditation. Also build in time for pursuing joy, happiness, and fun.
If there are hobbies or games or other things that you can do with your loved one to interact and pass the time, incorporate those into your everyday routine.
According to the National Library of Medicine, maintaining relationships with your own circle of friends can help boost your positive outlook, reduce anxiety, and even improve your own personal health and wellbeing.
Sometimes, being a full-time caregiver can become overwhelming. Create a network of friends and family who can help take some of the burdens off of your shoulders as needed.
Many assisted living facilities also offer respite care for caregivers, which can lighten your load. Your loved one’s primary care provider should be able to refer you to qualified providers.
Related: Benefits of Meditation: How it Can Improve Your Life
Final Thoughts On Self-Care For Caregivers
Taking care of your mental and physical health is vital for everyone, but for those in the caregiver role, self-care is vital to do what you do selflessly.
Newcaregiver.org provides tips and insights for first-time caregivers, don’t forget to check them out. The site is a caregiver’s best friend. Visit today to learn why.
