thrive geriatric care management: Let's Talk About Self-Care

Let’s Explore Self-Care!

During many phases of our lives we are caring, or in the least partially caring, for another. It is of vital importance that while doing that that we care FOR OURSELVES FIRST. This is illustrated easiest by looking at traveling by airplane. They always tell us that in case of emergency when the air masks drop we need to put ours on first before we assist others. In that situation it is literally of life or death importance that we put ourselves first. In our daily experiences it may not seem to be that way; however I would argue that it is of equal importance.

Some people can struggle, in particular caregivers, with putting themselves first, so until that becomes comfortable to do so in its own right, it can be useful to view it in a slightly different perspective: if you take better/best care of yourself, you will be better able to care for your loved ones. Eventually the goal of course is to take care of oneself for that alone, but this is a perfectly healthy placeholder in the meantime.

Speaking of caregivers, they can be more prone to experiencing some issues regarding their own health, such as:

-sleep deprivation

-poor eating habits

-failure to exercise

-failure to rest when ill

-postponement of failure in scheduling personal medical appointments

There are various reasons for these issues. A few include, the physical demands of the work, the prolonged emotional and mental stressors, ignoring one own’s self in order to keep up with the caregiving work for their loved one.

While you are not able to stop progressive illnesses or the impact of a chronic condition, there are several things that you can do to take responsibility to meet your own personal well-being needs and assuring that they are being met.

We’d like to offer 4 tools that can be effective in developing an increased capacity and utilization of self-care.

TOOL #1: BETTER MANAGEMENT OF PERSONAL STRESS: Our individual levels of dress can be influenced by many factors. Our own perceptions and how we perceive and respond to events in our lives are major factors in how we cope and adjust to what happens. We are not able to remove all stress from our lives; however we are able to use various techniques to better manage the stress we do experience. Some such tools include:

-Identify sources of stress.

-Differentiate what sources of stress you can and cannot change and control. It is helpful to keep in mind that we can only control ourselves. While we can frequently not control what is going on in our lives, we are able to sometimes make some change, no matter how small, that can at least help us feel more in control

-Take action. Stress reducing activities can be simple activities such as walking, gardening, meditation, having coffee with a friend, etc. These strategies work differently for each individual, so it is important to know what works for you.

TOOL#2: SETTING GOALS: Deciding what you would like to do in the next few months is an important step you can use to take care of yourself. Some examples of goals or action steps can include making an appointment for a medical checkup, walk 3 times a week for 20 minutes or take half an hour break once during the week where you completely “unplug.”

TOOL #3: SEEK SOLUTIONS: One of the most important tools in life, and in particular in caregiving, is solving problems or resolving issues.

TOOL #4: ASK FOR AND ACCEPT HELP: Asking for help is something that people can really struggle with. Think about in your own life if you’ve ever been offered assistance, no matter how minimal, and you replied, “thank you but I’m fine,” or “no thanks.” Many adults, caregivers in particular, don’t know how to accept, much less ask for help.

Here are some tips on how to ask for help:

-if you know a particular person enjoys cooking or dislikes driving, try to ask for favors that line up with a person’s abilities and likes

-keep a list prepared of things that need doing, the list might include errands, yard work, or a visit with your loved one. Let the person offering help choose what they’d like to do.

Try to remember that it is absolutely NOT selfish to focus on your own needs and desires, even (maybe even especially) when, you are a caregiver.

We are all responsible for our own self-care— nobody can do that for us.

Here is a list of activities that sums up this article:

-learn (AND USE) stress reduction techniques such as meditation, yoga, etc

-attend to your own medical needs

-rest properly

-take time for yourself without feeling guilty

-seek support when you need it

-set goals and the action steps needed to reach the goals

-participate in pleasant, restful activities such as reading a good book or taking a warm bath.

If you come up with any other useful techniques, please feel free to leave them as a suggestion in the comment section below this posting.

Please check in for our next blog post coming SOON.