FREE webinar on May 1st at 2pm Eastern time - Caregiver Burnout and your health

Please join us for a free webinar on May 1st at 2pm Eastern time. Toronto -York region 905-597-5825  

Caregiving by the numbers: 66% are women; family caregivers provide 20 hours of unpaid in-home care; caring for an Alzheimer's patient can shorten a person's life by 4 to 8 years. 46% of caregivers have clinical depression.

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Join Us for a FREE Webinar

Tuesday, May 1st at 11am PST / 2pm EST

Register Now

Webinar will cover Caregiver Burnout and how to protect your health, presented by Dr. Hoblyn.

The webinar will be presented by Dr. Hoblyn, chief medical officer of eTherapi.com, which offers access to professional psychotherapy via online video conferencing for adults seeking to improve their emotional and mental wellbeing. Dr. Hoblyn is a psychiatrist with expertise in treating adults with mental health conditions. She currently oversees the Inpatient Mental Health Services at the Palo Alto VA and is on Faculty as an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine.

Dr. Hoblyn also has a background in public health and is very committed to improving global access to mental health services for all. She has practiced in the US and Europe and has a comprehensive understanding of healthcare service delivery models. She has degrees from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, University College Dublin Ireland and the University of California at Berkeley. She has authored and co-authored over 30 papers, books and book chapters in the field and is an investigator on several funded research studies examining mental health outcomes and cognitive functioning.

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Caregiver Burnout and How to Protect Your Health

There are currently 75 million adults in North America alone who are caring for an elderly, chronically ill or disabled family member and the vast majority are also raising children and holding down full-time jobs. Many of these family caregivers report symptoms of depression, high levels of stress and general feeling of being overburdened—Does this sound like you or someone that you know?

If you are part of the “sandwich generation”, defined as a generation of people who care for their aging parents while supporting their own children and juggling other life responsibilities, the pressure to “do it all” places you at risk for physical and mental health detriments. Many family caregivers report that they feel alone and unsure of what resources are available to them and what steps they can take to decrease their stress levels. Knowing the signs of caregiver burnout and becoming knowledgeable about the steps to prevent caregiver burnout are paramount in ensuring your own health so that you can better care for the health and wellness of your loved one.

The Signs of Burnout

Psychologists define burnout as “a debilitating psychological condition brought about by unrelieved stress.” Because burnout is not tangible—burnout isn’t immediately, outwardly apparent in the way that sore throat or rash are, for example, family caregivers can often deny or simply be unaware of the signs of burnout. Sometimes burnout is noticed first by other family members and friends around you. Pay attention to these warning signs:

·         - Feeling pessimistic and dissatisfied

·         - Decreased energy or emotional exhaustion

·         - Withdrawing from friends or social interactions

·         - Loss of interest in work or enjoyable activities

·         - Increased use of alcohol or medication to relax

·         - Becoming impatient, irritable, or argumentative

·         - Lowered resistance to illness

Preventing Burnout

The most important step that you can take to combat burnout is to closely monitor your stress level. A high stress level lowers resistance to disease and leads to fatigue, depression and eventually, burnout. The following strategies can help:

Find a caregiver support group.
Most communities have services or groups where you can confide in others who are also caregivers and receive emotional support. Call your local senior center, area Agency on Aging, hospital senior services, physician or church. If you can’t leave the house, search the Internet for support groups.

Set reasonable limits. 
You can’t be a successful caregiver if you give until there is nothing left. Be realistic about how much time and energy you can devote to care giving and know when you need to pull back and tend to your own needs. Prioritize tasks so that you have a manageable load of activities to plan.

Take care of your health.
You owe it to yourself to make time for your own heath. Take a walk or do some form of regular exercise at least 20 minutes, two or three times a week. Be sure to eat a variety of foods, including the 7 super foods—blueberries, dark chocolate, fish, nuts, eggs, vegetables and flax seed. Also make sure to get at least seven to eight hours of sleep per night.

Incorporate joy into your life.
Do things you enjoy on a daily basis. Listen to music, garden, cook, go see a movie, or just walk the dog. Think about activities you’ve done in the past that you found enjoyable and try to find the time to continue to partake in these activities.

Start a journal.
Writing is a great way to express emotion and regain perspective. Caregivers often feel conflicting emotions. Write down what you feel and accept the good and the bad. You might even start your own caregiving blog—this is a good medium for expression that also serves the prosocial purpose of letting other family caregivers know they are not alone.

Reach out for help.

There are a many resources for help with care-giving responsibilities. Call a friend, family member, or even a volunteer from a senior center or church and suggest specific things that they can do to help you. You can also hire a caregiver from a reputable home care agency, such as the leading provider of in-home respite care, Home Care Assistance, to provide respite care so that you can recharge.

Evaluate the impact that caregiving has on your life with this assessment.

Take Assessment Now

If you are one of the millions of family caregivers experiencing clinically significant symptoms of depression, a weakened immune system, increased stress levels or sleep deprivation, you may be experiencing "burnout".

Being an effective, yet responsible caregiver means learning how to take care of yourself first so that you can provide healthy support and compassion to others. These strategies will help you become a better caregiver and avoid the debilitating effects of burnout.

As part of our mission in changing the way the world ages, it’s important that we not only provide older adults high caliber care that enables them to live happier, healthier lives at home, but that we also advocate for the quality of life of the professional and family care providers who provide care day in and day out.

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