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Having Hard Conversations While Caregiving

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Two women stand in the kitchen with cups of coffee, having hard conversations while caregiving.

Having hard conversations while caregiving is key to maintaining healthy family relationships.

Any time you dedicate so much time to caring for a senior member of the family, it is natural for other relationships to take a back seat. After all, there are only 24 hours in a day, and you can only spread yourself so thin. This may result in additional stress, misunderstandings, and hurt feelings.

The answer to overcoming this obstacle is communication. This means having hard conversations while caregiving, which may be uncomfortable but allow the opportunity to air grievances, share feelings, and ultimately reinforce the love you have for each other.

Having Hard Conversations While Caregiving

First, understand that a planned, formal meeting is not necessary for a conversation to be effective. It can be a quick chat while waiting for the coffee to brew. It should not, however, be a triggered response to a stress-inducing incident. Plan to talk about a concern before the stress has an opportunity to build up to an explosive level (or when you’ve had the opportunity to settle down).

Here is an example scenario and how to include a courageous conversation. Your teenage daughter is feeling embarrassed and uncomfortable bringing friends over because of the dementia-related behaviors of your elderly parent. Begin with this brief assessment to gauge the answers for yourself along with your teen:

  • What do we need from each other?
  • What goals do we wish to accomplish from this conversation?
  • What do we have to give and receive?
  • What do we want each other to know?
  • What exactly are each of us feeling and thinking?

Include in your assessment the feelings of the individual in your care as well. In particular, prior to the cognitive decline, determine what your mom would want for you personally as well as your daughter.

With this framework in mind, allow yourself to be honest, authentic, and vulnerable. Listen to each other’s viewpoint respectfully, offer empathy and understanding, and collaborate to create a viable solution.

Is It Better Left Unsaid?

You might feel as though it’s simpler to maintain status quo than to risk upsetting a family member by initiating a challenging conversation. And certainly, situations may arise that are best resolved through another means, like speaking with a professional therapist to unravel your feelings and thoughts before approaching someone else with them. As a general rule of thumb, however, nothing beats open, honest communication to allow you and those you care about to better understand one another.

Let a Responsive Home Care caregiver help you carve out time for the conversations you need with other members of the family by providing skilled, professional in-home care for the person you love. Contact us at (954) 486-6440 for more information regarding our home care in Pompano Beach, Coral Springs, Fort Lauderdale, and the surrounding areas.

Tips to Manage Family Caregiver Stress

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man relaxing listing to headphones

It can be stressful to serve as a family caregiver, so learning how to manage emotions is important.

Stress is bound to happen, and actually, not always a bad thing. After all, as the saying goes, “A diamond is just a piece of charcoal that handled stress exceptionally well.” However, especially for family caregivers, the level of stress can rapidly intensify and be frustrating, and when not managed effectively, lead to big health concerns.

Try these suggestions to lower family caregiver stress and obtain a healthier and more relaxed lifestyle – both for yourself and those you love:

  • Alter your self-talk. Through the course of your day, you will probably find yourself entertaining thoughts such as, “I cannot accomplish this!” or “Everything is going wrong!” Stop when negative thinking starts to intrude, and say to yourself instead, “I’m able to take care of this, one step at a time,” or “Help is available whenever I require it.”
  • Take a break. Deescalate stress through any or all of the following strategies:
    • Breathe deeply (breathe in to a count of 4; hold for a count of 4; exhale to a count of 4; hold for a count of 4; repeat as needed)
    • Take a walk or take part in some other regular exercise
    • Pray or meditate
    • Play favorite music
    • Write in a journal
    • Contact a good friend
  • Try a stress-busting activity. There are a variety of pleasing activities that will divert your focus away from what was leading to stress and onto things more positive, such as creating art, reading, enjoying pets or children, doing work in the yard or on a DIY project – the possibilities are endless, and even as little as 10 or 15 minutes invested in the activity will help.

There are even apps especially developed with family caregivers in mind to help minimize stress and restore calm. Find five which can be particularly effective here from DailyCaring.

Caregiver stress is very common for individuals who feel as though they have no support system, and have to handle everything independently. Fortunately, we have an answer! Call Responsive Home Care for an in-home consultation to learn more about how we can share in your caregiving duties, enabling you to gain important time away to destress, with our services that include:

  • Planning and cooking wholesome meals
  • Assistance with personal care and hygiene
  • Taking care of housekeeping chores and laundry
  • Accompaniment to medical appointments and interesting outings
  • Companionship to brighten each day with conversations, games, puzzles, hobbies, etc.
  • Medication reminders
  • And so much more

Call us at 954-486-6440 for home care assistance in Fort Lauderdale and the surrounding areas. Learn how a partner in care can make a world of difference in eliminating stress and restoring a healthy life balance for family care providers.