The average family caregiver in the United States is female and around 48 years of age (Forbes). That may not seem like a big deal, but the older a person is, when they take on this incredible responsibility, it can have a direct and negative impact on their health.
If you are a family caregiver, perhaps looking after your spouse, aging parent, a grandparent, a brother or sister, or even a disabled adult child, you notice right away just how difficult the job can be. You often get stressed, worn out, and maybe even frustrated regularly.
Make no mistake, stress can cause a wide range of health issues. It can increase the risk of heart attack, stroke, hypertension, high blood pressure, and more serious health impacts as well.
If you notice that your health is not what it used to be and you have been acting as a family caregiver for many months, possibly even years, you might just put two and two together to realize it may very well be the work you’re doing to support this aging senior in your life and not just the natural process of aging for yourself.
Is there anything you can do about it? Absolutely. Live-in home care can make a difference. The right home care can help seniors get the support they need, allow them to stay home if that’s where they want to be, and give you the time necessary to focus on you and your health.
It can help pick up some of the slack.
You probably never thought twice about being a family caregiver when the time came. This was just something you needed to do, something that came naturally to you. Maybe you thought of it as your responsibility and didn’t feel like you had any other choice.
Either way, when you first started, maybe you hoped or thought somebody else in the family would assist as well. But, the more you did it, the more other people saw that things were covered, that they didn’t have to volunteer to assist with anything.
Months or years later, you have found yourself struggling to keep up with your work, home responsibilities, relationships, and it doesn’t seem that you are ever able to do enough for this aging senior.
The right live-in home care can help pick up some of the slack and even allow you to once again focus on other things that are also important to you, such as your personal relationships and career.
It can offer a consistent level of care for the senior.
You may stop by a few days a week on your way to work and then other days on your way home. Is it all consistent? Or does it fluctuate based on your own schedule and priorities that come up with work, raising children of your own, or other issues?
With a professional home care support network, your aging loved one would have somebody stopping by at the same time, for the same length of time, on the same schedule each week. That can be crucial for aging men and women dealing with a variety of challenges.
It may offer encouragement for you.
You may discover that turning to an experienced home care provider encourages you. You might question whether some of the things you were doing to support the senior were right or not. You may realize you’ve been doing a great job all this time.
And, you may just learn that the elder care provider keeps you in the loop, shows gratitude for all you have done, and perhaps even offers insights into certain strategies that could be effective not just for the senior, but you and your life as you get older each year.
Amelia Home Care provides traditional Live-In Home Care in Queens, NY, along with virtual caregiving and remote patient monitoring. Our service area includes Brooklyn, Bronx, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island, and Westchester County. Call today at (929) 333-3955
We proudly provide non-medical home care services to individuals with disabilities, injuries, difficulties with mobility, or illnesses. Our team is composed of highly trained and competent staff members who are dedicated and experts in delivering home care services in the comfort of our client’s home.
Through our personalized care plan, we can give you the needed care services that are all intended to cater to your unique personal and health needs. With us, we ensure around-the-clock services and supervision to help you achieve optimum health and wellness.
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