Stress and the Caregiver: Great tips to ease the stress of the caregiver's job

Stress and Your Immune System
Linda Slota, Director

The relationship between emotional stress and depressed immune function recently has become an area of intense research interest. For many decades there were reports of increased incidence of infection and malignancy associated with periods of both intense stress and relatively minor stress. Now...research has found that prolonged stress or severe stress has been shown to weaken the immune system, strain the heart, damage memory cells in the brain and deposit fat at the waist rather than the hips and buttocks.

Therefore, stress has been implicated in aging, depression, heart disease, rheumatoid and diabetes, among other illnesses.

Stress And The Caregiver 

Caring for a person with an on-going illness or for an older adult can be very stressful. These tips will help you manage the difficult job of caregiving.

Talk with Other Caregivers

Talking about the stresses of caregiving can give you a great deal of relief; join a support group. Sharing with others who are going through the same kinds of things can help you feel better. You may also learn new ways to cope; you may want to talk with a friend or relative, or, you may be more comfortable talking with a counselor.

Take Care of Youself

Make sure you take time off from caregiving. Time to yourself is essential; by taking breaks, you will be able to avoid "burnout" and do a better job of caregiving; you will also be saving your health and emotional well being; consider hiring a health aide to give you a regular break; don't forget to take care of yourself; get regular checkups - your health is also important.

Ask for Help

Careginging is a huge job and it is too much to do alone; ask family or friends to pitch in. Make a list of ways they can help.  Have it ready when they offer; use respite services. Contact your local social services to find out about respite care, adult day care and other resources in your area.

Learn To Let Go

Focus on those things that are most important. Let go of less important commitments; accept that you may not be able to do things the way you used to. For example, you may not be able to clean your house as often or do the dishes after every meal.

Rest As Much As You Can

Without good rest, you will quickly wear down. Help the person you are caring for get on a sleep schedule so that you can too; if possibe sleep in a different room. use a monitor to let you know if the person wakes up; have someone else stay with the person one or two nights a week so that you can catch up on sleep.

Eat Well

Food is our body's fuel. Without good food, we quickly wear down; eat regular, healthy meals. Make sure you get plenty of fruits, vegetables, grains and protein; avoid eating too much sugar, fat and salt; avoid foods and drinks with caffeine.

Avoid Alcohol

Alcohol and other drugs may seem like they are helping stress. But in the long run, they will wear  your body down. If you are using alcohol or other drugs to help you deal with stress, talk to your doctor or a counselor!

Keep Your Sense of Humor

Try to find humor in difficult situations; spend time with friends who are fun and make you laugh; laughter can actually release chemicals in your body that will help you feel better.

Exercise

Exercise is one of the best ways to reduce stress. Even a few minutes a day can help; try walking. Walking with friends will give you a social outlet as well as exercise; if you can't leave your house or caregiving duties, you can exercise by stretching, walking or jogging in place; if the person you are caring for needs exercise, do it togethr. Try walking, dancing or seated exercises.

Be Good To Yourself

You are doing a tough job and you deserve a reward; buy yourself flowers, go out to dinner or watch a sunset; think about what you can do for yourself or what others can do for you that will make you feel good. Then make it a priority!