Working Caregivers, the Challenges

An interesting study funded by MetLife Foundation and presented by the National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP: The frequently reported unmet needs of working caregivers are:

34% finding time for myself,
29% balancing work and family responsibilities, and
29% managing emotional and physical stress is a burden.

When I was helping with mom in her care, the biggest issue for me was balancing work and my family responsiblities. This is the reason I cannot understand how a manager at work would comment about separating business from personal life! (REF: A quote in my last blog.)

It's merely impossible to disect one's life into compartments. But I found what we can do is find resources that help us find the balance we seek.

When searching for ways to find time for yourself, as a working caregiver, you may find services that help you make phone calls or provide transportation to run errands or take your elder loved one to a doctor's appointment for you. That would save me a couple of hours to focus on my tasks at work or simply free up some time for me to accomplish personal to dos.

WorkingCaregiver.com is putting together packages and products to help your solve some of these unmet needs. Check back here to read about more options and to find out when these packages are available.

So You're a Caregiver!

Congratulations, you're a caregiver! Welcome to the world of ambiguity and confusion. I'm happy to meet working family caregivers because I know that you understand what caregivers, like me, do and feel each day. We face many moments thinking we're brainless. Not because we're stupid but because elder care is sooooo big and there's soooo much to learn & understand. Just the health issues alone take my breath away and give me headaches.

What's bothersome to me,when meeting people who have never experienced family caregiving, some shrug it off like it's a common chore. It's like having a conversation with a person who doesn't speak my language. Can you imagine telling someone about a rough day at work in English and they only speak and understand Russian? Well, that's what it's like to explain the hardships of caregiving to someone who's never traveled the road.

Here's a quote I read the other day on the Internet... it speaks volumes. “All I hear from my supervisor is that I need to stop letting my personal life affect my business life.” Anonymous male caregiver working full-time.

How does one separate business from personal, when our lives are so related and interdependent? It's not that cut and dry. We have spouses, children, friends, jobs, employers, family, moms & dads.. that all have equal importance to us. It's difficult to put one aside when they're/it's not doing well. Agree? Separate business from personal... isn't it all one? My life!! And it can't be separated, sliced or diced. Trust me, many of us wish caregiving could be put on the shelf. But that's like saying "sorry mom, dad, can't help you out today." Nope, probably won't happen.

Here's a hint: Before talking to the boss about having to take a day off to help mom or dad, be sure you tell them first where you are on a project and how you plan to make up the time lost, especially if the boss has never been in a caregiving role.

WorkingCaregiver.com offers, soon...., many products and solutions to help you balance work, life, and caregiving. It's coming soon... I promise.

Thank you for visiting. Carol

The Buzz on Caregiving Burnout

Most family caregivers are thrown into the endeavor of helping their aging mom, dad, grandparent or relative soon after a senior event. That's what happened to me and my siblings. That's probably, as those of you who have experienced, is the worst time to start searching for elder care issues and solutions. Think about it, if you wait till after a senior event to do your research, aren't your elder care decisions based on emotion rather than a prudent, well thought out plan for the ones you love?

Many of us ignore that ever looming endeavor - caring for an aging relative as long as possible. Why? Because who wants to admit to aging and getting old? Not me! I hate the fact that I'm over 50! There's so much stigma in our society on growing old. Isn't that why we're so interested in topics on ageless and the fountain of youth? I had a friend tell me the other day, she plans to live to 120! I don't know about you but that's a ghastly image!

Well, for me as a family caregiver while working full-time and living at a distance wanted to avoid aging as much as possible. But because I avoided it and did not prepare myself or my family for it, created a huge mess of challenges, stress, and confusion. And not to mention the emotion that shades any good decision.

First, let me say aging and caring for an elder is inevitable and it is in your future. So, accept it. Once that's accomplished, you are half way there to making your caregiving days less stressful and eventally will not experience caregiver burnout easily. This is step one of getting prepared.

There are many valuable resources available to us and that will make your life as a working family caregiver easier. Our website delivers a weekly newsletter called CareBuZZ that's delivered for free to your email inbox on a weekly basis. It's loaded with targeted solutions for elder care. Save it for later or use those tips now. It's yours for free simply sign up at our website Workingcaregiver.com.

And visit here often. More tips on easing the caregiving road ahead. I hope you learn from some of my mistakes and you live stress-less, healther, wiser, and playful. There can't be a better thank you to your aging relative than to see you happier.

Relieving stress in caring,

Carol Marak

Founder, http://www.workingcaregiver.com

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