Caring for a senior family member like a parent or grandparent is a very rewarding and positive experience. However, it does come with a high level of stress and pressure especially for seniors whose condition keeps worsening regardless of how hard you may try. When your family member has a memory-related condition like dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, you may feel overwhelmed when taking care of them. This may affect your personal life and your ties with your family. How will you know that you need respite care for family caregivers? We share some red flags to help you with your decision-making process.
Feeling Stressed Endlessly
Each day, you wake up feeling stressed and your daily routine does not seem to have an end. Stress can cause detrimental implications for your health which are a result of a release of chemicals into your body. You can start feeling your immunity deteriorating and your sleep worsening. These factors may cause you to become overwhelmed and irritable, which may cause heart diseases. Anxiety is also a possible effect of stress which may cause you to fall into depression and fatigue if you do not seek treatment.
Worsening Job Performance
You dread going to work and your work performance has dropped tremendously. Your boss has noticed your poor work performance and has spoken to you on several occasions about your lack of determination and interest in your work. Caregiving is already a full-time commitment and to also fully dedicate a portion of each day to your full-time job can easily wear you down, which leads to you feeling distracted, tired, and anxious.
Declining Physical Health
Here are some signs that show your physical health may be declining:
- Rapid weight gain or loss
- Feeling fatigued at all times
- Abusing alcohol, illegal drugs, or prescription medications
- Falling ill regularly
- Not sleeping or sleeping excessively
These are the symptoms to look out for to signify that your body and mind need a break.
Neglecting Personal Relationships
If you feel that your relationship with your direct family members like your spouse and kids is feeling a little strained and you are losing interest, the stress may have gotten to you. You will dread socializing with others, even with close friends. You will ignore the people whom you used to be close with and you just do not feel like yourself anymore. This is when you know that respite care offered by a senior living community is indeed necessary.
Feeling Guilty and Resentful
Most caregivers will experience a sense of guilt and resentment while caring for a senior loved one which is just part of human nature. Guilt often stems from frustration whereas resentment comes from realizing the tremendous amount of workload you put in daily to care for a senior family member. These are just natural feelings but once they take over, your mental health and well-being may be affected negatively.
Respite Caregiver
Rittenhouse Village At Valparaiso is a trusted senior living facility that offers various senior living options to cater to the varying needs of seniors. Get in touch with our experienced senior living consultants to learn more about our respite care program.
