Aging is an unavoidable aspect of life and comes to all of us. While many people age healthily and are often able to live independently even in their eighties and nineties, the time will come when the negative effects of aging rear their ugly heads. When that happens, many adult children become caregivers to their aged parents. While doing so is indeed a noble endeavor and strengthens the bonds between you and your elderly loved one, it is not an easy responsibility considering that most family caregivers have full-time jobs to attend to and young children to look after as well. Additionally, many children are unwilling to send their loved ones to an assisted living community because of the stigma that comes with doing so. If all of the above sounds familiar to you, chances are you, or someone you know, is a family caregiver to an elderly loved one. If so, respite care services might just be what you need.
Respite care services such as those provided at Rittenhouse Village At Northside offer support to family caregivers by providing short-term care for their loved ones when they need to take a break, be it to run a half-day personal errand, or to take a well-deserved vacation. While a caregiver might feel a sense of guilt at sending their loved one to respite care, doing so in fact makes one a better caregiver by improving one’s emotional and physical health.
If you notice any of the below-mentioned signs, it is time you consider respite care.
Fatigue
Fatigue is undoubtedly the most common sign of caregiver burnout. Being a caregiver to an elderly loved one is a physically taxing job. For instance, helping them out with activities of daily living such as showering and ambulation might seem easy enough but in fact, they require proper technique and training or you risk injuring not just your loved one, but also yourself. Additionally, the constant worry about your loved one’s condition taking a turn for the worse can be emotionally draining as well. Fatigue can manifest itself in many different ways such as a loss of appetite, or insomnia.
Sudden Changes in Mood
If you find yourself suffering from sudden mood swings, it is time to consider respite care. Being able to regulate your emotions healthily is an important part of being a caregiver. If you find yourself breaking down often while caregiving, you not only put your own well-being at risk but also that of your elderly loved one.
Irritability
If your loved one is suffering from dementia or other memory-related issues, it can result in irritability on the part of the caregiver, especially when information has to be repeated multiple times. Without professional intervention, it could even lead to ill will towards the patient. If you notice that you are getting irritable easily while providing care for your loved one, you should immediately consider respite care, or even sending your loved one to our SHINE® Memory Care program. At Rittenhouse Village At Northside, we provide a variety of senior living options which include not only respite and memory care, but also assisted living.
