Caregiver Stress – What It Is And How To Relieve It

The majority of us are caregivers in one way or another. Caring for another person, regardless of their ability, can take a significant toll on our health and functioning, and this happens in many ways.

So, as its name suggests, caregiver stress is just that: the stress that it takes to continue to manage the overall health and well-being of another human.

Caregiver stress is not intentionally experienced and it can be very uncomfortable because often times we love the people we are caring for and never want to feel stressed associated with their care.

Nor do we want to deliver them subpar care and we know that stress can sometimes affect our ability to care well for another person.

Feeling caregiver stress can make us feel guilty, sad, frustrated, and a variety of other validated emotions.

Often, resources are low and the expectation of support that we must provide is quite high. Because the two are not consistent with each other, the stress can pile up and pile up until it begins to feel unmanageable.

While there likely are other support mechanisms available, many times people feel fear or anxiety about speaking up because they remind themselves that the person they are caring for has it so much worse than they do. But this is counterintuitive to the helping cycle.

We must work to reduce the stigma associated with caregiver stress to ensure that everyone’s health and well-being needs are taken care of. This ultimately ensures that the individual who requires care gets access to the highest quality of care deserved.

Who Is Subject To Caregiver Stress?

Anyone who offers support and services to another human whose health or well-being relies on it can experience caregiver stress.

Common examples of people who are informal (meaning not paid to provide a service to the person who needs support) caregivers who may experience stress are as follows:

• Parents to children (especially young children and especially parents with multiple young children)
• Children of adult parents who are aging
• Partners to people experiencing disabilities
• Other family and friends who are supporting a loved one with care needs (including those who are suffering from substance abuse, whether they admit it or not)

Common examples of people who are formal (meaning they are paid to provide the caregiving service) caregivers are as follows:

• Nurses
• Doctors
• Direct care providers
• Teachers
• Social workers
• Foster parents
• Babysitters
• Anyone else who is paid to care for another person whose health and well-being relies upon receiving that service.

Please note that these are not exhaustive lists, but rather common examples of people subject to caregiver stress.

What Are The Signs And Symptoms?

Common signs and symptoms may vary from case to case and will present differently depending on the situation. Some common examples of caregiver stress are as follows:

• Lesser quality care being provided to the individual over time
• Caregiver feels detached from the individual they are providing care to
• Potential abuse or neglect may occur (with or without intention by the caregiver)
• Lack of sleep by the caregiver
• Forgetting to take care of self by the caregiver
• Symptoms of anxiety or depression in the caregiver
• Anger, frustration, or resentment in providing care
• No longer feeling fulfilled by or enjoying activities they once enjoyed
• Calling in sick or missing work
• Physical sickness or pain being experienced by the caregiver

What Ways Can Caregiver Stress Be Relieved?

Caregiver stress can be relieved, but it should be addressed as soon as the caregiver first feels it.

However, people often fail to report stress or seek help until the stress is so significant that the person feels they can no longer provide the caregiving at all.

This can be a very painful realization for many people and this experience is easily avoidable with the right interventions in place. Let’s explore them now.

Respite

Respite is a service often paid for by medical insurance that is both privately and publicly funded.

It’s intended to give primary caregivers a break in care. For example, if a person is caring for an individual with a physical disability, they could hire a respite provider to come in and give care to that individual, paid for by insurance sometimes, so that the person can take a break to care for themselves.

Remember that in order to care well for others, we must first care for ourselves. As the saying goes, you cannot pour from an empty cup.

Respite is a very common service for aging individuals and individuals with disabilities paid for by organizations such as Medicaid and Medicare.

Babysitting Or Daycare

For parents who can afford it, hiring a babysitter regularly or taking your child to a trusted daycare provider can be extremely helpful in reducing burnout and caregiver stress.

Remember that it takes a village to raise a young person and while you technically do it alone, it’s frequently not healthy for you in the longer term.

So, you could try to rely on friends and family or paid babysitters to offer support, especially when your child is young. They could even be babysitting in your home while you are there and simply catching up on sleep.

Whatever works for you is great, but remembering to schedule the time is important.

Regular Time Scheduled For Preferred Activities

You need to continue to do things that you love in order to minimize any caregiving stress. Caregivers should be regularly going to their preferred activities. This could include exercise, getting manicures and pedicures, going to a movie, or whatever the activity is.

In essence, if you loved it before you started caregiving, you need to continue to do it.

So, develop a calendar and plan activities that you prefer. This will help you keep your commitment to care for yourself and do things you enjoy.

And this will ultimately reduce your caregiver stress.

Remember how important it is to have something to look forward to. Your preferred activity should be one of those things, no matter how small or significant the activity is.

Mental Health Services

Mental health services are often one of the most important interventions for caregivers. This could include individual or group therapy. It could include going to a support group for caregivers or seeing a psychiatrist for a prescription to reduce anxiety.

Whatever support you need to maintain your emotional and mental health is what you should receive in order to minimize caregiver stress.

A mental health provider will help you to build in interventions for yourself around how to take care of yourself, how to maintain healthy boundaries with the person or people you are caring for, and how to continue to provide a high quality of care, which is what you likely want.

Mental health services should not be stigmatized. If you are avoiding going because of fear about stigma you can do more research online to find a provider you believe would be a good fit. Start by contacting your insurance provider and asking about your mental health benefits and where to begin.

Sleep Hygiene

Sleep is such an important part of health. If we are not able to consistently sleep well we are more likely to become stressed, anxious, irritable, and frustrated. None of these will help us with our caregiving.

If sleep is difficult for you, try meditation or tea at night.

If you are having to care for your loved one or your clients at night, consider hiring a respite provider who can work overnight so that you get the proper sleep that you need to continue to experience the least amount of caregiver stress.

Conclusion

There are many people who may not consider themselves as caregivers, even though they in fact are – and they may feel stressed out without even realizing that caring for somebody else could be a cause.

I have actually been in this position twice now, albeit for very different reasons, and the way it can wear you down is insidious in nature. You don’t see it happening because it happens gradually – it’s not like you wake up one day and suddenly notice how stressed you are.

This is often why you need somebody else to point it out to you – but this can mean opening up to somebody about how you truly feel.

Whatever your situation, you owe it to yourself (and those you are caring for) to be in tip-top shape – otherwise you may soon be the person needing care.

Additional Resources

These are suggestions for those who wish to delve deeper into any of the above:

1. 5 Steps To Navigate Your Care Giving Journey
2. Caregiver Survival Guide
3. Meditation For Beginners