Burnout

Burnout, and compassion fatigue, at various degrees, is a common experience for caregivers. Caregivers think that they should not be feeling this way, and so they hold these feelings in. They may be afraid that if they slow down or try to delegate, their loved one won't get the care that they need. They fear that they will somehow drop the ball, and then feel guilty if "something bad happens." Doctors often tell me that they worry as much, or more, about the caregivers of Alzheimer's patients as they do the patients.

Let yourself feel the fatigue and frustration of caregiving. Talk to an objective third party, vent if you need to. Get some breaks here and there, a day or two off. Take care of yourself.

Wake up.

Caregiving is a spiritual experience in so many ways. It forces us to look at our basic beliefs about life, to face the reality of decline and death that up until this moment had been abstract. For many of us, this can be a time of spiritual awakening.

The disappointments and sorrows of life make the present moment that much more precious!