Call it awareness, attention, focus, presence, or vigilance. It's proving to be a powerful and effective practice in coping with stress. Caregiving can easily top the charts on stress, especially for caregivers of elders with chronic illness and dementia. Mindfulness for caregivers means learning to live in the moment, accept the reality of a situation, and filter out distractions.
Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, Caregiver, compassionate touch, Dementia Live, Centering, Stress, families, Mindfulness
Caregivers of older adults are some of the most selfless, committed people on the planet. Simply put, not everyone is cut out to be a caregiver. The problem lies in the fact that some caregivers believe they are the only ones who can care properly for their family member. This is often referred to as Caregiver Martyr Syndrome.
Topics: The Faith Community, AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, dementia, caregiver martyr syndrome, Faith Community
Losing sleep, poor eating habits, irritability or short tempered - these symptoms may start small and snowball quickly into what is referred to as caregiver burnout. Professionals and families need to know what to look for and how to help caregivers. It's a serious matter and growing, as more families are caring for their loved ones at home with little or no help.
Topics: The Faith Community, AGE-u-cate Training Institute, dementia care, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, Senior Care, Dementia Live, Hospital Professionals, Stress, Burnout, Alzheimer's Association, elder care, education, resources, dementia training, Area Agencies on Aging
The rapid pace of our aging world is changing the face of every facet of our society from health and long term care, to faith communities and business establishments. Across the spectrum, issues such as these are at the forefront of leadership discussions:
Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, Aging in the Workplace, compassionate touch, Dementia Live, Professional Caregiver, Hospital Professionals, Faith Community, Age friendly business, elder care, long term care, Dementia friendly hospital
Looking back to my years a family caregiver, I wonder if I'd worn a badge that read "Fragile - Handle with Care", it might have been easier for others to understand me. Why I often had puffy eyes from crying, or scatter brained from sleep deprivation. I can remember a certain period of time when I was issued a number of traffic violations...speeding through a school zone of all things (my children were both in elementary school at the time). Thank goodness this was before cell phones. There were times when I simply wasn't myself. I was emotional, physically and spiritually worn out and burned out. Thinking clearly was often a challenge because I was overwhelmed.
Topics: The Faith Community, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, family caregivers, education, resources, understanding, support
Our pets are like members of the family. Meet Sadie - our vivacious, furry family member pictured here at 3 months old. Labrador Retrievers at this age are a non-stop ball of energy. Leave a sock on the floor and it instantly becomes a pile of thread, or a new game of hide and seek. Strangers? I don't think Sadie ever knew that word existed. Water? That's meant for swimming.. endlessly.
Topics: The Family Caregiver, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, Senior Care, Hospice, Pets, grieving
I use the term inside-out a LOT. It just seems to fit many descriptives for me. I also like transformative change. When you look at these together, I believe that so much of what we are doing as educators in the elder care field should be focused on helping organizations bring about inside-out changes that lead to transformation or deep culture change. I love the work being done through such organizations at Pioneer Network, Leading Age, Eden Alternative and so many others that have stepped up to create out of the box initiatives and thinking. It's not an easy task, but I'm privileged to be a part of this movement and work alongside organizations across the country who are taking bold steps in person-centered care. It's exciting, challenging, sometimes daunting - but the efforts of just one person can have exponential effects across an organization. Hats off to all of those who are blazing new trails!
Topics: The Family Caregiver, Family Caregiver, Caregiver
