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.

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.