Looking After Yourself: Care and Well-being Tips for Non-Professional Carers
Caring for a loved one can be a demanding job. You have to be in tip-top condition. If you are physically and mentally well, you can provide quality care to your loved one or client without feeling burned out or emotionally exhausted.
As a carer, it’s important that you live a fulfilling life outside of your caregiving role. Never feel guilty when you take time off for yourself. In fact, many people who receive care feel more at ease when they know that you—their caregiver—are happy and healthy.
While it’s impossible to perform your day-to-day tasks without feeling an ounce of stress, there are things you can do to make the challenges more manageable. Read the article below to learn a few actionable tips to improve your well-being as a carer.
In this article:
Physical Well-being
Mental Well-being
Other Forms of Support
Physical Well-being
As you care for someone, it is easy to put their needs before yours. This can lead to a stress build-up that will affect your physical well-being. Nobody wants this!
Here are some practical tips you can start doing right now to stay on top of your physical health.
Stick to a healthy diet
Sticking to a healthy, balanced diet ensures that you get the right nutrition every single day. This will give you enough energy to perform your day-to-day care tasks. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a balanced diet per day consists of the following:
at least five portions of fruits and vegetables
less than 10% of total energy intake from sugars
less than 30% of total energy intake from fats
less than 5 grams of salt
To help you eat more fruits and vegetables each day, consider switching your processed snacks for apple or carrot sticks. Reaching for an apple instead of a slice of cake during your break helps lessen your sugar intake, too. You can also moderate your fat intake by choosing to eat baked or steamed foods over those that are fried.
Exercise regularly
Keeping yourself active while you’re looking after a loved one isn’t as hard you might imagine. For example, you can consider biking to their home/your workplace. While your elderly loved one is asleep, you can throw in a few floor exercises like push-ups, crunches, and lunges. You can even walk up and down the stairs of their home!
Get enough sleep
According to the Mayo Clinic, adults should have at least seven hours of sleep each night. As a carer, this might be hard to achieve. But a good way to start is to set a bedtime for yourself and stick to it. As you get into bed, put down your mobile device, so you’re not stimulated to stay awake.
Control your alcohol intake
Alcohol dulls your senses and makes it hard for you to focus on your tasks. Many people enjoy a glass of wine with dinner or a beer to finish the day, but moderate your intake so you don't exceed the recommended max. of 10 standard drinks per week, with maximum four in any one day. Obviously timing is critically important so you don't impair your ability to care for your loved one; wait until after your duties are done for the day.
Mental Well-being
Caring for a loved one can also take a toll on your mental and emotional well-being. While being a carer sometimes means putting someone else’s needs before yours, it’s always a good idea to prioritise your needs once in a while, especially when it comes to your mental health.
One of the best ways to build your mental resilience is to talk to someone about your feelings. You can turn to close friends or other family members to de-stress. Talking with a professional counsellor is also an excellent option, especially when you feel that things are too heavy to handle on your own.
Consulting a professional can help as they can provide:
Strategies that help you manage stress
Avenues to safely express your feelings
Advice to help you balance your responsibilities
Whether it be something you do indoors or outdoors, having a hobby is also a good way to take a mental break from your caregiving duties. Try setting aside a day in the week you’ll dedicate to your hobby.
Other Forms of Support
Apart from maintaining your physical and mental well-being, you can also avail of other forms of support as a carer.
Joining carer support groups
Sharing your experiences with other carers is a great way to de-stress. If you feel the need to exchange stories with your fellow carers, joining a carer support group is a great option. You can learn so many things and feel a lot better when you talk to carers who have the same experiences as you do.
If you’re in Australia, here’s a list of carer support groups you can consider joining:
Here’s a list of carer support groups you can consider if you’re based in New Zealand:
Applying for a carer allowance
Services Australia, a government entity that provides people with access to health services at little to no cost, also offers a carer allowance for Australians who care for someone who has a disability, serious illness, or frail aged.
The allowance is given fortnightly, amounting to $131.90 each fortnight as a way to help support you and your loved one’s extra needs. To qualify for the carer allowance, you must:
Pass an income test,
Be caring for someone who needs your assistance for at least 12 months, and
Be caring for someone whose care needs score is high enough on the adult or child assessment tools.
To learn more about Services Australia’s carer’s allowance program, visit their website via this link.
For those in New Zealand, there are also resources and supports available through the Ministry of Social Development
Key Takeaways
As a carer, it’s almost second nature to put someone else’s needs before your own. But if there’s one thing you need to remind yourself, it’s this—it’s definitely OKAY to look after yourself, too. Think of it this way; you can’t possibly take care of your loved one as best as you can if you aren’t physically and mentally well.
You must look after yourself. Eat healthily, exercise daily, and sleep well to maintain your physical well-being. Keep yourself mentally in check by maintaining a hobby and talking to your friends and colleagues. If the need arises, contact Services Australia or the NZ Ministry of Social Development and ask about their support and allowance programs.
At Tunstall Healthcare, we offer a variety of monitoring solutions, such as personal alarms and fall detector, to help make caring for a loved one worry-free. Contact us to learn more about our services today.
