SCH 023 Six Hacks to Help You Avoid Caregiver Burnout

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Ever heard of caregiver burnout? Or maybe caregiver fatigue? If you are a family caregiver, these hacks are for you. If you know a family caregiver, these hacks are for you, too!

This month on the Self-Care Hacks Podcast I’ll interview family caregivers in celebration of National Family Caregivers Month.

What IS a Family Caregiver?

A family caregiver is someone who cares for a family member who has experienced a mental, physical, or emotional debilitation. Parents who care for a child with cancer or birth defect. A child who assists in the care of a sibling, parent, or grandparent who has special needs. A middle-aged woman who cares for her family AND her parents or in-laws.

The range of care can go from taking an elderly parent to the doctor once a week to staying with a hospitalized child 24/7. In fact, you might not even realize you ARE a caregiver. Until you get burned out, overwhelmed, and ready to lock yourself in the bathroom for a week. Or your caregiver burnout might manifest itself in PTSD-like symptoms. You may end up with chemo-brain by proxy or forget your kids’ names. Your health could suffer. Permanently.

When disaster strikes, you go into mama-bear mode and do everything in your power to control the variables and the outcomes. People may tell you to remember to take care of yourself, but you have no idea what they mean.

Hacks on Avoiding Caregiver Burnout from the Trenches

Today’s guest on the Self-Care Hacks podcast is Carol Bovee. She’ll share part of her experience of getting launched into full-on caregiver mode and explain what happened to her. You’ll find her tips for avoiding caregiver burnout spot-on if you’ve been through a season of caregiving. And if you know someone who takes care of a family member, her hacks will show you ways that you can offer a helping hand to someone who might not even realize they need help.

If you’ve been there–either as a caregiver or the friend of a family caregiver, we’d love to hear your hacks, too! Leave a comment and let us know how you handled the stress of caregiving.