Gerontology/Eldercare

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The Burdens of Being a Caregiver

Caregiver Burden is defined as the strain or load borne by a person who cares for an elderly, chronically ill, or disabled family member or other person.

Caregiver Burnout is defined as the progression of caregiver burden to the point where the experience is no longer a viable or healthy option for either the caregiver or the person receiving care.

Statistics
Almost 67% of elders relied independently on unpaid help - usually a spouse or daughter in 1994.
Two-thirds of caregivers feel there has been a strain on their marriage.
One-fourth of caregivers have felt despair as a result of caregiving.

Common Signs of Caregiver Burden

• Fatigue and/or Sleep Disturbances
• Weight loss or gain
• Social isolation
• Increased irritability
• Increased intake of alcohol or drugs

Common Signs of Caregiver Burnout

• Increased stress and anxiety
• Depressive symptoms
• Feelings of loss of control
• Feelings of guilt
• Grief in losing a relationship

Caregiver Do's and Don'ts

• Take care of yourself
• Get sufficient sleep
• Exercise/eat healthy
• Spend social time with family and friends
• Take time to do your hobbies
• Seek support from family, friends, support groups

If Feelings of Anger, Depression, or Stress occur while caretaking:

• Walk away
• Talk to someone
• Form a journal of feelings
• Take a vacation to spend time on yourself

Basic Information about Dementia:
Dementia is defined as a loss or impairment of mental powers. Dementia does not mean crazy. Dementia describes a group of symptoms and is not the name of the disease or diseases that cause the symptoms.

The symptoms of dementia can be caused by many different diseases. The most common causes of irreversible dementia are Alzheimer Disease and Vascular Dementia.

Alzheimer Disease, the most frequent, is an intellectual impairment that progresses gradually from forgetfulness to total disability. The cause is unknown.

Vascular Dementia is a series of strokes within the brain which destroy bits of brain tissue that affect memory and other intellectual functions. Can also be called "hardening of the arteries."

Depression is also very common in older adults and can be the cause of memory loss, confusion, or other changes in mental functioning. Memory can get better once the depression is treated.

Severe memory loss is NEVER a normal part of growing older. About 5% of other adults suffer from severe intellectual impairments. The diseases become more prevalent in people who survive into their 80's and 90's, but 80% of those who live into very old age never experience a severe memory loss or symptoms of dementia. A slight forgetfulness is common as we age, but usually is not enough to interfere with our lives.
Resources:
1. "The 36-Hour Day" written by: Nancy L. Mace, M.A., and Peter V. Rabins, M.D., M.P.H.
2. National Family Caregivers Association: 1-800-896-3650
3. National Institutes of Health

"Being" Well

CARING VS. CARETAKING
Acts of love show that a person cares for another or others. Human beings are interdependent and at different times during the life cycle either care for or have been recipients of care. If charted, on a continuum, must move from total dependence to independence to interdependence, vacillating back and forth during intervals. In offering and/or receiving care one must be careful not to allow caring behaviors to become thieves of another's power or self power.
Often caring people with good intentions to help, actually do the recipient a disservice. When a caring person assumes another cannot do for himself/herself, it sends the message that the person is weak and powerless. Granted, there are situations in which this type of behavior is warranted and necessary; for example: caring for a sick or disabled person, helping them with tasks that are physically impossible for them to accomplish. However, a constant fostering of dependence robs a person of his/her power to come up with creative options to improve and make progress.
The following story illustrates how caring too much can be destructive. A class of students working on a science project observed a butterfly emerging from its cocoon. The beautiful creature struggled for a couple of hours and it seemed as though it just couldn't detach itself from the last bit of its former habitat. The sympathetic students decided to help the butterfly free itself by clipping off the last part of the cocoon. At last the butterfly was free; free from the constraints of the cocoon, but now destined to live in new prison. By helping free the butterfly, the muscles that were necessary for flight were not give the opportunity to strengthen and develop, thus dooming it to a grounded existence.

• When someone tells us about a problem, what is our reaction?
• Do we need to solve it for the person?
• Do we believe that that person's future rests on our ability to advice him or her?
• Do we assume that a person will not survive an experience?
• Do we feel we must assume the responsibility of others' behaviors?
• Do we give power to people - including ourselves - and their abilities? Or do we give power to the problem, the feeling or the irresponsibility?

Being self-responsible is not selfish, it is striving to love and support others in ways that work for all involved.