If you have been a family caregiver, no one understands the caregiving responsibility better than you. You take care of household chores, do the dishes and laundry, run errands, manage medication, and whatnot. These are not easy, and one requires constant dedication to be a compassionate caregiver.

However, there are times when you may feel like giving up your responsibility. Especially when you know the ending of it. You know that your loved one won't recover fully. You spend every bit of your time helping them in every possible way. You understand the challenges, but at the same time, you know that giving up is not an option.

Caregiving takes a toll on your physical and mental well-being. After prolonged working hours, taking care of your mental and physical health sounds like an exhaustive task. Too much responsibility leads to caregiver burnout. That's why family caregivers need to recognize the signs of caregiver burnout.

In this post, we look at the signs of caregiver burnout to understand the solution. Knowing the signs gives you a brief idea of what you should be doing to help yourself. How does hospice care help you? Who can get hospice care? Is your loved one eligible for hospice care? And finally, the tips to deal with caregiver burnout. We will look into every aspect of it one by one.

What is Caregiver Burnout?

Have you ever felt exhausted taking care of your loved one 24/7? Caring for someone around the clock is not a child's play. You need to be consistently present for your loved one and also juggle between responsibility and self-care.

However, you have no time to socialize or explore your hobbies because you are taking care of your loved one. You know your family member needs you, and you simply have too much guilt to think about yourself at times.

Caregiver burnout is a state of mind where you feel emotionally and physically exhausted because of 24-hour caregiving responsibilities. You dedicate your time and energy to helping your loved one out, but you lose yourself in the caregiving process. As a result, you show the symptoms of physical and mental exhaustion.  

Signs of Caregiver Burnout

Several signs indicate you are dealing with stress. Burnout can impact you in various ways.

And unless you deal with it or know how to manage it, it can impact your caregiving responsibility as well. Caregiver burnout is very common. More than 50% of caregivers show burnout symptoms. 

The signs of caregiver burnout are:

  • Fatigue
  • Emotionally exhausted 
  • Losing interest in hobbies
  • Not going out socializing 
  • Feelings of hopelessness and despair
  • Changes in the sleep pattern
  • Frustrated and confused
  • Changes in appetite
  • Stressed and left out
  • Losing focus

These symptoms don't suffice the overall physical and emotional exhaustion. You may never know how difficult the caregiving job is unless you do.



How to Manage Caregiving Burnout?

You may have heard about hospice care. However, leaving your loved one with another caregiver may give you chills. You get worried about whether the other caregiver is taking care of your loved one. Is the caregiver able to fulfill all needs? Is your loved one comfortable with them? And so on.

To understand this, let's first take a look at hospice care.

What is Hospice Care?

Hospice care is specially designed for those who are in the final stage of their terminal illness. The care is not about curing them but about managing the symptoms of the illness to improve their quality of life.

The person diagnosed with a terminal illness can receive care at home, at a hospital, at extended care facilities, or a hospice center. However, most families prefer taking hospice care at home. 

Is Your Loved One Eligible For Hospice Care?

A lot of people wonder whether their loved one diagnosed with terminal illness is eligible for hospice care. Certain criteria need to be met to get hospice care 

  • An individual diagnosed with a terminal illness has less than 6 months to live
  • There is no significant improvement in quality of life after the treatment 
  • Doesn't want to go for treatment further

It is important to know whether your loved one needs hospice care and is eligible for it. The sooner you know, the better it gets. One cannot ignore the benefits of Hospice care as it provides new hope and emotional support to families and loved ones. 

When you get hospice care for your loved one, you can spend some quality time with them, making every moment special. This gives you a respite from caregiving responsibilities, and you can also improve the quality of life of your loved ones. With hospice caregivers, you know that your loved one is in safer hands. The caregivers have training and know what is best for your loved one. They provide care with love, dignity, and respect.

Having hospice care for your loved one also helps you deal with caregiver burnout.

Tips For Caregiver Burnout Management

By recognizing the signs of burnout, you know that you need emotional support and to take care of your physical well-being. We have already mentioned the symptoms of caregiver burnout earlier. So, in this section, we give some tips to manage caregiver burnout.  

Tips for family caregivers

  • Seek help from hospice care providers, support groups, friends, and families
  • Prioritize your physical and emotional well-being. For this, 
  • Eat well
  • Exercise regularly
  • Take a brisk walk
  • Get enough sleep
  • Explore your hobbies
  • Be kind and acknowledge your thoughts and emotions
  • Maintain a structured routine to establish caregiving responsibility
  • Take professional counselling 
  • Connect with your family and friends
  • Maintain a caregiving journal and keep track of everything 

In Conclusion, 

Caregiving is not an easy task and requires immense support from everyone. However, in the process of caregiving, one must not forget their own physical and emotional well-being. Hospice care providers are here to support you and help you in the process.

Finding Hospice Care in Mesa, AZ

If you have been looking for a hospice caregiver in Mesa, Arizona, you will be happy to know that there are many home care agencies to help you with this. The caregivers are trained to offer hospice care services at home.

You can get in touch with Trinity Medical Staffing and Homecare Agency to get hospice care services in Mesa, AZ. The trained caregivers understand the evolving needs and preferences of your loved one and fulfill their needs accordingly. They have the medical knowledge and skills required to provide the best hospice care.

With medical knowledge and skills, they know that your loved one deserves the best care. They provide unconditional support and compassionate care to loved ones and families. This brings peace of mind and lets you spend some quality time with your loved ones and take care of your physical and mental well-being.

To book your hospice care provider, contact us.