Dementia care: How can I avoid being overwhelmed?
Anyone caring for a relative is often on the verge of exhaustion. People with dementia are particularly demanding on their carers. Our expert Ina Riechert has effective tips on how to recognize warning signs and take good care of yourself.
Read more in this article:
"A hand for you and a hand for the ship" - this old rule for safety on board can be applied to caring for relatives. Here, too, it is important to take good care of yourself and stay physically and mentally healthy.
Sounds simple, but is not always easy to put into practice. Every family caregiver certainly wants to do it particularly well. There is always the danger of overdoing it, not realizing your own limits, ignoring psychological stress and not organizing support in time.
Taking exhaustion signals seriously
Caregiving relatives often gradually become exhausted without realizing it. There are clear signals that the body sends out first. These include pain of all kinds, sleep disorders or loss of energy.
If such physical signals go unheeded for a long time, the soul will come forward and pull the emergency brake. All these physical and psychological signals serve as self-protection and are intended to protect against the consequences of constant stress.
The key: exercise and relaxation
Take your body's signals seriously and look after your health. Allow your body time for exercise and relaxation. Exercise includes walking, cycling, swimming, jogging, in short, all forms of exercise in the fresh air. Relaxation can be achieved through leisurely breaks, sufficient sleep, enjoyment, culture, meditation and relaxation exercises.
If you want to stop your exhaustion process, don't take on too much. Start with a "sacred" date in the week when you do something for yourself. Stick to it consistently and defend it against all "hostility" - including your inner bastard.
5 sentences for more self-care
1. let five be straight
Everything in its own time: Instead of trying to get three things done at the same time, you can also take a more relaxed approach. If you need a break or a longer break, there must be time for it. A person with dementia will make sure that everything slows down anyway. It will do you good to adapt to their pace and concentrate on the most important tasks: loving, appreciative encounters and assistance where necessary. A spotlessly clean home is then of secondary importance, but regular breaks are very important.
2. good is good enough
You can generally assume that you are doing the best you can for your relative - even if you allow yourself time off, allow mistakes, ask for help and take good care of yourself in all tasks. There is no reason to feel guilty if you take care of yourself - it will only disturb your sleep and put you in a bad mood. Nobody can want that.
3. being a good person also means being good to yourself
Only those who are good to themselves can be good to other people in the long term. If you constantly disregard your limits and spiral into exhaustion and depression or other physical illnesses, you are not helping anyone. Only if you take yourself seriously, take good care of yourself and stay in good spirits can you be there for others in a happy and, above all, healthy way for a long time.
4 I don't have to take on all the tasks
Don't be too quick to relieve your relative of tasks. Having tasks is also good for people with dementia. They train their skills and retain their self-esteem. For people with dementia, taking on tasks for them means taking something away from them, making it clear that they need help. This makes them particularly aware of their deficits and loss of abilities. People with dementia only need help when it is no longer possible, but not when it just takes longer and the result is not so good.
5 I can make it easy for myself
"How can I make it easier?". This question can accompany you throughout your care. Caring for someone with dementia demands a lot from you. Provide relief where you can. A helpful tip from stress research: it is relieving to accept things that you cannot change as a given and not to resist or resist inwardly.
Get support and guidance
Family caregivers need support, a contact person with whom they can talk openly about all their worries and feelings and who can empathize with the emotional problems of family members. The Alzheimer's associations, advice centers, day care centers and dementia shared flats offer opportunities for relief.
This guide deals comprehensively with the situation of carers of people with dementia from diagnosis to death. The book is enriched with "case histories" from real life and provides background knowledge on many questions.
At the end of each chapter, the author provides tangible, practical tips and advice on where relatives can get help, find ways to relieve their burden and ensure their mental balance. The aim of the book is to support carers as much as possible so that people with dementia can remain in their familiar surroundings for as long as possible. Alternatively, various forms of housing are described and tips are given for finding suitable accommodation.
Springer Verlag Heidelberg 2022
This YouTube content can only be loaded if you accept the privacy policy of Google LLC.
To the data protection settings "
