Happy international self-care day! It can be hard as carers to find time to take care of yourself, but it is so important for you wellbeing (and that of your caree). Not caring for yourself can ultimately lead to mental and physical burnout, stress, and depression. When looking after someone else, it is easy to neglect yourself, but in order to be able to provide care for someone else long-term, you yourself need to be healthy as well. There are many ways to practise self-care, and they don’t all have to be time-consuming or costly, check our page for some useful tips: Your health and wellbeing | Carers UK A couple of suggestions: (1) eating well & healthily (2) physical activity to care of your body, anything from a short walk to exercise classes helps (3) take care of your mental wellbeing by talking about your feelings, meditating, journalling, etc (4) engage in some social activities to combat loneliness, you can talk to friends and family, or join any of our online meetups to connect with others who are going through similar situations Online meetups | Carers UK Or start by reacting to this post to start connecting with others and sharing your favourite self-care tips!
2 Likes
I think most of us are all too aware of what we need already, but without extra support it’s simply impossible. Often what we crave for is peace and rest most of all. When my brain damaged son was at his most hyperactive, the only peace I got was in the evening, my husband would look after M and I’d have a long hot soak in the bath, sometimes reading a book. I always kept the bathroom door locked. I never ever let my sons in there with me even when they were small. That was MY time. When caring for an adult it’s different, but everyone needs a little bit of time off. Maybe after lunch say you are “off duty” for an hour, and have a kip?
1 Like