Treatment for caregiver stress in Denver

Caregiver stress is a specific type of stress that you may experience while you are caring for a person or loved one, in any capacity. Caregiver stress, or caregiver burnout, refers to the emotional and physical toll that caring for another takes on yourself. As a caregiver, you may have high levels of stress because of the need to be “on-call” daily most of the day, with little time left over for yourself, your work, family or friends.

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Other issues that you as a caregiver may experience include feeling overwhelmed from focusing almost exclusively on another person’s health and wellbeing. You may also have set aside your own goals for the short-term, or have grief and loss reactions associated with the one you are caring for. However, caregiving can also be very rewarding and feel good to care for a loved one. Overall, you need to take care of yourself so you can care for someone else.

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Could You be Dealing with Caregiver Stress?

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You may be experiencing depression, anxiety, or grief regarding your loved one, even if the loss hasn’t happened yet. You may have a weakened immune system or other medical problems due to the stress of caregiving. You may experience caregiver stress when caring for someone with a chronic illness or disability, regardless if that illness or disability is terminal or not. For you, it is very natural to grieve whatever loss may happen in the future but hasn’t happened yet.

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Chronic Illness Takes a Toll, Even on Caregivers

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With chronic illnesses, there are also changes that occur in a person’s abilities. You may be living with someone who has cancer, who is so tired from the chemo treatments that he/she cannot do the daily tasks they are used to doing. Or perhaps a parent who has dementia or Alzheimer’s, who may not remember your face day-to-day, and the pain that causes you to be forgotten by your mother or father. The stress and loss that caregivers experience may not be the loss of the actual person itself, but the loss of your independence, your control, the future as you once imagined it. Or even the loss of financial security, loss of freedom, extra time, or sleep, and/or loss of your relationship as it was in the past.

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It may be hard to acknowledge the stress a caregiver experiences in comparison with the grief of the loved one. However, ignoring your own emotions and struggles can lead to unprocessed grief which will impact you in the future. As a caregiver, you are grieving the entire process of the chronic illness, not just the future death of your loved one. Your grief may be prolonged, wearing on yourself, and likely more intense or painful than others.

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Do any of these signs of caregiver stress describe you?

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• Feeling overwhelmed

• Seemingly alone, isolated, or deserted by others

• Sleeping too much or too little

• Gaining or losing a lot of weight

• Exhausted, or tired most of the time

• Having trouble concentrating

• Frequent headaches or body aches

• Easily irritated or angry

• Feeling increasingly resentful

• Losing interest in activities that you used to enjoy

• Often feeling sad or worried

• Starting to abuse alcohol or drugs to help numb the pain

• Neglecting your other responsibilities

• Having trouble relaxing, even when help is available

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While the majority of caregivers are women, men are starting to provide caregiving services more and more. In fact, up to 1/3 of Americans provide unpaid care to a loved one during an injury or illness. At the same time, over 50% of these caregivers have a job in addition to caregiving. Here at Catalyss Counseling, we can offer you support through your caregiving process, both during your caregiving experience and even after loss. We work with you to help you take care of yourself, so that you may continue to find joy in your caregiving. We provide Support for Caregivers.