4 Types of Loss a Family Caregiver Can Face
Caregiver in Cascade MI
The most obvious form of loss for a family caregiver occurs when an elderly loved one passes away. But long before that happens, caregivers find themselves dealing with lots of little losses along 
the way. Learning to mitigate those losses can help to make the process of being a caregiver much easier to handle.
Loss of a Future
Family caregivers often find themselves putting everything about their own life on hold. As such, they sometimes wake up and realize that their own life, their own future, is either on hold or lost completely. Sometimes this isn’t entirely true, and the anticipated future is really just delayed. One of the ways that caregivers can ameliorate this sense of loss is to continue to devote precious time during home care visits to keeping their own dreams alive and well.
Loss of Self
Another loss that caregivers experience involves losing themselves to caretaking. A family caregiver may not recognize who she is outside of her mother’s caregiver. Although you love your elderly relative, and you want the best for her, your own sense of self suffers. Navigating this loss is tricky and it involves frequently keeping in touch with who you are. Use the assistance that in-home care providers can offer your loved one to give yourself time to just be you.
Loss of Amends
During any lifelong relationship, wrongs occur. They happen on either side of the relationship, and if there hasn’t been an opportunity to make those situations right yet, family caregivers can experience a sense of loss that an amends is no longer possible. When elderly loved ones suffer from dementia or other health problems, they may not even be aware of the caregiver’s presence in their life. A family caregiver then finds himself in an odd situation with no way to correct the problem fully.
Loss of Identity
As we grow up, our roles are clearly defined. Mom is Mom, Dad is Dad, and you’re the oldest, or the baby of the family. When our loved ones age and they become more fragile, those roles reverse on us, sometimes with little or no warning. When that happens, you must mourn the loss of that identity that you’ve known your entire life and it can be difficult to do, at best. Having elder care providers that you can trust helps with the pain involved in role reversal because you can delegate some tasks while dealing with others.
Being a family caregiver for an elderly loved one is never an easy task. Dealing with the myriad forms of loss involved takes an emotional toll that home care can help lessen.
If you or someone you know needs help with Caregiver in Cascade MI, contact Gauthier Family Home Care. We provide quality and affordable home care services in our community. Call us at (616) 258-2300 for more information.
Source
https://www.mentalhelp.net/articles/making-peace-with-our-elderly-parents/
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