Like 50 million of your fellow Americans, you do it out of devotion, commitment, and, perhaps, necessity. As caregivers for loved ones – partners or parents, children or siblings, friends or in-laws – you’re not paid or trained for this often-difficult work. But your open heart and healing hands make someone else’s life easier, providing emotional support, companionship, and assistance with tasks they can’t manage on their own.
Sure, it’s a fulfilling role, but it’s also stressful. And many caregivers are so focused on taking care of a loved one they may neglect their own well-being.
Here are three things you can do to ease the load and minimize the physical and mental challenges of caregiving.
Take good care of yourself. Eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, get plenty of sleep, and exercise regularly – both for your health and for stress reduction. Set aside time to do the things you enjoy – meeting friends for coffee, hiking through the woods, visiting a museum, or going to your monthly book club.
Ask for help. No one can be an effective caregiver 24/7. You need others to step in so you can take regular breaks – what the CDC calls “respite care1.” When someone asks what they can do to help, be prepared to respond with a specific request, like staying with Mom for two hours once a week so you can enjoy a dinner out, or driving Dad to his weekly physical therapy appointments.
Your place of worship, community center, or agency for aging may have volunteers who can provide some relief. If not, they may be able to refer you to in-home aides you can hire to help with care.
Take advantage of innovative, high-quality products. There are a host of new products to make life easier for you and your loved ones, especially when used in caregiving. You can find smartphone apps that send reminders when it’s time to take medication; cookware that turns off automatically if left unattended; lightweight, automated wheelchairs; and smart plugs that allow you to switch connected devices on and off remotely.
Sometimes, it’s the everyday products that make the biggest difference. Cleansing wipes, for example, simplify personal hygiene for those who may have limited mobility or incontinence issues. Easy to toss into a purse or suitcase, they’re a great solution for cleaning up when you can’t access bathing facilities.
WaterWipes Adult Care Sensitive Wipes are designed to clean all over, with a textured finish that gives a soft feel and a deeper clean. Their larger size reduces the time spent on total body cleaning. Made with 99.9% specially purified water and a drop of fruit extract, they are the world’s purest body wipes. They’re ideal for delicate elderly skin which becomes thinner and less pliable as we age.
Strong and gentle, they’re perfectly safe for cleaning all parts of the body, including the face, hands, and intimate areas. They are also dermatologically approved by the Skin Health Alliance, accepted by the National Eczema Association, and they are dermatologists' #1 choice for sensitive skin*.
As a caregiver, remember there are products like WaterWipes Adult Care Sensitive Wipes to help you help the people you love.
Click here to learn more about WaterWipes Adult Care Sensitive Wipes.
1 https://www.cdc.gov/aging/publications/features/caring-for-yourself.html
*Source: 272 Dermatologists at AAD, USA, 2024
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