{"id":1152,"date":"2017-10-27T09:00:57","date_gmt":"2017-10-27T13:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=1152"},"modified":"2017-10-23T17:04:09","modified_gmt":"2017-10-23T21:04:09","slug":"brenda-mccutcheon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=1152","title":{"rendered":"Brenda McCutcheon"},"content":{"rendered":"

Caring for the Caregiver<\/em><\/h1>\n

By\u00a0Brenda McCutcheon | Photography by Mary Grace Johnson<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Whether choosing caregiving as a profession, planning to be a caregiver for a family member or becoming a family caregiver unexpectedly, women in caregiver roles often find themselves suffering from denial, anger, social withdrawal, anxiety, depression, exhaustion, guilt and other health problems.<\/p>\n

November is National Family Caregivers Month. It\u2019s important for family caregivers to be able to handle the challenges they face, as well as recognize when \u2014 and how \u2014 to utilize professional support.<\/p>\n

Becoming a caregiver doesn\u2019t always mean caring for an older family member. While we often see adult children caring for older parents, we also see older parents caring for adult children with physical or mental disabilities, or even adults caring for their siblings.<\/p>\n

More than 40 million Americans provide unpaid care to an adult older than the age of 50 or an adult with a disability or illness.<\/p>\n

Being a family caregiver, in addition to the expectations that come with being a woman, can create an unhealthy and unsustainable situation if not properly managed.<\/p>\n

Many women feel they need to do it all: work all day, care for a young family at home in addition to caring for a family member with increased medical needs, maintain a social life, etc. It\u2019s important that caregivers find balance in their lives with this new role, ensuring they get proper nutrition, exercise and sleep, as well as support from friends, family and religion or other spirituality.<\/p>\n

And be careful what you promise \u2013 for example, you will \u201cnever put a loved one in a nursing home\u201d and you will \u201ctake care of everything.\u201d It may not be a promise you can, or should, keep.<\/p>\n

One of the best ways women (and men) can deal with physical and emotional stress that comes from being a caregiver is knowing what to expect. Sometimes the hardest part is knowing the person you love will change, and then experiencing it. Know there will be a learning curve as family caregivers sort out their new roles. It takes time to understand you\u2019re not expected to have all the answers; it\u2019s not only OK, but appropriate, to be asking questions. You\u2019re expected to experience many different emotions.<\/p>\n

Caregiving taught me I\u2019m not Superwoman, though I\u2019ve tried to be. I\u2019ve learned about a new level of fatigue \u2013 one that\u2019s not about being tired, but is often referenced as \u201ccompassion\u201d fatigue. Sometimes we hit a wall; the well may be dry; there\u2019s nothing left to give.<\/p>\n

Then comes the question: Why do we care so much for others, yet fail to care for ourselves in the process?<\/p>\n

Family caregivers make sacrifices in their own lives. Some are short-term as they adjust to their new roles. Some have a more lasting effect. Because of the physical and emotional toll family caregiving can take on a person, it\u2019s critical to plan with your loved ones ahead of time and explore the resources available. Remember, it\u2019s hard to care for someone else when you\u2019re exhausted.<\/p>\n

There are a wide array of resources locally available for those who are caregivers and those in need of care.<\/p>\n

For those ready for full-time residence in long-term care, local organizations, including Loretto, can provide support, assistance and relief to all family members when adjusting to the effects of social, emotional and physical losses of loved ones.<\/p>\n

For individuals who don\u2019t need full-time residence in long-term care, PACE CNY programs are available, which provide home-care services, health services and activities in day centers, transportation services and care in hospitals or long-term facilities.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important for family caregivers to understand it\u2019s OK to seek professional support. There are also several other local community support groups for caregivers \u2013 many of them focused on specific patient needs, conditions or ages \u2013 as well as national resources from organizations like AARP and the Alzheimer\u2019s Association.<\/p>\n

Most importantly, support \u2013 whether professional or simply from a friend \u2013 reminds family caregivers there is hope and they can do this. It\u2019s never too late to help any family member who needs care. SWM<\/em><\/p>\n

Brenda McCutcheon is vice president of mission, therapeutic recreation and spiritual care at Loretto. For more information, visit lorettocny.org<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Caring for the Caregiver By\u00a0Brenda McCutcheon | Photography by Mary Grace Johnson Whether choosing caregiving as a profession, planning to be a caregiver for a family member or becoming a family caregiver unexpectedly, women in caregiver roles often find themselves suffering from denial, anger, social withdrawal, anxiety, depression, exhaustion, guilt and other health problems. November…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1199,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99],"tags":[406,408,188,407,160,402,262,421],"class_list":["post-1152","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","tag-brenda-mccutcheon","tag-caregiving","tag-in-her-own-words","tag-loretto","tag-mary-grace-johnson","tag-november-2017","tag-syracuse-woman-magazine","tag-the-philanthropy-edition"],"gutentor_comment":0,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/SWMBrenda-2.jpg?fit=1024%2C684&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2116,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=2116","url_meta":{"origin":1152,"position":0},"title":"National Family Caregivers Month","author":"Staff","date":"November 6, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"The Families of David\u2019s Refuge It isn\u2019t possible to talk about self-care for family caregivers without talking about respite. 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