I noticed my fatigue got worse as the caregiving years went on, and I'm not sure if it is due to my natural aging and/or caregiving? Do you think caregiving has caused me to wake up tired (unrefreshed), as many days I wake up tired? Does this happen to you folks? How many days a week would you estimate that you are tired and how much do you think caregiving affects your energy levels? In other words, before caregiving did you have more energy and less fatigue?
Caregiving: Lonely + Boring = Tiring.
Often feels like there is no light at the end of the tunnel.
When is this going to end? Or will I die first?
We put ourselves "on hold" and end up living in a kind of limbo. A hamster running on a wheel must become bored and then of course tired.
My best survival tip (to myself and to you guys): don't put your whole life on hold thinking there are things you will do later. You don't have a guarantee of later. Squeeze in a few of the things you've been putting on hold. It's a lot of arrangements and expensive to do all this - believe me I know that. But we must carve out some time for ourselves even though the process itself is draining and requires energy. What's the alternative?
Im with Deb -0452 I am only one person trying to keep things going the old house is small and I try to keep up but its like do wash the floor or work on bills ?? the house has problems frozen pipes, water in the basement etc.??. Im exhausted. I do have respite but 6 hours a week is not nearly enough. I have someone come in Tues and fri afternoons to give mom a bath.but I set up lunch etc before she comes.I tried to save all my 6 hours to go out of state to see my daughter 4hrs driving and 2 running errands with her .Not
enough time away. but I think that doing the same freaking thing every day all day and watching your parent fail right in front of you is draining emotionally which can be worse than physically. Plus the house is quiet/boring all the time. the wheel chair the commode its like living in convalescent home.
I need a new bed but theres no money. I hear mom breathing or talking in her sleep all night. then the cat comes in.. lol! so needless to say Im lucky to get a few hours of real sleep.
but I agree with getting checked out by a DR.. I was extremely tired a few years ago.. Turned out I had heart condition ( most of that stress was probably from my ex) but I literally almost checked out.. if I didn't go to the dr when I did... I wouldn't be here to complain about being tired.
The thyroid is also a player in our energy. I know that my numbers are in the "normal" range on blood tests. for these hormones. However, I really believe that they may be normal for "normal human beings", but for those of us who are suffering from battle fatigue, we probably need higher numbers of adrenal support, thyroid support, Vitamin B12, Vit. D. I don't think that our good doctors are completely up to date on fatigue as it plagues us. I think the answers are outside the pharmaceutical boxes.
Hopefully it helps.
The answers are closer to nutrients that we are not getting. Not from our foods because our bodies are just not absorbing them. Or because our foods do not have the nutrients they used to when our farming was cleaner, in better soils, and less pesticides.
Be sure to keep up with good quality (key words are "good quality") probiotics and digestive enzymes. As we get older, our bodies need these just as much as we need sleep. Anyway, it is worth a try to take better care of yourself.
One thing I just started out of desperation but seems to help calm down my racing mind is to listen to meditation tapes at night when I go to bed. I went through several until I found a couple that I really like. One on breathing helps me focus on getting the air in and out of my lungs. When I am paying attention at something so simple as my stomach going up and down, I don't think about all the crazy things going on. I seem to be better able to get to sleep rather than worry.
And when I wake up during the night after he gets up to go to the bathroom or tosses and turns, I turn my phone back on to listen to those meditation tapes. Really helps.
Make sure the environment in your bedroom is conducive to good sleep hygiene.
+ comfortable temperature for you
+ dark room (I use a sleep mask as I need night lights)
+ comfortable mattress and pillow
+ a humidifier to keep the air moist and my dry nose doesn't wake me up
+ background noise of the humidifier is soothing
+ sleepytime tea or some other herbal supplement that helps you relax
+ avoid caffein and alcohol before bedtime
Look for any and all things that help you sleep. That is the most important factor in keeping your health.
The last few days Mama has been coming out of a horrible UTI and so she has begun to talk to me again, smile again and laugh again..so now I do feel much better, but still just can't find the energy to do anything. I get up thinking today I will do this, this and this...and BEFORE lunchtime all I feel like I want to do it lie down and take a nap.
Like Katie, I watch a lot of the old, retro, tv..I think one reason I do that is because it kind of temporarily transports me back to when life was much simpler...I'm thankful Mama is doing so much better..I'm hoping that will perk me up...but I was going to run a few errands today and I have gotten my bath but I am already eyeing the sofa...I am actually kind of embarrassed to be this tired all the time..I feel like I ought to be doing more, but I don't know how I could possibly do more...
Let the house get dusty and vacuum once a month... if your Mom wants the house cleaned more often, she can either do it herself or hire someone. If she whines, just say "I just can't possibly do that". Wash clothes once every two weeks. "Sorry, Mom, I have my own home to take care of, you will need to hire someone". Smile and if the roof falls in with unhappiness, so be it... you won :)
I am exhausted usually by late afternoon and find myself falling asleep at 9:30 no matter what I am watching.I always fall asleep right before the killer is revealed in a murder mystery too..then awake in the middle of the night and start worrying. I would love to be able to sleep for a full 8 hours completely uninterrupted!
I believe we become emotionally and physically spent. Forget about exercising, I just don't have the will power to do it any more. I find myself dozing off in front of the TV, usually the last 15 minutes of murder mystery, not knowing who done it. Plus we tend to get stress related medical issues. Getting cancer didn't help, and developing a heart issue threw another wrench into the works. I feel older than my own parents who are in their 90's.
And how I long for the times back when I could sleep 6 to 7 hours without any worry.... now I find myself awake at 3 in the morning, can't get back to sleep because my mind is racing, so I look for something to watch on TV. Thank goodness for ME TV and those great old shows.
But seriously though get yourself medically checked out too, you could have a nutritional deficiency or sleep apnea. I'm seeing the doc soon myself.
Before caregiving, I had an abundance of energy. I'm only 51 and feel like Jessie... I've aged 20 years and it shows. Cept I did it in 2 years!