Guilt & Caregiving

Trying to please someone with memory issues can seem like a losing battle. Many caregivers bend over backwards for their loved ones only to have their efforts fail or fall short. Sometimes the guilt feels overwhelming.

Family caregivers often feel guilty about hiring in-home care for their aging loved ones, but there are steps you can take to feel at peace with this care decision.

How does a caregiver break the cycle of negative thinking? Learn to manage feelings of resentment, anger and guilt brought about by caring for an elderly loved one.

Negative thoughts are a normal reaction to stressful situations. Instead of feeling guilty, caregivers must acknowledge these difficult feelings and seek out solutions to achieve a better care experience for themselves and their loved ones.

Watching an aging loved one decline is never easy, especially when they have a low quality of life. Caregivers experiencing burn out may wish for an end, not out of cruelty, but because they realize there is little they can do to help.

Family caregivers often feel guilty about aspects of their role, whether it’s how they cope with dementia behaviors or the desire to prioritize self-care. An elder care expert offers her tips for dealing with caregiver guilt.

Caregivers and seniors may benefit from this little-known form of psychotherapy that targets the symptoms of prolonged grief and post-traumatic stress that can arise after a care recipient dies.

The heavy burden of caregiving can gradually overwhelm even the most devoted and best prepared individuals. Take a caregiver burden assessment to determine your level of burnout and find resources to reduce the stress of caring for an aging loved one.

It’s easy to get caught up in caregiving and let your own needs take a backseat, but your physical and mental health directly affect the quality of care you provide. Put yourself first by learning how to prioritize self-care and prevent caregiver burnout.

Grief is an inescapable part of caregiving. We mourn an aging loved one’s physical and cognitive losses as they decline and eventually mourn their death. Self-care is vital to a caregiver’s physical and mental health throughout the grieving process.

My husband has dementia. I have mixed feelings every time I hear his cane hit the floor in the morning. I dread the day that I can no longer cope and he has to go into long-term care.

Narcissists have a limited ability to love other people and value their emotions. Accepting this reality will help you come to terms with your uniquely difficult caregiving role and set boundaries with your narcissistic mother or father.

Placing a senior in a nursing home can feel like a monumental failure, but this isn’t the case. Adjusting your attitude can help you realize that you are actually fulfilling the underlying commitment you made to your loved one.

If a senior’s abilities have waned, it can be challenging to find ways to adapt or replace the pastimes they once loved. In some cases, there is no encouraging or convincing an elderly loved one to remain active.

The benefits of adult day care services are twofold. Your aging parent can enjoy social opportunities, activities and added safety, while you are free to work, run errands, attend appointments or savor some respite time.

For those who endured abusive and neglectful childhoods, caring for elderly parents can reopen old wounds and cause new trauma. Choosing whether to participate in a parent's care is tough, but you do have options.

Things that may seem “clearer” to you in hindsight can still be distorted by difficult emotions—especially when it comes to a major life event like caregiving. Are your reflections on your time as a caregiver healthy, or are they doing you a disservice?

For long-distance caregivers whose parents reside in senior living facilities, frequent in-person visits aren’t always an option. So, how can you manage their care from afar and avoid feeling guilty about not being there more often?

Family caregivers share their best self-care tips, pieces of wisdom and words of encouragement for peers who are caring for aging loved ones (and themselves) while coping with the coronavirus pandemic.

Dementia-related behaviors can wear on even the most level-headed caregiver. Instead of feeling guilty after lashing out, be gentle and honest with yourself and do whatever it takes to prevent future burnout.