43.5 million Americans are primary unpaid caregivers for the chronically sick, disabled or ill. Many of these people are working professionals also struggling to make ends meet while raising a family—children or even grandchildren.
Caregiving takes great time and emotional headspace. Just think about it: caregivers are responsible for the health and well-being of family members or friends, going through each step with them as they attempt to age gracefully or navigate a road to recovery. This includes looking after medications, dealing with insurance problems, even physically taking a loved one to and from medical appointments and preparing meals.
How do you balance a career—much less your sanity—with the responsibilities of being a caregiver? The answer—it’s not easy.
Manya Whitaker, author of the article “How to be a Caregiver While Caring for Your Own Career,” claims, “Unfortunately, being a caregiver restricts your professional opportunities because it limits where and how long you can work. If you are solely responsible for a chronically ill relative, it is unlikely that you will attend evening and weekend events, travel to conferences, be on campus every day of the week or teach full days when you are there.” (Manya is an academic, thus relating her own personal experience.)
It’s only natural to want to devote as much time and attention as you can to an ever-growing career while also giving your loved one the care they need to heal and age gracefully. If you can afford to—especially if it’s part of your loved one’s insurance—explore part-time caretaking employees who can lessen the burden. If that’s not an option financially, see if you can talk to other family or close friends about helping every now and then, so you aren’t missing meetings, appointments and important professional events and opportunities.
There is no easy solution for the work/life balance, so why would there be one for the caretaking/career balance? The first step is acknowledging the struggle, then making concrete steps to remedy it.
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Help at Home can provide around the clock care for your senior loved ones by providing a stable, positive environment for seniors living with Alzheimer’s, helping them to stay active, social, and stay healthy.
Located in Greenwich, CT, Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care / Help at Home, LLC is proud to be a top rated home health care provider in Fairfield County, CT, Westchester County, NY, Manhattan, NY and beyond. Our clients are our family and we treat everyone with compassion and care.
Contact us today to see how we can help you and your loved ones.
Email: maryann@alzdementiacare.com
Phone: 203-520-0116