Caregivers in Cherry Hill NJ: How Can You Make Sure that You Have Time for Yourself as a Caregiver?
If you’re not making time for yourself, you’re going to feel frustrated and possibly deal with more stress than you should have to manage. But it’s not that easy to make time for you, right? It might be a lot simpler than you think.
Be Strict with Your Schedule
For this to work, you really need to guard your schedule the way a gatekeeping receptionist might at a large corporation. You have to make sure that you’re spending your time wisely and that every moment of every day is allocated where it’s going to do the most good. This might mean that some activities that you used to think were important just don’t make the cut.
Prioritize What You Need to Do
Some priorities are more obvious than others, which makes them easier to spot. That doesn’t mean that some of the lower priority tasks can be ignored, however. That can make them become high priority tasks when you least expect it. The trick is to figure out what you absolutely have to do yourself, both for you and for your elderly family member.
Delegate as Much as You Can
If there are tasks that you don’t have to do yourself, those can be delegated. Many times, you might have trouble with delegating tasks as a caregiver. But here’s the thing. Delegating tasks makes sure that they’re getting done by someone, even if that someone is not you. Nothing says that you have to be the one to do everything, so get rid of that belief and figure out who your team is.
Schedule Time for You First
When you’re making your schedule, put in time for you, first. This is similar to the rocks and pebbles analogy used by Franklin Covey and others. What this means is that you’re putting the most essential items into your schedule first and then slotting in other tasks around those. In this example, time for you is the most important, so you want to schedule it first. You can add in other tasks and appointments from there.
Take your appointments with yourself at least as seriously as you take appointments with other people. They will help to keep you sane on your journey as a caregiver.
For caregivers in Cherry Hill, NJ, and the surrounding areas, call and talk to us at Home to Stay Healthcare Solutions (856) 321-1500.
