This is the most common type of abuse in the caregiving relationship. Emotional abuse is any actions or words that cause emotional pain or distress. Caregivers can be both participants to, and recipients of, of emotional abuse. This includes verbal outbursts, such as swearing, as well as the use of demeaning and humiliating comments directed at the caregiver or the care recipient. Persons from all economic, ethnic and social backgrounds can become victims of abuse. Common forms of emotional abuse include:
- Intimidation through yelling or threats
- Humiliation and ridicule
- Intimidation through yelling or threats
- Habitual blaming or scapegoating
- Isolating through cutting social contacts
- Ignoring or neglecting the person
- Manipulation of person through feelings of fear, guilt, or love.
Caregiver stress and isolation are reported as two of the main causes of elder abuse. Caregivers can become overwhelmed by the tasksof providing care, and have no supports to turn to, and express their frustration on the care recipient. In turn, caregivers can experience emotional abuse by care recipients. Common causes of emotional abuse towards caregivers include changing behaviors due to dementia and/or frustration at the disability or disease progression. Emotional abuse is particularly common where there are conflicted family dynamics. Caregivers can also experience emotional abuse by their family members who expect the individual to provide all of the care to the care recipient, regardless of desire or ability.
“Service providers in care homes are often too busy to provide adequate care. And if your parent is quiet, then they often get overlooked – even if that’s because they are quiet because they are so sick. Then you have to and bring it up with the nurses and then you are seen as a trouble maker, so you’re worried to bring it up”. (Caregiver)
“I wish I didn’t have to [be a caregiver]. I don’t want to, and I feel very resentful that I have to do it. I don’t even like my father and I’m doing all the work. I’m winging it all by myself even though there are other family members – they have moved away. And it’s frustrating, because they have money, and I don’t”. (Caregiver)
Tensions for service providers: As both caregivers and care recipients can be socially and geographically isolated, with brief and/or infrequent visits from service providers, emotional abuse can be difficult to identify. Caregivers and care recipients may be embarrassed or feel their privacy is invaded by reporting emotional abuse. They may also not understand they are engaging in this behavior or state that the relationship has “always been this way”. Service providers can also experience emotional abuse by caregivers and/or their care recipients. You may see a service provider emotionally abusing a caregiver or a care recipient by neglecting to see or act on basic care needs. You may not be able to provide the resources necessary to address emotional abuse, other than a punitive “reporting” procedure that, through criminalization, benefits neither the caregiver nor the care recipient.
Originally written by:
Caregiver ToolKit
Source:
http://caregivertoolkit.ca/?page_id=612