Social distancing has become a buzzword in the wake of COVID19. People are now avoiding physical meetings. They can’t invite their friends at home. For caregivers, practicing social distancing is tough. They have to take care of their loved ones, which sometimes demand physical proximity for assisting in bathing, walking, eating, and much more.
So, they have to take several precautions to prevent themselves or their loved ones from getting infected. The pressure of taking precautions along with burnout makes things worse. If you are a caregiver experiencing burnout, here are some tips to survive during social distancing.
Delegate non-caregiving tasks
Most caregivers maintain a to-do list of things so that they can prioritize the tasks and can complete them within a set time. Burnout often happens when there are more tasks in the list than that a caregiver can do. So, you need to delegate tasks that do not involve caregiving such as laundry, meal preparation, or refilling the medical prescriptions. You can ask your friends, neighbors or other family members to do these non-caregiving tasks. Thus, you will have some free time to take care of yourself.
Join caregiver support groups
Caregivers need someone so that they can vent out their frustrations without any fear of judgment. In such a case, joining a caregiver support group helps. Most of the people in such groups are caregivers and hence can easily relate to your worries or concerns. When it is not possible to meet a loved one during social distancing, joining such groups helps in overcoming loneliness. You will feel even more motivated to continue in the caregiving journey.
Connect friends with technology
COVID-19 is an emergency when maintaining social distancing, and wearing masks have become essential. Due to social distancing and the fear of infection, there is a feeling of loneliness like never before. Working round the clock without any interaction with friends or loved ones make things worse during a burnout. So, take out a few minutes every day out of your busy schedule to connect with friends with the help of technology. If you are a family caregiver, go for a video conference call with relatives. This will uplift not only your mood but also the loved one whom you care about.
So, try to follow these tips to survive caregiver burnout during social distancing. Also, have faith in the almighty. Things will become normal soon. Learn to practice daily meditation, and you will feel rejuvenated. If still, you need professional help to get rid of burnout, don’t hesitate to ask help. You can also take the membership of an online community to get weekly group coaching calls from an experienced caregiver.