Dementia Caregiver Stress

Here are the signs that indicate that providing for care for a person with dementia is getting stressful for you.

Refusal about the disorder- “I don’t hear anyone, I know he is going to be alright.”

Hoping the person will be alright one day and believing everything is going to be fine is a sign of denial about the disorder. If you are not accepting the reality of the situation even after knowing the seriousness of the disorder, you are into dementia caregiver stress.

Exhibiting anger- “I know, you are stubborn to do that, aren’t you?”

Sometimes you may feel they could do better than what they do now. As a result, you may get flared and show them your frustration.

Social isolation- “I must take care of my dad, I don’t need friends anymore.”

Sometimes holding on to more responsibility may halt your personal pursuits. During this stage, there are more chances that you may lose in touch with your personal desire and activities that you usually enjoy.  

Worried- “What if my care isn’t enough for him? What I will do if he needs more?”

Pondering over thoughts like “have I done my best? Or is the treatments is on the right track or not?”. These kinds of preoccupied thoughts may impact your well-being and add more stress.

Depression- “What’s wrong with me, I have given my level best. I don’t care about anything, anymore!”

Continued exposure to stress might break your spirit and affects the ability to overcome difficult situations. The unattended feel of sadness or hopelessness may increase the risk of depression.

Feeling exhausted- “I am done with caregiving, I can’t do this anymore”

This is the point where the daily tasks become merely impossible and often you may feel a lack in energy or fatigue to complete the simple day to day tasks.  

Disrupted sleep- “What if he wakes in the middle of the night and asks for water or wanders outside and fall somewhere?”

Thinking about the never-ending list of concerns may haunt sleep patterns. The energy of today depends on the quality of yesterday’s sleep. Sleeplessness may cause you impatience, tiredness and lack of energy.

Agitation- “I am done with this caregiving, leave me alone!”

Feel irritable often manifest emotional reactions. As a result of agitation, you may frequently experience moodiness, cry excessively and get upset for little things. Also, it has the capability of triggering negative thoughts and actions.

Out of focus- “Oh God, I have forgotten to give medication this morning!”

You may experience trouble in focusing on familiar tasks and the complex tasks look like merely impossible. Oftentimes you may forgetful, unable to remember simple things.

Health issues- “Frequently am getting sick, I am not like this before.”

The culmination of stress takes a significant toll on your health. You may develop chronic issues such as blood pressure and body pains or often get sick with cold, fever and flu or you may develop mental health conditions such as sleep disorder or depression.

How many symptoms are matching with you?

If it is

• More than 2 they must care for themselves
• More than 4 they must get help
• If it more than 6 it is alarming, need to seek the therapist

If you are experiencing any of mentioned dementia caregiving stress, we are here to help you, call us for the appointment @ +91 96111 94949 or you can visit our website www.cadabams.org