Caring for the Caregiver

I wanted to write about this, then came across this article that is too true.  Instead of reinventing the wheel, paying it forward and pasting it here:

Bottom line is, in order to take care of others, you must take care of yourself, too.  We often forget that.  DON'T.

I was blessed my Mom knew this.    

Caring for the Caregiver

Caring for an ailing spouse or elder can be satisfying but difficult work. It involves not only the task of doing, but the task of coping, figuring out creative solutions and working to keep your head above water. The needs of the caregiver often get neglected. But the more neglected the caregiver feels, the less effective he or she may be.

How Can You Help Yourself?

Recognize your feelings.

At some point, most caregivers feel helpless, angry, resentful and then guilty for having these negative feelings. Caregivers may feel angry that other members of the family don't help out enough, don't visit or are critical. While it's natural to have these feelings, it's also important not to keep them bottled up inside. Talk about these feelings with others in your family and support network.

Use support services.

Start looking into support services before you need help. If you can develop a plan before your situation becomes a crisis, you'll have a clearer head to evaluate your options. Investigate adult day care programs, which often include therapy, activities, meals and health care. Use in-home help services, including nursing care and personal care services. Most communities have meals-on-wheels programs for older and ill individuals. Call social service agencies, home health agencies, home care agencies and transportation systems for referrals.

Accept help from others.

Considering the time commitment involved in taking care of an ailing partner, parent or relative, it's easy to see why many caregivers feel isolated. Not only is it difficult to carve out time to continue pursuing hobbies and activities, but friends and families tend to shy away, either out of fear of being asked to help or simply from a lack of understanding about the disease. Take the time to explain your situation and needs to those close to you. They will be more receptive to helping, if they can. If friends or family members want to help, accept their offers. Join a support group where you can share experiences with other caregivers.

Nourish yourself.

You don't have to leave your house to do something for yourself. Read a book or watch a favorite video or DVD. Ask a friend or neighbor to come to your house so you can get out for a while, not just to do errands but to go window shopping or to take a walk in the park. Ask yourself what you need in order to take care of yourself. Do you need a support group? In-home help? Respite care? A counselor to help you sort out and understand your situation? Remember, one of the best things you can do for the person you care for is to take good care of yourself.

Hoarder Reasons

I'm not really that much of a hoarder any more, but I used to be.

Don't worry, I'm not even close to needing the inspection police to be called on me NOR to be showcased on the tv show, Hoarders.  lol

But I do tend to over-buy on certain things.

I have a tone of the same hair cream/mousse, a small army of those small bottles of baby powder, a whole drawer filled with the same style socks, a whole row of the same hair clips, several of the same types of slippers, numerous styles of a certain sweater (just dif colors), boatloads of my favorite flavor of tictacs, half dozen boxes of the same chili mix, etc.

I wondered the other day, WHY?  Why am I like this?

It all bowls down to three instances in my life.

When I was a child (yep, a child story), I recall vividly going to the BX (that was the grocery store for people of military families), and my Mom put about 20 boxes of Kraft mac and cheese into the cart.

I asked her in my child, loud, inquisitive voice, "Mom, what are you doing, why are we getting so many?"  And she grabbed my arm and told me to "SHHHHhhhh!"  I embarrassed her.  I didn't realize at the time because of the impending divorce, we would never be able to buy cheap mac and cheese again.  She looked around the aisle at the other wives/mothers and was so embarrassed I asked such a question.

Then in my lower 20s, I had these pair of sandals that I loved.  One of the few pairs of sandals that didn't give me blisters.  And they were cute too!  People I didn't know would literally stop me in stores to talk about my sandals.

Well, after a couple of years the strap broke and I went to buy another pair of the same sandals at the same store.

WHAT?  I had no idea that eventually the brand would stop making them.  I was very naive.  I was also very shocked.  I LOVED those sandals.

And I have yet, to this day, found a pair of sandals that do not give my blisters or fit perfect or look as adorable.

The third effect on my hoarding has to do with kitty litter.

One day while at Sam'sClub (bulk store), they ran out of my normal cat litter and so I grabbed a different that was only available.  It was made by Sam'sClub/Walmart actually, Members Mark.  Well shit (pardon the pun) if it didn't turn out to be THE best cat litter I had ever bought in my life!  You couldn't smell the litter or the cat droppings.  It clumped well and had a decent smell to it, all the while you could not even smell/tell I had a cat in the house.  It was truly the best cat litter I had ever bought and I had tried many dif kinds.

So one day Sam's is out of the litter.  Being the person I am, I go to another Sam's.  They have it; I bought 2.

A few months later, go to that Sam's.  They are out now.  WTF...

You can see where this is going....  THEY DISCONTINUED MAKING IT.

OMG... I called other Sam's stores to see who had any left in stock (none anymore).  I also called and wrote emails to Sam's to beg them to bring it back.  No such luck.

So, those instances have led me to actually be very afraid of things going away, discontinued, no longer available... so it makes me hoard things I adore and/or think I could never live without again. Tough habit to break, actually, lol.

Southwest Social Media Learning Exp (article)

Best quote of the article:

“Customer service is a spectator sport now. The key here is the hundreds of thousands of people who saw how (Southwest) interacted on social media,” he said. “There are definitely some customers who are lost causes and social can't fix everything. But for those who are on the fence, it’s a huge impact.”

What businesses can learn from Southwest's social media response during its tech outage:

>http://www.dallasnews.com/business/southwest-airlines/2016/08/05/businesses-can-learn-southwests-social-media-response-tech-outage

Speaking of Sounds

I just wrote about sounds, and speaking of sounds...

Lately I've been video taping my dog Lily doing silly stuff.  And when I play back the video to check her out, I can sometimes hear my Mom's laugh on the video!

I guess at times when I laugh a certain way, my laugh sounds just like her laugh.

I had no idea :)

Here she is being funny! (even under the circumstances of no rooms available and they gave us a spot in the hallway of the hospital)

Oh how I miss her.  (love and smiles)