
Caregivers Support Group
A voluntary caregiver is a spouse, relative, friend or neighbor of a disabled person or child who assists with activities of daily living and assists those unable to fully take care of themselves. The challenges of a caregiver are unique and sometimes it's hard to find people to talk to who know what you're going through. Join the conversation and find others who...
Other than that, when I spend several days in frustration I tend to jam my right thumb into things (not purposely). It reminds me to calm down, and, eventually, it heals.
But, no, I can't say I have any auto-immune disorders, or any illnesses due to caregiving or stress. In fact, in some ways, I'm in better health than I've ever been. I'm physically lots stronger, for instance. And, I've been known to be prone to attacks of severe indigestion due to anxiety...but that hasn't happened with intensity for years now...almost never since I've been caregiving.
I understand, though, and have read studies that document that the stress of caregiving does, indeed, encourage auto-immune disorders, and lots of other stress related disorders such as back problems, migranes and gastric malfunctions, as well, at a high rate. Not sure why I'm still flying under THAT radar...could be that neither my mother nor I have ever been prone to stress.
Could also have to do with the fact that I was never married and never had children, so I haven't spent my whole life caregiving. All three of my sisters, who are married and are mothers, have a variety of stress related illnesses. Although none of them has ever cared for the elderly and/or infirm, the caregiving they do as wives and mothers is certainly intense. My guess is that if they were to "graduate" to caregiving for any of the elderly and/or infirm their stress related disorders would probably "graduate" with them.
I've had it since I was ten....
My pancreas went on strike! >:[
My first full time job was at age 14 at a drug store soda fountain. Did a lot of carrying heavy silverware trays, I was wearing leg and back brace from the polio. During school year I went to school and worked nights 4 to 12:30.
I married at age 19 and my husband said "you can work if you want to but we live on what I earn, period". And that's the way it's been for 59 years. What I earned when I did work we used for boat, camper and great vacations.
Now I am taking care of him.
I can't blame my ailments on caregiving. I did go through a spell of having panic attacks in the night after they found cancer in his lungs. I never heard of having a panic attack in sleep but that's what the Drs come up with. I think it was the meds they had me on ganging up in my system.
Now I am being tested to see if I can take cumaden. What fun!! But they are keeping me alive and if I can last as long as he does then I will have done good I think.
I learned to live with pain when I was very young.
In this months Readers Digest is an article about counting blessings and focusing on the good things in our lives. I think I could have wrote that one. That's the way I have strived to liveand I do think it is what has kept me alive and pretty contented through the years.
Hazel
Osteo and Arthritus?
Does anyone have PAINLESS arthritus? I had painless carpel tunnel.. weird..
?Mild MS? The jury is still out..
I've heard that stress can bring on latent autoamunes, but someone like me would find having NO stress to be very stressful. So, for me, it seems not to matter.
;o)
I am sorry about all the things people have here..
:o( It seems like too much, sometimes.. Often times.
I know what I need though...I need a wife! ;)