Taking time away can be anxiety-inducing for caregivers. If you’re trying to avoid feeling bad about taking respite time, these tips can be just what you need.
Let Someone Else Know What You’re Doing
Even if you’ve already got elderly care providers lined up for your respite time, let someone else know that you’re taking time just for you. This can help to eliminate confusion and angst on the part of other family members who might stop by. If someone else knows that you’re taking the afternoon away, that does a few other things, too. It leaves an additional contact person in case something happens and it reassures you that you’ve done all that you can.
Make an Actual Plan
Everything goes better when there is a plan in place, especially respite time. A plan for respite might involve making sure that elderly care providers have your phone number and the other important contact numbers and information to take care of your senior properly. An information packet that you keep in an obvious location can be a good idea, too. Determine now what you consider to be an emergency and when you would want to be contacted early and let anyone caring for your senior know what those criteria are.
Talk to Your Senior
It helps if you prepare your elderly family member a little bit for the fact that you’re going to be away for a few hours. This is much easier to do if you’ve already been taking respite time, even just an hour at a time, but you can still start now. Just let her know that you’re going to be gone for a short time and that someone will be there with her. The key is to avoid surprising her by sneaking out when she’s not looking unless that’s the only way she’ll let you leave.
Don’t Call While You’re Gone
The worst thing you could do is to start calling in to check on how things are going. As long as the criteria you set for an emergency have been met, you shouldn’t be getting a call, either. A good adage to remember during your respite time is that “no news is good news.” You’re taking this time away so that you don’t have to think about caregiving for a little while. Stick to that.
You’re going to make mistakes with respite time but following these tips can help you to make far fewer than you could be making.
If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Elder Care in Auburn, AL, please contact the caring staff at Prime Home Health today. Caring for Our Friends and Neighbors in Tallapoosa, Chambers, Lee, Macon and Russell Counties! Call us 24 hours a day, 7 days a week! 334.745.7966
