When you think of self-care, chances are you think of face masks and bubble baths. However, for many caregivers, this just sounds like a list of things you don’t have time for. Some of you are at the end of your rope, and even if you had the time for traditional self-care, you don’t have the energy. Below are some tips to combat stress immediately and some things you can do to maintain those levels when you’re out of the danger zone.
Triaging:
- Eat:
- Eating has some obvious benefits, like giving you the energy and nutrients you need. But there’s a lot more to food. When you eat well, it causes your brain to produce dopamine and serotonin, which are also known as happiness hormones. While eating healthily is objectively better for you than eating unhealthily, eating unhealthily is better than not eating at all. Harvard’s health blog compares food to fuel, comparing our bodies to an expensive car that will function best off of premium fuel (healthy food) and suffer from low-premium fuel (unhealthy food). In that same vein, it is better to use low-premium fuel than to let our gas tanks hit empty. So if it’s been a while since you’ve eaten, bite the bullet and run through a drive-thru.
- Sleep:
- Most adults need 7-9 hours of sleep per night. And for good reason; sleep helps you think more clearly, focus better, and improves your mood. A lack of sleep can affect everything from the immune system to appetite to blood pressure to stress hormones (and more). If you struggle with sleeping, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services suggests spending time outside, reserving your physical activity for earlier in the day, avoiding caffeine late in the day, and limiting naps to 20 minutes. For those who struggle with sleep apnea (a condition in which your breathing stops and restarts while you’re sleeping), a CPAP machine (Alpine) (which pumps air into your throat to keep the airway open) could help. If you feel you may have sleep apnea, talk to your doctor to learn more.
- Rest:
- Some of you may be thinking, “That sounds great, but I can’t sleep.” You’re not alone. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, 14.5% of U.S. adults struggled to get a good night’s sleep over the course of a month. When you can’t sleep, you may feel tempted to give up and do something else instead. If you aren’t going to be able to sleep, you might as well do something productive, right? Well, rest may be more productive than you think. Rest can have benefits for memory, motor skills, and even problem-solving skills. Though it’s not the same as sleep, taking 15-20 minutes to lie on your couch and close your eyes can be enough to help your brain recharge.
Preventative care and treatment:
- Exercise:
- Exercise can immediately reduce short-term feelings of anxiety in adults, and if done habitually, it can reduce long-term feelings of anxiety. Exercising also promotes better sleep, provided that you aren’t exercising right before bed. According to the American Psychological Association, exercise gives your body a chance to practice responding to stress. When you exercise habitually, your body is more prepared to handle stress later on.
- Meal prep:
- As mentioned earlier, our bodies need fuel, and the healthier the food is the better. But eating healthy often takes time, and you can’t spend every night cooking a five-star meal after work. That’s why meal prepping can be such a lifesaver; if you can sacrifice an hour of your week, you can make a meal that will feed you throughout it. There are sheet pan recipes that you can toss onto a cookie sheet, cook in about 40 minutes, and pack into containers to last throughout the week. You can also find 20 minute meals. Though they often serve less, they make up for it by being so quick.
- Cleaning:
- While cleaning certainly lacks the charm of bubble baths and face masks, cleaning is still self-care and has undeniable mental and even physical health benefits. For example, it provides a sense of stability and control over your life, helps regulate emotions, improves focus, and releases endorphins (another one of the happiness hormones). Even something as small as making your bed each morning can boost your confidence and motivation. Cleaning also has physical benefits. Though it may not seem like much, the moving around you do during cleaning still helps to burn calories, and your body will appreciate not being sedentary. Additionally, a clean room can help you sleep better, whether by reducing allergens or simply having less physical and mental clutter as you drift off.
- Community:
- A community can look like a lot of different things. It can be friends, family, church groups, and even support groups specific to caregivers. Whatever community looks like for you, it’s important to have people you can lean on and talk with. Once you’ve developed a community, realize that these are people who want to help. Whether you’re scheduling a date night with your spouse or just time to watch a movie by yourself, don’t be afraid to ask the people around you for assistance. However, these things don’t always have to be several hours long. Maybe you just want to grab coffee with a friend or go to the grocery store alone.
- Entertainment:
- Though media can often put strain on your brain, there are some ways in which entertainment can help you decompress. For example, reading can lower stress levels and help you sleep. Movies can also supply a sense of rest and relaxation. Listening to music can reduce anxiety and singing along can increase the release of dopamine and serotonin (happiness hormones) and decrease cortisol levels (the stress hormones).
Remember: the care you give matters. But you are a human being, and you cannot pour from an empty cup. Treat yourself kindly and set realistic expectations for yourself. For more tips on how to take care of yourself, you may be interested in the following articles:
https://www.caregiver.org/resource/taking-care-you-self-care-family-caregivers/
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/self-care-for-the-caregiver-2018101715003
https://www.ucsfhealth.org/education/self-care-for-caregivers
