Caregivers are generous people, human beings willing to help others more than themselves. Many of them forget self-care. This trend is growing within the caregiver community. People from their environment often notice this but fail to address the matter. That way caregivers are left alone with their suffering, which sometimes brings a lot of stress and can lead to an emotional breakdown. Do caregivers invest care into themselves the same way they do for others? What about caregivers self-compassion?
Our culture gives us the feeling that this is the way the things should be. But when caregivers are invested too much into others, they tend to burn themselves out. Despite this, professional caregivers know that they will need this extra compassion when dealing with severe cases. The patients that are children with special needs, or disabled elderly, need the extra attention and emotional approach. With time, they tend to develop this inner feeling for themselves too.
Source: compassioncenter.arizona.edu
This characteristic is called self-compassion – a caregivers self-compassion. This is a treat which is crucial for caregivers. Within their profession, they will often meet failure – they will make mistakes. This is all part of the job, and they should embrace the consequences that come with it. In this area of expertise, you will meet all sorts of people. Some will be compassionate with you; some won’t. In the situations when the outsiders are judging you, and are showing lack of support, you will more than ever need caregivers self-compassion. With a state of mind, set like this, you will find the strength to endure hard days at work.
When you are a caregiver, you will need to find that extra ounce of strength to be self-compassionate in the situations that are going to be difficult to handle. This will not only help you with the job; it will produce a personal satisfaction.
featured Image Source: www.bethesdahealth.org
