I cared for my Mom until she passed 15 months ago. And I am still caring for my Dad who lives in an ALF nearby me. I learned the hard way that my Sacred Self Care had to come first of I would swirl down the drain.
Much as I love and care for him, I must set aside time and practices that keep me strong and healthy.
I teach a Sacred Self Care class, that's how important I have come to view this issue!
I know it's hard to carve out time for ourselves but it's essential. I had surgery in November..and I'll never know if it could have been avoided if I had taken better care of ME during Mom's illness.

I am passionate about this Sacred Self Care issue. I hope you are too!

SPARKLE ON!

Jan **::**

I could never have related to this until recently. You are so, so right that you have to find a way to recharge your batteries, or burn out easily sets in. The last thing we want to do is become impatient and resentful directly to the person for whom we are caring. I keep reminding myself to consider how I would feel if I were in that loved one's shoes and transitioned from a strong, independent individual to one who can't function without assistance. We can only hope and pray that when we reach that stage of life, there is a kind and gracious loved one who will be patient and understanding with us--even if we are placing more demands on them than they ever imagined possible! I'm thankful for our time together--however long that may be, but I will take some ME time to recharge. It's the only way we can best benefit them and keep our sanity.

I can totally relate to this topic. My mother had a stroke and Dementia and I left my job to care for her until she finally passed away a year later.

I remember so well the feelings of stress and overwork.My heart goes out to all caregivers who take care of a parent or loved one. I've done it twice now and it's the hardest job I've ever done.

A social worker told me that taking care of myself would be a blessing to pass onto someone else.

Just wanted to share.

Thanks for adding your thoughts Laura, and welcome to the BWS forum. We hope to see a lot of you around here. IMHO, we're a great group of women.

And the topic of making sure we take care of ourselves as we serve as caregivers is a huge one. Those who haven't done it have no idea what's involved.