Life with Cancer Helpful Hints for Caregivers

  1. Caregivers are at increased risk for physical and mental health problems so remember to take excellent care of yourself.  Eat well, get sufficient sleep, take breaks and find ways to manage stress.  Learn to say, “Yes” when assistance is offered.  This is especially true if you are the primary caregiver.

  2. You don’t need to feel that you can “fix things” (you often can’t).  Communication becomes strained when one person is trying to express feelings and the other is determined to find practical solutions and “make everything all right.”  Feelings need to be voiced so they can be validated – many times the greatest gift you can give is to just listen.

  3. You and the patient may need to reassess and reassign the “old” roles and household tasks.

  4. Remember the importance of balancing realistic optimism and the reality that we are not in control of everything in our lives.  It is easy to try to be a “cheerleader” or make the survivor feel the need to have a constant “positive attitude,” but this is rarely helpful.  Be honest.  Listen.  Share your feelings.  Get things out in the open.  Usually this type of sharing and honesty brings people closer together.

  5. Identify and cultivate qualities such as humor, gratitude and a spiritual connection, which can help to regain a sense of well-being during the cancer experience.

  6. If you have concerns about children in your family, Life with Cancer can provide resources such as support groups for children and teens, articles, videos and books that can be useful.

  7. If the illness is on-going, problems in coping persist, if you have a sense of being overwhelmed by a crisis, feel isolated or just would like some concrete suggestions of help, a support group such as the Life with Cancer Caregivers Meeting, or individual counseling can be an invaluable “safe place” to discuss your own frustrations and challenges. 

 

Email Newsletter icon

Sign-up for Email News:

Email:

Follow us on:

YouTube Blog Twitter Inspire