When I was in college I worked part time (very part time) as a relief care giver for a young man of seventeen. The unfortunate victim of a serious road accident, severe brain damage left him needing round the clock care in all the basics.
I would bath him, help him to the toilet, try to understand what he wanted or didn’t want, and generally be there for anything at all that he needed. Boy oh boy was it tough. And I was just a part time carer.
Who cares for the carer?
I would leave my relatively short shift absolutely shattered. I can hardly imagine what non-stop relentless unpaid caring must be like. A carer is anyone who looks after the care needs of another person (be they friend, spouse, parent, child etc). Whether the person you care for has a mental or physical disability, care giving as a constant role can be very tough.
There are approximately 6.8 million carers in the UK. Carers are more vulnerable to health problems themselves, both physical and psychological (particularly depression). 52% of UK based carers regularly visit their doctors with stress related illnesses, so it’s vital that care givers look after themselves if they are to be able to actually provide care at all. Isolation can be particularly problematic in care situations, so it’s vital that care givers maintain connections with other people outside of the home.
The role of care giver often goes unrecognized by a society too fast and preoccupied to notice the unsung army of care givers. Carers can suffer serious stress overload as a result of constantly having to sublimate their own needs. Prolonged unrelenting stress can weaken the immune system leading to more illness. Blood pressure problems, digestive difficulties, loss of sleep and sheer loss of enjoyment in life can all result from seemingly endless stress.
What the new Carers stress relief session is all about
It was with all this in mind that I decided to produce the latest hypnosis relaxation download for hypnosisdownloads.com called Carers stress relief. Carers are so vital, so hard working and often so under-recognised (especially if they themselves never make any demands) that they can just burn out to exhaustion.
This session is a prolonged and deeply restful stress-busting relaxation that can be listened to anywhere and any time. It offers suggestions to feel fine about taking regular time out (because yes, care givers can feel guilty about taking time to look after themselves!) and provides an oasis of calm and comfort in a crowded day. There are also hypnotic suggestions to sleep better.
I really hope it helps all those carers out there and would love to hear from any care givers who can give me feedback.
All the best
Mark
