The Emotional & Physical Stress of Caregiving

Caregivers Series Part 2: The Emotional & Physical Stress of Caregiving

By August 24, 2015Caregiving

Home health care often falls on the shoulders of one person who has no choice.  Unfortunately nearly half of caregivers feel they don’t have a choice in being a caregiver and don’t have other unpaid caregivers to help them. 78% of those caring for a spouse have no unpaid help. On top of that only 32% of caregivers get help from paid home nurses, home health aides, housekeepers, or others that are paid for their services. 33% of caregivers received no help at all!

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Caregiving of a loved one is stressful on your body both emotionally and physically. 38% of caregivers report caring for their loved one is highly stressful. Caring for a spouse or parent is even more stressful. As a result, 22% of caregivers have reported a decline in their health. The long someone provides home care the more likely they are to report poor health. Those caring for recipients with complex issues have higher than average worsening health.

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As you can see, there is a toll to pay in providing home care of a loved one. Paid home health care providers have the training and experience and lack the emotional attachment to the recipient making it less stressful on them. If you are considering becoming a caregiver, you must consider the effects to your health especially if you’re not currently in excellent health. The last thing you and your loved one needs is you becoming a caregiving recipient.

Next in the series: The Financial Strain of Caregiving

Source:  Caregiving in the U.S. 2015 – Executive Summary