10 Things I've Learned As A Carefree Caregiver

Nap when you can. Your body learns to live with a limited amount of sleep just the way it did when the kids were babies, but it catches up with you affecting your mood, your health and your capabilities.

The Golden Rule is just as important now as when you learned it as a child. I’ll be that Senior needing help someday and I’ll sure be glad when others treat me with reasonable respect the way we should always treat each other.

Be as generous as you can. Any opportunity to give back to those who’ve helped us is a great blessing. What goes around always comes around. Don’t miss your chance to do what you can before it’s too late.

Turn that frown upside down and smile more. It prevents wrinkles and gives those around you a reason to smile back. Your face is a mirror of what’s inside and if your resentment is showing, you shouldn’t be doing what you’re doing.

Practice Patience. So what if it takes an extra thirty minutes, or more, to wait at the table with someone while they finish their meal. Let the others scatter, then read the paper, decide on a new knitting pattern, update your shopping list or just talk about the weather.

Serenity can save your life. Don’t panic, remain calm and don’t sweat the small stuff. A simple soup will do for dinner when you’re running late or are too tired to cook.

Your mood can mess up everybody else’s so settle down and let go of what’s out of your hands. That doesn’t mean you have to bottle up your feelings, just don’t ‘rage’ about something you can’t fix anyway.

No woman is an island and no man is a mind reader, (at least in our household). Ask for help when you need it and you shall receive …

… as long as you’re willing to accept it as it comes. Don’t expect everyone to do things the way you do (there is no need to re-load the dishwasher, your way). Nitpicking is counterproductive, so stop doing it. And the same goes for micromanaging: everyone knows how to boil water without burning it. Really.

Figure out what to do about your frustrations. It may work for a while but in the long run we can’t just ignore the things that drive us crazy. Talk about it, look for solutions and do something to make it better. Sometimes just acknowledging that there is a problem can keep a small annoyance from flowing over and brewing into a family fight.