Resources for Our Compassion Fatigue
We offer suggestions to help family caregivers work through burn-out.
Welcome to our fourth issue of our newsletter which helps libraries share resources for those who care for a family member.
This month, we focus on supporting family caregivers through their compassion fatigue. When we care for another, we have give so much day in and day out. How do we cope when compassion fatigue hits?
You are welcome to copy and paste any or all of the content of this newsletter on your library website. Please also feel free to share this newsletter with colleagues and friends who may benefit. (Note: We refer to individuals who care for a family member as family caregivers. We refer to the individual receiving care as caree.)
Our curated list of resources takes into account what individuals need when they feel burn-out: understanding, support and solutions. Denise M. Brown, who began working with family caregivers in 1990 and caring for her parents in 2004, creates our list.
Apps
Companion, the stress and anxiety app, “puts mental health at the heart of every working day.”
Happify understands that “happiness is a skill that can be strengthened—and we want to make the benefits of scientific discovery readily available and usable by you in an interactive way.”
Headspace uses science-backed meditation and mindfulness tools to “help you create life-changing habits to support your mental health and find a healthier, happier you.” Free for 14 days, then $5.83 per month.
Books
Already Toast: Caregiving and Burnout in America by Kate Washington. Book description: The story of one woman’s struggle to care for her seriously ill husband—and a revealing look at the role unpaid family caregivers play in a society that fails to provide them with structural support.
The Cornell Effect: A Family's Journey towards Happiness, Fulfillment and Peace by John C Cranham DDS. Book description: Chronicling 25 years as parents and caregivers, Cranham guides his readers through the lessons and principles that he and his wife learned from Cornell, resulting in a more peaceful, blissful, and content life.
Healing Secondary Trauma: Proven Strategies for Caregivers and Professionals to Manage Stress, Anxiety, and Compassion Fatigue by Trudy Gilbert-Eliot PhD. Book description: Healing Secondary Trauma is the gentle guide to help you identify symptoms, understand the feelings, and begin the healing process of your own secondary trauma.
Events
Each month, we offer a free monthly virtual meeting to help family caregivers find a break right where they are. Learn more about our Respite In Place Plan and virtual meeting. (Please also join us if you’d like to check out our meeting before recommending.)
Strategies
Avoid Burnout Before You're Already Burned Out (The New York Times)
The Caring Conference: Our Courageous Acts Archives: We gathered on November 12, 2021, to share our courageous acts. Presenters shared how they took steps to improve their own self-care during their personal caregiving experience.
The Caring Conference: Our Resilient Spirit Archives: We gathered on April 9 and 10, 2021, to share our wisdom and insights about our resilience. Presenters offered ways to bounce back after difficult experiences.
A Guide to Burnout (Healthline)
Healing Our Caregiving Fatigues Archive: Our eight-video series helps family caregivers heal when they get tired of trying, overwhelmed by worries, and weary of being gracious.
These Self-Care Strategies Can Help Caregivers Cope with Burn-Out (The Wall Street Journal). Denise shares her recent experience with burn-out as she cares for her parents and grieves for her brother, who died suddenly in August 2021.
Support
Caring Our Way, our community on Mighty Networks, features an area to post questions for Certified Caregiving Consultants (CCCs). The CCCs completed professional training and have personal caregiving experiences which means they understand the stress of caregiving. It’s free to join and to post questions. CCCs also are available for a free 30-minute consultation and can be hired to become personal consultant for a family caregiver. Join Caring Our Way and then click through to our groups called “Caregiving Answers (Ask a CCC)”.
(Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay)