When you’re a family caregiver, you’re occasionally going to experience emotions that you don’t know how to process. Many of those may be on the negative end of the spectrum, which makes them even more disturbing. Changing how you approach those emotions can help you to manage them in a much healthier manner.
Negative Emotions You Might Feel as a Caregiver
Many family caregivers become quite upset when they start to feel negative emotions. You might tell yourself that you shouldn’t feel certain emotions or that you’re wrong for feeling a certain way. Some of the emotions you might feel could include:
- Anger
- Guilt
- Frustration
- Resentment
- Anxiety
- Dread
- Vulnerable
These aren’t all of the emotions that you might experience, but they cover quite a bit of ground. In the end, any emotion that makes you feel bad that it is manifesting is one you might consider negative.
Caregiving Is Complex
The bottom line is that caregiving is an extremely complex situation. You’re combining what are usually decades of relationship history with your loved one’s current needs and wants. That can make a highly volatile situation. Any situation that complex is going to include both positive and negative emotions.
What Can You Do?
When you first feel these negative emotions, you might feel helpless about what to do with them. The first step is to go ahead and acknowledge what you’re feeling. You might also want to sort through why you’re feeling that way.
Once you understand the feeling, it’s much easier to process it. Some emotions, like resentment, pop up when you’re actually neglecting yourself.
Be Gentle with Yourself
Taking care of yourself is an excellent way to help yourself navigate through negative or difficult feelings. Avoid beating yourself up over what you’re feeling because that’s not going to solve any problems. Instead, be gentle with yourself and give yourself what you need in order to be emotionally healthy and prepared to care for your loved one.
Your emotions aren’t your enemy. If you can stop fighting them, you can work through them much more quickly.
IF YOU OR AN AGING LOVED ONE ARE CONSIDERING IN-HOME CAREGIVERS IN SUMMERLIN, NV, PLEASE CONTACT THE CARING STAFF AT GOLDEN HEART SENIOR CARE. CALL TODAY 702-800-4616.