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Hi Caregiver
If you find yourself dragging along, being consistently tired with no energy, here are some things you need to do to care for yourself.
- See your Doctor-If you haven’t been recently, check in with your doctor. Extreme tiredness can be symptomatic of anything from depression to pneumonia to anemia to thyroid issues or worse. Rule out the physical causes of your weariness. Once they are ruled out, you can move on. Being depressed is no small thing. You may need counseling and/or medication for a while as your brain calms down from the chemical reactions to the trauma you have been through. Don’t ignore it. For many, being at the hospital is traumatizing, to say nothing of having an ill loved one. It isn’t too dramatic to call it trauma. Life is not the same as it was before this Event that happened.
- Activity– If you are not maintaining a decent activity level, you will not be able to maintain good health, both physical and mental. That is the truth. There is no way to get around it. Getting outside as much as possible and getting active, even if only walking, is very helpful to you physically and mentally.
- Solutions– think about what solutions you need. a class? (once this virus passes) an online class? a fitbit to keep track of how many steps you are taking in a day? membership at a pool once this virus passes? Think about what will work for you.
- Deciding to walk around the block once is a good way to start moving as you add to it more times each day and/or more times at a time. It is also a great time to relax your mind. If life is getting stressful, take a minute to walk around the block and breathe. When you return, you will find that the stress of the moment will have eased and the issue you were discussing will have gotten smaller or gone away completely.
- Finding ways to do an activity with your loved one will help them as well as you. They may need to walk or ride in a wheelchair, but the fresh air will relax them as well.
- Diet–Improve your eating habits.
- solutions-what diets have worked in the past? are they working for you now? why? why not? think through what is working, what isn’t working? if you need a change and why. That are too many opportunities out there to help you out. I find it easy to get stuck in old habits. It isn’t easy to make changes. Take an online class now. Many that are costly have dropped their prices during this virus time, some are even free. It’s a great time to get help for some that is very important. Keep the focus on helping you get healthy vs. simply losing weight. I think it will be more encouraging.
- Stretch your faith
- Do you need to visit with your pastor for help in applying GOD’s Word to your new situation? Often, we get new challenges in our lives and need help in understanding how our faith applies to a new challenge. Sometimes, a person that has walked a similar road to yours will understand what you are going through and will be able to help. Don’t hesitate to ask. You will be glad you did.
- Ask those in your faith community, a small group, a Bible study, a group within the larger church group that you know well, to pray for you and add specifics as you are able. I have been very fortunate to have had wonderful help from both these sources through my church here over the past 5 years. It has been wonderful.
- Pray for the things you find keep you worried. It will strengthen your trust in GOD. It will help you be more aware of His care for you as you watch Him answer your big and tiny prayers. It will make you aware of His presence in your life as well as His special embrace of you personally.
Photo by Dominik Lange on Unsplash
His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness,
through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,
by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises,
so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature,
having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.
For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge,
and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness,
and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.
For if these qualities are yours and are increasing,
they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.II Peter 1:3-8 ESV
