Anchorage Respite Care Tips for Managing Stress

senior man relaxing listening to headphones
Managing stress can lead to a healthier, more relaxed life.

Stress is inevitable, and actually, not always a bad thing. After all, as the saying goes, “A diamond is just a piece of charcoal that handled stress exceptionally well.” Nevertheless, particularly for family caregivers, the amount of stress can easily intensify and start to become frustrating, and if not managed well, result in challenging health problems.

Try these tips to lessen stress and obtain a healthier and more relaxed lifestyle – and then call Midnight Sun Home Care, the Anchorage respite care specialists for assistance:

  • Change your self-talk. Through the course of every day, you will probably find yourself entertaining thoughts like, “I cannot accomplish this!” or “Everything is going wrong!” Stop when negative thinking starts to intrude, and say to yourself instead, “I'm able to take care of this, one step at a time,” or “Help is attainable whenever I need it.”
  • Take a break. Deescalate stress through any or all the following strategies:
    • Breathe deeply (breathe in to a count of 4; hold for a count of 4; exhale to a count of 4; hold for a count of 4; repeat as needed)
    • Take a stroll or engage in some other physical exercise
    • Pray or meditate
    • Play favorite music
    • Write in a journal
    • Phone a friend
  • Try a stress-busting activity. There are a lot of enjoyable activities that can distract your focus away from what was leading to stress and onto things more favorable, for example, creating art, reading, having fun with pets or children, working in the yard or on a do-it-yourself project – the options are limitless, and even as few as 10 or 15 minutes allocated to the experience often helps.

There are even apps especially designed with family caregivers in mind to help with managing stress and restoring calm. Find five which are very worthwhile from DailyCaring.

Caregiver stress is particularly widespread for many who feel as though they have no support system, and have to handle everything alone. Thankfully, we have a solution! Call Midnight Sun Home Care for an in-home consultation to find out how we can help with your caregiving duties, enabling you to gain the important time away to destress, with services such as:

  • Planning and preparing nutritious meals
  • Assistance with personal care and hygiene
  • Taking care of housekeeping chores and laundry
  • Running errands, including grocery shopping and picking up prescriptions
  • Accompaniment to medical appointments and enjoyable outings
  • Companionship to brighten every day with stimulating conversations, games, puzzles, hobbies, etc.
  • Medication reminders
  • And much more

Reach out to us at (907) 677-7890 for more information on Anchorage respite care and learn how a partner in care can make a world of difference in managing stress and restoring a healthy life balance for family caregivers. See our full service area.

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