The Caregiver’s “Tight Rope Act”: Balancing your Own Needs and those of Your Loved One’s
When an aging parent begins suffering from a number of aging-related health issues, the lives of the people who care about them (the children) are strongly affected. In fact, in recent surveys of caregivers (family members caring for a sick aging parent), millions of Americans live in that gray area of inner conflict: they may be at the office trying to put on a semblance of efficiency and hard work, but in reality, their mind is wracked with worry for the senior parent who is at home and left to fend for themselves.
There are also studies that indicate that more than seventy percent of such caregivers are so affected, their lives rocked to the core, that they often resort to either changing their jobs or quitting from their positions altogether. Such drastic moves can have strong repercussions, especially for the immediate family. But in desperation, caregivers often have not much of a choice.
Fortunately, there are companies or employers that understand the situation and actually do offer their affected employees some flexibility regarding work schedules and responsibility. However, not all companies have the same sensibility toward the special needs of its employees. In many instances, caregivers will have to resort to internet-based or home-based jobs, for example, are more and more becoming the norm. The schedule flexibility can enable them to choose what jobs they would be willing to take on, and when they would want to do it depending on the client’s deadline. They can work right in the comfort of their own home, possibly within earshot of the senior they are taking care of. The benefits, however, can also be considered as this setup’s downside: those who opt to carve a career out of internet-based freelancing while juggling their responsibilities as a caregiver may find the setup up exceedingly stressful. Working as a home-based freelancer means that there is no one else but you who will find the clients, manage your own accounting, and file your taxes. On top of that, there is the senior’s constant demand for attention.
It is therefore a huge challenge for a caregiver to find a way to balance their own needs (family and career) with those of the people under their care (aging parent). They cannot just drop everything and spend entire days by the bed side and say goodbye to an otherwise budding profession. After all, most caregivers also have their own families to think and care about and who also depend on them.
A good overall solution for any caregiver, therefore, is something that allows them their own much-needed “me time,” while never neglecting the needs of the people under their care. A system that can monitor a loved one 24 hours a day, seven days a week would be perfect. And fortunately, such a system is already well established: the medical alert system.
Using a medical alert system is nothing new. They have been around in the past few decades, quietly helping caregivers in monitoring the condition and whereabouts of their loved ones. The medical alert, however, is recently gaining more and more attention, thanks to advancements in telecommunication technologies. The system these days is so designed for optimum convenience—both for the caregiver and the recipient of care. Typically, a medical alert is a small device that the recipient must wear at all times on their wrist, clipped to their belt, or as some form of a necklace. This device must be within the wireless range of what is called a “base unit”: another device that is attached to your home’s phone line. When an emergency occurs, the wearer only has to press a button and a link to the alert system’s monitoring system is instantly established. Depending on the type of medical alert system you subscribe to, the response can be automatic: the designated medical personnel will arrive at the location quickly, while next of kin are also notified of the situation, especially those who are living near the area.
The benefits of using a medical alarm are obvious: with it, caregivers can rest assured that their loved ones will always have an efficient means to call for help. They can finally have peace of mind, even if they’re at the office taking care of business. With a medical alert system, caregivers can finally have the chance to think things through and balance their priorities for the benefit of everybody.
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