Maybe you open your eyes each morning and immediately feel the weight of responsibility. You feel exhausted and overwhelmed, but making time for yourself feels impossible. You may be feeling resentful toward the care recipient, then feel guilty about feeling resentful! On and on, with no clear picture of how things can get better. Life can feel like it's in free-fall, with an ever-shifting set of challenges.
Counseling for Caregivers in Pasadena
Here's what we'll do in therapy
Assess
We will take inventory of what is and isn't working in your caregiving arrangement. What changes need to be made both internally and externally?
Problem-Solve
Together we will explore practical solutions to relieve the burden of caregiving. What help, programs, training, or fixes are needed to ease and share the burden?
Rebuild
Chances are, your own needs have been put by the wayside. In therapy, you can learn how to care for yourself and make sure YOUR needs are met.
Process
Therapy offers a place to work through the complex emotions that arise from caregiving. You can let it all out, knowing I am here as a guide.
My background in hospice care and as a medical social worker has given me rich insights into the needs of family caregivers. And as a caregiver myself, I understand that caring for a chronically ill loved one can be emotionally, physically, and mentally exhausting. I bring an open, compassionate, non-judgmental approach to therapy with caregivers.
You don't have to lose yourself while caring for someone else.
Frequently Asked Questions about Caregiver Counseling
1. Who is considered a "caregiver"?
Anyone who provides assistance to a loved one is a caregiver. This can be direct care, like bathing or dressing, or indirect care such as handling financial matters or arranging doctor's appointments. The therapy I provide is geared toward adults providing (typically) unpaid care of another adult in their lives, such as a parent, spouse, partner, sibling, or friend.
2. Caregiving isn't my full-time job, but it's still very stressful. Would therapy help me?
Caregiving is such a unique experience of physical, mental, and emotional challenges that even a little bit can be enough to generate strong emotional responses. Therapy can help get a handle on things now so that you feel more prepared for the future.
3. Taking care of my loved one is just ONE of the stressors in my life. Can I also talk about my marriage/job/health/etc?
Absolutely! In fact, helping you learn to attend to ALL of YOUR needs is one of the main goals of counseling for caregivers.