In the day-to-day, signs of caregiver stress can sometimes go unchecked. Ongoing stress can affect your physical, emotional, and cognitive well-being. It’s important to recognize the signs of caregiver stress, whether it’s yourself or someone you love; you can help alleviate it in a timely manner, eliminate any potential lingering effects, and feel better overall.
Six Signs of Caregiver Stress
1. Your Body Hurts
Feeling stressed manifests not only emotionally but physically, too. This can lead to jaw or fist clenching or tightness in your neck and shoulder muscles. Being on high alert can also lead to your nerves being more sensitive, which can also contribute to diffusing pain or discomfort throughout your body.
2. Illnesses Seem Non-Stop
Stress can impact your immune system, making it harder to fight off minor viruses, colds, or infections. Being more susceptible to minor illnesses or taking longer to heal can be two signs of caregiver stress. Over a period of time, chronic stress can also impact your long-term health, increasing your risk for cardiovascular, metabolic, or other chronic health conditions.
3. You Experience Frequent GI Issues
Stress in a caregiver can manifest in your digestive system, which in turn can lead to stomach aches, heartburn, and bowel issues. An upset stomach without a clear dietary cause or known medical condition can be your body’s way of communicating stress.
4. You Can’t Think Clearly
Stress can affect your ability to sleep, leading to restless or interrupted sleep patterns. Being sleep-deprived can then lead to changes in your thinking and mood. You may also experience some common symptoms, such as brain fog, increased forgetfulness, difficulty concentrating, or increased irritability.
5. Exercising Feels Harder
As one of the signs of caregiver stress, poor sleep affects not only your ability to think clearly but also your ability to recover after workouts. This can lead to increased recovery time needed between workouts and routine workouts, feeling more difficult than usual.
6. Your Weight Changes
Stress can impact hormonal levels that regulate appetite and satiety, which can lead to increased cravings and slower metabolism. Over time, this can also contribute to increased weight gain. For others, feeling stressed can contribute to skipping meals or poor food choices, which can contribute to weight loss. So, if you have experienced an unexpected weight change, stress may be the cause.
What Stress-Relieving Steps to Take Next
If any of these signs of caregiver stress sound familiar, there are a few steps you can take. First, if you have any concerns about your health or pre-existing medical conditions, speak with your physician or health provider to rule out any problems that could contribute to your symptoms. Since some health conditions present with similar symptoms, you may feel comfortable making this your first step to ensure there isn’t an underlying health cause that requires medical attention.
Next, look for the stressors in your everyday life outside of being a caregiver, including the more obvious ones, but do not exclude the more subtle ones. Some common stressors include financial worries, busy schedules, growing to-do lists, personal conflicts, or excessive worrying. Other hidden stressors may exist in your everyday life, such as spending time in overly loud, crowded, or busy environments, limited downtime, or excess social media or news consumption.
Spend a week or two logging your stressors, symptoms, and how you are feeling. Once you have a clear idea of what stressors are primarily affecting you, make a plan to reduce or eliminate stressors. You may consider seeking help from a health professional or counselor, setting limits for news or social media use, incorporating more self-care activities, establishing boundaries, or asking for help. Speaking with a health professional or counselor about the signs of caregiver stress that are affecting you may provide a therapeutic outlet and strategies to help you better manage your stress levels. Setting a timer can help limit your daily social media use or news intake. Asking for help to delegate household tasks or caregiver responsibilities can also help lessen your mental load.
From there, add in stress relievers and adapt practices to be more stress resistant and combat those signs of caregiver stress. Some practices include building a strong and supportive network of friends and family, an optimistic attitude, incorporating coping and mindfulness strategies, and allowing time to decompress in relaxing atmospheres. Building a stress-relieving self-care routine can help you carve out time dedicated to your mental and emotional well-being. There are many stress-relieving activities that can be built into your daily and weekly routines. Some examples include journaling, taking a walk outside, maintaining meaningful connections, meditating, light stretching, gentle exercise, painting, drawing, engaging in personal hobbies, reading, or listening to music, amongst many others.
Take The Stress Out of Long-Term Planning
If you’re seeing signs of caregiver stress in someone you love, or if that caregiver is you, don’t navigate this journey alone. At Rothkoff Law Group, we have a team of elder care professionals committed to helping seniors and their families with all steps of the aging process, from the needs at hand to planning for the future ahead. Call and speak with a team member to learn more about the Rothkoff difference.