Causes of caregiver fatigue in the care of the elderly

The care of the elderly has become a growing need in direct relation to the progressive aging of contemporary Western societies.

This care is necessary in cases such as Alzheimer's or other neurodegenerative or chronic diseases that make it essential that the person is cared for during much of the day or permanently, but they can even become necessary in people older than or see their cognitive abilities affected by a specific disease, beyond the natural wear and tear that comes with age during old age

Now, it is often overlooked that these tasks also affect those who put their effort and time into them. That is why it is useful to know what caregiver syndrome consists of, and the causes of the fatigue it causes.

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What are the main causes of caregiver fatigue?

In people who care for the elderly, the so-called "caregiver syndrome" or caregiver fatigue may appear, a psychological alteration associated with intense physical bonding (through work and objective care) and emotional bonding (through emotional bonding and empathy) with the sick, and what

manifests itself in a series of symptoms that progressively and decisively affect their mental health.

Some of the symptoms of caregiver syndrome are usually physical and psychological exhaustion due to accumulated fatigue, stress crises, anxiety generalized, a feeling of overflow due to the circumstances that makes one's own mental health relegate to the background, and also depression in cases more severe.

In addition to that, also frustration or a feeling of inability to help the patient usually appears, as well as impotence, anger and social isolation, due to the fact that the person ends up devoting less time to their private life and being with their loved ones.

To better understand the particularities of this problem, let's see what are the most relevant causes of caregiver fatigue in the cases of those who care for the elderly, especially in the event that this is done due to family ties with those who need support for.

1. Problems differentiating the health of others from their own

Caregiver fatigue generally appears when the person becomes so involved in the health of an elderly patient that they end up neglecting their own health, which ends up causing serious problems both emotionally and physically and socially for having his attention always focused on the needs of the elderly. After all, your health problems as an older person are usually much more apparent and "striking" than your own; they are more qualitative losses in quality of life, and not as quantitative or easy to overlook.

The impossibility of drawing a line that delimits her functions as caregiver of care for herself and her family is an essential characteristic of this type of syndrome, a phenomenon that ends up making it possible for the caregiver to live permanently caring for the patient without worrying about any other area of life.

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2. Guilty feeling

The feeling of guilt is another of the most common causes in the appearance of caregiver syndrome, and consists of the belief that the inactivity itself will cause the aggravation of the illness or the death of the person in charge.

It is precisely this feeling of guilt that makes it possible for the person to surrender fully and tirelessly. to the care of the patient, for fear that a single distraction or inattention will have fatal consequences in the life of East.

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3. lack of assertiveness

Assertiveness is the ability that allows us to defend our own point of view and our personal ideas while always respecting others, in a non-invasive way and without hostility,

This ability is essential to correctly relate to our environment; however, some people with caregiver fatigue have true assertiveness deficits, which prevents them from setting limits regarding their work.

In addition to that, the lack of assertiveness also results in the person not knowing how to say “no” in situations in which you do not agree related to your work as a caregiver or caregiver.

Secondly, lack of assertiveness is often associated with low self-esteem and the feeling that one has to work hard to compensate for one's own incompetence are also classic states of mind in people with caregiver fatigue.

In these cases, they usually have a very negative view of themselves, which turns into a self-destructive spiral. in which the person progressively loses his self-esteem and his ability to find something positive in himself same.

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4. unrealistic expectations

Having a distant vision of reality during the care process, as well as expectations unrealistic are also traits that are related to caregiver syndrome or patient fatigue. carer.

Most people who work as caregivers for the elderly are informal, that is, they are not professionals, which is why they often they tend to have limited and unrealistic knowledge about how care works and what expectations we can have.

This happens, for example, when we believe that it is normal for our care to "cure" an elderly person who has an illness, something that often does not happen.

5. Inability to ask for help

Some people who are dedicated to the care of an elderly person often have real trouble recognizing the point at which to ask others for help.

This situation can occur, for example, in neurodegenerative diseases, when the informal caregiver, who is usually a family member, assumes that no matter what happens, you have to continue doing what you have been doing for months to care for the elderly person, without asking for help external.

6. Anxiety in the face of social pressure

The feeling of anguish in the face of social pressure and the idea of ​​"what will they say" if you are not caring for that person most of the time, it is also a characteristic feature of caregiver fatigue.

Again, this anguish has to do with a feeling of incapacity and with the belief that any failure in the care of the person will cause serious consequences and even death.

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7. Lack of knowledge about how to take care of yourself

Another of the most important causes, combined with the others, is the simple ignorance about what is necessary to take care of yourself and about what to do to prevent physical and/or mental health problems in oneself.

For example, little sleep or little free time to rest can also cause caregiver fatigue in many cases, but they are not Few people consider those hours of the week to be "wasted hours" that could be used more productively by dedicating themselves to all kinds of activities. chores.

Usually, caregivers are strongly recommended to sleep about 7-8 hours a day and always have a few hours of rest in the middle of caring for the elderly.

The healthy lifestyle habits that a caregiver must maintain to avoid a state of fatigue are, in addition to eating, sleeping well and have good hygiene, perform recurrent physical activity with the aim of achieving good physical health and mental.

In addition to that, it is also recommended to do fun activities and hobbies to rest from time to time, such as watching series, going to the movies or going on outdoor excursions.

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8. Break up with friends and family

People with caregiver fatigue they end up breaking social relations with their closest circles, both at family and friendship level, due to lack of energy and time. And this contributes to the vicious cycle of dependency, given that a large part of the incentives to break with this dynamic in the short term are eliminated.

That is why it is strongly recommended to maintain social contact with the closest people whenever possible and on a weekly basis, with the aim of having a better quality of life, happiness and Energy.

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