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Caregiving Tips

Guidance on how to properly care for your loved ones as they navigate through the aging process

Family caregivers tend to be isolated, as our time is focused on caregiving and keeping up with work, other family members and the basics of our own lives. The pandemic has magnified that isolation. We may have at least had the occasional get-together with friends, attended an in-person caregiver support group or had regular family gatherings. But now those things aren't happening and as we head into the holidays we will miss those connections. The good news is that there are still ways to connect - that's why my 9th tip is:

Connect with other caregivers

Other caregivers are feeling many of the same emotions we are, even when others don’t understand. Connect to share your feelings, get tips and brainstorm ideas about how to adjust holiday celebrations this year. We learn the most from each other! No one quite understands the way another caregiver does.

Some support groups will have small outdoor gatherings, but that gets harder in parts of the country where the weather is prohibitive. We are all growing more accustomed to using technology to connect, so try these ways to connect this holiday season:

AARP's Online Community Caregiving Forum and Grief and Loss Forum
AARP's Facebook Family Caregivers Discussion Group
The Community Resource Finder has a section with Alzheimer's support information, and you can search for an Alzheimer's Support Group there - many are offering online webinars, memory cafes and support groups.
Check out other disease-specific organizations for caregiver support - like the Parkinson's Foundation, The Alzheimer's Foundation, The Heart Association, The American Stroke Association and the American Diabetes Association.
If you have friends who are also caregiving, propose a video gathering with all of you so you can share frustrations, ideas, joys and triumphs!
Even if you know one other person who is caregiving, and you reach to them with a phone call or a special card this year it will mean a lot for both of you.