{"id":1042,"date":"2016-07-13T17:18:02","date_gmt":"2016-07-13T21:18:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/?p=1042"},"modified":"2016-07-13T17:18:02","modified_gmt":"2016-07-13T21:18:02","slug":"how-to-be-the-best-caregivercare-coach-you-can-be-part-two","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/how-to-be-the-best-caregivercare-coach-you-can-be-part-two\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Be the Best Caregiver\/Care Coach You Can Be (Part Two)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Barb<\/a>Barbara Resnick, PhD, CRNP<\/strong><\/span>
\nProfessor<\/strong><\/span>
\nSonya Ziporkin Gershowitz Chair in Gerontology<\/strong><\/span>
\nUniversity of Maryland School of Nursing<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Remember my recent blog post about being a terrific caregiver and care coach<\/a>?\u00a0 Here are some more tips based on my professional and personal experience.<\/p>\n

Remember, Actions Speak Louder Than Words<\/strong><\/p>\n

You may not be an individual\u2019s primary caregiver or care coach. You may just want to show you care. We all have people in our lives we really care about who have received some type of life-threatening or life-impacting diagnosis.\u00a0 It could be anything from experiencing a hip fracture or a stroke, or a cancer diagnosis requiring treatment or palliative care management (comfort care).<\/p>\n

It is hard in these situations to know how to respond and what to do.\u00a0 Personally, I am a big believer in \u201cactions speak louder than words.\u201d \u00a0It never hurts to reach out to someone you care about who is undergoing treatment or who needs help and support coping with a long-term illness or disability.<\/p>\n

Never be afraid to just DO or SAY something. Don\u2019t be afraid to let the person know you heard about their illness and wish them well.\u00a0 Show you care in any and every way.\u00a0 Don\u2019t hesitate because you are afraid you are intruding on the person\u2019s privacy. If you heard about their illness, it is no secret!<\/p>\n

Avoid Useless Gestures <\/strong><\/p>\n

Personally, I recommend against saying things like \u201clet me know if I can do anything\u201d or \u201ccall me if there is anything I can do.\u201d\u00a0 Essentially, when someone is ill they are not likely to pick up the phone and call for help.<\/p>\n

Instead of empty gestures, provide words of encouragement that may have helped you in the past. For example, when I first started my course of radiation and chemotherapy, a colleague sent me a quote that Christopher Robin said to Winnie the Pooh:\u00a0 \u201cPromise me you\u2019ll always remember that you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.\u201d\u00a0 I put this on my desktop and read it daily to help me through my own challenging treatment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Share What Has Helped You Be Resilient <\/strong><\/p>\n

Resilience is the ability to cope with and recover from difficult situations.\u00a0 While everyone is different, think about what has helped you to be resilient in challenging situations and to bounce back.\u00a0 Share these tidbits with your friends or loved ones. It might be a certain prayer that carried you through or a good book to read as a pleasant distraction.<\/p>\n

Show You Care, Repeatedly<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you really care, then show it through repeated check-ins. Even though it may be hard, educate yourself about the disease the individual has and the course of treatment they will be enduring. Then check in with them at times you know will be most difficult for them.<\/p>\n

For example, with cancer treatment it is generally not the day of treatment that is hard but the days after treatment when the symptoms really hit. Find out their treatment schedule and check in spontaneously and reach out.\u00a0 Never fear calling or sending an email or a card. You will know by the person\u2019s response if it helps. Social support is critical to building their confidence that they can get through the course of treatment and optimize recovery.<\/p>\n

Take Care of Yourself<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you take on the role of caregiver or care coach, the first and most important step is for you to take care of yourself. You can\u2019t possibly give support to your family members or friends unless you are strong yourself. Set limits if you need to and make sure you do the things that keep you happy and healthy.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Barbara Resnick, PhD, CRNP Professor Sonya Ziporkin Gershowitz Chair in Gerontology University of Maryland School of Nursing Remember my recent blog post about being a terrific caregiver and care coach?\u00a0 Here are some more tips based on my professional and … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4,5],"tags":[7,13],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1042"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1042"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1042\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1043,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1042\/revisions\/1043"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1042"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1042"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1042"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}