Care for Caregivers - AARP Live

[AARP Live - On the Phone: Henry Calling From Georgia] I would like to say that my wife is in the final stages of Alzheimer's. Her grandmother, her mother, 3 aunts and an uncle, and she makes number 7 in the immediate family. And I'd just like to make a statement on how important it is for the caregiver to take care of his own health to be able to help someone else. It is very, very important for the caregiver to take care of his own health. [Mark Oppold] Uh-hunh (affirmative). >>[Henry] Thank you. >>[Oppold] Thank you, Henry. Wow. Thanks for holding on. >>[Amy Goyer - AARP Family & Caregiving Expert] I couldn't have said it better. So important. You hear it from people who are doing it. It sounds like he's got a lot of experience. [Oppold] And you know what? It probably happens without even knowing it. Just one day goes to the next day and next week goes to the next month and next month goes to the next year, and you're just kind of involved in it. You don't really see yourself just slowly losing that energy and your health. [Sarah Jennings - AAARP State Director (SD)] I think there's also this guilt that goes along with taking care of yourself because you feel like you're not doing something for the person that you're caregiving for because you're taking the time to go for a walk or to take a nap or to see friends. But the truth is, as Henry just shared and as Amy has talked about, you have to do that kind of thing. Probably the feeling of guilt may be something that's pretty common, Amy, but it's something that people—I'm not sure getting over it is the right way to say it, but it's something that you need to realize that you shouldn't feel guilty because if you re-energize yourself, that's going to make you a better caregiver in the long run. [Goyer] I think that's the key point because when I think about going out and doing those things for myself, I think, "Oh, my dad is more vulnerable than I am." "I need to take care of him first." But I realize that it's just like if you don't take in oxygen, you can't breathe, you can't help anyone. That analogy of putting the oxygen mask on yourself first in an airplane, that's what this is about. >>[Oppold] That's a good analogy. Yeah. >>[Jennings] That's a great analogy. [Oppold] Help yourself before you help others. Very good.