*Collaborative Post*
Caregiving can be life-enriching, knowing that your contributions make someone else lead a better life, if not the best, in their challenging condition. However, the experience can feel exhausting and stressful, especially if you’re caring for a child with special needs such as intellectual disability or autism.
It’s very common to experience special needs caregiver stress and burnout if you don’t have a support system to help you cope with the stress. Due to unique challenges, the role demands not just physical energy but can also drain your emotional and psychological stamina. So, how do you take care of yourself to avoid stress and offer the best care to a special needs child under your care? Seeking support through a family caregiver program can provide valuable resources and assistance tailored to your needs and circumstances.
Top 10 Tips to Avoid Burnout When Caring for A Child with Special Needs
Your well-being as a caregiver is paramount to ensuring the quality of care you offer isn’t affected. Here are the best tips to help you craft a well-thought-out plan for self-care and avoid caregiver stress.
Never walk alone; consult with specialists
When caring for a child with special needs, it’s vital to keep in touch with their healthcare providers. Seek assistance from educational psychologists, therapists, and specialized counselors. These experts can guide you on the best approach to helping the child while providing insights and valuable coping strategies.
If possible, attend parents’ support groups and other related groups to help you learn practical advice and gain emotional support. Bear in mind that seeking help from experts is an investment in a caregiver’s well-being and that of the child with special needs.
Find more flexible jobs
Working a traditional nine-to-five job where your full commitment is needed while juggling your caregiver duties can be taxing. You’ll not only lack a work-life balance but also, your child might not get the quality care they deserve from you. Most certainly, your efficacy as an employee will also be affected.
To help you perform your caregiver special needs child responsibility, consider exploring jobs with better flexibility. You might want to look for a job with better working hours, flexibility, or even an option for remote work.
Create a list of special requirements
Caring for a child with special needs means handling specific things. Therefore, to ensure you’re not stressed out, create a list of your child’s requirements and a care plan. For instance, your plan could include the schedules for visiting the therapist and physician. In the schedule, also include the time for taking care of your child’s special needs.
Other than that, you need to create a plan to attend to other duties, such as household chores, work, and personal errands. After creating your plan, share it with a close friend or family member and ask them to help you. For instance, you could ask a friend or your sibling to pick up your child from school if you know you won’t make it in time.
Identify and avoid fatigue triggers
The caregiver path is often full of unknown triggers that catch many by surprise. It’s only when a caregiver is too deeply burned out that they recognize the causes of the stress. You, however, can forge a better strategy and identify the triggers of stress before they become a concern.
Determine what’s draining most of your energy. It could be emotional stress overload, constant sleep disruption, or the daily rigors of caregiving. Know your limits and seek a remedy or proactive steps to help you recharge. For instance, if the daily responsibilities of caring for a special needs child are wearing you down, consider hiring a professional caregiver.
Spend quality time with your child
The benefits for parents caring for a disabled child are numerous and include helping the child recognize your unconditional love. Caring does not only mean attending to their care needs; it also requires you to sacrifice your time for them. Doing this regularly strengthens the bond between you while helping you grow together.
Spending quality time with your child doing the activities they enjoy helps you relieve stress and learn about their development. If they like to socialize, consider enrolling them in a daycare where they can meet and interact with other kids. For those who prefer home comfort, it’s more suitable to provide them with personalized in-home care.
Work with manageable milestones
In caring for a child with special needs, you don’t have to work tirelessly without milestones. Instead, create easily manageable goals that can greatly contribute to better mental health and enrich your life. Whether it’s reading a chapter of your favorite novel, exercising for 20 minutes, or taking a walk, working with targets can enhance the quality of life.
It is these minor achievements that give you a sense of accomplishment, which eventually leads to reduced stress levels. However, if you take everything head-on, it’s easy to get burned out.
Include caregiver self-care practices in your routine
If you don’t take care of yourself, you’ll eventually lose out in your bid to care for your child! When you integrate self-care routines into your caregiving responsibilities, you’re simply assembling a toolbox for managing stress. There are many ways to practice self-care. First, ensure you’re getting a good night’s sleep and maintaining child care safety. Take a break from your responsibilities to avoid special needs caregiver stress. Spend some time meditating, doing yoga, going to the gym, or meeting up with friends. Consistency in these activities can create excellent coping mechanisms.
Make early plans for upcoming challenges
Even with special needs, children still undergo development and they transition through stages of life. The worst thing you could do in your caregiving responsibility is fail to prepare for these changes. Consult your child’s healthcare specialists and discuss what you should expect and how to prepare for the transitions.
Ensure the plan you come up with is aligned with the changing needs and abilities of your child. Seek assistance from family members, counselors, and financial planners about creating a plan for the child when they transition into adulthood. Doing this early will help you streamline the caregiving process and eliminate stress when the child transitions.
Inform the school administration about your child
Monitor and learn everything there is to know about the special needs of your child. Let the school administration know about these needs in advance before enrolling the child in school. If they’re already enrolled, it’s still important to inform the school about your child and their special needs.
The school will come up with a specialized solution for caring for the child. These solutions can also be effective in reducing the burden on your shoulders and, therefore, reducing special needs caregiver stress.
Increase your caregiver knowledge
As a family caregiver, it’s crucial to have special skills that help you make your caregiving duties a bit lighter. You can acquire relevant caregiver skills by enrolling in a family caregiver program. Through such programs, you can learn the fundamentals of caring for children with special needs.
The program can’t equip you with strategies for managing challenging behaviors for disabilities like autism and ADHD. Other essential skills include learning how to best provide activities of daily living such as bathing and toileting. You can also connect with other families experiencing similar challenges, which fosters peer support and provides encouragement.
Summary
Caring for a child with special needs offers life-fulfilling experiences as you help your child lead a close-to-normal life despite their disabilities. However, the responsibility can be taxing, especially if you have to juggle between work and caregiving responsibilities. By properly formulating ways of managing stress, you can reduce the chances of burnout and enhance the level of care offered to your child.