Together We Can Support Caregivers and Prevent Caregiver Burnout - #GivingTuesday

Are you providing care to someone else? Then YOU are a caregiver – a CARER. We are caregivers, too.
 
November is National Family Caregivers Month – a month to celebrate the unpaid family caregiver. Caregivers are our “WHY” – why we do what we do. We provide hope, support and courage to caregivers of those living with mental illness. Courage to Caregivers is in the caregiver burnout prevention business.
 
While we started as an agency providing support to caregivers in Northeast Ohio, the true silver lining of the pandemic is that we now serve caregivers in every time zone throughout North America. Your support has made that possible.
 
Providing care to someone you love is hard – and it’s a JOURNEY. It’s essential that, while you’re taking care of others, you ALSO take care of you. If you don’t take care of yourself – what good will you be to those in your care?
 
We thought you’d like to hear from a few of the caregivers we have supported in their journey of personal growth as they strengthen their overall health and well-being:
 
“I had lost myself in caregiving.” Ericka started attending our programs mid-pandemic and feels that her participation has been “life-changing.” Courage to Caregivers has helped her to find herself again. “I had given so much of myself AWAY that … I didn’t know who Ericka was, and I felt as if I was drowning – I wasn’t sure I could rescue her.” Our Breathing Meditation and Support Group programs have helped Ericka find herself again – to figure out who she is and who she wants to BE. “I realized I could build a stronger, better, healthier ME.” Having self-care reinforcement every week reminds her that you can’t be a good caregiver if you have nothing to give.
 
“I give myself permission … to take care of my loved one AND myself.” Meg used to think she didn’t have any resources for herself, but she doesn’t feel in the dark or alone anymore. For Meg and others like her, we see ourselves as advocates for the caregiver in their role of caring for someone living with mental illness. While our programs help reduce stress to prevent caregiver burnout, they also help support the entire family. After Meg started attending our programs, her whole family watched as she took better care of herself. She became a role model, they related better, and the family climate improved. She’s learned to be OK with the uncertainty of living with mental illness. She now believes she can do hard things, with the right resources and support network.
 
“Someone to hold my hand through the unknown journey of being a caregiver.” Mellissa is new to being a caregiver for someone living with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Her journey of caregiving had been filled with finding providers, making appointments and focusing on what she needed to do for her loved one. As a result, she felt lost, the constant stress of caregiving drained her, and she was tired all the time. She is very thankful for being paired with Janelle, another OCD caregiver, as her Peer Support Volunteer to help her on her journey.
 
Over time, we have discovered that our Peer Support program is not just one-way support, but those who are paired together are finding mutual support. For example, Janelle has found Mellissa to be a wealth of information. “With OCD, it’s hard for others to understand the diagnosis,” Janelle says. “It is especially isolating, and you don’t want to talk about it all the time, even within your own family.” Janelle’s journey of personal growth has allowed her to let go, and this has encouraged her loved one to take their own journey. She believes our Peer Support program “connects the caregivers in a multifaceted support kind of way – support for self-care, getting accurate information and resources, as well as advocating for our loved ones.”
 
“A weekly reminder that you’re not alone, and there IS hope.” As a newer participant, Ed has found benefits from our Breathing Meditation and Support Group programs through connections with others going through similar experiences. “There is hope that arises that may not have been without these connections. You can get lost in the dark tunnel of caregiving, and it can be harder to find hope. When you hear other people as they share their experiences and processes, it reminds us what’s POSSIBLE.” Each week, Ed sees that “other people and their loved ones have made changes, have moved past certain obstacles. We can, too. Life is all about connection.”
 
Courage to Caregivers continues to help people like Ericka, Meg, Mellissa, Janelle and Ed because of the generosity of donors like you. YOU help to illuminate the HOPE that Ed now sees for caregivers everywhere. YOUR support makes the journey toward wholeness for participants like Ericka possible. YOUR encouragement builds stronger healthier families like Meg’s. YOUR donation assures we can continue our Peer Support program for Janelle and Mellissa. YOU are an integral part of the team for caregivers everywhere.

Thank you for your continued support, encouragement and generous contributions in the lives of these caregivers and so many more.
 
One final note: As you provide care to others, don’t forget to take care of YOU, too.
 
MANY thanks and caring together!

Donate via:

  • Venmo @CourageToCaregivers (no fees) - note your email for acknowledgement\

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  • Mail a check to: Courage to Caregivers, 46 Shopping Plaza PMB #113, Chagrin Falls, OH 44022