The Unique Counseling Needs of Family Caregivers

Caregiving for a loved one is complex and often uncharted territory for many of us. Often, family caregivers find that they inherit a situation where they just kind of move into caregiving. A health crisis happens for a family member, for example, and now you have taken on the role of “family caregiver”, trying to juggle medical appointments and coordinating care for a loved one while still maintaining your own commitments to your other family members or work.  Feelings of shock, panic and overwhelming stress, possibly coupled with other challenging family dynamics such as unresolved parent-child conflict and sibling rivalries, can send even the healthiest individual into a tail spin. And for those family caregivers who have been caregiving for a long time, physical exhaustion and emotional fatigue can leave you even more vulnerable to depression, anxiety, and increased physical health issues.   

You are not alone.  As our population ages, caregiving of older adults by family members is increasing at an astronomical rate.  Counseling with Melissa is here to support you in one of the most meaningful yet exhausting jobs one can do.  We partner with you to provide emotional support and to share strategies and community resources to help you to better cope with the physical and emotional challenges of supporting your family member.  We strive to balance the independence and dignity of the older adult with the caregiver’s needs for balance, emotional health, and good self-care.  

Caregiver Support

Help is just a call away.  Call today.

Caregiver support and help managing how to live with a chronically ill spouse

Meet with a therapist who can provide Caregiver support and help managing how to live with a chronically ill spouse online. Your therapist talks you through your treatment and offers psychological support with regular visits.

Commonly treated conditions include:

Get caregiver support and help managing how to cope with a chronically ill spouse

No insurance needed. 

HSA/FSA eligible.

 

Get started with simple steps

Online Therapy Appointment

Click on the link located below to make an appointment. This will bring up my currently available sessions. Click the green button for the session you would like. You may be given an option to add yourself to the Wait List if the session date and time is full.

Online Therapy Appointment

Hop on a phone call with Melissa

Let’s chat. Just a few short questions to help us understand your unique situation. Personalized discussion about treatment options.

Continued care

You'll meet regularly with your therapist to discuss progress and chat to stay on track.

Caregiver support and get help managing how to live with a chronically ill spouse

A simple approach to personalized care

You’re unique, and your care should be too. If you suffer from depression or anxiety, Counseling with Melissa provides the personalized care you need. We’ll help you achieve your personal goals and help you work out how long you should be on treatment given your situation.

Depression and Anxiety

Overcoming anxiety is possible. Let’s beat this together.

If you’re having a mental health emergency, call 911, go to the nearest emergency room.

You can also call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline 1-800-273-8255 or text “home” to 741-741.

Online Therapy

RELIEF FOR LIVING WITH CAREGIVER BURNOUT

What is Depression?

Feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, guilt, the absence of pleasure from the performance of acts that would normally be pleasurable, sustained periods of feeling sad, or even suicidal ideations.

Symptoms:

  • Change in appetite/weight
  • Sleep disturbance
  • Fatigue, loss of energy
  • Diminished ability to think or concentrate
  • Tearfulness, depressed appearance
  • Social withdrawal, decreased talkativeness
  • Brooding, self-pity, pessimism
  • Lack of reactivity, blunting

What is Anxiety?

Anxiety is a state of apprehension and fear resulting from the perception of a current or future threat to oneself.  The term is used to describe a symptom and a variety of psychiatric disorders in which anxiety is a symptom.

Many things can contribute to your anxiety. Your past and present can cause you to be anxious. So can your personality. In fact, some people are just predisposed to worrying. Everyone experiences anxiety differently, but some of the common symptoms of anxiety include:

  • Anxiety surrounding a particular life event or experience that has occurred in the past
  • Avoiding places, things or people
  • Constant worry
  • Difficulty focusing or thinking clearly about anything other than the thing you’re worried about
  • Double or triple checking that you’ve done something “right”
  • Fatigue/ sleep problems/ lack of sleep
  • Feeling agitated
  • Feelings of danger, panic or dread
  • Headaches
  • Increased or heavy sweating
  • Irritability
  • Muscle tension
  • Nervousness, restlessness or being tense
  • Not eating enough or eating too much
  • Obsessions about certain ideas
  • Panic, fear, and uneasiness
  • Racing thoughts
  • Rapid breathing or hyperventilation
  • Restlessness
  • Trembling or muscle twitching
  • Weakness or lethargy

How to get help for caregiver burnout

Caregiver support and get help managing how to live with a chronically ill spouse

Taking on the role of caregiver for a spouse, parent or other loved one can be overwhelming and at times, heartbreaking. But if you’ve assumed this responsibility, you’re far from alone — an estimated 15 million Americans provide unpaid care to a loved one. In fact, 92% of seniors with Alzheimer’s receive help from family members and other unpaid caregivers.   

On average, family caregivers spend about 13 days each month taking on tasks, such as shopping, food preparation, laundry, transportation, and medication management; six hours on personal care, such as dressing, grooming, bathing, mobility, and toileting and 13 hours researching information on the disease, managing their loved one’s finances and scheduling doctor’s appointments.  

Clearly, this doesn’t leave much time for other obligations and even less time for enjoying hobbies and downtime. It makes sense to feel overwhelmed and unsure of how to provide the best care for your loved one while maintaining your own physical and mental health. 

As you face your loved one’s symptoms from day to day, you may at times feel stressed beyond belief. Knowing what to expect and what you can do to help — while getting the emotional support you need — can greatly improve the quality of care you offer and help preserve your health and sanity.

Caregiver support and get help managing how to live with a chronically ill spouse

Melissa Jones

The benefits of
Counseling with Melissa
mental health services

Take the first step towards feeling better

Caregiver support and get help managing how to live with a chronically ill spouse

 

Help is just a call away. Call today.