Can You Worry More Productively as a Caregiver?

Without a plan of attack, worrying is only a distraction from what you need to be doing as a caregiver.

This fact alone won’t be enough to stop you from worrying, of course, but you can start practicing ways to let go of your worries when they aren’t serving you.

Homecare in Orem UT: Caregiver Productivity

Worrying Doesn’t Really Solve Anything on its Own

The act of worrying doesn’t really do much of anything. It can be mentally exhausting, of course, and sometimes even physically exhausting if you add pace to the mix. But the actual act of worrying does not produce any results or solutions at all. You’re likely going through a variety of scenarios endlessly, like a movie that you don’t really want to watch. Unless you add some sort of action to the thoughts you’re having, you’re just spinning your wheels.

Write it All Down

The next time you’re caught up in a cycle of worry, get out a blank piece of paper and a pen. Write all of it down. The entire worry, from start to finish, goes on the paper. You might find that you only write a sentence or two. Sometimes the worry might be so large that it fills up the entire page. Keep writing until you’ve expressed every bit of what’s worrying you.

Determine What Is Realistic

Go back now and read what you’ve written. Some of it is completely unrealistic and once you see all of it in black and white you’ll be able to determine the unrealistic bits. Cross those out. Now you might have only a small portion of this massive worry that is realistic. It’s probably looking a lot more manageable without the unrealistic bits, too.

Set up a Plan and then Work the Plan

Take the portion that realistically could be a concern and write down some possible solutions. If you’re worried that your senior might be hospitalized, for example, determine what you can do anything about. You can pack a bag that has comforts, distractions, and necessities in it. You can ensure that she takes her medication. You can ensure that she sees her doctor for follow-ups. Those are the actions that you can take about your worry. The rest needs to fall away because there’s nothing more that you can do.

You may not be able to stop yourself completely from worrying. But if you follow this process, you might just find that you’re able to put some action behind your worries and make them actually work for you instead of against you.

Are you or a loved one considering Homecare in Orem, UT? Please talk to the friendly staff at December Rose Senior Care at Home. Providing Home Care in Highland, Utah and Surrounding Communities. 801-427-ROSE (7673)