Navigating the Caregiver River: A Journey to Sustainable Caregiving

The river is an excellent metaphor for life. For me, the river resonated with the caregiving experience. I come from a family of caregivers, yet when I began caring for Dad, I was unprepared for the suffocating stress and intense overwhelm. In addition to concern about the effect of stress on my health, I worried that I would have significant regret about my relationship with Dad, which seemed to be rapidly deteriorating. I was drowning and desperate to understand why this role was so challenging. Did the caregiver gene skip me? As I delved into the whys, it became clear that it was just hard. The need to understand why I was struggling led to much trial, error, and tears, and in the end, a series of strategies that helped minimize the stress and ultimately improved my emotional and physical health.