Self-Care for Caregivers

Self-care is something we all need to do. But for many of us, it's an elusive practice.

Caregivers are working harder than ever. Which makes self-care more important than ever.

Knowing how real this struggle is, I reached out to my friend and chiropractor Dr. Sarah Gardner. She gets it, and has so many practical, doable ideas for how we can make self-care happen!

 

The Odyssey: Parenting. Caregiving. Disability. 

The Center for Family Involvement at VCU School of Education's Partnership for People with Disabilities provides informational and emotional support to people with disabilities and their families. All of our services are free. We just want to help. We know how hard this can be because we're in it with you. 

 

SHOW NOTES:

 

Dr. Sarah Gardner is co-founder and co-owner of FLX Athlete Retreat. 

 

All of the suggestions for movement, hydration, nutrition, apps, and much more are here. 

 

 

TRANSCRIPT:

01:00:07:23 - 01:00:35:00

Erin Croyle

Welcome to The Odyssey. Parenting, Caregiving, Disability. I'm Erin Croyle, the creator and host. The Odyssey podcast explores the turn our lives takes when a loved one has a disability. My beautiful tangent came in 2010 when my first child was born with Down's Syndrome. I joined the Center for Family Involvement at VCU's Partnership for People with Disabilities. A few years after he was born.

 

01:00:35:02 - 01:00:58:14

Erin Croyle

Utilizing my journalism and television producer background as a communications specialist, it's amazing to be in a position where I can share stories unique to families like ours. One thing we talk about in our circles, but certainly don't do enough of is self-care. In fact, many caregivers I know scoff at the idea, myself included. It's not that we don't see its value.

 

01:00:58:18 - 01:01:21:22

Erin Croyle

We just can't seem to make it happen. The lives of folks like us who are caring for a loved one for life are just different. The physical, mental and emotional demands are constant. Even if you manage to get some time away, there's no time off when someone you love needs constant support. This is why basic self-care is so critical for us.

 

01:01:21:24 - 01:01:46:11

Erin Croyle

So how do we make it happen? To talk about this, I've invited my friend and my chiropractor, Dr. Sarah Gardner, on. She and I have been shooting the breeze for nearly two years. I found this amazing woman while recovering from hip surgery. Dr. Sarah gets it. She provides care with compassion and understanding in our many hours together, we've laughed at how ridiculous fad diets are.

 

01:01:46:13 - 01:02:00:22

Erin Croyle

We commiserate on how impossible it is to juggle it all as parents. We praise the Almighty Oatmilk latte and we swear way too much.

 

01:02:00:24 - 01:02:25:02

Erin Croyle

Sarah, thank you for spending some of your precious free time with me. For