Caregiving is a gift, and not everyone has it. The experience of caregiving is so absorbing we may forget what our life looks like to those outside of it.
Time, time, time! We caregivers often feel prisoner to it, even desperate in its clutches. And getting positive attention and feedback from family members, including our debilitated loved one, may simply seem out of reach.
We may be disappointed with other family members who can’t see what needs to be done, or don’t offer to help. Often we may not know what to ask for. Or, when someone asks us how we are, we respond by saying “okay” simply because we don’t know how to begin answering or we may be afraid that, if we start, we’ll never be able to stop talking.
Finding a story to tell something to say about our lives as caregivers, and learning to craft it into a 2-minute story creates connections. with a larger community. Translating our experiences and feelings into stories leads us to new and deeper realizations about ourselves and our loved ones.
In short, learning to tell a 2-minute story Telling our own caregiving storieswell -- that is, in an engaging way -- helps us gain perspective and give perspective on family-caregiving situations which can be overwhelming, at least from time to time.
Time, time, time! We caregivers often feel prisoner to it, even desperate in its clutches. And getting positive attention and feedback from family members, including our debilitated loved one, may simply seem out of reach.
We may be disappointed with other family members who can’t see what needs to be done, or don’t offer to help. Often we may not know what to ask for. Or, when someone asks us how we are, we respond by saying “okay” simply because we don’t know how to begin answering or we may be afraid that, if we start, we’ll never be able to stop talking.
Finding a story to tell something to say about our lives as caregivers, and learning to craft it into a 2-minute story creates connections. with a larger community. Translating our experiences and feelings into stories leads us to new and deeper realizations about ourselves and our loved ones.
In short, learning to tell a 2-minute story Telling our own caregiving storieswell -- that is, in an engaging way -- helps us gain perspective and give perspective on family-caregiving situations which can be overwhelming, at least from time to time.