The idea that your loved one might need a carer is often followed by an overwhelming feeling of guilt. You tend to think that it is your duty to look after your elderly parents. You struggle with the thought of being a bad relative (in many cases a bad child). Here is why you shouldn’t.
- Elderly people hate to be a burden for their children. Becoming their carer might quickly ruin the traditional parent-child relationship and force them to feel as a child again, who is being patronised. It could lead to much harder feelings of vulnerability from their side than when hiring an external person, a professional carer. When they say they need you they mostly talk about an emotional need; i.e. you listening to them, calling them, regularly visiting them.
- Being a carer is – most probably – not your profession. You certainly can take care of your elderly relative, but – like anything else – this requires years of varied work experience, a person born for the job, and an impressive training history a professional carer has. Aspire UK is determined to ensure our team is well trained and highly qualified to be able to cater even to the most specific needs. Hiring a good carer like the ones we work with is actually responsible thinking and behaviour and it means you want the best quality help for your loved one.
- You can actually enjoy time spent with your loved one. If you try to be the carer, you will feel it is your duty and it becomes exhausting over several weeks, months and years. You will be too tired to talk about anything else other than the practical necessities, doctors’ appointments, medicines, pain. Whereas hiring a carer also means you can spend quality time with your loved one; listening to their stories, reading out to them, walking in the garden, looking at family photos.
- You have the right to live your own life. You might have a family, career, hobbies and your parents wouldn’t want you to stop doing all these for years. Sacrificing your life will cause hard feelings for both you and your parents and seeing their child suffer will not make them happy. It doesn’t have to mean you don’t visit and take care of them; they are obviously an important part of your life.
- You can ensure your parents get the ideal care they need. Aspire UK can provide you with a carer whose interests, age and personality have the best fit for your elderly relative. A good carer is also more flexible time-wise; give you peace of mind to know that even if you have a late evening assignment, your loved one is not being left alone.
The feeling of guilt will stop you from talking openly with your elderly parents or loved one about finding professional support and will make it more difficult to show them how they can benefit from it. Your idea of hiring a carer is actually a good sign that you want to have the best and safest circumstances for them to live in.
Forget the guilt and contact the Aspire UK team today to find out how we can help you with our home care and specialist services across Leicester and Leicestershire.
