Many caregivers feel guilty about feeling resentment toward the person they care for. Caring is an extremely demanding and emotional responsibility, and it's not uncommon for them to feel guilty about experiencing exhaustion or frustration. Caregiver guilt is a negative manifestation of the distress experienced while providing Home Care in Virginia Beach VA for a loved one. The guilt of the person caring for a loved one can include feelings of depression, distress, or anxiety.2 Some people may feel that they are not doing enough for their loved one, despite improvements in the person's quality of life seen and confirmed by others. Many caregivers feel guilty, they learn where the guilt comes from and what you can do to overcome those difficult feelings.
The concept of “caregiver's fault” is strange. Caring for a loved one with a chronic health condition is a wonderful and selfless act, and caregivers undoubtedly spend a significant amount of time and energy providing the physical, mental and emotional support that their loved one needs. However, most caregivers say they often feel guilty. They may be reluctant to consider what could be done differently to take care of themselves and alleviate guilt.
Determining how to accurately reevaluate your abilities and create a healthy balance in your life can alleviate the emotional pain caused by guilt. You can think of a situation in a way that disempowers you, depresses you and leads you to feel guilty, or you can think of a situation in a way that strengthens you, makes you feel safe, and helps you feel confident that you're making the right decision. Negative behavior by a loved one, such as insults or accusations, can make you feel guilty for the person who cares for you. Caregiver guilt can stem from multiple factors, such as guilt for the change in the relationship with the person being cared for or guilt for neglecting other aspects of life to care for the person.
Many caregivers feel guilty about “putting the mother in assisted living,” that is, moving their parents, spouses, relatives, or close friends to a care center. The powerful emotional mix of guilt, anxiety, resentment and pain creates a dangerous emotional cycle for caregivers. Guilt can cause “reactive cycles” that create other emotions and symptoms that become cyclical. The main factors that cause caregiver guilt include guilt for having done something wrong on the part of the person receiving care, guilt for not being up to the task as a caregiver, guilt for lack of personal care, and guilt for having negative feelings for the person receiving care.
Caregiving has an emotional aspect that causes us all to have negative thoughts and feelings of ineptitude, so it may be inevitable to feel some degree of guilt. You may feel the guilt of your caregiver when faced with the decision to place your loved one in a care facility. But when you think about that, realize that you can deprive yourself of the opportunity for joy and pleasure that you have right now if you feel guilty that you are doing something without your loved one, and that this does not in any way improve your situation.
