Written by: Destiny-Joyce Quinsaat-Tobosa, Program Assistant, GRANDcares
“Family
members, friends, and neighbors devote countless hours to providing care to
their relatives or loved ones. During National Family Caregivers Month, we
recognize and thank the humble heroes who do so much to keep our families and
communities strong.”
President Barack Obama,
NFC Month Proclamation 2012
We have just finished celebrating National
Family Caregiver month! A month dedicated to family caregivers that allows
organizations to raise awareness of family caregiver issues, increase support
for caregivers, and most importantly CELEBRATE all they do! President Clinton signed the
first National Family Caregiver Month Presidential Proclamation in 1997 and
every president since has continued by issuing an annual proclamation
recognizing and honoring family caregivers each November (https://caregiveraction.org/national-family-caregivers-month-background).
My name is Destiny and I am the GRANDcares
Program Assistant in Maui County. I was introduced to the program back in 2017
when my mom started taking the classes in Kahului. Since then, GRANDcares has
been very important and close to my heart. Currently, I can see my mom taking
the tools she has learned from the classes and implementing them into her own
life to help reduce the everyday stress she experiences from taking care of my
niece. My mom often uses “Me Moments” to help her regain her train of thought
and to help her calm down. She also uses the Action Plan in order to set and
keep to her goals. The program has dramatically impacted the way my family
dynamic is since we can all take some tips and use them in our day to day
lives.
The Hawaii and Colorado GRANDcares programs
celebrate and honor all caregiving participants – grandparents raising
grandchildren and all other types of family caregivers.
Many
of the grandparent caregivers who have participated in GRANDcares find it
difficult at times to think of and put themselves first. But even small self-care
steps taken daily or weekly have made a big difference – both to themselves and
their grandchildren. Here are some of the steps our grandparents have taken:
●
Take medications on time each day
●
Stop for 30 minutes to watch a show (Criminal Minds is a
personal favorite of mine at the moment)
●
Know personal limits – and say “NO!”
●
Ask for and accept help from others
●
Talk to a counselor, friend or family member who is a good
listener
●
Post notes around the house that are reminders that you
are as important as the grandchildren you are raising
●
Hire a babysitter and go to a movie or sit on the
beach
●
Take time out without feeling guilt
We
honor and celebrate all that grandparents do and sacrifice to make sure that
their grandchildren grow up healthy, happy and safe. You are not alone and we
encourage you to continue your great work, to reach out to others in similar
situations, and most importantly to stop to take care of yourselves so that you
and your grandchildren can thrive.
