Caregivers Should Cheat Safely #1

Rebecca Dutton
Home After a Stroke

March 24, 2011

Living alone means I am both the stroke survivor and the caregiver so I was overwhelmed when I got home from the hospital.  I am taking care of myself and doing chores my husband used to do, like taking out the garbage.  I don't have the luxury of doing housework the way I used to.  You may think my examples are crazy.  My point is that if you give yourself permission, you can think of ways to cheat safely too.  A caregiver who repeatedly works to to the point of exhaustion can't take care of anyone else. I use the time I free up to lie down or drink a cup of coffee while I admire my flowers.

Eliminating unnecessary steps saves me time and energy.  For example, shower gel dosn't leave a ring of soap scum in the tub the way hard soaps do so cleaning the tub is easier.  I fold clean socks in half and stack them in a shoe box instead of making each pair into a ball.  I leave the kitchen chairs I don't use along a wall until company comes.  Moving unused chairs out of my way every time I wash the floor is tiring.  A dish washer saves me so much time that I consider it a necessity.

I cheat safely three ways when I make my bed. The most obvious way I am cheating is that I don't bother to put the bedspread over the pillow and tuck it it.  If you look down at the bare box spring you will see the 2nd way I'm cheating safely. I don't remove the mattress to put on a bed skirt (dust ruffle) that matches my winter and summer bedspreads. A stroke survivor I met bought a bed skirt that matches the colors of all her bedspreads.  The 3rd way I am cheating safely is more subtle.  The black line shows where the edge of the mattress is so this bedspread is crooked.  I don't want to make multiple trips around the bed to make it perfect.  I want to save my energy to walk around the Azalea Festival.

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Caregivers Should Cheat Safely #1

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Home After a Stroke