Check your ego

Caregiving is an enterprise that does not allow us to become smug. A smug caregiver is not an aware caregiver. Come on, admit it, sometimes you just feel good about what you are doing. The sun is shining because you are doing something worthwhile. The birds chirping outside the window are singing (or tweeting) your praises. If there were water on the ground, you might be tempted to try and walk on it. We have all felt it, when everything just goes smoothly and you are on top of your game.

Guess what? It is not going so well because you are the hottest thing out there since sliced bread. Nope. It is going well, because of your loved one! Yep. Think about it for a minute. We put processes and schedules together not for us, but for our loved one. It is not about us, it is about someone else. It is about loving someone else so much you are there for them. They may not be able to tell us, they may not be able to show us in conventional means; but they do you just have to know where to look.

So take the strokes from family and friends. Enjoy your role as a caregiver. You are giving an amazing gift to someone, but you are receiving too. Remember to thank your loved for allowing you this special time with them. Give them a kiss or a hug and tell them what this means to you.