In today's society, more and more people are faced with the responsibility of caring for elderly or sick family members, yet the burden of this role is often overlooked. According to research, the stress that caregivers endure is called "caregiver burden," and this burden mainly stems from emotional stress and physical fatigue in specific situations.
Caregiver burden is not only about the specific tasks that need to be performed, but is also closely related to the emotional burden and the availability of resources.
As early as the 1960s, researchers began to explore the concept of caregiver burden, dividing it into objective and subjective aspects. The objective burden comes from specific care tasks, while the subjective burden comes from the emotional pressure caused by excessive demands, which profoundly affects the mental health of caregivers. Although there are many terms to describe this phenomenon (such as caregiver role fatigue, spouse burnout, etc.), the meanings behind them are similar, all of which describe the dilemma of caregivers' insufficient physical and mental resources to meet the needs of the care recipients.
Caregiver burden is often rooted in subjective assessments of the family care situation. Research shows that the four main factors that contribute to burden include:
Caregivers often feel exhausted when faced with challenges because they have no professional caregiving training, which makes the adaptation process extremely difficult.
The level of burden not only affects the physical health of caregivers, but is also often closely related to their mental health. Related studies have pointed out that caregivers are often more likely to suffer from depressive symptoms than non-caregivers, which also shows the great influence of subjective burden. Some data also show that this psychological burden has a profound impact on self-judgment of health status and quality of life.
Health EffectsWhen comparing the health status of caregivers and non-caregivers, it can be found that although the physical health of caregivers is only slightly worse than that of non-caregivers, their mental health is significantly eroded, often manifested as a high frequency of depression. and anxiety.
In situations of caregiver burden, caregivers may exhibit a range of behaviors, from loving devotion to abuse or neglect of the caregiver, especially when the behavior is challenging. More universal. This suggests that burden will affect caregivers' behavioral performance to some extent.
The need for interventionGiven the importance of care burden, developing effective intervention measures is particularly critical. Appropriate support and professional assistance can significantly reduce the burden on caregivers. These interventions should provide information, training, and emotional support to reduce the burden faced by caregivers.
Successful interventions should reach as many caregivers as possible, which requires targeted efforts to increase awareness and use of these services.
However, despite the existence of a range of support services, carers often feel alone and find it difficult to seek help. Whether it is family members, friends or professional assistance, it is crucial to establish an effective support system, and how to recognize and utilize these resources has become a challenge for current heads of households.
When faced with heavy care obligations, have family caregivers ever considered how to change the current situation to reduce this heavy burden?