Caregiver Warrior

18/08/2025

Caregivers adapt. It’s a super power. Going with the flow is second nature only because it’s woven into the caregiver’s life. We face surprise after surprise daily.

We know how adjust and shift and refine.

Sadly, although we can automatically come up with plan B, it can drive us crazy and be truly upsetting.

The cost of sudden change, regardless of our ability to handle it, can be stress, panic, and frustration.

We can feel like we are losing control and life is scary. The unknown is looming and the result could be disastrous.

It doesn’t mean we won’t proceed, it just means it feels as scary as hell.

What if we approached this differently.

What if we tried to be curious instead of catastrophizing?

What if we understand we can’t really control anything, but we can take control.

What if we stop trying to do it perfectly and just trust we can do it in our own special way?

What if we remember nobody’s watching?

What if we trust ourselves more?

What if we remember we have been in tight situations before and always found a way out.

It isn’t alway pretty but it’s usually a success.

Going with the flow is a caregiving talent. Lets work on putting that talent to good use feeling relaxed, hopeful and confident.

We got this!

15/08/2025

That caregiver’s list of to do’s needs one more addition. Take your emotional temperature.

Make sure it’s at the top of the list and added as a daily task.

It takes a quick pause, a moment of attention and then perhaps a quick adjustment.

It’s a simple act of checking in to see what we are feeling, and how it’s effecting us.

Are we angry or frustrated or sad?

Is our body tensed up or our stomach in knots?

Taking a moment to check in and become aware of how we are doing is a small but extremely powerful way to stay in balance and healthy.

It’s gives us a chance to do something nice or be kind to ourselves when we need it the most.

It can be done numerous times during the day.

Try right now. Take your emotional temperature. Fill yourself with grace and care.

For more information and useful content, please visit my website https://lnkd.in/dUPqppJ
I hope you find it valuable!

13/08/2025

As a caregiver, I find myself isolating without even being aware of it. I’m always so busy; reaching out is the furthest thing from my mind.

So when I do connect, and feel that relief and release, I promise myself I’ll do it more often.

Like most self care and self survival tools, that promise gets lost in the shuffle of daily caregiving.

So now I’m adding another timer to my extensive timers on my phone.

One for me.

One that reminds me to text or phone someone right then and there.

I don’t or can’t always drop what I’m doing, but the nudge brings the great idea of reaching out to my attention. It shines a light on my isolation and reminds me that I have the option of connection.

And how good that option always feels.

And I should make it happen.

Find the time to reach out today. Set a timer to help you.
Create a habit of connection.

It’s life changing.

12/08/2025

Caregivers are wired to fix stuff. It’s a superpower we have. Like most great gifts it can be a curse. Sometimes we can’t fix things and sometimes we need to stop trying.

This is hard for us because intervening can often bring wonderful results and we are so good at it. It allows us to champion the best care for those we love.

There are times, however that standing back and letting things unfold is beneficial and valuable.
The end result is far better without our control or intervention.

We should weigh our contribution.

Does it serve our loved one or the situation more if we remain quiet? Is standing there supportive but not directly involved provide a healthier, more postive result?

Sometimes, given space and time things get clarified and rectified on their own.

Sometimes our loved ones need an opportunity to try new things, or gain confidence, or express their own responses and reactions.

Sometimes things get fixed by simply trusting the process.

Knowing when to rush in and fix things or just be a bystander is a delicate and masterful balance.

Just knowing we don’t have to fix everything all the time is the first step to finding that balance.

We can better at knowing when to just let it happen.

11/08/2025

Guilt greets us as we walk through the door of caregiving. It sticks around and finds ways to haunt us. It lives in the should and should haves.

Comparing and despairing and living in a world of all the things we should do and be is an open invitation to guilt to settle in.

But guilt can’t live in the wins.

Celebrating the small wins puts us in the world of could and possibility and reminds us our hard work and good intention pay off.

We have made a little difference and that feels good.

Even trying to find the small wins is a small win.

We all have small wins every single day.

Getting up
Showing up
Being willing to try something even if it ends up being a mistake we can learn from
Trying it again
Showing up again
Never waving the white flag
Trying plan B, the C then even D.
Loving someone so much that it hurts and keeps us going.

Small wins that climb mountains.

Mountains that guilt can’t live on.

Guilt can’t live in the wins.

Find those small wins to today and kick guilt to the door.

09/08/2025

It’s so important to shine the light on caregiver guilt. It’s can’t survive in the light! Thank you for the opportunity to share my thoughts on guilt and how to release it.

We're thrilled to feature Susanne White, The Caregiver Warrior as this week's Guest Blogger. She tackles a common and important topic: guilt.

Not only does she delve into how every caregiver feels at one point or another, she provides five ways to help address and deal with this emotion.

Read it in full here: https://www.carefullist.com/blogs/12

Caregiver Warrior

06/08/2025

Caregivers worry a lot. It’s part of the landscape of caregiving. The stakes are high, the situation is tenuous and unpredictable.

So worry becomes a cloak we wear, always on alert, always waiting for the next shoe to drop, the next crisis to be averted.

Worry takes up space and puts a filter of fear over everything.

It gives us tunnel vision.

And while it keeps us on our toes it puts blinders on our eyes.

It keeps us in flight, fight, freeze.

We need to actively try and put the worry down, even for a moment or two.

Things won’t fall apart and we can still be ready to protect our loved ones without hovering and wringing our hands.

We need to breathe, look around and be with those we care for.

We need to claim back the space worry takes up and use it to be present and paying attention to the life that is happening around us.

We can spend time being instead of doing, playing instead of watching, appreciating instead of predicting and being grateful rather than fortune telling.

We can spend time with them that we would otherwise lose forever when we look away.

Put the worry down and pick up the joy and laughter.

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06/08/2025

I had the most wonderful conversation on this podcast. Real, honest thoughts about how we can survive and even thrive our caregiving with joy and power.
https://apple.co/3UjJMU2

Podcast Episode · You Forgot That I Existed · 08/05/2025 · 45m

06/08/2025

Best co-hosts ever! Give a listen! 🐕💜

05/08/2025

Caregivers are bound to show up no matter what. So there are days when even under duress we have to get things done.

These are the do it anyway days.

These days can be harder than the normal hard. We may be low on energy, feeling defeated, exhausted, and drained.

Yet the show must go on, no waiting in the wings.

It helps if we stop thinking about it and just do it. Anyway. Anyway we can.

Taking the action, letting go of the results, and doing the task at hand can get the job done and allow us to breathe.

Unclench your jaw, lower your shoulders from your ears and lean into making it happen and getting to the finish line.

You got this.

02/08/2025

You go Starbucks! Gift cards for Health Care Workers! Love this!

01/08/2025

The entire world screams at us to be brilliant, be our best selves, to strive, push, innovate, be stronger better, faster, bigger. Why is it rarely acknowledged that showing up as is defines the real profile of a champion.

Making the choice to be present and accounted for with a willing heart is one of the greatest achievements.

It may not make headlines or garner thousands of followers but by simply showing up we build a world of consistency and dependability that keeps the world order in place.

We don’t have to set the world on fire to create a space where people feel safe and cared for. We just have to be there to create it.

The difference we make just by being present is profound.