Page 76 - Sun Rays May 2013

76 | SUNRAYS MAY 2013 ONLINE: SCTXCA.ORG
“It can feel like a thankless job,
enduring sleepless nights, long
hours, transporting your loved
one to get treatments or testing. These
duties are 24/7 and you can get very
tired. There’s a lot of stress,” Lynda
Rowan, a Sun City Texas resident, de-
scribed of the experience of caring for
her spouse.
Lynda, like many other caregivers in
Sun City Texas, didn’t expect this to
happen. “It’s a blessing to care for a
loved one, but it’s also a very challeng-
ing experience,” she said. “I was blessed
with several friends and neighbors who
came by and gave me a break from time
to time. You’re afraid to leave, even to
make a trip to the grocery store in fear
something may happen while you are
gone. Sometimes you don’t even know
what to say when people ask how they
can help―you are in such a daze.”
Spousal caregivers can face many dif-
ferent kinds of situations and, typically,
it’s not something for which anyone can
prepare. Most of the time, the task of
caregiving is taken upon out of love and
security, but without training and/or
warning, it can be extremely overwhelm-
ing. This “I can do it all” attitude can
have negative results on the caregiver’s
health and, in time, keep them from even
being able to care for their loved one.
Recent studies by the Centers for Dis-
ease Control and Prevention found that a
little over half, 53 percent, of caregivers
said their health has been affected due to
caregiving and, sometimes, the decline
in their health has affected their ability
to provide care. According to Caregiver
SOS, a website operated by the WellMed
Charitable Foundation, caregivers re-
ported having health problems almost
twice as often as non-caregivers, and
up to 70 percent suffer from depression
or isolation.
Sun City Texas caregivers, don’t do
this alone! There are several outstand-
ing nonprofit programs in Central Texas,
Georgetown and Sun City Texas with
missions to help caregivers.
SPEcIAL FrIENdS PrOGrAM
The Special Friends program, (a care-
giver’s day out) is a weekly program at
The Worship Place in Sun City Texas.
“This program allows caregivers of those
suffering from Alzheimer’s or Dementia
to have a four hour period to do personal
errands or just have a few quiet hours
to themselves without having to wor-
ry about their loved one,” said Cheryl
White, director of the program. “It’s also
great for the participants. Caregivers tell
us all the time that it gives their loved
one a sense of purpose and a place to go
and have fun once a week.”
Volunteers for this essential and much-
appreciated program must first go
through a safety training program. They
sign up for weekly, bi-weekly or monthly
duties to be a “buddy” for each partici-
pant. Cheryl said, “Although sometimes
things do happen, we are prepared for
it and we haven’t lost a participant yet.”
That’s a great record for the program.
Special Friends supply snacks and lunch
and a large variety of exercises, activities
and crafts are lead by trained Special
Friends volunteers. Area musicians and
singers come in for entertainment. Dogs
from the Sun City Texas Pet Club visit
“I can’t do it alone”
Services for spousal caregivers
By Ramona Thompson