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With some questionable health advice being posted by your friends on Facebook, politicians arguing about the state of the American healthcare system and a new medical study being summarized in just a sentence or two on TV---that seems to contradict the study you heard summarized yesterday---it can be overwhelming to navigate the ever-changing landscape of health news.

Caregiving Takes Many Forms

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter stated, 

"There are four kinds of people:
those who will become caregivers,
those who are caregivers,
those who were caregivers,
and those who will need caregiving themselves."

November is National Family Caregivers Month.

Caregiving takes many forms from running errands for family members and friends who are elderly, sick, or disabled, to providing comprehensive round-the-clock care for a chronically ill parent or a  child with special needs. Although some people receive care from paid caregivers, most rely on unpaid assistance from families, friends and neighbors.

The 2016 theme for National Caregivers’ Month is “Take Care to Give Care.” Because of the stressful and time consuming nature of caregiving, one out of five caregivers admit they have sacrificed their own physical health while caring for a loved one. Family caregivers  are at increased risk for  depression and many other chronic conditions.Caregivers need to realize the importance of caring for themselves as well. Caregiver Action Network encourages caregivers to seek support groups, take respite break and make time for exercising and eating healthy meals. They need to accept offers of help for domestic tasks and ask for professional assistance with organizing medical information, filing legal documents and communicating with healthcare providers.

Resources:
http://www.cdc.gov/features/caregivers-month/
http://www.cdc.gov/family/specialneeds/
http://caregiveraction.org/national-family-caregivers-month
http://caregiveraction.org/resources/10-tips-family-caregivers

Dr. Brooke Hildebrand Clubbs is an assistant professor in the Department of Leadership, Middle & Secondary Education. She writes for special publications of The Southeast Missourian and is a certified Community Health Worker.
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