Do you ever take a ‘moment’ to consider those who care for others, often loved ones or partners, for no payment and, in most cases, no recognition at all?
Frankly if it wasn’t for these wonderful people, the social care system would be even more crippled than it is now. In fact, only this week on BBC Radio was an appeal by the DJ Johnnie Walker’s wife Tiggy talking about her life as an unpaid carer. Her point was that much as she loved him she found the life of a carer exhausting.
Carers struggle with so many things – and getting respite care, a total break and going on holiday are just a few of those struggles.
The theme this year is ‘Caring Is About Equality’ as carers are at greater risk of poverty, social isolation, poor mental health and also poor physical health. I see this on a weekly basis as my company supports people who are in the situation and who are desperate to improve their situation by accessing funding, securing paid care and other issues.
Clearly I offer a professional service to families or individuals in this situation so they do have to have the funds to work with me and my aim is to work hard to try to improve their situation. The social care system is so complex that people often don’t know what they are entitled to or how to access support. When you try to contact the relevant authorities, it can be overwhelming when you are already overwhelmed.
Over recent months, I’ve been supporting a family in Swindon who were in a terrible state. We are moving forward but it’s clearly going to be a long haul. We’ve managed to secure a more appropriate property, we’ve secured more paid carer hours and also worked with the main unpaid carer to get him registered for payment as he’s had to give up his beloved job.
When you find that you are suddenly pushed into a situation where you have to care for a loved one – often a partner – your world gradually gets smaller and smaller, your social circle shrinks as people forget you, your finances can drain away and you can lose your job or career. This might be through a conscious decision to focus on caring or it may be that you are ‘let go’ because you’ve had to have so much time off. As the life of the ‘cared for’ person has changed, so your life can change too…
It’s also well known that unpaid carers can themselves become mentally and physically ill due to the pressure of caring for a loved one. This is especially true in marriages where a spouse feels a responsibility to care and can often go on and on without seeking support – or trying to finding support and failing to get any – and they themselves become very ill.
How many people around you have a caring responsibility? Do you ever consider the kind of pressure they face? Do you ever think about or ask how they are doing?
Perhaps this week you can pay attention to the value unpaid carers add to our society. Many feel alone and under-valued…
