New to the role of unpaid carer

Recognising the pressures on people who care for someone in an unpaid capacity we created the tips for Carer wellbeing This was well received, however, someone who had been an unpaid carer shared how abandoned they felt when the person they were caring for died and how difficult it was to pick up the pieces of their life again now they were no longer caring for them. This prompted the design of ‘Picking Up Pieces’ to offer some self care ideas for people who had lost someone they were a carer for. This went down well too.

However, someone in an unpaid caring role shared how often your life changes suddenly when you become a carer and you do not know what lies ahead or how to find support to navigate that. They also shared how often staff caring for a loved one may not realise the impact this new role may have on you. This prompted the design of a ‘nudging poster’ which can be used in any setting where people are in contact with, or learning to support someone new to an unpaid caring role. We also created tips for people new to an unpaid caring role which may be a helpful resource to signpost people to. In addition to listing various sources of support it offers some selfcare ideas for people at a time which can be very stressful and confusing and having some simple ideas on things to consider may help even a little to navigate this new situation they and the person they are going to be a carer for find themselves in.  You can download that below.

While we may not have the answers to all the challenges people face, we do listen and where we can, try to offer something that may be helpful even a wee bit.  We know life can be challenging, however, when we share and learn together it helps, even a wee bit and sometimes that can be a lot.