The Most Helpful Caregiver Blogs You Should Be Reading

In the day-to-day lives of caregivers, you experience a plethora of challenges and tasks. Whether you’re a professional caregiver, a family member, or friend assisting a loved one, putting someone else’s care and well-being above your own comes with various obstacles. We recently discussed helpful apps and resources available to caregivers and how these tools can help bring a bit of relief to your day. Oftentimes, however, the best type of help for caregivers comes in the form of support and community. One great way to gain a sense of community and relate to other caregivers is to seek out, follow, and engage with caregiver blogs.

How Can Reading a Blog Help Me as a Caregiver?

It seems like there’s a blog everywhere, right? From cooking to parenting, gardening, crafting, animals, health, and so many more, blogs are a great way for people to share their stories. We know there is cathartic, healing power in telling our stories, so when someone is passionate enough about a topic to write it down, it’s important to them! But what about as readers? What are the benefits of taking 5 to 10 minutes out of our day and reading someone’s blog? Below are a few of the benefits that reading a caregiver blog can provide:

• Perspective – Sometimes, when faced with challenging circumstances, we have trouble thinking outside the box. As a caregiver, you’re faced with mental and physical obstacles daily, and they can sometimes seem overwhelming. Engaging in other’s experiences via caregiver blogs means you can sometimes gain outside perspective on similar situations. Who knows, maybe their approach may work for you and your patient!
• It only costs your time – There’s no better investment than affordable and accessible education. Blogs can offer helpful information from individuals who’ve been there, done that. They’re publishing their experiences and insight and making it available to the public, usually for free. Reputable professionals have their own personal experiences and knowledge to offer, to help you conquer whatever challenges you’re facing.
• Knowledge – While you’re learning about new techniques, empathizing with someone else’s situation, and soaking up all their life experiences in the industry, you’re also strengthening your reading and comprehension skills. Reading improves brain health and cognitive development, and that includes reading digital articles like blogs.
• More resources in your toolbox – You may be on the search for specific topics or helpful tips from other caregivers in their blogs, but you may also stumble upon the information you didn’t yet know you needed. Through other’s experiences, you may find answers and solutions to problems you haven’t yet encountered.
• Sense of community and support – Most blogs allow for comments, and some are even connected to online forums and support groups. Popular bloggers tend to have engaging, active forums that encourage questions and helpful discourse between other industry professionals. Caregivers, both professionally and personally, can discuss issues and insight with one another. Forming friendships and networking can reinforce your confidence and make it easier to reach out for mental health and caregiving tips.

Networking in this fashion can help equip you with emotional and informational support and connect you to other individuals experiencing many of the same situations you face as a caregiver.

Caregiver Blogs – Finding the Best, Most Helpful Sources

There are so many different types of disabilities and disorders affecting patients out there that the experiences of one caregiver may vastly differ from another’s. The positive thing about bloggers is that their perspectives and insights can be very specific, but they can also provide insight and support on overall wellness and caregiving. Below are some of the top caregiver blogs to help build your caregiver support toolbox and give you resources to assist in your caregiving role.

• eCareDiary – From mental health for caregivers, to diet and nutrition tips for patients, addressing medical concerns with your patient’s medical providers, and so much more, this blog is a great resource. This blog comes from a more informational perspective, so personal experiences are not common on this site.
• CareGiving – This blog is centered on family caregivers and their struggles from week to week. It helps with community support and offers self-care plans and stories from other family caregivers.
• ElderCareABC – Connect with other caregivers involved in caring for the elderly. This blog brings personal experiences to the table and informative articles that can assist caregivers with the more technical side of caregiving.
• TheCareGiversVoice – Brenda Avadian, MA speaks to her experiences with caring for her father who suffers from Alzheimer’s. She discusses caring for adults with dementia disorders but brings insight and kindness to the caregiver role.
• CaregiverChronicles – Nell Meosky Luo looks at caregiving through the eyes of her mother. Her mother was a caregiver to her brother, and this blog details those experiences and a variety of other, modern-day obstacles family caregivers may experience.
• BrainLine – This blog site is a collective for caregivers, family members, and professionals who support patients with brain disorders and brain trauma. Here you’ll be able to network with other individuals providing care for individuals with brain disorders and brain injuries.

There are thousands of blogs out there that speak to caregiving. Finding the right one may take a bit of searching, but if you feel comfortable and their story speaks to you, reach out! Finding your tribe while providing essential care to a person can be pivotal in maintaining your mental and physical health.

If you or a loved one has taken on a caregiver’s role, it’s important to stay aware of your own needs. Finding support through technology, relatable experiences, and networking can mean the difference when it comes to your mental and physical help.

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