Caregiving can be challenging, no matter how much we love the people we care for. Often, it can feel like there’s never enough time in a day to care for them and for ourselves. When you have multiple kids or kids with special needs, or perhaps you’re caring for an older relative as well, the struggle gets even more real.
If this sounds familiar, then the latest episode of the Kidsburgh Podcast is for you.
On Episode 10 of our third season, we sit down with Dr. Abigail Schlesinger, chief of child and adolescent psychiatry at UPMC Western Psychiatric and Children’s Hospital, who shares valuable tools and advice to help caregivers take good care of themselves.
“I think the first thing we need to identify is that every parent is going to need help, period — even the most resourced parents,” Dr. Schlesinger says. “There’s an issue in our society right now that people tend to think that they need to do things on their own.”
So often,”parents feel under pressure and they feel like they need to do it on their own,” she says. “That’s new. Parents shouldn’t have to do these things on their own.”
Among the advice Schlesinger shares to help parents and other caregivers: Identify someone who knows you well enough to say, “Hey, you look stressed out. How are things going” or “How are you doing? You look burnt out.”
Then, answer them honestly.
“Just asking someone to sort of keep an eye on you could be a help,” she says. “Look around in your world and say, ‘Who knows me well enough to help me identify when I might need help?’”
To get more strategies and advice from Dr. Schlesinger so you can build a strong village of support, listen to this conversation on Apple Podcasts, Pandora and Spotify, at the SLB website, or LISTEN RIGHT HERE.
You can also download the episode right here.
On this episode, you’ll also get details about a great Pittsburgh-area resource, the Caring Place, and hear from our “Tea with Teens” reporters about the ways local students connect with their grandparents.
Our podcast is hosted by the Kidsburgh team — Kristine Sorensen, Melissa Rayworth and Yu-Ling Cheng — and recorded by SLB Radio Productions. Get all the details here.
Photo at top of story by Jordan Wozniak via Unsplash.