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Powerful Tools for
Caregivers
"Taking Care of You: Powerful Tools for Caregivers" is a
six-week class for family and friends caring for older adults who have had a stroke,
Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, or similar long-term conditions. The class
teaches caregivers self-care techniques and tools to help reduce the feelings of
stress, guilt, anger and depression that often accompany caregiving.
Class Description
Class 1:
Taking Care of You
This class sets the stage for the entire course. It
emphasizes that the focus is on you, the
caregiver, not on the family member receiving care,
and that during the series of classes caregivers
will develop a box of self-care tools. The
challenges of caregiving and significance of
caregiver self-care are dramatized through a video.
Beginning in this class, caregivers make a weekly
action plan for self-care.
Class 2: Identifying and Reducing Personal
Stress Four steps are presented for
effective stress management. Tools to reduce stress
are discussed. Participants learn how to change
negative self-talk to positive self-talk. Beginning
in this class, caregivers learn five relaxation
activities that are easy to incorporate into their
daily lives.
Class 3: Communicating Feelings, Needs, and
Concerns Participants learn how to
communicate their feelings, needs and concerns more
effectively.
Class 4: Communicating in Challenging
Situations Participants practice two
communication tools which are helpful in difficult
situations. They learn a four-step process for using
an assertive style of communication. A segment
highlights guidelines for communicating with a
person who is memory-impaired.
Class 5: Learning From Our Emotions
The overriding theme of this class is that we need
to listen to the messages our emotions are sending
us. The focus is on identifying constructive ways
for dealing with difficult feelings--especially
anger, guilt, and depression--and resources for
professional help.
Class 6: Mastering Caregiving Decisions
The focus of this session is on the internal
emotional process caregivers go through when they
experience a life change. Tools for dealing with
changes and for making tough decisions are
discussed. Also presented are seven "tools of
optimism" which caregivers can incorporate into
their lives
Class Leaders
Class Leaders in the
State of Oregon are trained by staff from Legacy
Caregiver Services. Please contact us if you would
be interested in becoming a Class Leader or if your
organization would be willing to sponsor a class.
Call 503-413-7706 (Oregon) or 360-487-1188
(Washington).
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