Close Button
NBCC Logo
  • National Certification
  • Examinations
  • State Licensure
  • Government Affairs
    • Government Affairs
    • Advocacy
    • Grassroots
    • Newsroom
    • Portability
  • Resources
    • Resources
    • Counselor Resources
    • Applicant Resources
    • Public Resources
    • CE Provider Resources
    • Ethics
    • Search Directories
    • CCE Academy
  • About
    • About
    • Board Members
    • Selected Staff
    • Careers
    • Contact Us
  • Login
  • Search
NBCC Logo
Login
NBCC Logo
Login
NBCC Logo
Login
NBCC Logo
Login
×
Search Directories
ACEP Directory Counselor Find Counselor Verify State Board Directory
National Certification
National Certification NCC NCSC CCMHC MAC Specialty Certifications Schedule Ethics
Examinations
Exams NCE NCMHCE Examinations Administration Accommodations Examinations Security Examinations Preparation DSM-5-TR Overview Subject Matter Experts Exam Sensitivity & Bias Authorization for Extension
State Licensure
State Licensure Exam Registration Military Health Systems State Board Directory NCE Handbook PDF NCMHCE Handbook PDF
Government Affairs
Government Affairs Federal Resources Federal Employment Federal Funding Indian Health Services Legislative Policy Map Medicare Military Health Systems Grassroots Action Center Newsroom Become an Advocacy Leader Communication Guide Portability Counseling Compact FAQ
Counselor Resources
Counselor Resources Benefits of National Certification Earn Continuing Education Certification Management Credentialing Gateway Awards Marketing Yourself Therapy Directory Digital Badges NBCC News Ethics FAQ The Professional Counselor Liability Insurance CCE Academy CE Credit Verification PDF
Applicant Resources
Applicants Resources FAQs for Applicants Student Information FAQs for Students Faculty Information FAQs for Faculty CACREP
Resources for the Public
Resources for the Public Community Resources Employer Resources
CE Provider Resources
CE Provider Resources Approved CE Providers CE Single Program CE Provider Applicants CE Provider Toolbox CE Applications CE Advertisements CE Provider Policy CE Calendar of Events
About
Board Members Selected Staff Careers Contact Us
  • Counselor Resources
  • Benefits of National Certification
  • Earn Continuing Education
  • Certification Management
  • Credentialing Gateway
  • Awards
  • Marketing Yourself
  • Therapy Directory
  • Digital Badges
  • NBCC News
  • Visions Newsletter
  • Article
  • Ethics
  • FAQs
  • CCE Academy
  • The Professional Counselor
  • Liability Insurance
  • CE Credit Verification Form
  • Disaster Crisis Relief Form

Helping Caregivers to Care for Themselves

  1. home
  2. resources
  3. nccs
  4. newsletter
  5. helping-caregivers-to-care-for-themselves

Article Published: 10/25/2023

undefined

Whether looking after young children or assisting an aging relative, an ill partner, or someone else, caregivers have a reputation for putting others first. However, when this generosity causes a caregiver to neglect their own needs, it becomes a problem.

A caregiver is someone who provides direct care to help another person with the daily tasks of living. Paid caregivers perform this service professionally, but informal caregivers care for a relative, friend, or neighbor without recompense and often in addition to their job. Most Americans will serve as informal caregivers at some point in life, with an increased need as the population ages.

Caregiver stress is a well-documented phenomenon. Caregivers report much higher levels of stress compared to other adults and often have little time for other pursuits, according to the Office on Women’s Health within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Signs of caregiver stress resemble symptoms of—and can lead to—depression, and some people turn to unhealthy coping behaviors.

According to the Caregiving in the U.S. 2020 report by the National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC) and AARP, more than half of caregivers of adults consider their situation to be moderately or highly stressful. The American Psychological Association’s Stress in America 2020 survey also found significantly higher levels of stress among adults with children compared to adults without children, although both populations reported higher stress than in years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition to the strain of providing direct care, caregivers often face related financial stressors. Most caregivers also work, and many report an impact on their work as they try to balance responsibilities. Additionally, NAC and AARP survey respondents reported worse health statuses for themselves compared to previous surveys. Only 13% of caregivers reported speaking with a health care professional about how to support their own well-being.

Basic self-care is fundamental to controlling stress and maintaining good mental health. Yet, stressed and busy caregivers are likely to neglect their own self-care, setting themselves up for even more stress and creating a negative loop.

Juan Olivera has years of experience as a counselor working with youth, juveniles, and their adult caregivers. “I’ve seen the challenges from both sides,” he says. “Caregivers often have limited resources and work a lot just to make ends meet. Even trying to find a time to meet with them can be one obstacle.” 

Counselors are in a position to reinforce the importance of self-care and to help clients implement activities that work for them, and work within the limited time they have available.

“It’s an education process,” says Olivera. “That often means teaching very brief techniques that can be used with the short amount of time they have. I suggest giving themselves a quick break or timeout when possible before engaging in something stressful to give them a transition period.”

For example, Olivera says, suppose a parent gets off work and immediately must go to pick up their child from school or daycare: “I would say, try 2 to 5 minutes where they park the car and listen to music, practice deep breathing, or call a friend. Anything like that can serve as a grounding activity.”

The first step is often to help a client realize the importance of self-care. With all their other responsibilities, self-care might seem trivial or optional. At the same time, it’s important that caregivers not treat self-care as yet another responsibility to stress over.

“I often frame it as if you neglect your self-care, then you are not being the most effective that you can be as a caregiver,” says Olivera. “Allow them to see that there is a benefit in providing themselves grace rather than beating themselves up or having more guilt in not being the most effective they can be one day versus another.”

Some clients may prove resistant to incorporating small self-care tasks, instead expecting bigger steps to take or a more direct solution to what they perceive as their real problems. Counselors can help a client to overcome this obstacle.

“Ultimately, I think it goes back to that psychoeducation component,” says Olivera. “I might have them think about a time when they recently were very stressed or had some emotional flare-up, and discuss what led up to that and how their mood or their mental state affected their interaction with their children, with coworkers, anybody. Have them reflect and connect those things, even if it is hard for them to think about.”

For some caregivers, especially parents of young children, demonstrating a good example may be another motivation for establishing good self-care practices.

“Their children are watching what they do for self-care, so there is a modeling component,” says Olivera. “If you don’t address emotional needs and engage in your self-care, they see you stressed. Those are things they are picking up on, even if they don’t talk about it or are too young to verbalize. It’s something that can impact them over time.”

Different self-care techniques work for different people, and discovering those may be as simple as looking back at what a person did in their free time before they became a caregiver.

“It's important to have a sense of identity apart from ‘just’ being a caregiver,” says Olivera. “What hobbies did they used to have, or what was their social life like? It's not going to be the same, but is there a way they can still access that identity at least every now and then when there’s a small window, even just once a month to catch up with a friend or engage in a hobby? Even if it has to be scheduled, that’s OK.”

Juan Olivera is a dedicated mental health professional based in Fort Worth, Texas. He holds a Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the University of Texas at Tyler. He is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor in the state of Texas. He was a recipient of the 2017 NBCC Minority Fellowship Program in Addiction Counseling.

Much of Olivera’s counseling experience centers around working with youth and caregivers in a community mental health setting. He has also provided counseling and case management with the juvenile population, as well as youth in a residential substance use treatment program.

Olivera currently serves as a mental health counselor at Tarrant County College, where he provides counseling to enrolled students and delivers psychoeducational workshops. He is also pursuing a PhD in counselor education and supervision at the University of Holy Cross.

 

 



Share On Social Media:




Read more articles

NBCC
3 Terrace Way
Greensboro, North Carolina 27403

NBCC Facebook NBCC LinkedIn

  • More Information
  • Ethics
  • Careers
  • Newsletter
  • Policy Library
  • Reach Out
  • tel: +336-547-0607
  • fax: +336-547-0017
  • email: nbcc@nbcc.org

Visit Our Sites

CCE Icon
NBCC Icon
EBCC Icon

Cookie Policy Icon Manage Cookie Preferences

The information provided by the National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc. (NBCC) on the nbcc.org website (site) is for general information purposes only. NBCC makes significant efforts to maintain current and accurate information on this site. We are not responsible for any information concerning NBCC or our programs, services, or activities that is published or displayed on any third-party website(s). These websites are maintained by third parties over which we exercise no control, and for which we have no responsibility. Individuals should verify any information obtained from third-party sources by referring to our official site or contacting our customer service team directly.

Copyright ©2025 National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc. and Affiliates | All rights reserved.