How are you sleeping? If you're like many of us, the answer might not be so great.

In today's fast-paced world, sleep often takes a backseat to our caregiving responsibilities, but the truth is, it shouldn't. In this episode of the Caregiver Cup Podcast, we're diving deep into the importance of sleep, why caregivers often struggle to get enough of it, and most importantly, how you can improve your sleep quality starting tonight.

Last Saturday, March 16, marked World Sleep Day, a perfect opportunity to shine a spotlight on the sleep issues facing caregivers. Shocking statistics reveal that a staggering 76% of caregivers report poor sleep quality, with dementia caregivers experiencing rates as high as 91.7%. These sleep disturbances aren't just inconvenient; they're linked to serious health issues like depression, anxiety, and fatigue.

So, what's causing all this sleep deprivation? For many caregivers, anxiety and depression play a significant role, leading to racing...

Have you said to yourself :  Why don’t I have the energy like I used to have?   Or, I am so tired all the time.   

It’s called caregiver fatigue.   This occurs when you feel emotionally and physically exhausted.  You are wearing out.  You are feeling totally used up due to too many demands.  You are burning out.

• What are your emotional demands?   Your loved one is sick and you can’t make them better.  They demand an extreme degree of physical and emotional care.
• What are your conflicting priorities?   Who else needs your time and energy?   Your family, your children, your boss, your employees, your co-workers,  Trying to meeting everyone’s needs creates conflict and stress.  
• Do you feel ambiguity in your new normal?  You really don’t know exactly what to do, meaning your roles and responsibilities.   
• You workload.  What’s on your plate? ...

Today's episode is all about you and your overwhelm.  The true facts about how this stress, anxiety, burnout and fatigue creep up on you and before you know it, you are in the thick of it and don’t know what to do.  

When I first became a caregiver, I let the adrenaline drive me through the overwhelm.  When that faded, I let my mind and body do the work.  Well looking back, I now see the 3 stages of overwhelm I went through and it’s toll it took on myself, my Loved One, my friendships and more.  

That’s why over the last month, I sat down and really did some digging into this subject.  I researched 100s of articles, interviewed caregivers and fead all my journal entries, text messages, facebook post on where I was at.

So today, I want to highlight the 3 stages of caregiver overwhelm - the whats, the why, the hows and more.    You can find the entire resource at cathylvan.com/caregiverstress

1. Caregiver Stress
2. ...