Family and Friends Suggested Do's and Dont's

Do's

• Do get the best medical care possible.

• Inform yourself about your illness or disability.

• Find others who have similar conditions and talk to them.

• Let family and friends know what you experience and let them help you.

• Keep doing the things you enjoy doing to the best of your abilities.

• Develop and practice healthy habits.

Don'ts

• Don't blame yourself for your medical problems.

• Don't isolate yourself from others.

• Don't think you have to cope with your medical problems alone.

• Don't try to be stoic about pain and discomfort.

• Don't let yourself fantasize about the worst case scenarios.

• Don't focus on cure to the detriment of focusing on good care in the present.

Solutions for a Caretaker

Do's

• Continue to take good physical care of yourself.

• Learn to read your own signals to know when you must take a break from caretaking.

• Talk to others about the demands of caretaking

• Appreciate what you are doing.

• Allow yourself to feel "negative" emotions like anger and irritation at the person you are caring for.

• Join a support group in your community or on the internet.

Don'ts

• Don't think you have to be able to solve every problem that arises.

• Don't work yourself to exhaustion.

• Don't take it personally if the person you are caring for is irritable or mean.

• Don't isolate yourself from friends and activities.

• Don't think that limiting your own life will make it any easier in the long run for the person you are caring for.

• Don't hesitate to talk to a professional to get help for yourself.