“Balancing Caring for Parents, Kids & Working from Home” is a collaborative post.
Balancing the demands of work, children and caring for a senior parent can often feel like juggling an ever growing number of responsibilities in the form of balls. Juggling these balls is not easy and you can’t physically drop any of them because these balls are all made of glass. It’s challenging, but it can be immensely rewarding – but only if you have the time to be able to do it. It’s OK to realise that you’re a human being and trying to juggle everything at once isn’t going to be possible. The amount of time management and emotional resilience it takes to split yourself between your kids, your parents and working is not easy.
You need to have a supportive network and that can often mean hiring in the services of companies such as Agincare. With additional care for your aging parent, you’ll be able to concentrate your time on the kids and working from home. You might still be splitting yourself in half, but at least you’ll have some additional help with other areas so you don’t drop anything. Here are some top tips for helping you to keep that balance in check.
Seek assisted living services
We just talked about getting some help from a specific company, but these are the kind of facilities that offer a range of support that are tailored to meet the needs of your parents. This allows you some time to figure out focusing on your family, your work, and even yourself. Assisted living can provide meals and other services they can. They can provide continent services and even companionship. There are also facilities out there that offer recreational activities and health monitoring, which can help you to alleviate some of your main concerns.
Make sure that you have boundaries put in place.
When you have a lot of responsibilities that compete for your attention, you have to have boundaries in place so that you can keep yourself healthy. Open communication with your employer about what you’re dealing with at home will really help, because then you can establish your limits and determine whether flexible work is a good idea.
Figure out your prioritisation list
If you want to manage your time and energy properly, then prioritisation is a must. Listing out all of your responsibilities and then categorising those responsibilities by importance and urgency is a must. You have to have a system in place that works for you to be able to keep your balance going, especially if you’re not at that point of needing assisted living services yet.
Rope in as much help as you can
From your partner, from other family members, from your siblings. It’s important to pull in the help and try not to do it all by yourself. Technology is a powerful tool here because you can manage schedules with the help of technology to let everybody know what’s happening and when. Calendar apps can help you to keep track of your commitments, family activities, and appointments for your parents. Nothing has to fall through the cracks if you don’t want it to.
