One of the most important health topics that we will ever cover is caregiver burnout. We’ve talked about it before, and it refers to the immense emotional and physical toll that caregiving takes. According to Paul Wynn’s 2025 article for U.S. News and World Report, “Caregiver burnout goes beyond stress. It encompasses emotional numbness, a loss of perspective and physical exhaustion, which can result in long-term health problems, including depression, anxiety, weight changes and weakened immune system.”
How to Prevent Burnout
Burnout can be incredibly dangerous, so it is best for both family and professional caregivers to actively be preventing burnout as early as they can. Have a game plan to give yourself time to yourself. If you are a family caregiver, find time to hang out with your family and loved ones without caring for them. If you can, especially if you are moving to take care of a family member, try to have respite care set up before you get there so you have built-in breaks from the beginning. For professional caregivers, it is important to establish professional boundaries for your own health. You can not work to help others if you are not healthy yourself.
Dealing With Burnout
If you are in active burnout, you may have to take a significant step back from caregiving duties. This is not always financially feasible, which is why prevention is so important. If you’re a family caregiver, you may have to completely reframe the relationship with your loved one back into a personal one and not a caregiving one.
Take care of yourselves, everyone.
Written by Brigid Coffey
