Support for carers
Who is a carer?
A carer is anyone who looks after a family member, partner, friend, or neighbour who needs help because of an illness or frailty, disability, a mental health problem or an addiction and who cannot cope without support. Carers can be any age, including children. The care they give is unpaid.
It can be difficult for carers to separate their caring role from the relationship they have with the person for whom they care whether that relationship is as a parent, child, sibling, partner, a friend, or neighbour.
It’s likely that every one of us will have caring responsibilities at some time in our lives. During a carers journey the carer and their cared for’s needs will change over time, so advice and information at the beginning of a carers journey may not be relevant, but it is okay to revisit and ask again about support and signposting to services, including financial advice and respite care, at any point.
This will help ensure a carers caring responsibilities remain manageable and do not lead to exhaustion or burn out.
The challenges faced by carers taking many forms. Many carers juggle their caring responsibilities with work, study, and other family commitments. Some, in particular younger carers, are not known to be carers because they don’t tell relatives, friends or health and care professionals about their responsibilities out of fear of separation, guilt, pride or other reasons.
Always say if you are caring for someone else who could not cope without your support, its okay to say you are a carer and help is available when you cannot do things for the person you care for.
Your health & wellbeing is really important as if you get ill or unable to cope it affects the person you care for.
The roles and responsibilities that carers have vary widely. They can range from help with everyday tasks, such as getting out of bed, and personal care, such as bathing, to emotional support, for example helping someone cope with the symptoms of a mental illness. Always ask about financial support and respite care for yourself as a carer, as there is support available.