Home care company raises awareness of the desperate situation faced by family carers following alarming research.

Local home care company, Home Instead Witney, has found that thousands of family carers across Oxfordshire are highly stressed and isolated, with a worrying 64% of them neglecting their own health and wellbeing.

Home Instead commissioned a survey of family carers and found 29% of them in Oxfordshire are at breaking point. They found that the impact on the carer’s life can be hugely damaging, with other survey findings including:

• 60% struggle with their mental health
• 29% feel they are at breaking point
• 63% say they’re feeling guilty about not doing enough for their parents or theirchildren.
• 42% feel guilty about not being able to put enough into work
• 57% feel that their marriage/relationship is negatively impacted

There are around five million people across the UK providing unpaid care. Communities across the UK, including Oxfordshire, are set to see the situation get worse as our ageing population grows.As a company that supports older people in their own homes, Home Instead sees countless families in a desperate state as they seek to give their loved one the best life possible. Sadly, that often leads to compromising on their own welfare. Home Instead is keen to stop this from happening and is providing family carers with the tools and knowledge to prevent them from reaching burnout.

Family carers are being welcomed to Home Instead’s office at Witney to fill in a checklist showing how much they are affected by their care responsibilities. The aim is to give family carers the chance to think about whether they’re doing too much. The team will answer any questions on how to find out what support you’re entitled to and where to get help for you or your loved one.

Owner of Home Instead Witney, Othman, says:

“When family members need help, it’s only natural to support them as best we can. But the truth is that with other commitments, such as work and parental responsibilities, there’s only so much we can do. Sadly, many of us push ourselves to a point where we detriment our own health and lives. You can only care for someone properly if you’re physically and mentally well yourself.

“The key is to understand what help for you is out there. When families come to us, they often don’t know what they’re entitled to or what their options are. We’re here to work with families to establish the best solution for them. That might mean getting help from a home care company, and since your loved one won’t need to move from their beloved home, it means minimum disruption for everyone involved.

“With the right home care company, it will feel like you’ve got additional members of the family helping out. It means being able to spend more quality time with loved ones; something which both of you have earnt.”

You can also get hold of Home Instead’s checklist by calling the office on 01865 841362 or visiting https://www.homeinstead.co.uk/oxford