This last week has been difficult. If you follow my Twitter feed you’ve probably seen me mention, the toddler and I both came down with a nasty cold. Dad’s surgery has left him unable to lift more than 10-15 lbs, which means almost everything but the toddler.

Finally got the little fella to sleep despite his #cold. Time for a #nap for both of us.

— Ashley Bergris (@AshleyBergris) October 5, 2015

So, the two of us have been having our own little mini-party while Dad does his best to help me without being able to lift the poor fella and tries to avoid getting sick at the same time. So far he’s been successful.

After my mind fog cleared, I realized this is what caregiving is all about. It’s a 24/7 job, 365 days a year. There are no sick days, vacation days, or mental health days. Others help when they can, my Mom was down for the first two days of Dad’s recovery, but there’s only so much help they can give before they need to go back and take care of their own lives. If you had asked me before we had our son if I would ever be able to do this I would’ve told you, “definitely not.”

When Dad is cleared by the doctor to lift 25 lbs+ again, we’ll try to go back to a close approximation of our old routine where both of us get enough sleep. That’s the key really, to keep a routine where you meet your own needs while also caring for someone else’s. That way, when something else comes up you’ll be ready and able to make it through while still providing quality care. My goals for a regular routine are:

• 6-7 hours of sleep a night
• 3 meals, at least one of which is passable as healthy
• 30-60 minutes a day away with your own thoughts, preferably doing something you enjoy

I hope this information is helpful! If you have any tips or tricks you use to take care of yourself while caregiving please share them in the comments below, comment on the facebook page, or tweet them to me @AshleyBergris. Thank you for reading.