A stress-busting program for family caregivers.
Aging baby boomers, longer life spans, and rising levels of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) will result in a caregiver crisis in the near future. The ways in which caregivers deal with stresses related to caregiving will be critical to both their own well-being and their ability to care for others. The purpose of this article is to describe the Stress-Busting Program (SBP) for family caregivers and its effectiveness. The essential components of the SBP are education, stress management, problem solving, and support delivered in a group setting for 9 weeks. Results of the SBP indicate that throughout the program, caregivers experienced significant improvements in general health, vitality, social function, and mental health scores and decreases in anxiety, anger/hostility, depression, perceived stress, and caregiver burden. The SBP is a cost-effective health-promotion strategy for caregivers who have substantial ongoing stress.
Lewis
Sharon L
SL
School of Nursing and Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, USA. lewissl@uthscsa.edu
Miner-Williams
Denise
D
Novian
Allen
A
Escamilla
Monica I
MI
Blackwell
Paula H
PH
Kretzschmar
Jennifer Hale
JH
Arévalo-Flechas
Lyda C
LC
Bonner
Peter N
PN
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life; D012657:Self-Help Groups; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013781:Texas