Caring for a living

As many of you know I currently work as a Health Care Assistant and will soon be working as a Social Care Worker in the not too distant future. While most people are familiar with the physical aspects of care work, few stop to think what being a professional carer actually entails. I am the type of person who cares too much about everything. Try as I might, I cannot seem to switch this off. I care and I worry and I over think the shit out of everything. While this does have the potential to drive me just a little bit mad, it also makes me good at my job.

The trouble with being a natural empath is you feel sorry for the assholes too. That's a paraphrased quote I read somewhere and while it's accurate I can't quite remember where I saw it. While this has been known to have some downsides it has proved helpful to me working as a carer. When working with vulnerable adults it's always good to put yourself in their shoes and think about what they might be experiencing day to day. I try not to think about it too much at home but I do find myself from time to time making lists on my phone of things to follow up or buying things I think someone I care for needs because I feel guilty that I didn't get around to buying it during work hours. I go home feeling bad about how busy we were and the time I couldn't spend with the people I look after and the activities we didn't get around to doing.

There is a strong possibility that many of my colleagues don't carry these worries home with them. Most practiced carers have learned to park their work concerns at the door to be collected upon their return to work but that is a skill I am still working on. I do think however that most of the good carers are wired the same way. They care openly and honestly and feel rewarded when they make the lives of those they care for better. I know for me that the good days make the bad days survivable. 

The thing about caring so much about everything is that it takes a lot out of you. I find it can be draining sometimes and I spend so much time in other peoples shoes that I forget to spend time in my own. I sometimes find myself so emotionally exhausted that I have to withdraw from the world for a little bit just to replenish myself. Once replenished I head back into work looking forward to seeing all the familiar faces and ready to try a bit harder this time. 

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