Who helps the helper?

I have had the opportunity recently to be in contact with several people who are ill, in one form or another. One has cancer and is undergoing chemotherapy treatments on a outpatient basis. One has Ulcerative Colitis and has a serious struggle with incontinence issues. One has a heart condition. Another a thyroid problem.  And another has a 92 year old mother with Alzheimer's disease. Each of the affected have educated me in better understanding their needs and the battle they fight daily. However, what may be left out are the stories of those that care for those who are ill, providing there is someone to care for them at all.
It would be difficult to identify a household that did not have at least one member of the family in some sort of daily medical care. This could be short-term care, such as a damaged limb or recovering from a outpatient surgery to more long-term, like diabetes, or other conditions requiring daily upkeep.
Rising healthcare costs and stringent insurance standards are causing more individuals to take health care home.  For some, this is not too much of a adjustment. For others, it requires a family member  placing their wants to the side and becoming nurses themselves. Doctors use to make house calls. Now the houses are making doctors! Or nurses to some degree.
Those that are ill have their own daily hell to battle on a daily basis. A position I am sure none of us want to trade places with. But often overlooked are those tending to the needs of the afflicted. Caregivers, typically spouses, are also under a increased workload, mentally, spiritually and physically. For some, the stress levels can equal if not surpass those of the unhealthy. Another facet that can add to the stress levels of the caregiver may be that no one is occasionally stepping in to help the helper. While those that are disabled need constant positive reinforcement to boost their spirits, so do the caregivers. None of us are machines. None of us can maintain a constant level of giving without our gas tanks of enthusiasm running low.
So here is a simple opportunity to do something to help your fellow man (or woman, child or even pet!) Take a moment to reach out to someone you know who is serving as a caregiver. Make a phone call to them to tell them they are appreciated. Or maybe more important, serve as a ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on and let them vent their frustrations. Offer to prepare a meal for them. Watch the kids for a night. Anything you can do that will allow Nurse Fantastic an opportunity to remember that they, too, are human and their needs are just as important. Remember that a caregiver may be reluctant to ask for any assistance out of fear of looking weak or selfish. Nothing could be further from the truth! As the song goes, we all need someone we can lean on. Show those who care that YOU care about them as well!