Carer Gateway Counselling Service.
Caring for a loved one is important work. Some days caring brings great joy, but some days it can be lonely or a little overwhelming. No matter how you feel today, there is a counselling professional just a phone call away.
The Carer Gateway Counselling Service is a free service for carers.
Each weekday, from 8am to 6pm, our professional counsellors are waiting to talk through the concerns you have and how you feel about your carer role. To learn more about how counselling helps carers, watch their video “Introducing the Carer Gateway Counselling Service” on https://counselling.carergateway.gov.au/s/
To use the Carer Gateway Counselling Service, simply select ‘Request a Callback’, fill in your details and they will call you back within one business day. You can also call 1800 422 737 and Select Option 1 to speak to our team.
If you are distressed and need immediate support, please select the ‘Urgent Help’ tab for details of 24 hour crisis services.
What a Carer Actually DOES:
Carer self-assessment checklist:
As a carer, there are a number of things to consider to make sure both you and the person you care for remain as healthy as possible, both physically and emotionally.
By doing a carer needs assessment and self-assessing your own situation, you will better know what resources you may need to draw on in the future.
A good place to start for a self-assessment is to note down how many hours you spend each week helping, supervising or prompting the person you care for with, for example:
Knowing how much time you spend on these home care activities will also help you when you are assessed for Government carer support services.
For a detailed guide on what to consider in your own self-assessment, see the Carers Australia Carer Checklist for Disability Care Australia Assessment.
These Guidelines are not just for those who care under the NDIS; they are equally applicable to Any Carer, no matter what your role.
Print Resources Different people have different needs for information at different times during an illness. Patients will also have different needs from their carers. To support these different needs the following list of resources has been compiled based around topics relevant to patients and their carers. The source of the information is included, note that some information is from outside Australia.
https://www.caresearch.com.au/caresearch/tabid/1262/Default.aspx#BGL
How can counselling help me in my caring role?
There are a number of ways counselling may be able to help you including:
The types of counselling available to you include telephone, face-to-face counselling and group counselling. These services are also available to young carers.
Short-term face-to-face counselling is provided by qualified counsellors at our offices in Brisbane and at our regional centres in the Gold Coast, Toowoomba, Ipswich, Sunshine Coast, Hervey Bay, Rockhampton, Mackay, Townsville, and Cairns. In other regions counselling can be provided through other agencies.
or
Go to https://www.carersaustralia.com.au/ to connect with your State or Territory Carers Association.
================================
Sometimes you just need to have an informal chat with other Carers who DO understand all that you are going through :-)
There are Carer Support Groups in Your Area:
Angels Carer Support Group. Held the last Tuesday of each month at St. Paul's Anglican Church Hall, 69 Palm Beach Ave, PALM BEACH - Note: our February meeting is on the 23rd as the 26th January is an Australia Day holiday.
Come just after 1.00pm for that cuppa and a chat. Often we have Speakers on subjects of interest to us as Carers - they start about 1.00pm and go to about 3.00pm.
Other times we just sit, relax and enjoy each other's company and support each other as we face the daily caregiving tasks. Sit and chat, and take a brief break - for YOU :-) We hold our meetings on the last Tuesday of each month. Father Phillip is a Great Supporter of the Angels.
YOU are most welcome to join us :-) when this crisis passes and we are able to resume... Do take CARE of YOU too...
and to find out what else is going on in the Palm Beach area: http://palmbeachgoldcoast.net.au/events/
Caring for a loved one is important work. Some days caring brings great joy, but some days it can be lonely or a little overwhelming. No matter how you feel today, there is a counselling professional just a phone call away.
The Carer Gateway Counselling Service is a free service for carers.
Each weekday, from 8am to 6pm, our professional counsellors are waiting to talk through the concerns you have and how you feel about your carer role. To learn more about how counselling helps carers, watch their video “Introducing the Carer Gateway Counselling Service” on https://counselling.carergateway.gov.au/s/
To use the Carer Gateway Counselling Service, simply select ‘Request a Callback’, fill in your details and they will call you back within one business day. You can also call 1800 422 737 and Select Option 1 to speak to our team.
If you are distressed and need immediate support, please select the ‘Urgent Help’ tab for details of 24 hour crisis services.
What a Carer Actually DOES:
Carer self-assessment checklist:
As a carer, there are a number of things to consider to make sure both you and the person you care for remain as healthy as possible, both physically and emotionally.
By doing a carer needs assessment and self-assessing your own situation, you will better know what resources you may need to draw on in the future.
A good place to start for a self-assessment is to note down how many hours you spend each week helping, supervising or prompting the person you care for with, for example:
- mobility (moving around the house, turning someone during the night)
- personal hygiene (bathing, dressing, using the toilet)
- eating and drinking (making sure they eat and drink, preparing food)
- communication and social participation (organizing social activities, help with communicating their needs to you or others)
- health and treatment (giving medicine, therapeutic exercises)
- safety (checking water temperature, making sure someone does not injure themselves or others)
- behaviour (supervising and understanding why people act the way they do).
Knowing how much time you spend on these home care activities will also help you when you are assessed for Government carer support services.
For a detailed guide on what to consider in your own self-assessment, see the Carers Australia Carer Checklist for Disability Care Australia Assessment.
These Guidelines are not just for those who care under the NDIS; they are equally applicable to Any Carer, no matter what your role.
Print Resources Different people have different needs for information at different times during an illness. Patients will also have different needs from their carers. To support these different needs the following list of resources has been compiled based around topics relevant to patients and their carers. The source of the information is included, note that some information is from outside Australia.
https://www.caresearch.com.au/caresearch/tabid/1262/Default.aspx#BGL
How can counselling help me in my caring role?
There are a number of ways counselling may be able to help you including:
- Assist with stress management
- Provide you with coping skills and strategies (for example, in coping with a major deterioration in the well-being of the person requiring care)
- Help you with transition issues relating to the person being supported moving to a residential care facility, assisted accommodation or to another primary carer in the community
- Give you practical problem-solving techniques
- Help you deal with bereavement and loss issues when you face the death of the person you supported
- Accessing counselling
- The Counselling Program provides counselling and related emotional support services for carers. Counselling is provided by qualified, professional counsellors. Assistance may be provided on a one-off basis or over several counselling sessions.
The types of counselling available to you include telephone, face-to-face counselling and group counselling. These services are also available to young carers.
Short-term face-to-face counselling is provided by qualified counsellors at our offices in Brisbane and at our regional centres in the Gold Coast, Toowoomba, Ipswich, Sunshine Coast, Hervey Bay, Rockhampton, Mackay, Townsville, and Cairns. In other regions counselling can be provided through other agencies.
or
Go to https://www.carersaustralia.com.au/ to connect with your State or Territory Carers Association.
================================
Sometimes you just need to have an informal chat with other Carers who DO understand all that you are going through :-)
There are Carer Support Groups in Your Area:
Angels Carer Support Group. Held the last Tuesday of each month at St. Paul's Anglican Church Hall, 69 Palm Beach Ave, PALM BEACH - Note: our February meeting is on the 23rd as the 26th January is an Australia Day holiday.
Come just after 1.00pm for that cuppa and a chat. Often we have Speakers on subjects of interest to us as Carers - they start about 1.00pm and go to about 3.00pm.
Other times we just sit, relax and enjoy each other's company and support each other as we face the daily caregiving tasks. Sit and chat, and take a brief break - for YOU :-) We hold our meetings on the last Tuesday of each month. Father Phillip is a Great Supporter of the Angels.
YOU are most welcome to join us :-) when this crisis passes and we are able to resume... Do take CARE of YOU too...
and to find out what else is going on in the Palm Beach area: http://palmbeachgoldcoast.net.au/events/