My newsletter each week ends with this: “REMINDER: you are never, ever alone! No matter how isolated you may feel, the truth is that I’m right here on the other side of the screen and I am always rooting for you!”
I know from both personal and professional experience that being a dementia care partner can be difficult, frustrating, heartbreaking, and isolating. We all need support to get through this, to best help our loved ones living with dementia.
“Connection is why we’re here; it is what gives purpose and meaning to our lives.” -Cynthia Bazin, President of SmartChic
My ability to help you would be limited if I didn’t have support, too. My mentor, Cynthia Bazin, is one of the most inspirational, positive people I’ve ever met. Her recent blog post 6 Reasons To Have A Strong Inner Circle really resonated with me. As I read it, I thought of all the dementia care partners just like you who are giving it your all every day.
With her permission, I am republishing part of Cynthia’s post below, and adding some additional thoughts specific to dementia care partners. My thoughts are marked “Christy’s note.”
6 Reasons to Have a Strong Inner Circle of People (courtesy Cynthia Bazin, Smart Chic)
- Support – I believe 100% that we all need great support. During the high and low times in this journey of life. When you have people in your inner circle that are of super high quality, they will be there for you to celebrate with you and to give you a hand when you need it the most.
- Inspiration – I don’t believe you can ever get enough inspiration in your life. The absolute BEST people that you should surround yourself with are those that fire you up and keep you laser focused on the important things in life!
- Masterminding – In business, it’s absolutely awesome to have other like-minded entrepreneurs getting together and masterminding ideas. We can all learn from each other. Together we are stronger! Christy’s note: Same goes in dementia world–don’t you love learning what worked for someone else, so you don’t have to mess around with trial and error, cross your fingers, and hope for the best?
- Friendship – There is nothing like great friendships! Remember, it doesn’t matter how many people you have in your inner circle, the key is to have people with the highest integrity in your circle. Christy’s note: Be sure to include people who understand what you’re going through, and can listen to you without judgment.
- Resources – From time to time, you are going to need great resources for your personal and professional life. The best referrals are from those you know very well. High quality people are going to recommend other awesome people. So design a rockstar inner circle and have high quality resources for yourself and others.
- Collaboration – In business, when the situation is right, it’s awesome to collaborate with other high quality people. If you have a high quality inner circle of people, if they are business owners, it’s great to partner up and accomplish great things together. Christy’s note: Who do you know that you could collaborate with to make life better and/or easier for you and your loved one? As Cynthia always says, “Alone we can do a lot, but together we can accomplish so much more!”
You can read Cynthia’s full post–and learn more about her–on her website.
SPECIAL BONUS (free mp3 download): I recorded an interview with Cynthia a few months ago as a bonus for participants in one of my group programs. In it, she shares smart strategies for when you feel worn down and overwhelmed.
If you need help building your own inner circle, please reach out to me. This disease process lasts anywhere from 2-20 years. That’s way too long to try to go it alone. REMINDER: you are never, ever alone! No matter how isolated you may feel, the truth is that I’m right here on the other side of the screen and I am always rooting for you! DM me on Facebook or Twitter.
Did you know? I livestream about various topics and answer any dementia-related questions Monday-Friday at 1pm PDT/4pm EDT/9pm BST on Periscope and Facebook Live (simultaneously). Replays are posted on YouTube within 24 hours.