WORKING CARERS DO EXIST!!!

[goose]

I have just been told by a well funded local caring organisation to take time off work to attend the support group meetings, and other than that there is no support or help if i work , and i can not contribute if i dont attend so how can i highlight this need??

How do i feel !!!!- angry , frustrated and very unhappy....so putting it out here ...( apologies in advance!")

Support meetings/conferences or events i have attended end up discussions around money and benefits.

How do i feel to put up my hand as someone in work and say hey i need help too.....you get some strange looks and no support and in fact some 'carers' can be quite hostile.

I dont have to do masses of physical work for my caree and i can not be with them all the time due to their mental illness so its a double whammy. Mental health supporters face masses of emotional and mental stress but i suspect many of us also carry on working - its not 'like we have to dress someone or feed them' ( which I have had thrown at me during my attempts to find a support group!).

I have had to look long and hard over the years and have found a few others like me - usually they are about to give up work or are simply wearing themselves to a point where they will no longer be able to care and work and feel very much isolated.

But it is possible to work even if part time, and its not a dirty word or something that demeans others who do care 24/7 but if carer organisations keep this bias they are going to ignore the countless pepple who do work and care -its an aging population so those in work start out thinking they can manage both but with no support , its simply putting people in a position where they have to stop - surely its better to drop your hours and care then to stop completely if at all possible.
Shall we see any movement /campaiging etc on this issue ?????- will any one take this up????- lets see - so far nothing from carers uk but please feel free to correct me . Grr

[charles47]

Interesting post, Goose. Some carers seem to think that carers organisations are only interested in working carers, but actually working carers are far harder to reach and to offer services and support to without the help of their employers. Funnily enough I was at an event today aimed at working carers that was looking at the gaps in services. It's given us - carers, authorities, services and local employers - a lot to think about.

[Myrtle]

We most certainly do exist and I never access carer centre meetings or support because they always hold things in the few hours a week I can still manage to work.
I have tied myself in knots hanging onto the small remnant of the career that I loved doing besides having a very heavy, physical caring role.
I don't want coffee mornings, taster sessions etc. etc. etc. but a little support would not come amiss from the centres that are supposed to be there to help.