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Distress Responses and Self-Care Behaviors in Dementia Family Caregivers With High and Low Depressed Mood

University, Indiana University School of Nursing, Indianapolisyuelu{at}iupui.edu

Mary Guerriero Austrom, PhD

Department of Psychiatry at the Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis

BACKGROUND: Most caregiving intervention studies have focused on reducing caregiver depression. Little is known about how caregivers manage their own symptoms, particularly caregivers with high depressed mood. OBJECTIVES: To compare caregiving stress, health status, physical function, symptom presence and severity, and self-care behaviors in family caregivers with high and low depressed mood. STUDY DESIGN: This study used a cross-sectional design. RESULTS: Caregivers with high depressed mood reported higher levels of caregiving stress, experienced more symptoms and more symptom severity, and had more physical performance difficulty than those caregivers with low depressed mood. However, they did not report a higher rate of asking for professional help per symptom. CONCLUSIONS: There is a need for developing outreach programs and coordinating information to encourage caregivers to address their own symptoms, identify services available in the community, and learn how to access them.

Key Words: Alzheimer’s disease • aging • physical and psychological symptoms of caregiving

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				Y.-F. Y. Lu, M. G. Austrom, S. M. Perkins, T. Bakas, M. R. Farlow, Feng He, Shelia Jin, and A. Gamst Depressed Mood in Informal Caregivers of Individuals With Mild Cognitive Impairment American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias, September 1, 2007; 22(4): 273 - 285. [Abstract] [PDF]