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Hands On Caregiving

Caregivers, Self-Care Isn’t Selfish — I Wish Someone Told Me That Sooner

  • Writer: Jean-Francois Alleno
    Jean-Francois Alleno
  • Oct 20
  • 6 min read

How many times have you thought, “If I take time for myself, I’m letting my loved one down”?If that sounds familiar, this video is for you.


As a registered nurse and Ayurvedic health counselor, I’ve seen — and lived — the cost of putting everyone else first. In this video, I share the simple shift Ayurveda taught me: self-care isn’t abandonment — it’s fuel.


You’ll also hear a personal story from my caregiving journey, and learn how small, consistent practices can help you stay grounded and present without guilt.


00:00 Understanding Caregiver Burnout

01:28 The Role of Ayurveda in Preventing Burnout

02:47 Identifying Your Constitution and Its Impact

05:46 Practical Strategies for Caregivers

08:13 The Importance of Self-Care for Caregivers


👉 Stay until the end to get my free resource:3 Grounding Techniques to Protect Your Energy — including breathing, journaling, and a soothing nighttime ritual.




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🪷 Remember: Caring for others truly begins with caring for yourself. Small rests prevent big rests.




Caregivers often wonder why do some people burn out so quickly while others keep going?


The truth is not just about willpower or strength. It's about how your body and mind are processing stress. It's about how your body and mind are managing and whether you are listening to the early sign that a burnout might be coming.


In this video, we are going to explore why some caregivers burn out faster than others and how Ayurveda give us a clear map to prevent it. Stay until the end because I will share the specific sign Ayurveda teaches us to look for before burnt out happens and what to do to rebalance today.


Hi, I'm Jean-Francois. I'm a registered nurse, an Ayurvedic health counselor, a yoga teacher and a Vedic astrogyn. I work with many caregivers who are strong, dedicated and loving, but who silently push themselves until they collapse. And that's why I combine my nursing background with Ayurveda to help caregivers notice the subtle signs earlier.


rebalance their energy and protect their well-being without abandoning their loved one. So please consider subscribing to the YouTube channel for a weekly video on how Ayurveda can help caregivers take care of themselves so they can continue to take care of their loved one.


All right, so why caregivers burn out at a different speed?


From my nursing background, I've seen two sets of people with the very same situations. The workload is exactly the same. They have a full-time job, they might be a family to take care of, and they have both their parents, for example, in an ICU bed waiting for maybe a long-term care to happen. And for any reason,


One is gonna collapse quickly while the other stay really steady.


The difference isn't being tougher. It's about how the body processes stress. So some people lose sleep first. Others might notice some digestive issues. And another set of people are going to notice that, you know, they shut down emotionally and they become numb. These are warning lights on the dashboard, but must caregivers push through them until the system breaks.


And Western medicine often step in once you have collapsed. But Ayurveda, on the other hand, helps us step in earlier. And we will take care of the early signs so you don't go full burnout.


All right, so the Ayurveda lands on burnout. Ayurveda teaches us that burnout comes from depletion and imbalance. And each caregiver has different constitutions. There are three constitutions in Ayurveda. Vata, basically air and space. Pitta, fire and water. And Kapha, earth and water.


And each constitution breaks down in different ways. The vata caregivers burn out through anxiety, poor sleep, scattered thought, exhaustion. There's the idea of movement in here, a rapidity, a velocity. There's a movement happening. Think about the wind, air and space.


The pitta caregiver, on the other hand, are going to burn out through anger, irritability, inflammation, maybe digestive fire running too hot, so a tendency to maybe lose stool or even diarrhea. Remember the pitta caregiver, that idea of fire and water. So the burn of the fire and the boiling of the water that kind of like come out. And the third one, the kapha caregivers burn out more slowly.


but can sink into heaviness, depression, and emotional withdrawal. They are feeling stuck. Think about earth and water, that idea of like going through the mud. It's sticky. It's very difficult to go through. So if you know your tendency, you can catch the early sign. Fatigue, you can't shake, poor digestion, restless mind, trouble focusing.


irritability, or even emotional heaviness. So Ayurveda reminds us, don't wait for collapse, notice imbalance early, and bring yourself back before the system breaks. All right, so here are the practical takeaways so you can do whatever you need to do to take care of yourself. So number one, notice the early sign. About noticing.


We call it awareness, being aware of what's happening inside us. And most of people, I'm amazed, are not aware of their feeling, not aware of the sensation in the body. So one really easy thing to do is that every time you step out, whether it's in the morning, first step, or whether, you know, during the day, always go out and notice the sensation of the breath on your skin.


sensation of the sun on your skin. Maybe if it's cold, if it's warm, maybe you know from one day to the other you might find that the temperature fluctuates and it changes. This is a very easy way to feel. The more you do that, the more you will strengthen that muscles of being aware and being able to feel.


Notice the early sign, keep a small journal, or simply maybe at the end of the day, ask yourself, am I feeling more tired? Am I more reactive? Or am I more foggy than usual? And then you're going to apply some small balancing actions.


All right, so coming back to our three constitutions, Vata imbalance, that idea of movement and that idea of


feeling dry and feeling completely tired. So we're to slow down. We're going to bring the opposite of running, slowing down the opposite of like drying. We're going to maybe apply some oil, warm oil massage, or maybe, if you feel yourself eating some crackers, raw vegetable salad, everything's dry. Let's move that towards a more warm.


grounding meal like a soup or a stew. Pitta imbalance. So if you feel yourself being fire and water, the wild fire is spreading, the water boiling out of the pot. The goal here is to cool down. So first of all, most of the time the people who are very pitta,


avoid meal because they don't have time. They are super busy doing what they need to do. Do not avoid meal. Feeding that fire is very important. But you can also slow down and just take some deep breathing or maybe take a walk outside that will calm down the system. And then if you are feeling stuck, you have a Kapha imbalance. Remember, it's that earth and water getting stuck.


you know, in the mud, then we're gonna put the opposite, you're gonna get moving. So go for short brisk walk outside, maybe put on some favorite music and dance just to shake things up. but done consistently, they can prevent months of recovery later.


All right, so if you are caregiving now and feeling yourself heading towards burnout, remember, it's not selfish to take care of yourself, it's survival. Ayurveda give us a personalized way to spot where you are depleted and how to rebalance so you can showing up for the loved one without losing yourself. So if you want to discover your own caregiving imbalance and learn specific tool on how


your body and mind works, I invite you to book a consultation with me. We will look at your unique constitutions, your stress pattern, and create a plan that supports your resilience. Because caring for others begins truly with caring for yourself. Remember, you are your most valuable assets, so take care of yourself.

 
 

You’re not alone.

Join my email list to receive nurturing guidance from the rhythms of nature and the stars so you can feel balanced, supported, and aligned on your caregiving path.

Contact Info

jf@handsoncaregiving.com

 

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Toronto, Ontario

Canada

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