When the days are long and busy with doing everything for another person, a caregiver can begin to lose touch with who they are.
Diane Cameron, teacher and writer, knows the angst that can come with being a caregiver, and she teaches others to regain their sense of self through her course, Writing for Caregivers. The next session, on Thursday, Sept. 18, is set to be taught at Boscov’s in Colonie Center.
The course, which Cameron said started about a year and a half ago, focuses on fine-tuning caregivers’ skills in the writing field, allowing them to better express themselves, and share tales of the ones they care for.
`It’s been extremely popular,` said Cameron. `I think the first class had a dozen people.`
The course is offered at least four times per year at different locations throughout the Capital District and mostly serves caregivers of Guilderland, Bethlehem, the Hill Towns and New Scotland, but since it receives some funding from Albany County and some workshops are held outside of those towns, they draw in a crowd from all over the area.
Cameron said the Boscov’s likely offered to host the upcoming program as a way to reach out to their demographic customer, who could be a caregiver.
Those interested in the program do not need a thing to join; admission is free. The only requirements are an eagerness to write and a willingness to learn.
`It’s a workshop, so we start out by talking a little bit about the needs of care giving and the benefits of writing,` Cameron said. `After that, I go specifically into writing techniques and writing that people can do with the people they’re taking care of.`
Polly Lemmerman, a caregiver who has been attending the workshops for the past year, said Cameron has the group do timed exercises, where they are not allowed to remove their pen from the paper until the clock has stopped.
`It really helped me to organize my thoughts,` she said.
Lemmerman has been caring for her husband of 58 years over the past few years. While her husband can still get around, she says she needs to be around to take him places he needs to go and in case he needs her help with anything.
In the time she has spent caring for her husband, she said, she has gained feelings that have had no outlet, as she was left with no way to express herself.
After joining the class, Lemmerman said, she now feels comfortable jotting down thoughts as they come to her, and formulating them into short stories later.
`It certainly does help just to take the time out to do that,` she said.
Lemmerman brings her daughter to the workshops sometimes, and together, she said, they inspire each other.
In the time she is at the course, her husband is left with her son, giving her a short break from care giving. But for Lemmerman, the break is nice to have once in a while.
Outside of the workshop, Lemmerman has, in a way, flipped roles, and become the writing teacher, bringing her newly fine-tuned writing skills home to her husband.
`His mind is still very sharp, and he’s beginning to write his memoirs too. I think that that’s helped because I’ve urged him to go to the computer and just write down his experiences.`
Lemmerman’s favorite type of writing is that in which she records her own experiences, to look back at them at a later date and be able to relive the moments that enriched her life.
Caregivers who wish to join the Writing for Caregivers group on Thursday, Sept. 18, can call 438-6600, or 456-2898.
“