Though caring for another person with a chronic health condition or special behavioral needs can be rewarding, it is also an emotional journey for many.

Now, caregivers can find help with Powerful Tools for Caregivers, a series of classes from Iowa State Extension and Outreach.

“Parenting is rewarding but challenging,” Malisa Rader, human sciences specialist with Extension and Outreach, said in a press release. “The same is true for parenting a child with special needs, but the challenges can be more extreme. With appointments to juggle, medications to manage and special diets to follow, caring for a child with special health or behavioral needs can drain a family’s energy and finances.”

The end result can be poor health, mental distress and less life satisfaction for the parent or caregiver of the child with special health and behavioral needs, Rader said.

“Parent caregivers need to know they are not alone,” Rader said. “Powerful Tools for Caregivers shares ideas to help parents and other caregivers take better care of themselves while caring for a child with special health or behavioral needs.”

Due to the challenge that parent caregivers face when trying to find adequate support, Extension and Outreach decided to offer Powerful Tools for Caregivers in many locations throughout the state.

The program provides information, support strategies, communication techniques, stress reduction ideas and resources to assist family caregivers with their concerns related to caregiving.

In 2020, Extension and Outreach will be offering Powerful Tools for Caregivers classes specifically for parent caregivers of young children and teens or adult children with disabilities, as well as classes for caregivers of older adults.

Powerful Tools for Caregivers is designed to empower family caregivers to take better care of themselves. Classes are led by a pair of certified class leaders for two primary audiences.

The first audience is caregivers of adults with chronic conditions, and the classes are offered as six 90-minute or two-and-a-half hour workshops.

The second audience is caregivers of children with special health and behavioral needs, and the classes are offered as six two-hour workshops.

The topics of the class include: Taking Care of You; Identifying and Reducing Personal Stress; Communicating Feelings, Needs and Concerns; Learning from Emotions; Communicating in Challenging Situations; and Mastering Caregiving Decisions.

The next class, Powerful Tools for Caregivers – Children With Special Health and Behavioral Needs, will take place at 9 a.m. Feb. 29 in Waverly, Iowa.

For upcoming classes, contact an Extension and Outreach county office. Online webinars are available through the national Extension Family Caregiving portal at extension.org.

Powerful Tools for Caregivers is a national program with class leaders across the nation. Class leaders must be certified in order to plan and teach a class in Iowa. Certification includes a two-day training led by master trainers. Extension and Outreach supports two master trainers and offers certified class leader training twice per year.

A Powerful Tools for Caregivers Class Leader Training is being held March 25 and 26 in Urbandale, Iowa, for individuals who would be interested in helping their community by becoming a class leader of the national Powerful Tools for Caregivers program.

Contact [email protected] for more information about the program or the class leader training.