Refuel #13

🔥 Refuel | Issue #13
A Newsletter from Faith + Gasoline
📅 Subject: “I Need More Hours in the Day” – The Caregiver’s Guide to Time Management

🛠️ Welcome to Refuel

Hey fam,

If you’ve ever missed your own doctor’s appointment because you were taking your parent to theirs—this one’s for you.

Caregiving comes with relentless logistics:
📅 Appointments.
📦 Prescriptions.
📞 Phone calls.
🧺 Laundry.
🍽️ Meals.
🛻 Transportation.
🧠 Memory management (yours and theirs).

And somehow, you’re also supposed to take care of yourself?

The truth is—you don’t need more time. You need more intention.

Let’s talk about why time management isn’t a luxury—it’s survival.

🔥 This Week’s Theme: Manage Your Minutes or They’ll Manage You

📖 Verse of the Week:
“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” – Psalm 90:12

You are not lazy. You are not scattered.
You are managing more than most people will ever understand.

And your time matters—because you matter. You have to prioritize you and your schedule.

🚗 Story from the Road: I Was Always Late for My Own Life

When I was caring full-time, I was always rushing to get home to make the paid caregiver’s shift quitting time. Their overtime was hefty. So, for years, I urgently left work, lunches, meetings, whatever, to get home by that time.
My mom had doctor’s appointments. Labs. A podiatrist visits regularly after we discovered the stress fractures. And an eye doctor visit every 90 days.
Each one required prep: insurance cards ready, the driver’s license, the mood just right so she wouldn’t refuse to go. I also had to get the caregiver to get her dressed and fed. I would leave work and the precision to get her to the appointments on time was impressive now that I look back.

I burned my PTO because I also had checkups. Then there was the laundry, the medicine, picking up meds from the pharmacy, the ordering of supplies, and the groceries. All of that had to be fit around working full time. And then we entered hospice, which included coordinating nurse, social worker, chaplain, and bath aid visits. Whew!

I had to stop treating my needs like extras—and put them on the schedule like everything else. And I had to become super disciplined and organized.

That changed everything.

⚠️ The Hard Truth About Caregiving and Time

🔴 Most caregivers live in reactive mode—responding to emergencies and daily disruptions.
🔴 Without a plan, you’ll burn out or break down.
🔴 If it’s not on your calendar, it won’t happen.

📌 Bottom Line: Time doesn’t stretch—but how you use it can.

⛽ Quick Refuel: 5 Ways to Reclaim Your Time

✅ 1. Use a shared calendar (Google, Apple, paper—whatever works).
Schedule your parent’s appointments and your own. Block off rest time, too. If you have siblings the group text will be your friend.

✅ 2. Time-block your days.
Mornings = meds + errands. Afternoons = work or self-care. Give each hour a job.

✅ 3. Plan the week, not just the day.
Sunday evening? Set up the whole week like a mission. Less stress, more control.

✅ 4. Say no to time wasters.
If it doesn’t serve peace or purpose, let it go—guilt-free. I can’t remember the last time I watched TV on a regular basis outside of football season.

✅ 5. Give yourself grace.
You’re not a machine. Build in a “buffer” time between tasks. Be flexible—but firm with boundaries.

📌 Takeaway: You don’t need to do everything. You need to do what matters—and do it without shame.

🛤️ Faith in Motion: A Simple Prayer

"God,
Help me steward the time I’ve been given.
Teach me to move with clarity, not chaos.
Let me honor both my loved one’s needs and my own.
May I make time for rest, laughter, and peace.
Even in the busy, help me breathe.
Amen."

📌 Next Steps

💬 Connection from You Can Tell Me Where It Hurts:

🕒 Tool tip:
Try Notion, Trello, or a simple planner to lay out the week in advance. Build your “Care Map.”

📢 If this helped you feel more in control, forward it to a caregiver who’s juggling too much right now.

🔥🔥New store: https://refuel.printify.me/

🎥🎥Subscribe to https://www.youtube.com/@faithandgasoline

💙💙 Community is the new currency 💙💙

You are doing the hardest job on earth.
Not just surviving it—but organizing it. That’s power.

Go be great. 🚀💙
Love you.

With faith & fuel,
Judith A. Culp
Founder, Faith + Gasoline