WINCHESTER, Va. (WDVM) — Being a caregiver is not an easy task, a workshop in Virginia gave people the chance to better understand the role and give support to those who need it.

Susan Drew has been caring for her husband since 2016 when he was first diagnosed with dementia. She says her husband’s diagnosis was so aggressive that his health has rapidly declined, but having a support group is what helped her through her families journey.

“The journey and the caregiving path is pretty lonely and overwhelming and I think its extremely important to reach out to other people and say you’re not alone, we are all doing this we all feel this way and we need each other,” Drew said.

Over 80 people attended the caregiver workshop hosted by Right at Home Homecare and learned about different topics like, how to avoid burnouts, navigating healthcare and more.

“Everyday in my work there are people out in the field who are taking care of a mom or a dad or a husband and wife and they are really sacrificing their life to take care of that person and so all the time I see the need for people to take care of themselves and they are doing the things they need to do to stay healthy,” Peter Lawrence said, the owner of Right at Home Homecare.

“The level of care that you have to do everybody’s journey is their own in difficult, I think the biggest thing I can tell people is reach out to friends and family and get help and get support group,” Drew said.

Lawrence says the number of people wanting to stay home to be a caregiver for their loved ones is increasing and his organization will continue to hold these events to provide resources.