Caregivers Face Multiple Strains Tending Older Parents
Middle-aged adults who regularly help their elderly parents get by experience a drop in health and well-being in their own lives, a new study shows.

The study, published earlier this year in the Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, found these adult children were often juggling multiple roles each day, sometimes causing conflicts in roles or feeling overloaded.

"The accumulation of small and large daily stressors such as work deadlines, PTA meetings, supporting family and friends as well as providing routine assistance to a parent living outside one's house can build up," study leader Jyoti Savla, assistant professor of human development and gerontology at Virginia Tech, said in a university news release. "Sooner or later, they can spill over into other areas of life with negative mental and physical consequences. Days when help is provided to parents are more stressful than days when it is not," Savla said.

Salva's team studied diaries of the individuals who provided help to parents, more than half of which did so on two or more days each week. They found several factors, such as having a spouse and higher education, could decrease the conflict and demands on time. Also, those who believed in personal growth, mastery and self-acceptance experienced fewer negative consequences from helping their parents.

Read Full Article (U.S. News & World Report)

Comments (1 to 1 of 1)
staryize

3 days ago
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It's great that the issues of caregivers is finally being recognized and I read the full article as well as a few from AARP regarding how to cope with caregiver stress and burnout. All their suggestions are great IF you have family and friends nearby or you have the financial resources to hire respite care. But what about those of us who are full-time live-in caregivers unable to work outside the home because of the high cost of non-medical senior care?

If anyone knows of any resources (financial, work-from-home opportunities, volunteer respite services etc.) please point me in the right direction. I had to leave my job in March to care for my mother full-time - she has parkinsons and has fallen too many times with injuries to be left alone. And assisted living/nursing home is not an option. While I have a fantastic emotional support system from my sisters (none live locally) I am at wit's end trying to find a source of income from home. I use a home helper service once in a while for my personal appointments, but other than that I only get out when mom feels well enough to go with me. HELP!!!
Signed,
Hopeful in Florida