You are a forty-five-year mother with one child in college, one in high school and one in preschool, working full-time and taking care of the household needs which includes the overseeing of chores, menus, scheduling and other stuff. Your mom broke her hip and just came back home. Now you have to set up a schedule for her and someone to help your father until your mom is back on her feet at 100 percent. You husband is on a business trip and the dog was just sprayed by a skunk.
Welcome to the Sandwich Generation!
The Sandwich Generation is typically adults in their mid-thirties to early-fifties who are caring for both elderly parents and their own children. This demographic gets less sleep, has more stress, and may suffer more financially than other demographics.
According to Pew Research Center and the National Caregiving Alliance the Sandwich Generation spends an estimated eighty-six minutes less per day on paid work and gets about one-hour less of sleep.
Women make up 60 percent of the Sandwich Generation. Mothers of this demographic feel the most stress of all when they have to spend about forty-five minutes more a day on childcare on top of all the other responsibilities.
On average, these caregivers spend twenty-ones hours a week on caregiver for a loved one – that’s on top of a forty-hour per week job as well!
Stress can stem from multiple faucets for this generation. They tend to spend more on caring for their parents, causing a financial stress. They have choose between going to their child’s baseball game or attending to an ailing parent, causing emotional stress. Anxiety can creep up when they have to take time off from work to be with a sick child or parent. Over time, chronic stress develops, and the caregiver is at a heighten risk for developing high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, depression and substance abuse disorders.
REMEMBER YOU!
Self-care is vital for the caregivers of the Sandwich Generation. Start with recognizing how you deal with stress. Ask yourself, “How important is this?” Prioritize and delegate tasks. Seek out help from friends and family. Incorporate help from your older children. Teamwork makes the dream work!
Learn how to cope and manage your stress. Just taking a fifteen-minute daily walk can help you clear your mind and boost your energy. Put down the chocolate and pick up that carrot. Healthy eating improves how you handle stress and anxiety. Get as much sleep as you can at night. Find someone you can talk to. Perhaps start using a grocery delivery service. Focus on either breaking one bad habit or adding one good habit at a time.
Remember You! Don’t forget to take care of your health and well-being. Create as much of a balance as you can between caring for others and caring for you. Maybe it’s a once-a-week yoga class or simply a nice bubble bath. Schedule your annual check-up. Check in with a mental health professional. Make time for your physical and mental well-being so you can keep caring for your loved ones. Remember You!
