I have a confession to make. I was today years old when I found out the true definition of a Sandwich Caregiver. Sure, I’ve heard the term and actually know a few but I never connected the two.
In case I’m not the last person to know, A Sandwich Caregiver is one that feels squeezed between two potentially exhausting caregiving situations by providing caregiving to elderly parents with health problems, age related disabilities and also raising their own young children who need care and attention.
Providing care for even one person can be exhausting but providing care for multiple individuals, old and young, is understandably overwhelming. Statistics state that 65% of seniors that need long-term care rely exclusively on family and friends and when asked if they had a choice in taking on the responsibility to provide care for their loved one, half of all caregivers reported they have “no choice” in taking on their caregiving responsibilities. The statistics increase when you add caregivers providing care for adult children with disabilities.
If you are thinking that all “Sandwich Caregivers” must be unemployed, stay at home people, you are wrong. There are a lot of warriors providing care and working also. On the flip side there are a lot of warriors who gave up working to provide care. Whether you are working or not you can have shared experiences of overwhelm, stress and exhaustion. The working may have left a promising career track or reduced their hours to provide care and the non-worker may have looked at the prohibitive cost of care and decided to go it alone. All of it can be frustrating and daunting. Life sometimes puts us in situations that we may not have asked for but we embrace, nonetheless.
Whatever choices you have made as a Sandwich Caregiver it is still important to find time for yourself. You are your child’s parent and your parent’s child (literally). You matter. It may seem impossible to carve out time for yourself but it’s important. You may not be able to disappear to the Caribbean for a few days, but you can carve out small blocks of “Take Care Time”. Go for a short walk, watch an episode of you favorite show, listen to a podcast of a subject that interest you, read a chapter of your current book, soak your feet, whatever you need to do for your own relaxation or stress relief, do it. I’ve had bad days where I simply went into my bedroom and cried and when I came out of my room I felt better. Ignoring what you need only builds up your frustration level and harms your health. I salute you “Sandwich Caregiver”. You are the backbone of your families so please Take Care.