– Two social workers named Dorothy Miller and Elaine Brody coined the term “Sandwich Generation” in 1981 to describe caregivers sandwiched between generations. Currently, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in October 2021, this cohort is comprised of adults who have a parent age 65 or older and are either raising at least one child younger than 18 or providing financial support to an adult child.

The recession, coronavirus and shifting demographics are intesifying pressure on the sandwich generation, named so because they are effectively “sandwiched” between the obligation to care for their aging parents—who may be ill, unable to perform various tasks, or in need of financial support—and children, who require financial, physical, and emotional support. 

The burdern for care mostly lies on women from Generation X, between the ages of 40-59 trying to succesfully balance work life, home life and personal life.  Men usually provide support financially or as apart of a couple. There are currently 44 million unpaid eldercare providers in the United States according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the majority are women. And yet there are very few support programs, formal or informal, in place to support these family caregivers, many of whom are struggling at work and at home. Working daughters often find they need to switch to a less demanding job, take time off, or quit work altogether in order to make time for their caregiving duties.  The first line of defence availabe to adult children who are caregivers is to hire help. This is where care management and home care agencies come into play to help ease the stress.

For more infomation on strategies to releive stress, see the article below. 

To schedule a free 45 minute consultation with one of our Geriatric Care Managers, please call 888.451.4290