“This country has no comprehensive long-term care system, particularly for older adults.”
Kathy L. is a 46-year-old mother of three in North Carolina.
Her children were ages 15, 11 and 9 when the aunt came to live with them last summer.
But after 8 weeks, the family decided to pay out of pocket to move her into one.
Our family hit a breaking point, Kathy L. told HuffPost.
Dementia patients can often get aggressive because they are confused/scared and dont know whats going on, she explained.
While her two older sons were able to handle the aunts outbursts, her youngest child struggled.
In spite of these challenges, Kathy L. says the experience of providing this care wasnt all negative.
I also feel very honored to be able to help, she said.
There are a lot of layers of feelings involved.
People are going to have fewer living relatives, on average.
The drivers of this change are delayed childbearing and declining fertility rates.
Some countries have already seen their birthrates decline, while others may experience this in the years to come.
Another trend shaping demographics, the researchers found, is that families are becoming more vertical, Alburrez-Gutierrez said.
There are advantages and disadvantages to these population changes.
Today, grandparents roles are more diverse than ever before, Carbonell told HuffPost.
There can be a greater ease and enjoyment of the role without the competing tasks that come with employment.
These advantages assume good health, which isnt a guarantee and becomes less likely the older a grandparent gets.
Older grandparents also may lack financial stability.
These dynamics can both be at play at the same time within one family.
The layers of her situation were both emotional and logistical.
Such a load can take a heavy physical, emotional and financial toll, Carbonell said.
Increased longevity, in other words, can make for more caregivers but also more caregiving responsibilities.
Actually it may be the other way around.
Well place more of a burden on the current generation.
Grand- or club-sandwich caregivers, Carbonell explained, may put their own needs last and delay preventative health care.
The sandwiching also creates an unstable web link that is likely to collapse if an emergency arises.
The ramifications of these demographic changes extended beyond individual families.
Grandparents stepping in to fill the child care gap.
Kathy L. and her husband stepping in to care for his aunt.
Without this unpaid labor, our society wouldnt be able to function.
Carbonell pointed out that caregiving, whether for children or elders, often falls to women.
This country has no comprehensive long-term care system, particularly for older adults.
