More than 25% of American families are involved in some way with elder/parent care. So, if you are, you are not alone. A New York Times article (Jan 17, 1999) called “A Survival Course for the Sandwich Generation” described this new phenomena, as parents lived longer, and Boomers waited until later to have children. The Sandwich Generation means defines situations as:

• Traditional: those sandwiched between aging parents who need care and/or help and their own children
• Club sandwich: those in their 50s and 60s, sandwiched between aging parent, adult children and grandchildren, OR those in their 30s and 40s, with young children, aging parents and grandparents
• Open faced: anyone else involved in elder care

The last two terms were coined by Carol Abaya, who began a web site to assist those who are having similar experiences to hers—thrown into the unexpected life-altering event of eldercare (www.thesandwichgeneration.com).

A video, The Sandwich Generation, by Julie Kinokur and Ed Kashli, documents the difficult choices and overwhelming responsibility as they charge through their Sandwich years and offers a forum for discussion, while a CBS News 2006 news segment personalizes the experience of another Boomer who described her delicate balancing act. They note that ‘in 25 years, there will be 60 million Americans between the ages of 66 and 84, many of them needing full- or part-time care.’

Some estimates show that nearly two-thirds of the Baby Boom generation will be taking care of an elderly parent in the next decade, and studies indicate that this can have an enormous impact on marriages, especially if the parent moves in with the caregiver, or vice versa.

An excellent resource is “Sandwich Generation: Surviving the midlife tug of war” on CNNMoney.com (Feb. 20, 2007). The article offers excellent tips for coping, resources, a guide for fact-finding and knowing where to look, tips of handling money, and thoughts for caring for yourselves while you go through these enormous life changes.

Category: Parents · Relationships