Discussion on Caregiver Stress

It is no surprise that more than fifty percent of all caregivers feel some form of stress.  A recent survey by the American Psychological Association entitled “Stressed in America: Our Health At Risk.” has some sobering revelations about the stress level of caregivers.  The real life experience of a caregiver as set forth in the CNN article  “As baby boomers retire, a focus on caregivers” is all too common. Elder care giving is a twenty-four hour, seven day a week job. It has evolved over the time; however, some issues are ever present as articulated by Hendrik Hartog’s Op Ed in the New York Times Sunday January 15, 2012, “Bargaining for a Child’s Love.”

There are many factors including, tradition, love, loyalty, obligation, perceived or genuine lack of alternative placement, and asset preservation which lead someone to become a caregiver of an elderly individual.  Each of one these factors is a powerful driving force and many caregiver arrangements include several of these factors (To be continued).