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Thanks to many major medical advances, more people are living longer lives and a greater number of couples are waiting longer to many and have children. The rapidly growing group of baby boomers between the ages of 39 and 57 who are experiencing the results of this lifestyle change firsthand has become known as the "sandwich generation." The name came about because their professional lives are sandwiched between two similar but different sets of responsibilities - to their young children and their aging parents. Their commitment is substantial, typically including financial support, personal care and assistance in obtaining medical attention for their dependents at both ends of the family spectrum.
A recent survey conducted by the National Partnership for Women and Families found that nearly two-thirds of Americans under the age of 60 expect to be responsible for the care of an elder relative within the next 10 years. About half of all workers are raising children under the age of 18 as well (National Partnership for Women 2002). Many of these workers will not be financially able to relax and retire at 65. They are going to live longer, but they will be forced to put off the "golden years" until after their youngest child is through college. AARP executive director Bill Novelli (2004) said, "Social and government institutions need to find ways to provide caregiver support to sandwich generation families, especially with life expectancy continuing to increase."
A Full Plate
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NlOSH) maintains that lack of balance between work and family or personal life can increase the effects of job stress. Those effects can include poor health and even injury. According to a study conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates, three-fourths of employees believe the American worker has more on-the-job stress than a generation ago (NIOSH 1999). Increased responsibilities at work and at home, as well as the stress of having to balance both, are a major ingredient in this upsurge. Caring for aging parents can be emotionally draining, even more so than raising children in many ways. Unlike the positive experience of watching a child's progress and growth, caring for an elderly parent means witnessing the steady, unavoidable decline of a family member who...