Saturday, September 13, 2008

The Costs of Caregiving

The average caregiver is 46, female, married with children and working outside the home. Although men also provide assistance, female caregivers spend as much as 50% more time providing care than male caregivers.

A four-year study by the National Alliance for Caregiving found that middle-aged women caring for an ill or disabled spouse were six times more likely to suffer depressive or anxious symptoms than those with no caregiving responsibilities. Their symptoms include:

A higher level of hostility
Less personal mastery
Less self-acceptance
A decline in happiness

Compounding this picture, more than one-third of female caregivers provide care to others while suffering from poor health themselves. Women over the age of 50 who are caregivers have a twofold increase in their risk of coronary heart disease. (CHD)

And then at work:

33% of working women caregivers decreased their work hours
29% passed up a promotion, training or assignment
22% took a leave of absence
20% switched to part-time
16% quit their jobs


When I read this today I knew I was reading about myself.

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