Who Are Adult Caregivers?
Who Are Adult Caregivers?
Important Notice: Our web hosting provider recently started charging us for additional visits, which was unexpected. In response, we're seeking donations. Depending on the situation, we may explore different monetization options for our Community and Expert Contributors. It's crucial to provide more returns for their expertise and offer more Expert Validated Answers or AI Validated Answers. Learn more about our hosting issue here.
Who Are Adult Caregivers?
An adult caregiver is a person who provides assistance to someone over the age of eighteen with a physical, mental, or cognitive disability.
According to the Family Caregiver Alliance, 52 million people in the United States are currently providing care to another adult. 34 million people (16 percent of the population) provide care to a loved one who is fifty or older. Twenty percent of these caregivers care for someone with dementia.
Most caregivers are adult children or spouses of the person requiring care, but 24 percent are related in some other way, and 14 percent are friends, neighbors, paid caregivers, or others with no blood relation.
Caregiver Stress
Caregiving can be a rewarding experience, especially for the caregiver who receives adequate support from family and community. It can also, however, be stressful, and studies show that being a caregiver can have negative consequences on your physical health (increased blood pressure, increased heart rate, higher mortality rate) and on your mental health (increased risk of anxiety and depression).
Perhaps the saddest statistic of all is that approximately 75% of United States caregivers admit to having unmet needs. These same caregivers state they don’t know how to access local resources or even which resources are available to ease their burdens
About Adult Caregiver Articles
This series of columns, written with the unique needs of the adult caregiver in mind, will explore the physical, emotional, financial and practical aspects of caregiving. You will learn about common conditions such as dementia, mental illness, and physically debilitating diseases that may cause someone to require care. Just as importantly, you will learn new techniques for coping with the daily stressors you face, and you will find out about programs designed to help you and your loved one with everything from financial needs to emotional support.
A new article in this series will be published approximately twice a month.
If you would like to ask a question about adult caregiving or suggest a topic for an article, send me an email. I look forward to walking beside you on your challenging, frustrating and uplifting journey as a caregiver.