The “sandwich generation” refers to middle-aged adults who are “sandwiched” between the simultaneous responsibilities of raising dependent children and caring for aging parents. The pressures this generation faces include financial, time, caregiving, and emotional, to name a few. This demographic finds themselves spread thin, being stuck in chronic stress, and struggling with their own emotions while trying to manage everyone else’s in their family.
Financial stress builds as the sandwich generation supports their parents and children, while thinking about their own retirement. Some are fearful that they cannot retire with the present financial demands. Having affordable care for our ageing parents is nearly impossible, and waitlists for services are long. With the increasing economic pressures, the younger generation cannot live independently as soon as they’d hoped. Statistics Canada 2024 found that many young adults in their early twenties (nearly 60% of 20- to 24-year-olds) and roughly one-third of those in their late twenties continue to live with their parents. The sandwich generation and the ageing parents left home around 19 years old.
Time and caregiving are a significant part of the exhaustion and overwhelm individuals face in their “sandwich role.” Due to financial and system limitations, many have taken on the caregiving of their ageing parents. With pride and responsibility, there’s self-sacrifice and exhaustion. Ageing parents struggling with physical or mental health issues, or cognitive issues, may require you to spend more time with them. Meanwhile, your family life didn’t stop. You may be trying to find time for your work, spouse, taking the kids to sports; the list is never-ending.
Pressures include managing others’ emotions and your own, such as fear, anxiety, guilt, shame, stress, sadness, frustration, overwhelm, confusion, longing, dread, happiness, love, relief, and gratitude. Emotions create energy in our nervous system and mind. The attention that’s divided between all these energies creates exhaustion. There’s often little recognition, rest, or space for people to acknowledge how heavy it all truly is. Many have never been taught how to prioritize themselves without guilt or how to name their needs without feeling like they are failing someone else. However, no one can sustain this level of responsibility without support. Emotional regulation, rest, boundaries, and connection are not luxuries; they’re survival tools.
Any content, resident submissions, guest columns, advertisements, and advertorials are not necessarily endorsed by or represent the views of Best Version Media LLC (BVM) or any municipality, homeowners associations, businesses, or organizations that this publication serves. BVM is not responsible for the reliability, suitability, or timeliness of any content submitted, inclusive of materials generated or composed through artificial intelligence (AI). All content submitted is done so at the sole discretion of the submitting party.
