Aging Families— Series Bulletin #2 The Sandwich Generation

Nancy is 47 years old and the mother of three children. Her first child, Abby, is from her first marriage and is currently a freshman in college and living out of state. Nancy also has a daughter, Rachel, who is 11, and a son, Matthew, who just turned 8 from her current marriage. Nancy is a schoolteacher and her husband, David, sells surgical equipment to health care providers around the country. David’s job can be very stressful and requires a significant amount of travel. This frequently leaves Nancy to manage both the childcare duties as well as the household tasks such as laundry, cooking, and paying the bills. Last year, Nancy’s father was diagnosed with congestive heart failure. Nancy’s mother, who has severe arthritis, is unable to provide all of the care her ailing husband requires so she is becoming increasingly dependent on Nancy for assistance. Although Nancy loves her family and her parents very much, she has been feeling overwhelmed with the increasing demands in her life. She is a mother, a wife, a daughter, a teacher, and sometimes wonders which part of her is not claimed by someone else. Her days begin at 4:30 in the morning and end at 10:30 at night with one last call to her mother to see if Dad has settled down for the night. Despite her husband David’s loving support, Nancy still feels the majority of burden is placed on her shoulders. More recently she has begun to worry about her own health as well as her emotional stability. She is just not sure how long she can keep up this pace.