ABSTRACT
The increase in life expectancy in Western-oriented industrialized societies comes at a price for those who are aging and for their adult children. As the lifespan of individuals increases, more complex needs for medical and supportive care develop; this burden of care frequently falls upon their adult children. This chapter explores the strains and impact associated with informal caregiving, and how the aging parent and the adult child experience significant losses during this time. Caring for an aging parent burdens the adult child emotionally, socially, and financially as informal care is essentially unpaid labor that goes unrecognized and is often associated with the ongoing assumption that caregiving is “women’s work.” Furthermore, aging is a process that is socially constructed as a problem, and elderly individuals are typically devalued rather than seen for their potential and wisdom. This chapter advocates for how the various losses associated with this experience require acknowledgment, and supportive governmental and workplace policies need to be adequate and readily available. Integrated care should be based upon relieving frustration wherever possible through practical measures, compassionate listening, and responding to these families.
