Millennials step into caregiving roles for aging parents

Millennial women already caring for aging parents or planning to do so are much more stressed about the caregiving responsibility than men, a new poll reveals.

CaringAdvisor found 1 in 2 Millennials planning to care for aging parents say they want to do it. However, guilt was the biggest motivator, with about two-thirds admitting they’d feel guilty if they didn’t care for parents themselves.

Women were more than two times as likely as men to be “extremely stressed” about caring for parents. Caregiving more often falls to women than men, and CaringAdvisor noted women caregivers put in more hours than men caregivers.

CaringAdvisor found men are most likely to spend quality time with parents and count that as caregiving, while women say they spend more of their time on domestic tasks.

Women say much of their caregiving time is spent cleaning, doing laundry and cooking, while men frequently pick up parents’ medication and take them shopping.

The New York Times reports the reverse-boomerang effect — parents moving in with their adult children — is on the rise. In other cases, Millennials are providing parents with financial support.

As Baby Boomers retire, it’s a trend that’s only expected to grow among those left with insufficient savings; the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic could make the situation even worse.

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