Flourish - Latest Edition - Flipbook - Page 46
What it can cost (beyond time)
Time and decision fatigue:
It is not just the hours
spent caring, it is the
constant switching: parent,
partner, employee, carer,
scheduler, negotiator.
Money pressure:
Caregiving can hit
budgets directly (medical
costs, transport, home
modi昀椀cations) and
indirectly (reduced hours,
stalled career progression).
In the US, AARP reports
that many caregivers
experience negative
昀椀nancial impacts and that
a large share are balancing
care with paid work.
Health and wellbeing:
Caregivers are more
likely to report poorer
health and loneliness than
non-carers in Australian
survey reporting collated
by the Australian Institute
of Health & Welfare
(AIHW). And globally,
the mental load is real: an
umbrella review of meta
analyses reported median
prevalence around one
third for depression and
anxiety among informal
caregivers, with caregiver
burden commonly
reported, although rates
vary widely by context
and measurement.
Relationships: When you
are stretched thin, it is
easy for resentment to
build, especially if siblings,
partners, or workplaces do
not share the load fairly.
