For this week’s Forum, respond to the following: Parenting is probably the most difficult job one can ever face, yet the rewards are indescribable. Pick ONE stage (e.g., infancy/toddler years, elementary school years, or adolescence) and describe the most important goals for parents with a child in that stage. Based on your readings, what are the biggest sources of parental stress during that stage? What types of parenting strategies are most successful at that stage?
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Reading about the “Sandwich Generation” was quite interesting; it was the first time I had ever heard of it. My mother and father are eleven years apart and will be 57 and 68 this year. I do not care for either one of them; they are self-sufficient. I also live across the country, so really, I think the majority of the work would fall on my sister in this case. This does not directly apply to me, but it somewhat applies to my sister-in-law in a roundabout and unusual way. She cares for her son, who is unable to care for himself because of a disability that was amplified by his drug use. She also somewhat cares for her father and mother who both have dwindling health and will turn 68 and 83 this year.
If I put myself into a similar situation, I can imagine the stress level being extremely high. It may seem selfish, but I would be concerned about when I get to live my life for me, and not be solely responsible for taking care of others. Hypothetically speaking, if this were to happen to me it is most likely to occur in the next ten years. My father would be almost 80 and my daughter would be 15. During this time in my life specifically, I could be entering a new period of life, considering I would be 41 years old. I could be experiencing change or possibly going through a mid-life crisis. I also know, that I would be sending another child off to live on his own, and still be dealing with the stress a teenage girl inevitably brings into a household. As I was reading, it is concluded that a sandwich generation caregiver’s well-being is highly likely to decrease when their level of responsibility increases (Boyczuk & Fletcher, 2016). It is believable that Erikson would contribute this time in one’s life during stage 7, when generativity is present. Reaching out to others in ways where care is the virtue achieved is an attribute that is common among the sandwich generation.
Reference
Boyczuk, A., & Fletcher, P. (2016). The Ebbs and Flows: Stresses of Sandwich Generation Caregivers.Journal Of Adult Development, 23(1), 51-61. doi:10.1007/s10804-015-9221-6
2.
Good afternoon everyone,
I hope you all had a great weekend! In response to this weeks forum; my mother is currently 45 years old I do not have to care for her. My grandfather is 85 and my grandmother is 76 and no one in my family has to care for them much either. The only part of my grandparents lives that we all try to help with is the overall care of their house.
The point in life that we are discussing is defined by Erikson’s in his theory of stages in psychosocial development. This specific stage is Integrity vs. Despair. Integrity vs. Despair is people from their mid-60s to the end of life, we are in the period of development known as late adulthood. Erikson said that people in late adulthood reflect on their lives and feel either a sense of satisfaction or a sense of failure. I think to myself hoping that when I reach that point in my life I look back on success. I believe that if a person who is in their 60’s or older have people to care for them because they want to care for them then they had a successful life.
Currently I do not have to take care of my mother or anyone else in my family. If I were to put myself in someone else’s shoes I would do what I have to do to take proper care of my mother. If that means that I would have to hire extra care for around the house I would, if I could afford it. Otherwise I would like to think that I would be able to handle the homecare personally. I would expect that my mother would move in with me and accept all responsibility for her proper care. There are senior citizen housing but I do not think I could ever put my mother into a home where I could not verify on a daily basis that she was receiving the upmost care.
Thank you and I hope you all have a wonderful Monday!
Joe
Reference:
Bursack, C. B. (n.d.). New Caregivers: What to Expect. In Aging Care. Retrieved February 5, 2018, from https://www.agingcare.com/articles/caregiver-tips-taking-care-elderly-parents-146706.htm
Erik Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development (2017, May 19). In The Psychology Notes. Retrieved February 5, 2018, from Erik Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development
3.
Class,
My parents are both still around. My mom will be 58 this year and my dad will be 64. I currently have one living grandparent left from my dad’s side.
Both of my grandmothers passed away from Dementia and for some reason I can’t think of how old they were (I know one was mid 80’s). I remember how quickly their minds started to go and I had a closer relationship with my dad’s parent because as they lived close by. I remember my grandpa struggling with caring for my grandmother as he wasn’t able to do it very long because it was hard for him physically. Shortly after that my family hired a part time nurse to come in and help out with taking care of her. She always did more than she needed to, even did some light cooking. My grandmother loved her, as the disease worsened she began to get somewhat mean and I remember there being another nurse who helped out on certain days that she didn’t really care for. When the nurses weren’t there, the family was there assisting and my aunt took on a lot of it. Eventually the decision was made to move them both out of their house and get them into assisted living because as the dementia progressed, it was too much on the family to balance with their jobs and other obligations. It was really difficult for my grandfather to see everything he worked for go away. He went from living in a house he had built and into a small apartment but he understood why.
I do not have children and I am not taking care of anyone else in my family. I am the furthest away from my family as I am across the country. My brothers help my parents when they need help with things like things around the house or yard work. For a while we were scared that we would have to start caring for my dad because his mind seems to be going as he is somewhat forgetful. I really would like for him to get checked out but he won’t. Watching his mother pass was stressful and that’s what we believed the forgetfulness came from. I talked to leadership at work and was ready to go home and make him go to get checked and was ready to apply for a humanitarian assignment so I would be able to take care of him if I needed too. I can’t imagine if I had children to take care of if this happened also but I would rely on day care and family for support with both.
With Erikson’s theory, I feel like my grandfather felt successful and felt that satisfaction. However when he had to walk away from it, it was hard for him to handle. My grandmother passed away almost 2 years ago and he seems to be content with it. At 93, he still has his memory and seems to enjoy his life. Last time I saw him he said his grandchildren and great grandchildren are almost all grown and isn’t sure what else this world can offer him.
Any thoughts?
Amanda
** Please don’t just rephrase their info, but respond to it. Remember to answer question at the end if there is one. **
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