Caregiver Burnout in the Sandwich Generation

Many of my patients are caring for teenagers, supporting young adult children, and navigating an aging parent's decline — sometimes all in the same week. It is one of the most under-named mental health emergencies of our time.

What I See

• Chronic exhaustion that sleep does not fix

• Resentment that feels shameful

• Anxiety, GI symptoms, weight changes

• A spiritual life that has gone quiet

• A marriage that has gone quiet

Five Whole-Person Steps

1. Name what you are carrying out loud.

2. Ask for and accept help — siblings, church, paid support, respite.

3. Protect one thing weekly that is yours alone.

4. Sleep, protein, sunlight, movement — your nervous system needs the basics more, not less.

5. Get evaluated if symptoms are tipping into depression or anxiety.

Respectfully, Beth Makar, RN, Dual-MSN, PMHNP-BC · Integrative Mind Body Psychiatry · integrativemindbodypsychiatry.com