Caregiver Life Satisfaction: Research Shows Good and Bad News

To examine the dynamics of caregiver life satisfaction, let's first turn to the experts.

Researchers: "Good and Bad News for Informal Caregivers' Life Satisfaction"

2023 SUMMARY: Caregiving for an elder lowers the caregiver's quality of life, and has hope for reward and relief in the end.

📗 A 2021 study of German caregivers confirmed the "transition into caregiving has a lasting negative impact on the caregivers’ life satisfaction [...] mainly driven by negative impacts of caregiving on leisure time." In the face of incurable aging-related complications of a loved family member, the study highlights "transitions out of caregiving caused by the death of the dependent partner go along with increases in well-being after a first negative shock." [1]

[1] Gerlich, R., Wolbring, T. “In Good Times and in Bad, in Sickness and in Health”: A Longitudinal Analysis on Spousal Caregiving and Life Satisfaction. J Happiness Stud. Click here for source.

📙 Another 2021 study linked hope as a personality trait which is the best "mediator between stressors and life satisfaction in informal caregivers of persons with dementia [...where lack of hope is...] one pathway through which stress may lead to low life satisfaction and low perceived gains from caregiving." [2]

[2] Abdollahpour, I., Nedjat, S., Noroozian, M., Salimi, Y., & Majdzadeh, R. (2014). "Caregiver burden: The strongest predictor of self-rated health in caregivers of patients with dementia." Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology. Click here for source.

📕 A 2006 study identified lower caregiver life satisfaction to be "associated with not being employed, low social resources, not refreshed after a night's sleep, overall poor health and frequent caregiving [...where...] having low social resources and having poor health," were associated with the lowest caregiver life satisfaction. [3]

[3] Borg C, Hallberg IR. "Life satisfaction among informal caregivers in comparison with non-caregivers." Scand J Caring Sci. 2006. Click here for source.‍

Speaking of life satisfaction with caregivers...

The topic is very personal, and not easy to express for many caregivers. It's common to feel "Somewhere Between Bother, Burden, and Burnout" up-and-down throughout the month, week, or day.

For a caregiver, good things happen when you’re able to balance your role as a caregiver with other roles you prefer.

Make your ups-and-downs more moderate, and use the tools research suggests: HOPE, SOCIAL SUPPORT, and SELF-CARE.

It's normal to feel LOST and OVERWHELMED...

Day to day, you might feel more like caregiving has taken over your life.

In my experience... Low life satisfaction can happen to a caregiver when they feel like caregiving comes first in their lives.

More accurately, it’s called “Caregiver Loss of Identity”. You used to be a person, with value, potential, and dreams. Now you’re a caregiver round the clock.

Overwhelm: the swirling duties to be done for your care partner, your household, and the life you used to have... Doesn't it just feel like that some days?

You’re already in a good place if you feel the reward of caregiving.

To a certain degree, do you feel it?

Caregiver life satisfaction and loss of identity

This loss of identity of identity means you’re feeling a mismatch between life you want to live and the caregiving you’re doing. Day in day out, you’re not being the person you want to be, and you blame those damn caregiving responsibilities.

Family Caregivers feel it when their spouse or parent slips into needing 24/7 care. Michigan Home Care Professionals feel it when they’re paid low for decades. We all feel it when our ADL deeds go unthanked.

Before this turns into a pity party, let’s think about what’s in our control.

I’m talking to you as a third-in-line family caregiver, so I don’t have the most street cred in this department. Respect to you and yours.

But I can look at my own family, and tell you the level of life satisfaction I see.

My mom is first-in-line caregiver. She would certainly like to travel more, and isn’t quite sure she likes retirement yet. Retirement hasn’t turned out the way she thought. IMO and TMI, it’s hardened her and it makes me sad.

My wife is second-in-line caregiver. She wants to be a wonderful mommy, with oodles of security and belonging. She wants to have a role she can be proud of day-to-day.

My dad is very interested in his own comfort and entertainment.

When I think about what I’m not satisfied with, I also think about travel, belonging, family, career, friends, money, - or it could be all sorts of areas that are important to you. TBH and TMI, I’m most interested in gaining influence and admiration.

👎 Negative Effects of Caregiving on Your Life

Common contributors to reported low caregiver life satisfaction include the physical, emotional, social, and financial.

1. Increased Demands: Caregivers often experience high levels of stress due to the demands of caregiving, which for elderly family members typically only becomes more demanding as time passes.
2. Physical Strain: The physical demands of caregiving, such as lifting or assisting with mobility? You have to bend over often, and live the 36-hour day with less sleep than most people.
3. Emotional Tole of Isolation: Aging in place gets lonely when nobody visits. If you're the person solely responsible to provide emotional support to someone who's homebound or bedridden, you're validated to feel exhausted from time to time - and boosting your social support network would be especially beneficial for you.
4. Financial Strain: Cost of gas, labor, and healthcare aren't as affordable as the 1980s. Aging in place is not a choice for many American seniors, rather it's decision made by financial necessity. Even when saving money by aging in home (not in a nursing home), access to healthcare still ain't cheap. Medical expenses, costly care supplies, and lost income from time off work? Lots of American households know this kind of stuff first hand.

👍 Positive Parts Caregiving Brings to Your Life

Abstract concepts of a higher purpose reign supreme! As corroborated by research, those caregivers who are able to define a satisfying reason to continue providing care for another person are able to feel the reward of their daily life activities caring for oneself and another.

1. Sense of Purpose and Meaning: Caregivers who are able to accept deep sense of purpose for their role as caregiver can lead to increased life satisfaction, spiritual or non-. Meeting the challenge on your terms is something to be proud of.‍
2. Stronger Relationships: They say "Caregiving Happens To You" and it can warp your life into something beautiful. Caregivers who seek and receive support from other people are less isolated. By entering the unplanned realm of caring for another person's unexpected health condition, your bond between with your care partner will become closer. Other people who you never expected might show up in you life to delight you in surprising ways, family, friends, and neighbors.‍
3. Personal Growth and Accomplishment: Life's greatest challenges have the re-bound effect causing the greatest personal development. Hardship teaches caregivers to face hard emotions like frustration, grief, loss with resilience, compassion, and joy on the opposite side. Facing these ups-and-downs can ultimately build character and overall life satisfaction.

What you can do? Plan one day

To determine what might boost your life satisfaction? Try making it clear what you want.

• How would you spend one day, if you didn’t have caregiving responsibilities at all?
• How would you spend one day, if the person in your life who needs care, didn’t need the special type of care they do?
• How would you spend one day, if you had a normal retirement, or a normal career, without doubling as a caregiver?

As the demands of caregiving for an elderly family member grow, caregiving can claim your primary identity. This is a positive change for individuals who thrive in the act of providing care for another. For most of us life gave us lemons, and we’re still not sure how to make lemonade.

Loss of identity can happen after years of daily caregiving. The more hours you spend tending to the needs of another, the fewer hours you spend tending to the needs of yourself. Low life satisfaction happens when there is a mismatch between “who you want to be” and “who you are”. I posit, you are how you spend your time, so think about one day without caregiving. Which satisfying activities would you fill your day with?

Summarizing Life Satisfaction for Informal Caregivers

The perks of caregiving are tied to a greater purpose you must find for yourself. Nixing self-care altogether, sweeping your interests and enjoyment last priority, will lead to loss of identity closely associated with the hopelessness and makes for a caregiver especially susceptible to "Bother, Burden, and Burnout".

To put your wants and needs first, imagine a day without caregiving - and what does that look like? This is an common exercise, and good time to recommend professional counseling - online or offline.

The balancing act of caregiving weighs on a person's life satisfaction.

Take time to recognize and celebrate the positive aspects of your everyday journey. Plan one day! What would it look like with cherries on top?