A study released this year by AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving estimated 63 million Americans are caregivers.
That number is 45% higher than it was ten years ago.
Among them is Linda Cline of Northville. She’s a spousal caregiver to her husband, Randy Cline, who needs help after an accident left him paralyzed and upended their lives as retirees.
The Clines are facing emotional, physical and financial challenges related to caregiving.
They receive support from other caregivers throughout the week, but Linda is the primary caregiver.
Costs are piling up. Linda, 74, worries about her own health taking care of Randy, 69.
“I feel like I’m failing sometimes, and mostly, I take it out on him,” Linda said. “Physically, I take care of him perfectly, but emotionally, I’m a mess.”
Carl Simcox of the Senior Care Network works with families navigating the caregiving system.
“Families aren’t trained to provide that kind of level of care,” he said. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen caregiver burnout.”
Of the caregivers surveyed in the study, 38% said they were under high emotional stress. That’s true for Linda as the couple’s life savings shrink and they contemplate whether to move Randy into a nursing home.
One Detroit’s Bill Kubota shares the Clines’ story as part of our continuing series examining issues related to caregiving.