Vincent Jacobbi

By AARP Indiana State Director June Lyle

November marks National Family Caregivers Month, a time to recognize the 42 million Americans, 1.3 million Hoosiers, who help care for aging parents, spouses and other loved ones so they can remain at home – as opposed to costly institutions. Today, the average family caregiver is a 49-year-old female, who takes care of a 77-year-old woman – usually her mother. She provides 20 hours a week of assistance to her loved one, although she may be on call around-the-clock. Bottom line: family caregivers do remarkable things every day to care for their loved ones—but this labor of love is not without its challenges. More than three in 10 family caregivers are very or extremely emotionally stressed. For family caregivers who provide assistance for more than 21 hours a week, sacrifice time away from family and friends, or live with the loved one for whom they are caring that stress is, not surprisingly, increased. “Caregivers are truly unsung heroes in our families and communities,” said AARP Indiana State Director June Lyle. “They give their time, their love and often their financial resources to help their loved ones stay as independent as possible for as long as possible. We need to do more to support Indiana’s 1.3 million unpaid family caregivers.” While they would not have it any other way, family caregiving is a big job and caregivers could use a little help. That’s why AARP is fighting for common sense solutions like: