The sandwich generation: Challenges and tips for coping

Key takeaways

• “Sandwich generation” caregivers simultaneously support growing children and aging parents, managing heavy emotional, operational, and financial strains across multiple generations.

• Juggling dual caregiving duties frequently disrupts professional growth, forcing many adults to reduce their working hours, pass up promotions, or step away from employment entirely.

• Staying organized through shared digital calendars, centralizing medical notes, and securing vital legal records help manage daily logistics and mitigate caregiver burnout.

• Accessing external support — including local caregiver support groups, therapy, adult daycare, or family task delegation — provides essential physical and emotional relief.

• Leveraging financial strategies, like workplace flexible spending accounts (FSAs) or health savings accounts (HSAs), state support programs, and Medicaid eligibility, helps offset out-of-pocket costs while protecting personal retirement goals.

With the high costs of health care and an increasingly aging population, it's not surprising that many people rely on family for everyday caregiving assistance.¹ More caregivers are also taking care of their own children, increasing the challenge. They need additional resources and better strategies to manage everything more effectively. Are you a part of this “sandwich generation” of caregivers? This article can help you better understand:

• Challenges the sandwich generation faces.

• Tips to help manage your challenges.

• Financial strategies to manage costs.

What is the sandwich generation?

The sandwich generation is a term used to describe working adults who are responsible for caring for both their own children as well as their aging parents. The name comes from being “sandwiched” between two generations that both need their support. Guardian research describes them as workers between the ages of 35 and 64, though many caregivers are younger — and others are approaching retirement age.² Millennials have now surpassed Generation X as the largest group of caregivers who also work full time.³ In 2023, 56% of working caregivers were women and 44% were men.⁴ By 2025, more women had left the workforce to provide care, and full-time working caregivers were 57% men and 43% women.⁵ The US population is increasingly aging, and many older adults, unable to afford long-term care, rely on family member caregivers.⁶ In fact, 59 million unpaid family caregivers in the United States provide an estimated 49.5 billion hours of caregiving per year.⁷ By 2040, an estimated 81 million Americans will be 65 or older, and many will eventually need assistance from at least one caregiver to maintain their quality of life.⁸

Challenges faced by the sandwich generation

It takes a lot to care for children and aging parents at the same time. While some only care for one parent, others may ultimately provide assistance for two or more adult dependents, including both parents, in-laws, aunts, and uncles. All that effort can take a toll on finances, career advancement, and mental and physical health.

Financial strain

Raising children is a major expense: A 2026 Lending Tree analysis estimated that it costs $303,418 to raise a child over 18 years.⁹ Over the past few years, inflation has worsened their finances, with 55% of adults saying it has created a hardship that makes it difficult to maintain their standard of living.¹⁰ And about 31% of households report that their debt levels are “unmanageable.”¹¹

Sandwich generation caregivers feel that pressure. In Guardian research, 31% rated their financial health as fair or poor, 28% said the same about their mental health, and 23% about their physical health.¹²

Caregiving only adds to their financial challenges, especially since many sandwich generation caregivers experience work disruptions related to caregiving as they juggle competing financial responsibilities. According to AARP’s Caregiving in the US 2025 study, half of caregivers report at least one negative financial impact as a result of their caregiving, with caregivers reporting that they’ve stopped saving, used short- and long-term savings, and taken on more debt to make ends meet.¹³

Reduced working hours, declining promotions that would come with a raise, and of course, quitting a job can reduce household income. And all too often, medical and living expenses rise as well: about 30% of caregivers report spending between $1,001 to $5,000 of their own money annually related to looking after their loved one.¹⁴

Lack of personal time

As the sandwich generation struggles to balance parenting and caregiving duties, it almost always cuts into personal time. Guardian research found that caregivers now spend an average of 23 hours per week providing care, up from nine hours in 2020.¹⁵ This can impact friendships and even marriages, because it’s harder to spend quality time with important people in your life.

Burnout

Caregiver burnout — feelings of physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion — is common: 42% of caregivers say they constantly or often feel overwhelmed or emotionally drained.¹⁶ Burnout commonly happens to people who help to take care of family members or dependents, and a sandwich generation caregiver often has to plan for both practical and emotional challenges, which can intensify that exhaustion. In Guardian research, 27% of caregivers said their caregiving responsibilities cause them a great deal of stress.¹⁷ While those symptoms are bad enough, burnout can increase the risk of depression, anxiety, and fatigue and start a vicious cycle that negatively impacts how you show up as a worker, parent, and caregiver.

Managing logistics

Adult children caring for aging parents typically spend a lot of time managing an older parent’s affairs, including helping with shopping, booking appointments, and taking them to doctor appointments, supporting daily living, handling meal preparation, as well as other activities — all while trying to run their own households. These logistics can be highly complex and stressful to manage.

Navigating complex family dynamics

When adult children act as caregivers for their parents, it can impact other family relationships, including tension with siblings, spouses, and other family members. One spouse may not be happy about all the time and effort spent on caregiving duties. Children can get upset about receiving less attention. Or, the aging parent may struggle with their new and seemingly diminished role. Caregiving relationship strain can create resentments that affect everyone in the family. In one 2026 survey, 17% of caregivers reported more conflicts with family or friends, and 30% said they felt more isolated.¹⁸ If you share caregiving with siblings, talk openly about each person’s time, location, and finances, and divide roles clearly rather than defaulting to birth order or gender.

Tips for managing caregiving challenges

While there are many challenges to being in the sandwich generation, there are also resources and strategies that can help alleviate some of the stress and enable you to get to all the things you need to do — and even some of the things you want to do.

Stay organized

Managing three generations in one household can be chaotic, especially as caregiving requirements shift and evolve. One of the most effective ways to combat chaos is with better organizational skills. These tips can help:

• Keep a synced family calendar to track all obligations.

• Take notes in important meetings and appointments, especially if burnout is impacting your memory or you’re sharing caregiving duties with others.

• Create predictable routines, which can be particularly important for aging parents who feel out of control of their own lives.

• Have a plan in place for emergencies, including who will care for your children or aging dependents, for example if someone needs to be taken to the emergency room.

• Keep records and have important documents like wills, advance directives, and power of attorney documents in one accessible location.

• Set realistic expectations, communicating clearly with all involved family members about future plans.

There are some tools that may help you stay organized. These include the following:

• Family calendar apps, which can help multiple family members track essential appointments and better manage their schedule.

• Note-taking apps to help you keep track of what’s discussed in doctor’s appointments and other essential meetings.

• A secure digital folder with all essential paperwork, including wills, powers of attorney, and more to access on demand if needed.

Get help

While the idea of getting help may seem obvious, a lot of caregivers either forget to ask for it or assume there’s none available. But even though you have more responsibilities, it doesn’t mean that you have to do it all alone. Caregiving support and resources are available:

• Ask for help from other family members, including teens and young adults. If possible, get relatives to take over one or more chores on a regular basis.

• Look for local or virtual emotional support groups for caregivers.

• Get one-on-one therapy from a mental health professional.

• Consider adult daycare programs if available in your area. And if finances permit and it’s something you’re comfortable with, visit some assisted living centers with your parents and talk to them about the benefits of moving to a place that offers more comprehensive support than you may be able to provide.

• Ask your employer about flexible scheduling, family care leave, and caregiver support services. In Guardian research, 54% of caregivers said a flexible work schedule is their most valued benefit.¹⁹

Ways to manage the financial challenges of caregiving

Financial strategies and planning play an important part in dealing with the costs that come with caregiving — and can help you save for your own retirement at the same time:

• Look into state or federal financial support programs for caregivers and/or older dependents (including VA benefits for parents who served in the military). These can help offset the cost of some in-home assistance or pay stipends for caregivers in certain situations.²⁰

• If the aging adult is considered a qualified dependent, you may be able to add more funds to a workplace FSA or HSA, which offers tax advantages and can be used to cover qualifying medical expenses.²¹

• Look through their files to see if your family member has disability income insurance, either from a private policy or through a government program. This can provide regular benefit payments to help cover living costs.

• Determine if an older adult is eligible for Medicaid. Depending on your state, they may also qualify for financial assistance that includes caregiver payments.

• Don’t neglect your own retirement — start or continue to invest in retirement savings accounts. Among workers age 45 and older, 55% say they regret not starting to save sooner.²² You can monitor your progress with this retirement calculator.

• Speak to an elder care or estate planning attorney, or a financial advisor, to understand your financial responsibilities to your aging parents and how to best use any savings or assets they have.

For more ideas, see our guide to financial strategies for the sandwich generation.

Guardian can help

Insights and resources for family caregivers.

Older adult caregiving duties can be particularly challenging to deal with. Here are some things to consider and helpful supports. Click here to learn more.