Balancing Responsibilities in the Sandwich Generation

By Hightower Great Lakes on October 7, 2021

Are you feeling financially pulled between your kids and aging parents? If so, it’s likely you’re part of the Sandwich Generation, individuals who have a living parent age 65 or older and are either raising a child under age 18 or supporting a grown child.¹

The Sandwich Generation feels more stress than other age groups because of juggling multiple responsibilities. Trying to meet the needs and wants of children, older parents, and young adults needing support while also embracing a career, serving the community, and taking care of your own health and wellness can seem overwhelming. COVID-19 exacerbated the challenges of the Sandwich Generation as many people lost their jobs or found their grown children moving back home.

We are living longer, and long-term planning has never been more important for stress reduction and peace of mind.

Managing Your Finances

If you are a member of the Sandwich Generation, your financial planning needs may be more complicated given your added financial obligations. To minimize frustration, confusion and uncertainty,  hire a financial advisor to guide you through the financial planning process. You’ll also save money in the long run. You’ll develop a vision for retirement, and you’ll create a plan for saving and spending.

Caring for aging parents and transitioning children may tempt you to sacrifice your own financial stability. This can have dire consequences for your ability to fully fund your future and your retirement. Your financial security is important not only to you, but to those you love.  

Just like you would put your own oxygen mask on first in the event of an emergency while on an airplane, make sure that you’re prioritizing your own financial needs so you can better care for your loved ones.

Creating a Budget

Are you clear on how much you’re spending on your household, adult children, and parents each month? Do you track all money coming in and going out through a budget? When your finances are intertwined with multiple family members, make budgeting a group effort with all parties involved once you’ve created your personal version.

• For your Parents: Your parents should have a retirement income plan that helps stretch their money as long as possible.
• For your Children: Your adult children should follow a plan that gradually removes you as a financial resource over a set timeline.

Be Aware of Scams

Older adults lose an estimated $3 billion each year to financial scams, according to the National Council on Aging (NCON) ² You should have frequent conversations with your parents about what to look out for to protect them financially as well as yourself, since you’ll likely be the first person they turn to if they run into trouble.

Some of the most common scams include callers impersonating others, such as an individual requesting money or asking for personal information from the IRS or Medicare.

The Grandparent Scam is also common, where a caller pretends to be a grandchild in trouble and urgently needing money. The caller will sound frantic and may claim to be stranded in a foreign country, in an accident, or in need of bail money. These callers often urge you to maintain secrecy. Often, scammers use information gleaned from a loved one’s social media profiles to make it sound legitimate.

A good rule of thumb is to tell your parents to tell anyone requesting money that they will call them back. Advise your parents to contact you about the request before making a decision.

Communicate Openly

For some, it’s difficult talking with parents about their money. However, it’s important to have open dialogue about your parents’ money, health and estate plans – before their have a health emergency and become unable to express their wishes.

If you find this conversation difficult, hire a financial advisor or estate planning attorney to facilitate. Many times, the distance of a third party can ease the distress of emotional conversations.

All parties involved should be present for this discussion, including any siblings participating in future caregiving. Agree now about your parents’ care to better safeguard family relationships later.

Take Care of Yourself

Being part of the Sandwich Generation can take a physical and mental toll on your health. Make sure that you’re taking care of yourself by exercising regularly, eating well, getting adequate sleep and maintaining good mental health.

It can be overwhelming to simultaneously raise a family and help aging parents. Taking the time to talk about how you’re feeling can improve your quality of life, so make sure that you surround yourself with a strong support system, even if it’s only one or two trusted friends.

When you prioritize these activities, you improve the quality of your life, and by extension the lives of your parents and children. Give yourself permission to put yourself first.

Are you part of the sandwich generation? Let us help you navigate the complexity of financing a desired future, caring for others, saving for retirement, and being prepared for the unexpected. COVID 19 taught us that we can’t always predict the future, but we can do our best to build a financial foundation that enables us to thrive in the face of big challenges.

Call Hightower Great Lakes at (219) 531-4941 to schedule a meeting with one of our financial advisors or click here to fill out our contact form.

Sources:

¹ Pew Research Center

² National Council on Aging: Top 10 Financial Scams Targeting Seniors

Securities offered through Hightower Securities, LLC, Member FINRA/SIPC, Hightower Advisors, LLC is a SEC registered investment advisor.