Since you care by the Metlife Mature Market Institute

There are some 34 million Americans providing care to an older family member, with 15% living one or more hours from that person, according to Miles Away: The MetLife Study of Long-Distance Caregiving conducted by the company’s Mature Market Institute. Seventy-five percent say they spend 22 hours per month helping their relative with Instrumental Activities of Daily Living; 80% work full time. ; How can families cope? The MetLife Mature Market Institute has a new guide available, free to the public, entitled Since You Care: Long Distance Caregiving. It contains a wealth of information and guidance for long-distance caregivers and a resource guide telling families where they can turn for help. ; « Long-distance caregivers are under considerable stress, » said Sandra Timmermann, Ed.D., director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute. « They juggle the demands of two households and have to be concerned with their children’s needs, their work, their home and the needs of their parent or older relative. The physical and emotional toll can be overwhelming. » ; The Since You Care guide, one in a series, provides practical considerations and sources of support for caregivers. A first step, says the publication, is to determine what type of help a loved