Then you are not alone in this battle as more and more older adults are facing the exact same problems you’re having right now!
One study was done within the medical community particularly to nurses and how they balance their work and family life. Although the study was primarily intended to determine the effects on a nurse’s life, what’s more stunning is the overwhelming number of nurses who clearly qualified for the study. Moreover, about half of this population belongs to our own age group—older adults.
What we need to know is that work-family conflict is not limited to the medical community alone. It exists anywhere else as long as there is a worker with a family to care for—even college kids who only have one parent supporting them. That’s what our society has become and sadly, there’s no other way around it.
Work-family conflict is stressful. Men were able to handle such conflicts better than women, maybe due to the fact that they have been balancing these two for such a long time that they no longer consider it a big deal—and partly because the pressure is not too strong for them just as long as they’re able to financially provide for the family’s needs. On the other hand, women, being the supposedly “primary caregiver”, are most of the time, forced to choose between work and family. Mind you, it’s not only once or twice a work-family conflict hits, it seems in this day and age, it hits almost everyday!
Just ask a person who belongs to the sandwich generation and they will know exactly what a work-family conflict is. They are neither too young to not care nor too old to be cared for so they are stuck in between, caring for a young child and an old parent. This serves as the “family” side of the conflict while the “work” side is the urgency of going to work every single day, mostly for financial reasons.
Alarmingly, work-family conflicts have health implications. One of them is depression. A person who constantly experiences work-family conflicts is bound to be depressed which some are known to end up in alcohol abuse. Others take refuge in binge eating leading to obesity—two of the most prevalent problems amongst seniors.
There are ways to lessen the impact of work-family conflicts, however, a decision still has to be made, one way or another. Making your work schedule a little more flexible is one way to go if your family obligations cannot be compromised but if your work cannot take adjustments then you will need help from other people. Accepting your limitations as a person will improve your current situation significantly. Bear in mind that as a person, you only have one body to do things. That being said, doing two tasks at exactly the same time is impossible. Delegate whenever you can and lower your self expectations. Also, seek counseling when needed.
