Who has a friend that is taking care of a parent or parents, and at the same time, still have children at home? Carol Abaya found herself in that situation with her parents in the early 1990’s and coined the phrase “sandwich generation” to start raising awareness and creating support for those taking care of aging parents.
So why is a massage therapist blogging about this social phenomenon? Because I have clients that are using massage as an effective self-care tool to help them cope with this stage of life. Show me some taking care of the seniors, whether it is a family member or a health care provider and I will show you someone who surely can benefit from massage! Speak to anyone dealing with taking of care of the elderly and frequently the phrase “burn out” is mentioned.
As written in Wikipedia:
Carol Abaya categorized the different scenarios involved in being a part of the sandwich generation.
- Traditional: those sandwiched between aging parents who need care and/or help and their own children.
- Club Sandwich: those in their 50s or 60s sandwiched between aging parents, adult children and grandchildren, or those in their 30s and 40s, with young children, aging parents and grandparents.
- Open Faced: anyone else involved in elder care.
Do you see yourself in any of these scenarios? Even if you don’t you can still receive these benefits from massage:
– Stress hormones are reduced by massage therapy.
– Massage decreases muscle tensions & soreness which build around arthritic joints, promoting flexibility and ease of movement.
– Serotonin, the body’s natural mood elevator, is boosted by massage, helping to alleviate anxiety and depression
– Massage calms the involuntary nervous system which controls the body’s response to strong emotion.
– Massage supports immune system function, improving blood and lymph flow.
Caring for a loved one is very challenging!
Massage can help you cope.
Come and experience the relief received from massage.
Call me, Anita Foster, LMT
