Lives of older carers plagued by fear, worry and guilt

The biggest cause of stress in older carers is the guilt they feel about not providing good enough care, together with anxiety that the needs of the person they are caring for are not being met.

Alongside guilt, carers reported feeling worried about what will happen to their loved ones when they die, in a recent study conducted by Independent Age.

The report published in association with Carers Week and titled, ‘“You don’t stop the worrying”: The difficulties of caring in later life’ details the effects of caring for a loved one on older people.

Chief executive of Independent Age, Janet Morrison, said: “Caring for a loved one can bring rewards and challenges at any age. Today’s research highlights the particular concerns of those who are older themselves and whose voices are rarely heard.

“Older carers have told us about the physical, emotional, social and financial strain caring has on them. As our population ages, it’s clear more must be done to support older carers at an early stage, not just because it is the right thing to do but because without them our health and social care system could start to fall apart.”

The study raised carer concerns about care provided by care homes and home care agencies, as well as highlighting the effect that the death of a loved one has on carers, both their health and their emotional well-being.

Independent Age gathered information from 28 older carers, between the ages of 51 and 90, during April and May 2015. Those surveyed provided care for siblings, spouses, adult children, friends and cousins with a range of different health conditions, including dementia, cancer and schizophrenia.

Chief executive of Carers UK, Heléna Herlots, commented: “Caring at any age can be challenging but from this research we see that older carers, who are more likely to have health problems of their own and smaller support networks, are particularly vulnerable to feeling isolated and fearful about the future.”

Carers Week 2015 has allocated Friday 12th June to older carers, whilst Independent Age has commissioned a series of interviews and focus groups, focusing on the lives and experiences of older carers.

There are more than one million unpaid older carers in England and Wales, of those, it is estimated that 40 per cent provide 24 hour care and support for a loved one without any support from local councils.

Ms Herlots added: “Older carers provide an enormous amount of care, however, as this research uncovers, this is often coming at a cost to their own physical and emotional well-being.

“With the number of older carers continuing to rise and expected to reach over 1.8 million in England by 2030, it is clear more needs to be done to ensure older carers are identified and fully supported through, what can be, a very difficult time in their lives.”

The Independent Age report reveals the impact caring has on older carers, including placing extra stress on them due to concerns about their age, possible long-term health problems and reduced regular income.

Older carers and other unpaid carers save both the care system and NHS billions year upon year and Carers Week hopes to raise awareness of the work done by carers. The Independent Age report makes recommendations for improving support available to older carers through additional support from GPS and by providing a ‘Carers Friend’ service to offer emotional support to carers.