Survey: Millennials differ on Alz caregiving attitudes

Sept. 14--Brittney Williams was 23 when she became her mother's primary caregiver. Her mom, who Williams would playfully call by her given name -- Crystal -- when she was cognizant, had been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease.

Williams had left the University of Michigan to care for her mom and her five younger siblings while her father worked full-time. After lunches were made and kids were sent to schools, Williams spent the day with her mother learning a new appreciation for the woman that had been her caretaker for most of her life.

"All of a sudden, I was taking care of my mom and taking over her role with my siblings in the house," Williams said. "I developed a kind of clarity; it opened my eyes to how busy she was and how she juggled things to care for all of us."

Williams is an example of thousands of caregivers in the age range of 23 to 37, referred to as millennial, who are responding with different outlooks to care for loved ones with Alzheimer's and dementia than other generations.

In May, the Alzheimer's Association surveyed 1,500 adults about their attitudes toward care and the perceived challenges they faced. Among those surveyed, the association noticed a difference in attitudes from millennials as compared to baby boomers or Generation Xs.

Nine of 10 caregivers across every generation agreed that emotional stress was one of the biggest challenges they faced, but most millennials answered positively when asked about how their relationships changed through caregiving.

When asked if being the primary caregiver for a loved one positively changed their relationship, 85 percent of millennials responded affirmatively. Millennials were found to be 64 percent more likely to feel this way than respondents in the baby boom generation.

Almost half of millennials said they had a stronger relationship with the person they were caring for, with 37 percent responding that they gained more respect for the person living with Alzheimer's.

Williams said her role as a caregiver did change her perspective of her mother, but she cherished the opportunity she had to connect with her on a personal level.

"I think there is unique struggle for millennial caregivers because when you're in that age range, you are developing a friendship relationship with your parents," Williams said. "I think my mom and I did have a close friendship even though she was nonverbal near the end. I hurt to think I couldn't have her understand my gratitude for everything she did."

Williams said she wanted her siblings to also experience the closeness to their mother that caregiving had given her. Her brothers and sister worked hard to make sure their mother was comfortable, taking the opportunity to make memories with her while they could.

Monica Moreno, director of care and support for the Alzheimer's Association, said responses from millennials largely matched what traditional research said about the generation.

"Advertisers have known for a long time they support causes they are passionate about and millennials seem to view caring for a loved one as a cause worth fighting for," Moreno said. "They also value a work life balance between their job and their family and believe a good attitude is helpful with caregiving."

When asked about care tasks, 87 percent of millennials felt more comfortable than the average caregiver providing hygiene and personal care. 89 percent felt more comfortable with potentially daunting tasks including medical care.

Millennials also use more positive words to describe how they feel as caregivers, "productive," "confident" and "strong."

Moreno said the association hadn't originally anticipated the survey's findings but the information opened the door for continued studies and support for the next generation of caregivers.

"These findings made us look back and look more critically into this data," Moreno said. "I'm happy we were able to look into this with the initial group. This will be the next generation of caregivers and, if their needs are different. we can be prepared to help them."

More information about millennial caregivers or local support can be found by visiting the national Alzheimer's Association website at http://www.alz.org/.

Jacob Dick, 270-228-2837, jdick@messenger-inquirer.com,Twitter: @jdickjournalism

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