As we celebrate Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day, we at MSA want to honor women for doing all that you do. We also want to be sensitive to all of the pressures and pulls on your time and energy that may be happening. The pandemic has exacerbated the “typical” issues facing the sandwich generation by creating even more challenges for women. This should no longer be called the sandwich generation, but instead, women are becoming the club sandwich generation.
Sandwich Generation
This is a clever term that refers to the generation of women (in most cases) being caught or sandwiched between their kids who may be struggling financially and need help and their elderly parents who are also struggling and may need financial help. These simultaneous burdens during the pandemic have heightened financial and emotional stress. Women, in greater numbers than men, have had to take off work to care for kids who couldn’t go to school; take off time from work to care for their adult children returning to the nest because they may have lost their jobs or became ill; and also, take off time to care for parents and take them to doctors.
Why the Big Deal?
It’s because the real “meat in the sandwich” (women) are worried about not having enough “bread” to support all of the generations that are relying upon them for financial help. The pressures mount as life shifts. Women are living longer, which is great, but that also means that elderly parents may need more help for a longer period of time. That translates into the sandwich generation having to give up their work to care for their parents. The sandwiched woman may be raising her own younger kids, and then couple that with older kids moving back into the empty nest, and we have a recipe for a real financial burden.
The big deal is that women are still the caregivers, in the majority of cases. They are pulled in so many directions. As discussed, the pandemic caused many to have to leave the workplace to handle all of these circumstances. Many moms are single and are really under even more pressure.
What Can be Done?
We know that you are capable of doing everything: work, family, friends, volunteer work – all of it. As we celebrate Women’s Month, you need to also celebrate yourself. You are the lynchpin of the family. Our message from MSA is that we want to celebrate women; we want to celebrate YOU, and we want to help you with whatever financial situation you find yourself in. We are here to help you be all that you can be.
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About the Author
Neale Godfrey is a New York Times #1 Best Selling Author of 27 books on empowering families (and their kids) to take charge of their financial lives.
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