Working Caregivers-The Invisible Employees Newsletter

Brought to you by ieadvocates (invisible employee advocates)

2025 is half way over and summer is here!

Thank you for being here!

And thank you for being with us in 2025! It is July and we are in the middle of summer as well as the year. We hope you are having a safe and happy summer for you and your family.

Did you know that the majority of working caregivers (60%) say that it is more difficult to coordinate care during the summer months than during other times of the year? Caregiving does not take a vacation. Please read this edition’s blog to pick up some strategies on how you can manage through the summer if you are a working caregiver or how you can support your working caregivers if you are a manager or in HR.

This newsletter edition is a recap of all the content we have provided thus far in 2025. We have summarized it below for your convenience. Enjoy reading, listening and watching!

Whether you’re an employer, business manager, HR, or a working caregiver, this newsletter offers valuable insights along with win-win-win simple solutions to help implement meaningful change for organizations, employees who are caregivers, and their care recipients.

Table of Contents

• Working Caregivers-The Invisible Employees Newslet …

  • 2025 is half way over and summer is here!

  • Did you know? (Read our blog):

  • People and Companies In the spotlight:

  • Stories From Real Working Caregivers:

  • Recommended media content:

  • With gratitude, we share a book review:

    • Order Our Book Here

Did you know? (Read our blog):

Summer Strain: Caregiving Through Vacation Season (Blog 7/1/25)

While caring for a loved one comes with many daily challenges, caring during the summer months can be especially difficult. Unlike the winter holidays, which typically last for a short timeframe, the summer involves several months where there may be a need to shift from the daily routine of care. For example, during the summer, kids are out of school, professional caregivers may take their vacations, and care facilities may switch to shorter hours of operation. These occurrences contribute to large gaps in support. Did you know that the majority of working caregivers (60%) say that it is more difficult to coordinate care during the summer months than during other times of the year. (AARP)

Read blog here

People and Companies In the spotlight:

A recap of 2025 podcast episodes (through June) with links:

Episode 9: Jason Resendez on Caregiver Advocacy and Workplace Culture

Episode 10:  How Compassionate Policies Transform Workplaces and Lives with Dr. Gina Anderson

Episode 11: From Caregiver to Advocate: Dahlia Sizer’s Workplace Solutions

Episode 12: Navigating Caregiving, Work, and Mental Health—Expert Insights with Dr. Madhavi Vemireddy

Episode 13: Balancing Work and Caregiving: A Conversation with Dr. Donna Benton

Episode 14: Global Caregiver Advocates Bonus Series: Spotlight On Canadian Caregiver Advocates

Episode 15:  Being a Caregiver Spouse: The Power of Community with the Well Spouse Association and Bob Mastrogiovanni

Episode 16: Elder Law, Medicaid Planning & Caregiver Chaos – with Eric Goldberg & Clelia Pergola

Episode 17: How Harry & David Champions Their Working Caregivers

Episode 18: The Beautiful Side of Caregiving: Living with Meaning as a Working Caregiver with Ebony Travis Tichenor

Episode 19: The Caregiver Identity Crisis: Why Naming It Matters with Dr. Barry J. Jacobs

Episode 20: Self-Preservation and the Power of the Small Moment with Charlotte Bayala

Stories From Real Working Caregivers:

A recap of our 2025 Stories From Real Working Caregivers interviews (through June) with links:

Caring for an adult child has financial challenges along with the inability to plan freely. “There's no carefreeness in our life anymore. Everything has to be planned. Everything has to be thought through. You just can't pack a bag, hop on a plane and go somewhere. You have to arrange all kinds of things. So, even going out to any sort of social event, going out to dinner, you can't just go.” ~Mike George

Can you quit your job if you do not have other support methods? “It's a challenge, and I can imagine if I was still working corporate, how that would be. I probably would have to quit… There are decisions you have to make. Fortunately, I have a husband, but if I was a single parent, I would have to find a way to take care of my family, of my parents.” ~Kim Andrews

Making decisions about what job (and manager) to have so that it supports your caregiving journey.  “Trying to become productive in my job being a caregiver and a professional. When I had a choice between two job offers, I had to factor in the caregiver responsibilities into the decision making process for both jobs. And I ended up taking a job that paid me less because of the autonomy or ability to continue in the caregiver role that I am.” ~Christian Harriott

Caregiver guilt while working and guilt about trying to do both. “I feel like I'm not doing my job to the full extent. And then when I'm at my job, I feel like I'm not taking care of my parents.  Right? So they have this double edged guilt sword. So it's this constant beating themselves up about their responsibility and their duty and… trying to find a place with that or a safe space with that, or how do I get support for that, or how do I stop feeling that?” ~ Susanne White

Male caregivers and the importance of having a supportive boss. “…in my career, I was really very fortunate. I had a boss who was unbelievably supportive at the time because I was still working for a corporation at that point in time. And he said, “Look, your family comes first. You got to do what you do. We'll do our best.  I'll do my best to cover for you” ~Todd “TJ” Keitz

The reality of a having a manager who is not very supportive. “I went in on the Wednesday, and I said, “It's not getting better. I don't know if it's going to get better. I think I'm going to need to take another week.” I had five weeks of vacation. The time was there.  And she said, “Well, I'm off on holidays next week, and someone else is off on holidays the following week, so keep that in mind when you're making your plans. I was completely caught off guard. Here I was, worried that my mom was dying and my world was collapsing around me, yet I was being asked to consider someone else’s vacation time?” ~Katie MacDonald

Spousal caregiving and getting others to help you. “And what I did not know in the very beginning was how to manage my time and how to manage my community. And what I learned after I had several caregiving journeys is that we are not on this journey alone. I  embraced reaching out to all different people who could be a part of the community of care and where they could provide care, where they could provide support, what they could do...” ~Sue Ryan

Giving ourselves grace as caregivers and the need to keep your job. “ I think I would probably have a poster on my desk that would say -- '“Grace”. One of the things that I say a lot of is, there's nothing I can say that's gonna make the guilt feelings go away for me or for anybody else. But I say oftentimes like when that “g” word comes up of guilt, replace it with grace and  know that you're doing the best….  We’ve got to give ourselves grace.” ~Elizabeth Miller

The importance of an open communication on both sides—the employer and the employee.  “ If the employer starts talking, they can start normalizing the conversation.  If the employer is open, the employee is going to start to open themselves. Important not to think that it is a weakness. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness, but a sign of being resourceful and that you want to perform to your best.” ~Paula Muller

How unprepared we can be and how caregiving impacts our entire life.  “ There's two very common aspects in caregiving.  There's a beginning and there's an end. And in most cases, we're not prepared for either one of these life changing events, and those life changing events impact everything about your life, your work life, your free time, your friends. ” ~Christopher MacLellan

The challenges for the sandwich generation are significant.  “Things that are happening for Sandwich Generation parents do have an impact on children. We can't keep who we are away from our kids. And so they might see less of us because we're divided in our time. We've got to be here rather than there. We may be divided in our attention because we're working, helping them maybe with a homework thing, but we're thinking about that call we just had with our mom about something else difficult, or a doctor's visit that we had, or something. So, all of these things impact.” ~Christy Byrne Yates, M.S., LEP

The impact of caregiving for a solopreneur. “…what started to happen as her needs increased, she became more frail and there were more hospital visits and more ER visits and that sort of thing, and then rehab. I had to start cutting back on my client load. I couldn't carry the number of clients that I was carrying initially. I had to cut back, which meant my income got reduced. The impact on me to that, well, I didn't have an employer I could go to. I had to still work because I'm self-employed.” ~Robin Weeks

Recommended media content:

PODCAST

Happy Women Travel More The Path To Your Next Vacation: Caretaker Edition Angela is the host. Taking a vacation when you’re a caretaker can seem flat out impossible. Whether you’re a mom juggling kids and pets, caring for elderly parents, or you’re in the sandwich season of caring for both kids and parents, I’m here to help you navigate the unique challenges of planning a getaway when others rely on you for their daily needs.

 VIDEOS

 Caregiving 6/24/2025 | 1h 53m 3s From the filmmakers of "The Gene" and "Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies," and Executive Produced by Bradley Cooper, "Caregiving" is a groundbreaking new documentary from Well Beings that personalizes America’s caregiving crisis. Featuring intimate stories and expert voices, the film highlights the struggles and triumphs of caregivers nationwide. Premiering in Spring 2025.

BOOKS

When Your Aging Parent Needs Help by Leslie Kernisan MD (Author), Paula Spencer Scott (Author). In this practical, step-by-step guide, geriatrician Leslie Kernisan, MD, walks you through what to do and what to say in order to offer respectful assistance and intervention to a declining elderly parent. Full of actionable advice and insider tips, When Your Aging Parent Needs Help provides practical and flexible steps that move concerned families toward effective elder care action, while respecting a parent’s dignity and autonomy.

With gratitude, we share a book review:

We want to thank Demetri who took the time to read our book and provide a thoughtful review!

A very helpful, informative guide to one of the most important roles families play. As someone not as familiar with caregiving, after reading I felt much more prepared and had strategies to start right away.

Order your copy of Working Caregivers-The Invisible Employees book here. If you want to order a quantity of books for your leadership team and employees, contact us directly about discount pricing.

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