KERA's Think Grandparents need a break, too
May 5, 2025
Faith Hill, a staff writer at The Atlantic, dives into the pressing issues facing grandparents who are stepping into full-time childcare roles. She discusses the exhaustion that comes with this unexpected 'second shift' and how rising daycare costs are reshaping their golden years. The conversation reveals the emotional and logistical challenges these grandparents face, their struggle to say 'no' to family, and the impact on their own retirement dreams, highlighting a shift in expectations of grandparenting in modern society.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Elena’s Retirement Disrupted
- Elena and her husband moved across the country to help their daughter with childcare due to unavailable daycare slots.
- This decision shifted their retirement plans to full-time grandparent caregiving without a local support network.
Social Security Shaped Grandparenting
- Social Security and pensions enabled older adults to live independently, changing grandparent roles.
- The new archetype is the fun, occasional grandparent, not the full-time caregiver.
Grandmothering Dominates Caregiving
- The workload falls disproportionately on grandmothers, not evenly shared by grandfathers.
- Much grandparent caregiving research focuses primarily on grandmothers due to their larger role.