What is “Sandwich Generation”?

I admit, I don’t really care for labels; I had too many unkind labels thrust upon me as I grew up, and, later, I placed shameful labels on myself. I first heard the label “Sandwich Generation” in December 2019. Talking to a friend on the phone, she said I was part of the “sandwich generation.” I thought I heard her wrong and asked, “What does that even mean?” She explained that it means I am part of the generation that is still raising my children but also taking care of a parent. Makes sense, right? I’m in the middle of two generations that need me.

Curious, I wondered if my friend made up the term; she’s a counselor and has a knack for making up terms to help people create coping mechanisms. My search for the term returned this result, “a generation of people typically in their thirties or forties, responsible for bringing up their own children and for the care of their aging parents. Origin – 1970s (originally US): from sandwich, with reference to the idea of being squeezed from two directions.” [emphasis mine]

This is where I will share about caring for my mother – long distance – since October 2019 while still raising our two daughters. Yep, being squeezed from two directions … that about sums it up!