The Hidden Health Crisis Among Caregivers
Dolly Parton’s admission last year that she neglected her own health while caring for her late husband, Carl Dean, resonates with millions of Americans. Dean passed away in March 2025 after a long illness. Parton, who died this week of cancer, hinted in a 2026 video that the intense demands of caregiving led her to set aside her personal well-being. Her experience highlights a systemic issue where caregivers often sacrifice their own health to manage the needs of loved ones.
There are 63 million caregivers in the United States today. Jason Resendez, president of the National Alliance for Caregiving, notes that labor of this kind wears down the physical health of those providing it. The situation affects people across all income levels. Even those with significant resources often find themselves unable to prioritize their own medical needs while serving as a primary point of contact for a sick partner.
The Physical and Financial Cost of Care
Caregivers perform roughly 27 hours of unpaid labor each week, though many exceed 40 hours. Data from the National Alliance for Caregiving and the AARP shows that 23 percent of caregivers struggle to pay attention to their own health. This figure rises among female, Latino, and lower-income caregivers. The lack of financial resources to hire professional help often leaves family members with no break from these repetitive, physically taxing duties.
Nancy Slavin, a 57-year-old from Oregon, serves as a 24-hour caregiver for her mother. She deferred routine cancer screenings for years due to her caregiving schedule. She eventually faced a health scare that forced her to reconsider her lack of self-care. Heidi Lescanec, a long-distance caregiver living in Vancouver, faces different hurdles. Even from a distance, she reports feelings of burnout and emotional exhaustion, noting that the mental weight of being the primary decision-maker limits her capacity for personal rest.
Overcoming Barriers to Professional Care
Practical barriers contribute to this cycle of neglect. Allison Applebaum, director of the Steven S. Elbaum Family Center for Caregiving at Mount Sinai, points out that scheduling medical appointments is difficult when the caregiver cannot plan past the next day. Furthermore, those spending entire days in clinical settings often feel an aversion to returning to a doctor for their own needs. Neal K. Shah, CEO of CareYaya Health Technologies, experienced this firsthand while caring for his wife. He admitted that he viewed his own health symptoms as trivial compared to hers.
Emotional factors also drive this pattern. Caregiving provides a sense of control for many who are facing the impending death of a loved one. By putting all their energy into the person they care for, they avoid confronting their own vulnerabilities. There is also a fear of burdening the family circle if they admit they are struggling or if they become the next patient in the house.
Transforming Healthcare Systems for Caregivers
Unpaid family caregivers provide an estimated 1 trillion dollars worth of healthcare services in the United States. Despite this, they remain largely invisible to the healthcare system. Only 15 percent of caregivers report ever being asked by a provider if they need support. This oversight results in poorer health outcomes for both the person receiving care and the one providing it.
Dr. Applebaum advocates for integrating caregiver support directly into clinical workflows. Her model involves screening caregivers for their physical and mental health at the moment they enter a medical facility with a patient. By identifying these needs early, providers could offer targeted resources like respite care or mental health services. This approach would ensure that the people holding our healthcare system together have the capacity to sustain themselves while caring for others.