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When aging parents need help, 'kids' suddenly become caregivers

By Linda Shrieves

(MCT)

Between 2000 and 2007, the number of elderly parents moving in with their kids jumped 67 percent. And experts expect that trend to continue, thanks to the high cost of housing, the cost of nursing homes and assisted living facilities, and the nation's struggling economy.

MOM AND DAD NEED HELP

"I still didn't know how bad things were," Williams said. Although her mom was still dressing herself and taking her dog on walks, she had stopped cooking altogether. She ate primarily peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches.

CARE IS PRICEY

Unfortunately, experts say, most families don't discuss how to handle the aging of their parents and how and where mom or dad will live.

"If I didn't do it," she says, "who would?"

Experts say that in many American families, it's assumed that daughters will become the designated caregiver, even if no one ever asked them.

As for Williams, she's trying to stay positive. "The main thing I have to do," she says, "is remember to laugh and breathe."