"....the Indiana University researchers said their study is the first to actually measure the stress and examine how it affects the physical and mental health of caregivers."

-- When the Caregiver Becomes the Patient

This article starts to recognize the caregiver as a patient as well as the alzheimer's or demetia patient.   After having spent many days and nights in an emergency room, followed by an admittance wait and then some ICU time, the stress is incredible.  But not just the stress, add the lack of eating healthy since you have to live out of a vending machine for the day then remove your exercise and standard stress relief measures (have you ever tried to relax/meditate/stretch with all the machine beeping in an ER suite?).  Well, clearly the caregiver's health will decline.

Being the caregiver for a patient with Alzheimer's or dementia is nearly a guarantee for sleepless nights, eating fast-food because it is the only option and putting your life on hold.  Your job will suffer and your personal life may become non-existant.  It is time for health systems to address not only the patient, but the people, family, friends and caregivers surrounding the patient to ensure a healthy community.