May 29, 2024

What happens when kids become caregivers?

When it comes to childhood and young adulthood, most people in the U.S. think of carefree times of life with few major responsibilities. But for a small subset of young people, these years also mean caring for loved ones. Harvard medical students Kimia Heydari and Romila Santra both have firsthand experience being young caregivers, and they wrote about this often overlooked group in their First Opinion essay "Caring for young caregivers, a hidden population."

Heydari and Santra spoke with "First Opinion Podcast" host Pat Skerrett about the unique challenges of taking care of family members at ages when few of their peers had similar experiences.

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