What is caregiving in a marriage?

This entry describes caregiving as the practical work of looking after a spouse who is ill, injured, or frail: medicine, appointments, washing, and the decisions that go with them. It separates that work from ordinary help between partners, and notes the risk that the caregiver's sleep, pay, and say in the house drop out of view without being named.

What this entry does not do

It is not a nursing guide and does not calculate what a household owes an aging parent.