Importance of the Carer Role: A Reminder for Those in the Caregiving Profession

the portrayal of Nikki (Jenny Slate), Molly’s best friend, who takes over as carer when Molly leaves her husband. Nikki loses her job, her relationship, her house, her own mental health. And it’s very rare that we see the role of a carer highlighted in pop culture in this way.

Being a carer is not exceptional, though we may have to do so in exceptional circumstances. There are 3 million unpaid carers in Australia, caring for siblings, parents, friends, and children. Some do so out of choice, while others have no choice. The 2024 Carer Wellbeing Survey found that carers are being left behind in key indicators of wellbeing including loneliness, psychological distress, and financial hardship.

What Slate’s portrayal of Nikki does is give caregiving the value it deserves. We see the duality of care, how she does so imperfectly but from a place of deep-seated love, not obligation or duty. It’s important for us as carers to see ourselves reflected back in books and on screen, to remind ourselves that we are doing this important, beautiful, impossible thing.

My husband and I do not possess any special qualities that have prepared us for our new roles as carers. We are not special. And this is the point. We deal with everything by leaning into the absurdity of our situation. And although what we have to endure individually and collectively as a family is always too much on any given day, there is grace and humor and a ridiculous number of memes.

What we’re doing feels impossible. And sometimes we need to see ourselves reflected back to us, in books, on the screen, to remind ourselves that we are doing this important, beautiful, impossible thing.