If you need to step away from your career for a while to stay at home with your kids or care for an elderly or incapacitated loved one, your automatic systems for saving for retirement will probably shut down. In order to make sure you don’t jeopardize your nest egg, you’ll need to make adjustments to account for your decreased savings power.

Bucksome Boomer has advice for making such arrangements.

If you know you’ll want to be a stay-at-home parent but haven’t yet started your family, you can focus on saving more before you take that plunge before you take the plunge. If you’re married, you can arrange for your spouse to double down on contributions to your retirement fund until you return to the workforce.

It’s important to be aware of the financial implications of your choice rather than forget about them in hopes that things will work out. Even if you’re getting into a dire financial situation, it’s best to get an idea of what adjustments you’ll need to make.

Don’t let your retirement be the price of your caregiving [Bucksome Boomer]

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