PLANT CITY, Fla — For twelve years, Shelbea Houston, Austin, and Lonnie Coston have lived together, learned together, and experienced major life milestones—like watching Lonnie, who is blind and has special needs, become a brown belt in karate.
"So the next thing is [a] black belt?" asked ABC Action News Reporter, Rochelle Alleyne.
"Yep," said Lonnie confidently.
It's a confidence that has come from the family dynamic they've built, even though they're not related.
"Austin always goes, 'well let's go take a family photo,'" said Houston. "The summer that I graduated, I was working with these two young men, with Austin and with Lonnie, and an opportunity that arose about moving out and living as roommates."
Houston is their live-in caretaker, and while she said the work is rewarding, it can also be emotionally and mentally taxing—especially without breaks.
"This is an area in which I have struggled [with] because I went through a three or four-year stint and did not take a day off," she said.
In Houston's case, she struggled to find help and worried about leaving Lonnie and Austin with someone new.
Jamie Huysman, PsyD, LCSW is the Chief Compassion Officer for WellMed Medical Management, Inc. He said caregivers of all kinds often fall into these cycles but especially around the holidays. And it's one that he says could have grave consequences.
"At the end of the day, caregivers, literally disproportionately as a population, are passing away before their loved ones are," he said.
To help break this cycle, the WellMed Charitable Foundation is offering free access to some resources for caregivers through the end of the month.
Though Dr. Huysman said the best place to start is by taking a small break.
"So my words to caregivers during the holidays is less is more," he said.
It's a sentiment that Houston agrees with.
"It's tough but you need to do it for your own sanity, for sure," she said.
