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Looking after a family member with dementia can be one of the most rewarding but also one of the most stressful experiences in life.
Many relatives spend years helping loved ones with everyday tasks such as eating, dressing, taking medicine, managing appointments, and staying safe. As dementia becomes more severe, caregivers often provide support day and night.
Many do this without pay while also trying to balance work, family responsibilities, and their own health. Because of these pressures, many caregivers experience ongoing stress, anxiety, sadness, loneliness, and exhaustion.
Studies have shown that around one in three family caregivers develops symptoms of anxiety or depression, yet many never receive professional help because they cannot easily leave the person they care for or because health services are already under heavy pressure.
Researchers at the University of East Anglia wanted to find a practical way to support these caregivers without requiring them to travel to clinics or attend regular appointments.
They created an online therapy program called iACT4CARERS that can be used on a computer, tablet, or smartphone. The goal was to provide flexible mental health support that people could access from home whenever it suited them.
The program is based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, a well-known form of psychological therapy that encourages people to accept difficult thoughts and emotions instead of constantly fighting them.
It also helps people focus on actions that match their personal values, such as protecting their own physical and mental health while continuing to care for someone they love. Rather than promising to remove every stressful feeling, the program teaches practical ways to respond more calmly and build emotional resilience.
To find out whether the program worked, the researchers carried out a large randomized controlled trial involving 496 family caregivers from across England. Half of the participants received their usual care plus access to the online program, while the other half continued with their usual support alone.
Those using iACT4CARERS completed eight online sessions and also received written feedback from trained NHS support workers. If additional help was needed, optional phone or video calls were available.
After three months, caregivers using the online program reported lower levels of anxiety than those receiving usual care alone.
These improvements remained six months later. The researchers also found lower levels of depression, suggesting that the benefits were meaningful in everyday life rather than simply showing small statistical differences. Many participants reported genuinely feeling better and more able to cope with the emotional challenges of caregiving.
The research team believes one of the biggest strengths of the program is its accessibility. Because it is online and requires only limited support from trained staff, it could potentially reach many more caregivers than traditional face-to-face therapy. This may be especially valuable in rural areas or for people who rarely have time to leave home.
The project involved researchers from the University of East Anglia working with University College London, the Centre for Ethnic Health Research, Uppsala University in Sweden, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid in Spain, and Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust. The findings were published in The Lancet Regional Health—Europe.
The study provides strong evidence because it was a large randomized controlled trial, one of the most reliable ways to test healthcare interventions.
However, it also has some limitations. The participants volunteered to join the study, so they may have been more motivated than some caregivers in the wider community. Researchers will also need to examine whether the benefits continue beyond six months and whether similar results are seen in other countries and healthcare systems.
Even so, the findings suggest that affordable online mental health support could become an important part of dementia care by helping caregivers stay healthier, reducing emotional strain, and allowing them to continue providing high-quality care for their loved ones.
If you care about dementia, please read studies that eating apples and tea could keep dementia at bay, and Olive oil: a daily dose for better brain health.
For more health information, please see recent studies what you eat together may affect your dementia risk, and time-restricted eating: a simple way to fight aging and cancer.
