its all very noble, caring for your sick elderly relatives, but it isn;t that simple, and it certainly doesn't mean that a person cares less!!
one of the reasons is the one you state yourself - if you are caring you can't work so you end up on the breadline.
far better to work and pay a carer or a home.
why make your own life - and your family - life miserable just to be 'noble'??
how many years are you supposed to live in poverty and struggling when there are professionals available to give all the care they need?
fair enough if you know it will only be for a few months but what it its 5 -10 even 20 years?
some also need specialist 24 hour care that the average person is not equipped to deal with, perhaps dementia, bursts of agression, certain medical requirements etc
these sorts of thing can be heartbreaking for a person to deal with - watching a loved one become unrecognisable.
you may think its selfish not to want to live what could be 10 years of your life this way and feel that as they brought us up we should do the same, but parents choose to have kids and know what they are getting into.
i would rather be in a home than feel i was stopping my child from living their life to the full.
i would have lived my life, and want them to live theirs, not be trapped by wiping my arse and spoonfeeding me.
i would also prefer a stranger to do these things not my own family, less embarrassing.
of course this is assuming they are ill, or incapable of looking after themselves - if they are well and can carry on generally as usual, just need general care and assistance, then i would have no problem having them live with me.