In today's episode, John and Fran discuss ways to approach caregiving during the holiday season. Caregiving is difficult, challenging and stressful. The holidays can and will add to the pressures and anxiety of caregiving. But with the ideas discussed, you may find some ways to simplify the holidays, recruit support engage your loved one, and navigate through the holidays finding some joy , peace and laughter.

We wish all of you a very happy holiday season. May you find some joy and peace and laughter with your loved ones duringthese coming weeks.

Sorry for the delay in getting this episode out to you all. It's been quite a summer! My new wife and I spent the month of July on the other sode of the country, caring for my sister to recover from knee replacement surgery. Then it was my turn. I developed a large abscess, and with fever approaching 104, went to the ER at the local hospital. I spent 9 days in the hospital with a drain and IV antibiotics. We are now back home, but still working through whatever the medical conditions are.

Needless to say, it was difficult getting our podcast out, and I am sorry. I know we have a devoted following of listeners, and Fran and I truly want to be a resource for you. So I am hopeful that I will be back to full strength and energy soon and can keep going.

In the meantime, this episode is about you. We want to hear from you about what issues you want to learn more about, what are the things that you could use some advice or help with. So please reach out to us. We want to provide meaningful and relevant topics to bring you.

Thank you for listening to our episodes, and please pass thi so to frirnds, family, even your health care providers.

John & Fran

When a serious illness affects a parent, oftentimes the young children are overlooked or excluded from the situation. Externally, they may seem fine, but internally they are observing, processing and trying to make sense of what is happening.

In her insightful book, Dr Fran put us in the mind of young Stella, who witnesses the decline and ultimately, the death of her mother. We see how each of the siblings responds to the family crisis, and where the youngest sibling is left.

Written in the style of a memoir, written over time as Stella matures, it allows the reader to see into her thoughts and understanding of her reality. It is an insightful book, and a must read for anyone with young people in their lives.

When a cancer diagnosis is given, it is given not only to the patient, but to every family member. Like a rock trown into a calm lake, those waves emanate out impacting family and friends surrounding the patient.

Over the course of our podcast, John and Fran have spoken to friends caring for a friend, spouses caring for a partner, a parent caring for their sick child.

In today's episode, we examine and explore dealing with a chroinic illness through the eyes of a young person experiencing the illness of a parent. Through her own personal experiences, and as an educator in the dramatic arts, our guest has been able to help her student confront the reality of life-threatening illness of a parent, and to express their emotions in a healthy way.

"A Monster Calls" is a play about a teenager confronting the reality of a sick parent amid the turmoil of everday teenage life. It is a powerful story.

In this episode, John and Fran talk about the upcoming documentary "Caregiving" to be aired, Tuesday June 24 at 9PM on Public Broadcasting System (PBS) stations across the USA. It will also be available to watch via streaming on www.PBS.org.

The documentary is produced by Wellbeings www.wellbeings.org , a family caregiver advocacy group , resource, and center for support. Produced by the actor Bradley Cooper (who cared for his Dad when he was diagnosed with cancer), and narrated by actress Uzo Aduba, Caregiving tells the personal stories of family caregivers, their triumphs, their challenges, fears and emotions.

John learned about this project over a year ago, when Wellbeings was compiling stories for the documentary. He wrote to them, describing his caregiving journey with Mary, as well as the work he has been doing since; developing a support group for family caregivers of cancer patients at a local hospital, his work with a patient support and advocacy group for for patients diagnosed with appendiceal cancer, and this very podcast.

After Mary died, but before he started this advocacy work, John wrote an open letter to family caregivers. Providing advice and counsel from the point of view of one who has travelled the path, John set out to give some pointers and what, and what not, to do as family caregiver.

Wellbeings graciously accepted John's story, and his open letter, to use as part of their media campaign in the days and weekds leading up to the broadcast. Both are available on www.wellbeings.org blog page, and on their instagram page.

It's been a while since we published a new episode. There has been a lot going on... with Fran's practice, with John's medical situatiuon, as well as personal things. We wanted to let you know what we have been up to, and also to let you know that we have not let you go!

We have been talking, about next episode ideas, and plans for the balance of the year. As always, if there's a topic you want to hear about, let us know. We will do our best to research it and create an episode.

In the meantime, hang tight-we will be back with new topics and new guests. And remeber-you are not alone.

In this episode, John and Fran talk with an Oncology Pharmacist with a deep knowledge of the clinical trial world. We heard about the diferent phases of clinical trials, and what each means; when and where to look for clinical trials. We also heard about the rights and responsibilities of both the trial investigator as well as the patient. If you are considering joining a clinical trial, there is a lot of information to process. Hopefully this discussion will give you enough background to be able to ask the right questions. We have posted websites on our blog page that Dr Wong referenced during our conversation You can find them at www.caregivercompanion.libsyn.com

Caregiving is a marathon, not a sprint. The caregiving continuum takes a caregiver through all kind of responsibilties, tasks and pressures. In this episode, John and Fran talk about the pressure of caregiving at the end stages of treatment, whether that is remission and surveillance, or hospice and end of life decision making. As a caregiver, it is important to recognize, that even if your loved one is in remission, they are living in a body changed by the illness, and possibly the treatments. Alternatively, if you are facing end of treatment options, having those difficult conversations with your loved one is important for those left behind to understand their wishes.

There are many pressures people are dealing with in today's world. Watching the news, one sees wars, famines, natural disasters all around us. In our own personal world, prices, jobs, family, kids all contribute to a heightened anxiety. It seems a symptom of modern society. Add to this ambient stress levels, the added pressure of receiving a cancer diagnosis for a loved one, and the pressure is intensified.

In this episode, John and Fran talk about the physiological and psychological responses to stressful situations, in particular the initial phases of caregiving. There are resources that can help the family caregiver.

Self care is an important element in dealing with stress as well. Small things can go a long way.

Winston Churchill, in describing the old Soviet Union, once said "it is a riddle wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigmna". When a loved one is diagnosed with a rare cancer, it can certainly feel that way. With limited information, and uncertainty about where to turn, a caregiver can feel incredibly lost and overwhelmed. Today John and Fran spoke with a woman, who cared for her husband Jeffrey, when he was diagnosed with rare appendiceal cancer. She talked openly and candidly about her journey and what she learned along the way.

February is rare disease awareness month, in the United States, and we want to recognize those individuals battling rare diseases, and the people who love them and care for them.