Caregiver's Compass

In today’s episode, Kelly Polci, registered social worker and psychotherapist, shares her personal experiences with mom guilt parenting her 3 children, balancing a hospital job and a private therapy practice. The different techniques and resources she employs with her clients facing deep parenting and caregiving guilt are also explored. 

Find Kelly on Psychology today at: Kelly Polci psychotherapy 

Website resource mentioned in this episode: https://expectful.com

*The content shared on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and it does not constitute therapy or counselling. If you are in need of mental health support or professional guidance, please reach out to a qualified healthcare provider or mental health professional. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host.*

Visit us on our website:

www.compassionincaregiving.com

 For more visit our Instagram! @compassionincaregiving

In today’s episode, Stephanie explores 3 common cases she has seen as an inpatient social worker in the hospital system and looks at how these scenarios end up directly impacting the mental health and capacity of family caregivers and those they care for. Suggestions for systems change and advocacy are noted throughout the episode. 

If you have ever been a caregiver of a loved one in the hospital system and have felt more overwhelmed as a result, this episode is for you. 

Visit us on our website:

www.compassionincaregiving.com

Join our FREE Facebook community! https://www.facebook.com/groups/compassioncaregiverconnection

For more visit our Instagram! @compassionincaregiving

While caring for a loved one with dementia, do you ever feel as though you wish you had more answers for the future? That you wish you knew what to expect over time? That you had more control over your situation?

In this episode, Stephanie talks about common feelings when it comes to dementia caregivers, the difficulty in knowing what the future may hold and alternative ways you can think about this process while validating the very real frustration, anger and anxiety in this moment. 

*The content shared on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and it does not constitute therapy or counselling. If you are in need of mental health support or professional guidance, please reach out to a qualified healthcare provider or mental health professional. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host.*

Visit us on our website:

www.compassionincaregiving.com

For more visit our Instagram! @compassionincaregiving

In this episode, Dr. Nathan Stall talks about ongoing gaps in the healthcare system in terms of caregiver support and caregiver mental health from his perspective as a geriatrician. He talks about generalizations and misconceptions by healthcare team members and recommendations for future change. He also comments on upcoming positive change and how the system is working on making shifts for the future. 

About Dr. Stall:

Dr. Stall is a geriatrician and clinician scientist with the Women’s Age Lab and Women’s College Research Institute, as well as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto. He received his medical degree from Western University and completed his residency in Internal Medicine and fellowship training in Geriatric Medicine at the University of Toronto. He also received a PhD in Clinical Epidemiology & Health Care Research at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME) at the University of Toronto. His research interests include family caregiving, long-term care, drug safety for older adults, sex- and gender-based determinants of ageing, and health care utilization among persons with dementia. During the COVID-19 pandemic he served as the Assistant Scientific Director of Ontario’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table and a Network Science Advisor for CanCOVID.

*The content shared on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and it does not constitute therapy or counselling. If you are in need of mental health support or professional guidance, please reach out to a qualified healthcare provider or mental health professional. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host.*

Visit us on our website:

www.compassionincaregiving.com

For more visit our Instagram! @compassionincaregiving

In this episode, Wendy Williams joins the podcast once again to talk about how she has experienced grief in caregiving and how grief is so much more than the feeling after one’s passing-including grief over expectations of what life could look like without caregiving and grief over the loss of who your loved one once was.

About Wendy:

Wendy is a wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend and caregiver. In 2010 she founded Crazy Whisperer, a supportive community that focuses on effective management of mental health issues.She has a bipolar husband, an autistic daughter, a disabled son with a rare genetic defect, and an ageing mother with complex medical needs. She is a caregiver to all four and resides in Houston, Texas. 

Visit us on our website:

www.compassionincaregiving.com

 For more visit our Instagram! @compassionincaregiving

*The content shared on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and it does not constitute therapy or counselling. If you are in need of mental health support or professional guidance, please reach out to a qualified healthcare provider or mental health professional. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host.*

By now, we are likely familiar with those caring for 1 parent. But what happens when someone is caring for TWO parents? 

What if one parent has been caring for the other and has now declined, with all care now on YOU? 

This is becoming more and more common in the caregiver landscape given the aging population, the high burden on existing caregivers and the lack of supports in the healthcare system.

In this episode, Stephanie provides some tips to caregivers who are navigating the care of two parents and validates this very overwhelming experience. 

*The content shared on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and it does not constitute therapy or counselling. If you are in need of mental health support or professional guidance, please reach out to a qualified healthcare provider or mental health professional. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host.*

Visit us on our website:

www.compassionincaregiving.com

 For more visit our Instagram! @compassionincaregiving

In this episode, Stephanie opens up about some very strange occurrences that happened while she was at her grandmother’s bedside in hospital and following her grandmother’s passing. She talks about how these experiences were not explainable to her and took her from not believing in anything beyond life to thinking there may be more to life than we know. 

Visit us on our website:

www.compassionincaregiving.com

Join our FREE Facebook community! https://www.facebook.com/groups/compassioncaregiverconnection

For more visit our Instagram! @compassionincaregiving

In this episode, Julia Freifeld takes us through her journey caring for her husband with multiple system atrophy (MSA )which involved a rapid and difficult decline requiring all of her support and care. Julia talks about what helped her during these years and her memoir, which she wrote after journaling her emotions in secret for many years. She also talks about exploring new relationships after the passing of her spouse. 

About Julia:

Author and artist, Julia Freifeld grew up in Los Angeles, and moved to Raleigh in 1996. She was a caregiver for her husband Mark, who was diagnosed with multiple system atrophy (MSA) and recently authored a published memoir, “In Each Other’s Bones: A Memoir of Love, Loss and Living”, which was a number one bestseller on Amazon and based off her journal entries from her caregiving years. 

Find Julia:

https://juliafreifeld.com/

*The content shared on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and it does not constitute therapy or counselling. If you are in need of mental health support or professional guidance, please reach out to a qualified healthcare provider or mental health professional. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host.*

Visit us on our website:

www.compassionincaregiving.com

 For more visit our Instagram! @compassionincaregiving

In this episode, social worker, Courtney Sas, discusses her experiences working with patients who have struggled with navigating the healthcare system and navigating supports and resources. She and Stephanie discuss the need for patients and caregivers to often advocate, speak the native language and have awareness of the healthcare system in order to receive the best support and care possible. Gaps and injustices of the system are discussed with general suggestions of how we can do better.

About Courtney:

Courtney Sas, MSW, RSW, MBE, is a clinical social worker who specializes in chronic kidney disease at a University of Toronto teaching hospital. In 2017, she graduated with a Master’s degree in Bioethics from Harvard Medical School. In addition to the Masters coursework, Courtney was an intern with the ethics support service at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Courtney is a seminar leader and teaches ethics to undergraduate medical students at the University of Toronto and she is also an Adjunct lecturer at the University of Toronto, Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work.

Courtney’s article:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/opinion/opinion-hospital-patients-visitation-policies-1.5815267

*The content shared on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and it does not constitute therapy or counselling. If you are in need of mental health support or professional guidance, please reach out to a qualified healthcare provider or mental health professional. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host.*

Visit us on our website:

www.compassionincaregiving.com

 For more visit our Instagram! @compassionincaregiving

*Disclaimer- this episode discusses the dying process*

In this episode, Brian Smith discusses what he wishes he knew to prepare for his wife’s dying process and passing and how his life has shifted following her passing and after many years of being her caregiver. 

About Brian:

Brian Smith is a teaching professor at the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, IN, USA.

He was the primary caregiver for his wife, Demetria, who was diagnosed with primary progressive multiple sclerosis in early 2006 and passed away in January 2023. They have an 8-year old son, Jude, who motivated and inspired Brian to continue his caregiving journey. In his free time, Brian is a CrossFit enthusiast.

Find Brian on Instagram: @bsmith_nd

*The content shared on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and it does not constitute therapy or counselling. If you are in need of mental health support or professional guidance, please reach out to a qualified healthcare provider or mental health professional. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host.*

Visit us on our website:

www.compassionincaregiving.com

 For more visit our Instagram! @compassionincaregiving