engAGINGconversations's podcast

Tina Ketchie Stearns is a speaker/educator who has worked in the hospice industry for many years. She educated medical professionals and caregivers about hospice  and end of life care, advanced care planning, caregiving, and grief. She has educated over 50,000 people from 25 different countries.

In this episode she helps clarify some confusing terminology around end of life planning.  She helps us understand:

• Health Care Power of Attorney vs. Durable Power of Attorney
• Living Wills
• MOLST/POLST/MOST orders

In addition, she talks about;

• Palliative Care
• Hospice Care
• Respite Care

AND, she shares with us how we can save HUNDRED of dollars when it comes to documenting our wishes!

Please share your ideas for future episodes. This podcast serves to help you solve issues you are struggling with. Let us know what challenges you are facing. 

I have a conversation with Wendy Booker, a national speaker and patient advocate in the MS world, and Nancy Lobb, her 97 year old mother, on their experience with senior independent living communities.  During our talk we discussed:

• Questions to ask when looking for an independent living community
• Reasons to consider independent living for your aging parent
• Pros and Cons of these communities

The biggest take home message is buyer be educated. Plus, the beauty of a conversation with a 97 year old who shares her life experience with honesty and humor is not to be missed!

Links to Resources:

http://taylorcommunity.org

http://brooksbyvillage.com

https://www.ericksonliving.com

And to find out what Wendy is up to, check out her website:

http://wendybooker.com

Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, rate and leave a review!!

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Today I talk with her about her experiences with caregiver stress. Her dad was cared for by her mom when he was diagnosed with dementia. Six months after he passed away, her mom was diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer and she became The Reluctant Caregiver.

We talk about the issues her Mom experienced  as a caregiver for her Dad:

• social isolation
• lack of resources to be able to keep her Dad at home

and the the many struggles she encountered as a caregiver for her Mom:

• geographical
• financial
• separation from nuclear family
• the lack of resources available to help her care for her Mom

And she offers some great advice for those who will be providing care in the future. So Listen! Subscribe, rate, and leave a review!

For more information on The Reluctant Caregiver:  http://www.joyjohnston.com

And check out her blog:   The Memories Project 

And you can find her on Twitter:On Twitter:  @reluctantcare and  @joymemories

Laura Jack is a trainer for the Grief Recovery Institute® and Mastery Level Transformational Life Coach. I talk with her today about the conflicting feelings that many of us experience while caring for our aging parents.

Some of the great insight she offers:

• conflicting feelings are NORMAL and it's okay to acknowledge them
• The definition of guilt...it will change your mind every time you "feel guilty" again!

And some suggestions for dealing with these feelings:

• Do a 5-10" venting exercise with a safe listener
• express gratitude!

She offers many free resources on her website. You can find her here:

www.laurajack.com

The Compassion Code: How to Say the Right Thing When the Wrong Thing Happen

It is not easy caring for an aging parent. It takes a toll no matter how well prepared you think you are. In today's episode, I talk with Dori Martin, a Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner and Functional Health Coach about her experience helping her Dad through the final stages of cancer.

Her message is simple, but so easy to overlook when you are in the throes of caregiving. Take time for yourself.

Resources:

http://www.optimalhealthbydesign.com

Off the Medical Grid 

Death over Dinner

SharetheCare

AARP

doriliang.com

http://sherylsmithrn.com

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In an effort for you all to understand my story, I invited my sister, Susan Shelor, to come on engAGING Conversations and talk with me about her/our experience. She was closest geographically, to our parents, so when the time came, she was the primary caregiver.

She gives an honest account of the toll it took not only on her as she cared for our Dad, but the impact it had on our Mom to have a spouse with a terminal illness, and how that affected everybody. Caring for an aging/ill parent takes a toll on everyone, whether you are the primary caregiver or not. And if you come from a large family, everybody has an opinion. Which is why it is so important to know what your parent wants or doesn't want when it comes to end of life care.  Have the conversation and get it in writing.

Please leave a comment below,  subscribe on iTunes, and share!

And don't forget to listen to episode 3, available today!

Links:

http://sherylsmithrn.com

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Welcome to episode one of engAGING Conversations. In this first episode, I talk about my whys. Why me, why this topic, why this format. And what I would like to accomplish through this podcast.

 engAGING Conversations launches on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play on March 9, 2018. I hope you'll listen, subscribe, leave a rating, review, AND share!

http://sherylsmithrn.com

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