Advertise on podcast: The Caregivers Podcast

For a caregiver, grief doesn’t always start when someone dies. It can start months or even years earlier, while you’re still doing everything you can for the person you love. Then they die, and everything changes again. In Episode 56 of The Caregivers Podcast, Dr. Mark welcomes back hospice nurse and end-of-life educator Les Harp, known online as That Hospice Guy. Les was the primary caregiver for two wives, Cassie and Sonia, and lost both of them to cancer. He talks about caregiver grief from both sides of the bedside: anticipatory grief, the relief and guilt that so often follow a death, and the silence that comes when the caregiving suddenly stops. He also explains why grief isn’t something you “get over,” and how he found a way to build a life with love and joy in it again. Click here to watch on YouTube. Support Our Guest:▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ThatHospiceGuy▶️ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@that.hospice.guy▶️ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/that_hospice_guy▶️ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584427606316 Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcast Buy Us a Coffee:▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

How do you know when keeping a parent at home is asking more than you can give? And what if you promised you’d never move them into a care facility? In this episode, Dr. Mark welcomes back Senior Living Advisor Janice Martin. Together they walk through the move into care, from recognizing it’s time to what happens after you go home. They follow a model family as care needs grow, and they track the costs at every stage: in-home care, assisted living, memory care, and the hidden add-ons families don’t see coming. The numbers are eye-opening. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest: ▶️ Book a call, buy a book, & more: https://stan.store/seniorliaison ▶️ The Complete Guide To Assisted Living: https://amzn.to/4u3Cnb4 ▶️ The Journey To Assisted Living: Expectation vs. Reality: https://amzn.to/3P1lCi1 Connect With Us: ▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcastBuy us a Coffee:▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

This week, Dr. Mark Ropeleski sits down with hospice nurse, author, and creator behind Broken and Brave Health, Tiffany Lin Smith. Known for saying the quiet parts about caregiving out loud on TikTok, Tiffany joins Dr. Mark to unpack the unvarnished realities of modern healthcare, the overwhelming demands placed on family caregivers, and why true survival requires self-preservation over performative self-care. Together, they confront systemic issues ranging from nurse burnout and bureaucratic charting overload to corporate healthcare priorities, the trillion-dollar unpaid care economy, and the dangerous assumption that families automatically know how to provide complex medical care. Tiffany also shares practical guidance on setting boundaries to protect relationships, holding honest end-of-life and goals-of-care conversations, managing sibling friction, and reclaiming your identity both during caregiving and after it ends. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:▶️ https://brokenandbrave.org ▶️ https://www.tiktok.com/@brokenandbravehealthConnect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcastBuy Us a Coffee:▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

When someone you love receives a cancer diagnosis, life shifts in an instant - and the waiting can feel endless. This week, Dr. Mark sits down with Charlotte Bayala, who has cared for her husband through thyroid cancer for nearly 14 years. Charlotte shares the raw, unspoken realities of family caregiving: the sudden thrust into medical procedures without training, navigating severe scan anxiety ("scansiety"), and why standard advice around "self-care" often fails overwhelmed caregivers. Together, they explore the essential shift from self-care to self-preservation, practical daily grounding rituals through breathwork, maintaining identity and humor, and what it truly takes to protect your connection with your partner through long-term uncertainty. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:▶️ www.charlottebayala.comListen to The Cancer Caregiver ▶️ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-cancer-caregiver/id1504166813 ▶️ https://open.spotify.com/show/2K8kA9WHRK30733tjYfQaOConnect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcastBuy Us a Coffee:▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

Can a caregiver heal while still caregiving? What does recovery look like when daily responsibilities may continue for years? This week, Dr. Mark is rejoined by trauma-informed coach Greg Fougere to explore the deeper layers of caregiver burnout, nervous system survival mode, and self-abandonment. Together, they discuss why high competence can become a trap, why having free time often fails to bring rest, and how self-curiosity serves as the foundation for staying connected to yourself without letting caregiving consume your identity. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:Website: https://healoutloud.info Book a call: https://start.healoutloud.info/simple-book-call-appt TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@greg.healoutloud Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greg.healoutloud/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Greg.HealOutLoud Email: [email protected] Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

Can you deeply love someone and still hate being their caregiver? In this episode of The Caregiver's Podcast, Dr. Mark welcomes back Elaine K. Sanchez - author, speaker, and founder of CaregiverHelp.com- to tackle the hardest, most unspoken emotional realities of caregiving: resentment, exhaustion, family friction, and compassion fatigue. About Our Guest:Elaine K. Sanchez is an author, speaker, and co-founder of caregiverhelp.com, an online caregiver support program. Her keynotes and workshops are based on her unflinchingly honest and surprisingly funny book, “Letters from Madelyn, Chronicles of a Caregiver.” Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:▶️ https://caregiverhelp.com/about/ ▶️ Buy Elaine's Book: https://www.amazon.ca/Letters-Madelyn-Chronicles-Elaine-Sanchez/dp/1608081664 Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcast Buy Us a Coffee: ▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

Caring for an aging parent rarely brings adult siblings together the way we imagine. When one sibling carries the daily burden while another steps back - or swoops in at the last minute demanding an equal voice - resentment, grief, and exhaustion quickly take over. This week, Dr. Mark is joined by Fern Schumer Chapman, author of Brothers, Sisters, Strangers, for an unflinching conversation about sibling dynamics during parental decline. Together, they explore why caregiving revives childhood roles, why the opposite of estrangement isn’t reconciliation but peace, and how family caregivers can set clear guardrails to protect their own well-being. Guest Resources: Fern Schumer Chapman: Author of Brothers, Sisters, Strangers: Sibling Estrangement and the Road to ReconciliationClick here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:▶️ https://fernschumerchapman.com/ ▶️ https://fernschumerchapman.com/store/ ▶️ https://www.facebook.com/FernSchumerChapmanAuthorPage/ Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcastBuy Us a Coffee: ▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

In Episode 49 of The Caregivers Podcast, host Dr. Mark Ropeleski sits down with eating disorder specialists and Hungry for Connection authors Vanessa Scaringi and Kathryn Garland. Together, they explore why disordered eating and emotional eating in caregivers are rarely issues of willpower or discipline, but rather signals of survival mode, unmet emotional needs, and deep attachment dynamics. Resources Mentioned:▶️National Alliance for Eating Disorders: https://www.allianceforeatingdisorders.com/▶️Project HEAL: https://www.theprojectheal.org/▶️National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA): https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guests:▶️Pre-Order "Hungry for Connection": https://www.amazon.com/Hungry-Connection-Relationships-Insecurely-Attached/dp/1648487378 Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcastBuy Us A Coffee: ▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

In this episode of The Caregivers Podcast, host Dr. Mark sits down with caregiving expert Amy Goyer to discuss the hidden financial crises that often accompany long-term family caregiving. Drawing from her own experience caring for her parents and sister—which ultimately resulted in personal bankruptcy despite early planning—Amy outlines how daily care decisions compound into major financial strain. This conversation explores the gap between standard retirement planning and the realities of chronic illness, the hidden expenses of aging in place, and practical strategies caregivers can use to protect their own financial future. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:▶️ https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/experts/amy-goyer/▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@amygoyer▶️ https://community.aarp.org/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/4342468▶️ https://www.instagram.com/amygoyer/▶️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/amygoyer/ Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcastBuy Us a Coffee:▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

When a caregiver finally sees dysfunctional family dynamics clearly, the realization can feel both liberating and devastating. Understanding the dysfunction does not automatically wake up the rest of the family—and often, the system protects itself by pushing back through guilt, manipulation, and criticism. In this episode, Dr. Mark Ropeleski welcomes back Amy Vasterling to examine the real cost of getting free from unhealthy family systems. Together, they explore why reliable family members get trapped as default caregivers, how to handle criticism from relatives who do not show up, and how to continue providing care without disappearing into the role. Click here to watch a video of this episode.   Support Our Guest:▶️"Know": https://mybook.to/knowbyamyvasterling▶️ https://linktr.ee/amyvasterling▶️ https://amyvasterling.com Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcastBuy Us A Coffee: ▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

This week, Dr. Mark sits down with Dr. Sara Zeff Geber, a leading voice and author on the topic of solo aging. Together, they discuss what it truly means to age without reliable family support, debunk common myths surrounding solo agers, and explain why independence alone cannot replace a structured care plan. From creating advance healthcare directives and selecting younger decision-making proxies to leveraging professional fiduciaries, congregate living, and community resources like the PACE program, Dr. Geber offers practical strategies for navigating older adulthood with confidence and purpose. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:▶️ https://sarazeffgeber.com/ ▶️ https://sarazeffgeber.com/books/ Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcast ▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcastSubscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

This week, host Dr. Mark sits down with long-term care nurse, patient advocate, and public voice Nurse Chrystal Moran. Together, they pull back the curtain on the unseen realities inside long-term care facilities. From extreme nurse-to-patient staffing ratios (sometimes reaching 54:1 or higher) to the hidden financial and management decisions shaping bedside care, Chrystal shares a candid look at the friction between frightened families and overworked healthcare workers. Learn how to distinguish between management failures and individual care issues, what critical questions to ask when touring facilities, and how families and nurses can partner together to advocate for the quality care every resident deserves. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:▶️ https://linktr.ee/chrystalmoran Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcastBuy Us a Coffee: ▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

This week, Dr. Mark is joined by clinical psychologist Dr. Nicole Kosanke to discuss the complex reality of loving someone with an addiction. Unlike other forms of caregiving, addiction often introduces broken trust, impossible questions, and the fear of enabling. Dr. Kosanke breaks down the CRAFT (Community Reinforcement and Family Training) and Invitation to Change models, providing actionable advice for families feeling overwhelmed by crisis. This episode explores how caregivers can establish boundaries, role-model healthy behaviors, and prioritize their own well-being without abandoning their loved ones. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:▶️ https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Addiction-Science-Kindness-People/dp/1476709483?_encoding=UTF8▶️ https://motivationandchange.com/Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

This week, Dr. Mark is joined by licensed marriage and family therapist Angela Caldwell to explore one of the most profound unspoken challenges adult children face: losing a parent. Together, they unpack the psychological weight of anticipatory grief before active caregiving even begins, the struggle to initiate difficult end-of-life conversations, and the emotional realities - from deep grief to unexpected relief - that follow a parent's death. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:▶️ https://www.angelacaldwell.com/ ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@angelacaldwell ▶️ https://caldwellfamilyinstitute.com/ Connect With Us:▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665

What changes for a caregiver when day-to-day worry transforms into the terrifying question: "Does the person I love still want to be here?" This week, Dr. Mark Ropeleski sits down with therapist, author, and associate professor Dr. Stacey Freedenthal to explore the immense, unspoken toll of loving someone who has lost the will to live. This heavy but profoundly necessary conversation dives into the heart of caregiver hypervigilance—from checking bedrooms every morning to reading every unanswered text as a warning sign. Dr. Freedenthal introduces the practice of "Brave Listening" (asking the questions whose answers you fear) and explains how caregivers can navigate complex emotions like trauma, anxiety, and even hidden anger without losing themselves entirely to the role. Together, they challenge the cultural myth that love can cure everything and discuss how a caregiver can reconcile with their own human limitations.  Click here to watch a video of this episode. Support Our Guest:  ▶️https://staceyfreedenthal.com/▶️https://speakingofsuicide.com▶️https://www.amazon.com/stores/Stacey-Freedenthal/author/B00B0GJBEY? Connect With Us:  ▶️ https://linktr.ee/thecaregiverspodcast  Buy Us a Coffee:▶️ https://buymeacoffee.com/thecaregiverspodcast Subscribe to The Caregivers Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. If you find these conversations helpful, please leave a review or share this episode with a fellow caregiver. 🔊 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1fLSHPA7ZHbOpvrmcbfcd5?si=2a71d7c4e2e9427c 🔊 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-caregivers-podcast/id1842203665 🚨 Emergency Resources & SupportIf you or someone you love is currently in crisis or struggling with thoughts of suicide, please know that you are not alone and real-time help is available.988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988. It is completely free, confidential, and available 24/7 across North America.Safety Planning Template: Visit suicidesafetyplan.com to access a free template to talk through warning signs and environmental safety with your loved one.