Meet Scott Lien, a working family caregiver and member of the sandwich generation, who navigated the loss of four parents and in-laws over twelve years. His caregiving journey, combined with his extensive tech background, inspired him to co-found GrandPad, a user-friendly platform designed to keep seniors connected and engaged. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, Scott and I dive into practical ways families and society can combat senior isolation and loneliness. We also expl...
Jul 02, 2025•50 min•Season 8Ep. 208
Imagine stepping into a marriage knowing you're immediately going to become a full-time caregiver. That was Hope Cross's reality when her husband, Steve, was diagnosed with ALS while they were dating. For nine years, she cared for him up until his passing, and it was a journey filled with love, challenges, and deep emotions. Hope has openly shared the raw and unfiltered sides of caregiving, offering a rare glimpse into the realities many face, but sometimes don't discuss. In this episode, Hope s...
Jun 18, 2025•52 min•Season 8Ep. 207
Art Bowker cares for his mother who is living with Alzheimer’s while juggling multiple careers, including one as a cybercrime expert. Art has over 30 years of experience in law enforcement and corrections and co-authored a book to help us protect vulnerable adults from cybercrimes and provides guidance on surviving a cyberattack. In this episode we chat about cybercrime (like pig butchering), what we can do to help prevent a financial catastrophe, hoarding, legal guardianship, and Art’s passion ...
Jun 04, 2025•46 min•Season 8Ep. 206
In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, Jess Ronne shares her powerful caregiving journey, from supporting her late husband through brain cancer to raising her son, Lucas, who lives with profound disabilities—alongside seven other children. Jess is an entrepreneur, author, speaker, podcast host, documentary producer, and passionate caregiver advocate. She opens up about the stark contrast in support she received during different caregiving seasons and how anger fueled her resilie...
May 21, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Season 8Ep. 205
In May we pay tribute to the generations of Asian and Pacific Islanders who have enriched America's history and are instrumental in its future success. This caregiver spotlight episode echoes all of these sentiments. Meet Paurvi Bhatt, a dedicated family caregiver, care advocate, and second-generation Indian American with deep personal and professional caregiving experience. Raised in a family of caregivers, Paurvi spent nearly 30 years balancing her career as a ‘working daughter’ while managing...
May 07, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Season 8Ep. 204
Meet Jim Cooper who has been married for 40+ years and cared for his wife who had brain cancer. Jim is a man of many talents and experiences. He has been a radio DJ, real estate broker, IT consultant, author, podcaster, and currently is a voice over professional who narrates audiobooks. In this episode, Jim and I discuss the value of staying connected to friends, family, health professionals, and other caregivers. We talk about his self-care strategies and passions that helped him during his int...
Apr 23, 2025•53 min•Season 8Ep. 203
In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, we’re joined by Carrie Severson—caregiver to her husband Gavin and a recognized expert in burnout. Carrie shares how her personal caregiving journey inspired her advocacy work, storytelling, and her podcast, I Saved You. Now, Do the Dishes. We dive into the difference between caregiver burnout and the entrepreneurial burnout Carrie previously experienced and spoke about. She also recounts a shocking experience with a disruptive healthcare p...
Apr 09, 2025•53 min•Season 8Ep. 202
Dr. Tina Sadarangani is a sandwich generation caregiver and a NYU Assistant Professor who is a board-certified adult and geriatric nurse practitioner. Even though she is a clinician and has a PhD focused on aging, she still finds navigating our healthcare system difficult as the quarterback of the family’s care team. In this episode, we talk about what Dr. Tina would do to improve our healthcare system for family caregivers, her mobile app that helps families better manage a person’s day to day ...
Mar 26, 2025•55 min•Season 8Ep. 201
In this milestone 200th episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, I’m thrilled to share something extra special with you—I’m introducing two amazing people who mean the world to me: my sisters! You may already be familiar with my older sister, Susie Morrell, who was our mom’s primary caregiver for many years and has been featured on two previous episodes. However, this is the first time you’ll meet my younger sister, Anne Woodbury, who has also been a part of our caregiving journey. Togeth...
Mar 12, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Season 8Ep. 200
Susan Bottega is a nurse by practice who became a caregiver when her husband was diagnosed with CLL (Chronic lymphocytic leukemia) over 12 years ago. Since then, Susan has adjusted her life to caring for Bob, researching CLL and treatment options, and helping other CLL family caregivers through her virtual support group. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, Susan and I talk about adjusting retirement plans after a diagnosis, finding those who are ready and willing to support y...
Feb 26, 2025•50 min•Season 8Ep. 199
Kitty Norton left her job as an NBC assistant editor in Los Angeles in 2016, for her hometown of Portland, Oregon, to walk, stumble, crawl with her dementia mother to death’s door. While doing so, she authored the dementia caregiver blog Stumped Town Dementia, writing tales of dementia life which resonated deeply with readers around the world. After her mother's death, Kitty turned her storytelling talents to creating and directing the dementia family caregiver documentary, WINE, WOMEN, & DE...
Feb 12, 2025•59 min•Season 8Ep. 198
Heather Henderson is what I’m calling a boomerang family caregiver since she has moved in with her mom to be her primary caregiver at various times in her life. Heather initially became a primary caregiver overnight in 2003 when her parents were in a fatal car accident - her dad did not survive, and her mom was seriously injured. She moved home to care for mom until she was fully recovered. Fifteen years later, Heather became her mom’s primary caregiver again and moved back in with her while wor...
Jan 29, 2025•49 min•Season 8Ep. 197
Kelley Coleman is a California mom to two amazing boys and full-time caregiver for her son with multiple disabilities. She is a feature film development executive turned author and advocate for parent caregivers and individuals with disabilities. Her book draws upon over a decade of experience parenting a child with multiple disabilities In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast we talk about why Kelley treats caregiving like a job, the advantages of not having a formal diagnosis fo...
Jan 15, 2025•1 hr•Season 8Ep. 196
After struggling with the demands of caring for her aging mother, Paige Wilson made a bold move, leaving her corporate career and becoming an entrepreneur with a big idea to help family caregivers. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, we learn about her disruptive care solution that utilizes technology to harness the strength of community. We also discuss normalizing asking for help, the longevity economy, downsizing possessions, and the self-care comfort of a McDonald’s diet ...
Nov 20, 2024•55 min•Season 7Ep. 195
Jennifer Cain Birkmose is a sandwich generation caregiver, juggling the responsibilities of caring for loved ones in two different countries and life stages, while employing two distinct caregiving styles. She is also an improv comedian and instructor, with over 25 years of experience in the healthcare industry. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, we explore how Jennifer integrates her professional skills into her challenging daily caregiving routine. We also delve into her d...
Nov 06, 2024•1 hr•Season 7Ep. 194
Gene Lanzoni's life centers around caregiving, both at home and at work. As an only child, Gene and his wife of over 30 years, Elizabeth, took on the responsibility of caring for his aging parents. Professionally, Gene leads the development of thought leadership research and produces content on caregiver trends. He is also a co-lead and founding member of a caregiver-focused employee resource group (ERG). In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, we discuss the origins of the ERG a...
Oct 23, 2024•59 min•Season 7Ep. 193
Jessica Patay, a reformed perfectionist and dedicated caregiving mother, provides compassionate support and resources to other moms caring for children with disabilities or unique needs. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, Jessica shares how she manages and supports her son Ryan, who has a rare genetic condition called Prader-Willi syndrome, while maintaining her own well-being. We discussed helpful and unhelpful language from friends and family and explore the various ways c...
Oct 09, 2024•55 min•Season 7Ep. 192
In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, meet Mark Wilson, a former senior leader at Taco Bell with a focus on organization and people development. After retiring early to care for his mom, who lived with mixed dementia, Mark embraced the role of a 'Care Leader.' Combining his corporate HR skills with his caregiving journey, he developed a dedicated care mission, hired and retained top-notch professional caregivers, and became a passionate learner about dementia care. In this epis...
Sep 25, 2024•58 min•Season 7Ep. 191
Christina Keys was living the American dream until one day in March of 2013, her mom had a life-changing stroke. Within 3 years of caregiving for her mom Pat, Christina was financially, emotionally, and mentally bankrupt. Her doctors told her that the stress of caregiving was literally killing her. Christina took action to make a different choice and turned her caregiving co-dependent mess into a message. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, Christina shares a few of her price...
Sep 11, 2024•54 min•Season 7Ep. 190
Sabrina Ortolano has been a caregiver for her wife, Cyndi, since 2014 when she was diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, Sabrina and I talk about her identity crisis that sprouted from caregiving, the importance of body work, fundraising for brain surgery, asking for the right help, and managing judgment from others and unsolicited advice. Show notes with product and resource links: https://bit.ly/HHCPod189 Receive the podcast in your...
Aug 28, 2024•1 hr•Season 7Ep. 189
Anthony Cirillo cared for several family member and these experiences prompted him to focus his professional career on helping older adults and advocating for seniors and their caregivers through singing, speaking, consulting and writing. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, we learn about Anthony’s new legacy project and product called Sage Stream which provides social engagement and entertainment for seniors using music. We also chat about everything else; from laughter and ...
Aug 14, 2024•52 min•Season 7Ep. 188
Steve Guttenberg is a beloved Hollywood actor, known for his role in films including Diner, Police Academy, Short Circuit, Three Men and a Baby, Cocoon, and television shows including Ballers and Veronica Mars. We have enjoyed Steve Guttenberg in many roles and now I’d like to spotlight maybe the role that was the most difficult for Steve – the role of family caregiver to his dad and hero, Stanley. Steve wrote about his care experience while reflecting on his childhood and Hollywood career in hi...
Jul 31, 2024•29 min•Season 7Ep. 187
Vinnie Venugopal cared for his father and is a Certified Aging In Place Specialist with a passion for entrepreneurship and building solutions. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, Vinnie shares how a 2-week vacation to India with his parents turned into an 8-week caregiving nightmare. Then, when his family was able to return home more attention was needed to help his dad age in place. We also talk about the small changes online and brick and mortar businesses and home builders...
Jul 17, 2024•50 min•Season 7Ep. 186
Tara Ross brings a wealth of personal experience and unwavering support to fellow caregivers, drawing from more than a decade of caregiving roles. Having navigated the complexities of caring for a veteran, her in-laws, and balancing the needs of young children and pets, Tara intimately understands the challenges caregivers face. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, Tara shares her journey of overcoming caregiver burnout and implementing strategies to prevent future exhaustion....
Jul 03, 2024•53 min•Season 7Ep. 185
Dr. Zahydie L. Burgos Ribot cares for her husband, Francisco, also known as Paco, who is living with Young Onset Familial Alzheimer's Disease. In this episode, Zahydie and Paco share their caregiving journey. They talk about how they took time to understand and cope with Paco's diagnosis and process their feelings of grief before telling others. They also discuss Paco's treatment, including E2814 therapy and Leqembi medication, which help slow down Paco’s Alzheimer’s. And they talk about how the...
Jun 19, 2024•59 min•Season 7Ep. 184
Steve Powell cared for both of his parents as their health and mobility declined. His experiences mitigating many falls for his parents, prompted his invention of a device designed to lift individuals safely and comfortably off the floor. In this episode, Steve and I chat about aging in place, fall prevention, perfectionism, and why he has the well-deserved nickname of ‘The Singing Wine Maker.’ Show notes with product and resource links: https://bit.ly/HHCPod183 Receive the podcast in your email...
Jun 05, 2024•44 min•Season 7Ep. 183
Alder Allensworth cared for her mother who had Alzheimer’s and her father who had vascular dementia. Alder’s inspiration to co-create a children’s tool kit for families came from watching her mother interact with her grandchildren. In this episode of the Happy Healthy Caregiver podcast, we talk about the resources Alder and her friend Brenda created to help children better understand dementia. Alder shares the benefits of having structure in our days, how a continuing care retirement community w...
May 22, 2024•1 hr•Season 7Ep. 182
Allison Breininger has an MA in Education and spent twenty years in the realm of education. At 31, she became a caregiver for her husband, Sean, when he was diagnosed with the rare genetic disease Fanconi Anemia. She has been by his side through countless treatments and experienced firsthand that caregivers are in what she calls ‘the negative space’: vital yet overlooked and unsupported. In this episode, Allison shares why caregivers are part of the story and need to be recognized, why the oxyge...
May 08, 2024•57 min•Season 7Ep. 181
Natalie Elliott Handy and JJ Elliott Hill are sisters. Together, along with a third sister Emilie, they manage care for their mom who is living with Parkinson’s disease. Natalie is also a caregiver for her spouse, Jason, who receives palliative care to help navigate his cancer journey. In this episode, we discuss all the total messiness around family caregiving. We talk about letting go of perfectionism, getting access to your parent’s finances, the benefits of palliative care, and they both con...
Apr 24, 2024•56 min•Season 7Ep. 180
Meet Peter Rosenberger who has been a family caregiver for over 38 years for a spouse with severe disabilities. Peter is fluent in the language of caregiver and has navigated a medical nightmare that has mushroomed to 85+ major operations—including the amputation of both of his wife Gracie’s legs below the knee. In this episode, Peter recounts his experience attempting to admit himself to a mental hospital, discusses why caregiving shouldn't hinder us from embracing life, shares his strategies f...
Apr 10, 2024•1 hr•Season 7Ep. 179
