In this caregiver spotlight episode, meet millennial caregiver Kiersten Regele who currently cares for both of her parents with the help of her siblings. Learn how Kiersten’s day job intersected with her family’s current needs and how a smartphone app is saving their sanity when it comes to keeping up with all the caregiving-related responsibilities. You’ll also hear some vulnerability from Kiersten as she shares what it’s like to be a millennial caregiver juggling work and family and how she is determined to bring some fun to her new caregiving role.
Listen to the show: Caregiver Spotlight – Kiersten Regele
Words of Encouragement
Each episode starts off with a few words of inspiration or motivation that is pulled from the Happy Healthy Caregiver Jar.
Links & Resources Mentioned
- Over the last Thanksgiving holiday, Kiersten’s mom was in acute rehab recovering from her stroke. Her siblings decided to bring all of the traditional family Thanksgiving to her.
- Classic movies Kiersten is enjoying with her parents include: To Kill a Mockingbird, Citizen Kane, Sound of Music and Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
- Kiersten recommends the CareBirds app as a functional tool for family caregivers. Some of the current features of the app include:
- To-Do List
- Calendar Management
- Medication Management (e.g. Allergies, Prescriptions, with Reminders)
- Appointment and Visit Updates
- Chat and share photos with private designated Care Team
- Contact List
- Care Coaching Service provided by Elizabeth (free through June 2020)
- Affirmation for app users
- Commercials like this one from AARP help raise awareness to caregiving and connect caregivers to resources.
- Kiersten used to be a mixologist in NYC. She says a ‘Spicy Blackberry Mezcal Margarita’ aligns nicely with the characteristics of a family caregiver since it’s got two sides – one sweet and nurturing and one a bit spicy and gritty. Here’s the ingredients:
- Mezcal (smoky flavor tequila)
- Fresh lime juice
- Triple Sec
- Muddle fresh blackberries
- Small jalapeno slices on top for a bit of a kick
- Half a salt rim on the glass
- All of the prompts from the lightning round segment of the show are borrowed from Elizabeth’s book Just For You: a Daily Self-Care Journal. This journal is for anyone (not just caregivers) who can use a little daily reminder to love on themselves.
- Kiersten invites the family caregiver community to download the app that she has helped create called CareBirds. Through the app, caregivers can share their feedback to help improve and enhance the functionality. You can also connect directly with Kiersten on LinkedIn.
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Favorite moments & quotes from the episode
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