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Welcome back to BeREAL! This week Diana and Ednesha pay tribute to a friend of the show, Rick. Rick sadly passed away this past week. Something very important to him was caring for his mother. So, Diana and Ednesha are here to talk about the mental health impacts of taking care of aging parents.
Ednesha begins the episode by talking about Black Woman Be Whole. The team is hosting their first in person event very soon. So, if you are interested in attending a Black Woman Be Whole brunch, visit the link here.
Diana’s weekly update revolves around the passing away of her friend Rick. She tells stories about him, and how the suddenness of his passing is affecting her. She talks about how important Rick’s mother was to him, and how he devoted much of his time to her. This leads the women into talking about taking care of aging parents in general. Ednesha shares some statistics about how many hours Americans spend caring for their parents and/or relatives. Most of these people are also working other jobs, because caring for family is not a paid position.
Diana shares her experience with caregiving in her family. Her parents are currently taking care of her uncle. She talks about how it has been difficult for her parents, because her uncle was a very social person and lately has been deprived of most social interaction. Ednesha joins in to talk about her experience caring for her father. She notes that needing assistance can lead many older people into states of depression. This places yet another burden on the caregiver, who is responsible for brightening their day regardless of their personal circumstances.
Next, Don joins the therapists to talk about the differences between raising a child and taking care of aging parents. Don points out that the elderly have already lived a life of freedom and therefore know what they are missing out on – children do not know this freedom yet. Diana adds on that the goal of raising a child is to prepare them for the world, while raising a parent is to give them a better life in the moment.
To finish off the episode, Diana and Ednesha reflect that society is not currently set up for aging. The professional caregiving systems often fail the elderly. However, despite all this our live expectancy is growing.
Thank you so much for tuning into BeREAL this week. If you haven’t already, go check out the previous episode with our dear friend Rick.
For more information on Indigo108, BeREAL (our mental wellness podcast), and BeWELL (our therapy practice in New York City and Hoboken, NJ) visit the links below:
To schedule a therapy appointment text BeWELL to 484848 today
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