Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver
The Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver podcast offers a candid, unfiltered space to confess the good, the bad, and the ugly of being a caregiver through storytelling, guest interviews, and information sharing. JJ & Natalie are a dynamic duo of sisters supporting their mom living with Parkinson's and a husband who survived cancer. Along with their guests, they discuss their shared experiences in caregiving. Viewers and listeners alike will relate to our reluctance, be affirmed in their ability to be caregivers and gain the courage to confidently step out of the shadows to express their own needs. You are sure to laugh, cry, and everything in between but in the end, all will leave feeling better for the journey and part of the sisterhood of care. So grab your favorite guilty pleasure, and let's get to confessing!
Episodes
219 episodes
2025 – The Plot Twist That’s Changing Everything
2025 brought twists, wins, and one announcement that changes everything. The sisters drop the news, spill the truth, and ask every listener to jump in for what’s next.Social Media:Connect with the Sisters at CareForward...
Caregiver Groundhog Day: Lessons We Keep Learning
If caregiving feels like the same day on repeat, you’re not alone. The sisters laugh, vent, and reflect on the patterns that just keep showing up.
Wait… Haven’t We Been Here Before?
Some stories are worth a second listen. The sisters rewind time to reflect, laugh, and prove that caregiving chaos never gets old.
The Lost Episode: Looking Back with the Original Reluctant Caregivers
In August 2023, Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver took an exciting leap across the pond — airing on UK Health Radio and sharing caregiver stories with an international audience for the first time.But there was just one...
Competing Priorities: Balancing Family, Career and Caregiving
In this episode, Ed DeVaney joins the sisters of "Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver" to share his deeply personal caregiving experience. Raised in a competitive and close-knit Irish Catholic family in Chicago, Ed describes a childhood filled...
Dad, Devotion, and Dancing: Finding Joy in the Hardest Goodbye
This week’s episode focuses on Christopher “Chris” Schuler—his journey as a son, father, and most notably, a devoted caregiver. Chris, adopted from Colombia and raised in a loving, close-knit family in New York, reflects deeply on identity, bel...
Not Stuck in the Yuck: Tricia’s Story of Family, Advocacy, and Strength
Tricia Fitzgerald brings a deeply personal and candid perspective to the experiences of long-term caregiving within a family affected by chronic illness. Drawing from over two decades of advocacy and professional work supporting children ...
Disrupting Care: How Neal Shah Is Revolutionizing Support for Families
Neal Shah’s journey, showcases the impact of caregiving on individual lives and the broader healthcare system. Raised in a close-knit immigrant family, Neal's values were shaped early by the examples set by his parents and grandparents. After b...
When Life Calls: Zack’s Story of Stepping Up for Family and Changing the Caregiving Conversation
Zack Demopoulos’s story begins with his upbringing as the proud son of Greek immigrants, whose journey to the United States instilled in him a deep sense of gratitude, resilience, and responsibility. He shares how his family’s experiences shape...
Compassion in Action: Donna’s Path from Caregiver to Changemaker
With a lifelong passion for nursing, Donna Steigleder’s journey began in her childhood and evolved into a career in healthcare, where she gained a wealth of experience across various medical settings. Her personal caregiving story started early...
The Power of the Pause: Finding Relief in Caregiving with Jenn Fredericks
Jenn Fredericks is the featured guest in this episode, sharing her deeply personal journey as both a long-term patient and a dedicated caregiver. Diagnosed with chronic kidney disease as a teenager, Jenn received her first kidney transplant fro...
The Power of Three and Twelve: Jason’s Caregiving Blueprint
Jason Binder, the founder of Aware Coaching, is a dedicated husband and father of five. His caregiving journey began unexpectedly when his wife, Tracy, a lively marathon runner and mother, received a diagnosis of glioblastoma, a terminal brain ...
Boundaries, Faith, and Family: Lessons from Jenifer Massie’s Caregiving Journey
From a young age, Jenifer Massie was immersed in a culture of service, beginning with volunteering in her school’s “gramps and grannies” program and extending to caring for her own family members. Her caregiving roles evolved over the years, fr...
Surviving the Grief Buffet: Angela’s Journey Through Caregiving and Loss
Over the course of several years, Angela Ibarra faced a series of profound losses, including her husband, her mother, her job, and eventually her father. Her caregiving journey began early, shaped by a childhood spent supporting a sister with m...
Did Mom Drop Acid? Navigating Dementia and Family Dynamics
Michelle Cain’s journey as a caregiver began when her mother was diagnosed with Lewy Body dementia during the pandemic, a time already fraught with uncertainty and stress. At 47, Michelle found herself in the “sandwich generation,” balancing th...
The Power of Family: Navigating ALS Across Generations
The story of Mollie and Maureen powerfully illustrates the emotional depth and complexities of family caregiving when ALS profoundly impacts a household. Maureen, a pediatric nurse from Philadelphia, took on the primary caregiving role for her ...
Confessions of a Young Widow: Rising Above Grief
Shannon Traphagen became a caregiver at 43 when her husband Mike was diagnosed with incurable brain cancer. Their 14-month battle was fraught with heartbreak, including losing an adoption opportunity just before his diagnosis. Despite the chall...
Not What We Signed Up For: Embracing an Unexpected Path
When Rachel Shapiro’s daughter suffered a severe stroke just before her second birthday, Rachel and her husband were told their child might not survive. Despite the devastating prognosis, they refused to give up, navigating a complex medical jo...
Surviving, Thriving, and Loving Again
Stacy Ryan’s powerful story is a testament to love, resilience, and the human capacity to heal after profound loss. Her journey began with her own cancer diagnosis at 45, which she survived, followed by her husband John’s battle with cancer tha...
Love Creatively: A Caregiver's Colorful Journey
This week, Ari Medrano delivers a powerful testament to the depth and complexity of caregiving. As a Mexican immigrant who came to the United States at age one, Ari's approach to caregiving is deeply rooted in her family's values of service, lo...
The Sandwich Generation Survival Guide
Julia Mayer, a clinical psychologist, shares her extensive caregiving journey spanning nine years, which involved caring for her father after her mother's unexpected passing and then supporting her husband Barry's mother, Jean, and stepfather, ...
Forever Caregiver: The Lucas Project & Life Beyond Loss
"I became a forever parent caregiver." - Jesse RonneWhat happens when caregiving, loss, and love collide? Jess Ronnie, writer, speaker, podcaster, and founder of The Lucas Project, brings her powerful story to the mic, offering a moving ...
“And Other Duties Assigned”: When caregiving is unexpectedly added to your Job Description
"I felt this sense of odd FOMO." - Taylor FixMeet Taylor Fix, a remarkable caregiver whose journey began in childhood. Growing up in a close-knit family, caregiving was second nature. But it wasn’t until she became a farmhand and full-ti...
Unlock the Healing Power of Reiki | Energy Healing for Caregivers
“We’re all made of energy.” - Yvette LeFloreAre you a caregiver running on empty? 🎙 Step into a soul-stirring dialogue where healing meets everyday life, Yvette LaFleur, intuitive energy healer and Reiki master teacher, sha...
Inside the World of Special Needs Caregiving: One Father's Powerful Journey
"You don't know what you don't know." - Dave KrikacWhat happens when love meets lifelong responsibility? The realities of caregiving for individuals with special needs, the triumphs, the trials, and the transformative love it takes...