Learn how to be a better health care advocate with Stacie Lampkin.

We've all had that moment when we know we need to be better health care advocates, yet we still hesitate to speak. I'm sure it's because you were taught manners, and you don't want to offend the doctor or health care practitioner. How do we advocate for our loved ones and ourselves without being rude? It's easy once you've heard today's guest.

Stacie Lampkin is a pediatric pharmacist. In 2019, she became a board-certified patient advocate after experiencing first-hand the difficulties of navigating a new health issue. Armed with education and resources, Stacie transforms overwhelm and frustration into knowledge and power. As a patient advocate, she teaches family members, patient advocates, and healthcare professionals how to better advocate for patients.

In this episode, you'll get tips and tools you can put to use at your next health care visit. Understanding how to navigate the system so that everyone feels heard and understood will make your caregiving journey a little bit easier.

Stacies website

Stacies Advocacy Courses

Transcript

Related Episodes:

Health Care Advocacy for Seniors

Health Care Literacy with Tamvoes

NeuroReserve – Helping Our Brainspan Match our Lifespan

NeuroReserve – Helping Our Brainspan Match our Lifespan
Be sure to check out our website for more resources, partners, recipes, and more.  www.fadingmemoriespodcast.com
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If you've enjoyed this episode, please share this podcast with other caregivers!  You'll find us on social media at the following links.

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There you can see me in “action” and watch the bonus videos I share.

Want to learn from Jennifer in person (or virtually)? Wherever you'd like a training session, Jen is available. Contact her at fadingmemoriespodcast@gmail.com

 

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Dr. Elena is back to discuss with us preventing dementia.

I have a family history of cognitive decline. Preventing dementia, Alzheimer's, any neurodegenerative disease is a big part of how I live my life. The longer I do this podcast, the more I learn.

Dynamic learning is one of the most important ways to help our brains live as long as our bodies. What is active learning? The simple answer is learning anything new that requires our focus and concentration.

Learning how to ballroom dance or speak a foreign language are good examples of dynamic or active learning. Learning math would probably be a tremendous challenge for me, but it causes emotional distress so that it won't happen.

We should all be aware that eating right, exercise, getting good sleep are all important in preventing dementia. Keeping stress under control is also very important.

One factor that I don't see discussed as much is dealing with depression. Many years ago, I read that it's believed that many people who have dementia had low levels of depression for much of their adult lives. I wouldn't say my Mom was depressed in the way we generally think of depression, but I do know that she lived with an elevated sense of frustration most of my life. I think that is closely related and worth exploring more.

That's what we're doing in the podcast today. Dr. Elena is back to give us her medical opinions on what we need to do to prevent or reduce our risk of dementia.

Transcript
Other Dr Elena Episodes
“Accidents” And Aging – Learn How To Avoid Them

Fall Prevention with Dr. Elena

Medications & Memory with Dr. Elena

Frailty Is A Thing? W/Dr. Elena Mucci

 

NeuroReserve – Helping Our Brainspan Match our Lifespan

NeuroReserve – Helping Our Brainspan Match our Lifespan
Be sure to check out our website for more resources, partners, recipes, and more.  www.fadingmemoriespodcast.com
Join Fading Memories On Social Media!
If you've enjoyed this episode, please share this podcast with other caregivers!  You'll find us on social media at the following links.

Facebook    Instagram    Twitter

Subscribe to our YouTube channel.

There you can see me in “action” and watch the bonus videos I share.

Want to learn from Jennifer in person (or virtually)? Wherever you'd like a training session, Jen is available. Contact her at fadingmemoriespodcast@gmail.com

 

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How do we determine which doctor appointment is most appropriate?

None of us genuinely wants to go to the doctor. We go when we have to, hoping the medical professionals will help us feel better quickly. Some of us are good at scheduling regular wellness checkups, but even those appointments aren't ones we look forward to with pleasure.

Doctor visits can be stressful for those caring for the chronically ill, especially if diagnosed with a degenerative cognitive disease. I could convince my Mom that we were going someplace fun, but it didn't take long for her to figure out that was a lie. Somehow I communicated “doctor visit,” and she was never happy about that fact.

As Covid took over the globe in March 2020, in-person appointments became severely limited. The result was a rapid acceptance of telehealth appointments. Sometimes we do get a silver lining from the rain clouds.
How Do We Decide?
I've personally had two such appointments, one mainly for timing and convenience, the other because that's all my doctor had available. I was thrilled with the first appointment; my problem was resolved, and my schedule was barely impacted. The second one was also not in-person, which slowed down my diagnosis and treatment. (For those who follow me closely on social media, you'll know that I contracted Shingles at the end of June 2021.)

How do we determine which type of appointment is better? That's the conversation I have with Roz Jones. Roz is a virtual caregiver coach dedicated to taking a proactive approach to working with caregivers and their loved ones. This episode is Rozs' second appearance on Fading Memories. If you missed her first show, you can find it here.

Transcript

Related Article

Be sure to check out Roz Jones Enterprises here and be sure to read the many articles on her blog. 

 

NeuroReserve – Helping Our Brainspan Match our Lifespan

NeuroReserve – Helping Our Brainspan Match our Lifespan

 
Be sure to check out our website for more resources, partners, recipes, and more.  www.fadingmemoriespodcast.com
Join Fading Memories On Social Media!
If you've enjoyed this episode, please share this podcast with other caregivers!  You'll find us on social media at the following links.

Facebook    Instagram    Twitter

Subscribe to our YouTube channel.

There you can see me in “action” and watch the bonus videos I share.

Want to learn from Jennifer in person (or virtually)? Wherever you'd like a training session, Jen is available. Contact her at fadingmemoriespodcast@gmail.com

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

When the cosmic tumblers click into place & the universe opens its vault, miracles can happen. Overcoming challenges happen.

All of us have crossroads in life, challenges we have to overcome. Those of us who have had the experience of caring for a parent with Alzheimer's seem to have more crossroads and more challenges. Coping with the disease, what it does to everyone's life, even the eventual end, poses decisions and heartache.

How can we honor our loved ones while also healing ourselves? Can we do this while they're still alive? In this episode, I talk to Paul Travers, author of Dancing with the Mountains.

Inspired by his dying father's dream of hiking the Appalachian Trail, Paul hits the trail and finds a miracle in the healing power of American's sacred mountains. More than a travelogue, this is a love story about fathers and sons, families battling Alzheimer's, and the people and places along the Appalachian Trail.

Sprinkled with humor and humanity, Dancing with the Mountains is a spiritual story about love, life, and healing.

TRANSCRIPT

Related Episodes:

Running All Over The World

My Mom Marge – (Non Alzheimer’s dementia)

 

NeuroReserve – Helping Our Brainspan Match our Lifespan

NeuroReserve – Helping Our Brainspan Match our Lifespan

 
Be sure to check out our website for more resources, partners, recipes, and more.  www.fadingmemoriespodcast.com
Join Fading Memories On Social Media!
If you've enjoyed this episode, please share this podcast with other caregivers!  You'll find us on social media at the following links.

Facebook    Instagram    Twitter

Subscribe to our YouTube channel.

There you can see me in “action” and watch the bonus videos I share.

Want to learn from Jennifer in person (or virtually)? Wherever you'd like a training session, Jen is available. Contact her at fadingmemoriespodcast@gmail.com

Podcast: Play in new window | Download