More than 11 million Americans are unpaid caregivers for people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias. That equates to billions of hours of deeply emotional work, most of which is taken on by friends and family. In honor of Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness month, host Anita Rao meets two caregivers to discuss the joys and challenges of caring for a loved one with dementia.
Jacquelyn Revere was 29 when she landed her dream job as a TV writer. Her career was on the rise when she received an urgent call from a family friend: “Come home, something is wrong with your mother and grandmother.” This call began Jacquelyn’s multi-year caregiving journey.
Jacquelyn tells Anita how she supported her mom and grandmother through different stages of Alzheimer's disease. She also shares how her viral TikTok page, “Mom of My Mom,” connected her with fellow caregivers from all around the world.
Anita also talks to Kanu C. “KC” Mehta, an engineer, about his experience care-partnering for his wife of 50 years, Sumi. KC shares how he used data and science to creatively anticipate Sumi’s needs and how self-care is an essential asset to any care-partner.
A huge thank you to Dr. Gerald Lazarus, Patti LaFleur, Kris McCabe and Alma Valencia for their heartfelt contributions to this episode.
The poem that KC reads at the end of the episode is "Do Not Ask Me to Remember" by Owen Darnell.
