That familiar whirling blur of anticipation, worry, hope and fear swirls in my gut. My palms sweat and my heart pounds faster. My mind races through what might happen this time, what might go wrong. I’m nesting again. It feels just like it did twenty-three years ago when I was expecting the birth of my […]
The Fear Factor
Often when we think about fear, we associate it with things that we are unable or are afraid to do. Fear is a powerful emotion. Its internal alarm system in our bodies is useful because it lets us know when we are in danger, giving us the opportunity to make different choices in order to avoid harm […]
Guest Post: No More Excuses
Sometime in my twenties as a young mother and new teacher, I heard the saying: “Excuses are like belly buttons, everybody’s got one…” I believe the rest of the saying was “…and they’re all full of crud” or something like that. But for my purposes as both a teacher and a mom, I didn’t need […]
Dear Caregiver: You are not Alone
Dear Caregiver, I see your eyes and I know how lost you feel right now. I can imagine your thoughts and all of the emotions you are feeling; angry, sad, mad and blaming all at the same time. You are in shock. This child or loved one that you have tried so hard to love through all […]
Caregivers Guest Post: Crisis in the Rearview
Crisis in the Rearview Guest Post, By Annie Slease “Writers write from what they know.” This has been my mantra for more than twenty years as a middle school English teacher, but I hadn’t ever put it to the test until my older son Jake suffered his first true mental health crisis. As a way of […]
Caregivers Guest Post: In Her Own Words
In today’s Caregivers in the Spotlight guest post, Brandi Gowan, author of the blog mydaughtersmind.com which chronicles her journey as a caregiver of a young daughter with mental illness, shares some of the challenges of caregiving in her own words. I recently met Brandi through a mutual social media contact and am grateful for the […]
This Week: Mental Illness in the News
The past two weeks have been so full of Caregiver’s Spotlight posts, shares and tips on the blog and in our Facebook Community that I decided to push last week’s Mental Illness in the News recap out and combine it with this week’s edition! There are so many good, thought-provoking, and well written news and blog […]
Caregivers Guest Post: Loving and Living
I am excited to share today’s Caregivers in the Spotlight guest post written by the other half of the amazing Klein duo, Barb Klein. Barb and I have this fantastic story of how our lives have criss-crossed over and over again since the time we first met when her husband Tom coached my older son’s little […]
Caregivers Guest Post: Could Perseverance be Perfection?
I am excited to share today’s Caregivers in the Spotlight guest post written by Tom Klein. I met Tom many years ago when he coached my older son’s little league team . I am grateful that not only did I get to know Tom as a coach but over the years a friendship has developed between his family and mine. […]
Caregivers Guest Post: Who is the Caregiver?
I am excited to share today’s Caregivers in the Spotlight guest post written by a parent/caregiver who would like to remain anonymous*. I met this author through social media and we very quickly realized that we had many similarities in our stories and experiences. By remaining anonymous, this author can share her story and light with […]
