359: How Chronic Caregiving Stress Alters Parent Physical Health, with Andrea Jones

Your body has been keeping score, and it may be time to listen.So many of us are living in a state of constant caregiving stress, navigating the endless layers of raising a differently wired child. We are managing meltdowns, fighting for accommodations, fielding calls from school, and pouring ourselves out day after day. But here is what we do not talk about nearly enough: what all of that stress is quietly doing to our physical health.In this episode, I sit down with Andrea Jones, a registered nurse, functional health practitioner, and fellow special needs parent, to have the honest conversation about what chronic caregiving stress actually does inside our bodies. Andrea spent 15 years in inpatient pediatrics supporting families through health crises before experiencing her own. After her daughter was diagnosed with PANDAS, Andrea watched her own body begin to break down, and she had to completely change how she thought about self-care, resourcing herself, and survival.We talk about the difference between acute and chronic stress, why chronic caregiving stress is so unique and layered, and the three most common physical symptoms she sees in caregiving parents. We dig into cortisol, why it is not doing what you probably think it is doing under long-term stress, and what that paradoxical low-cortisol burnout pattern actually looks and feels like.We also get honest about why self-care feels impossible and even insulting when your day involves sensory meltdowns, skipped meals, and zero margin. Andrea reframes what resourcing yourself actually means when your situation is more extreme than average, and I share how figuring out my own mindset was the only thing that actually moved the needle on my physical health after years of unanswered symptoms.This conversation is for every parent who has pushed through the blinking lights on their own dashboard and told themselves they were fine, right up until they were not. Press play and let this one land.You can find additional resources at parentingadhdandautism.com and Regulated Kids.com — because it’s not just about the struggles, it’s about progress, one step at a time.Show notes and more resources at parentingadhdandautism.com/359Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/beautifully-complex--6137613/support.You can find additional resources at parentingadhdandautism.com. It's not just about the struggles, it’s about progress, one step at a time.This episode includes AI-generated content.