Caregiving, WOOP, and the Emotional Load: A Conversation with Dr. Joan Monin

In this episode, we sit down with the amazing Dr. Joan Monin from Yale University to talk about the real, raw, and often overlooked emotional weight of caregiving—especially for those of us juggling careers, kids, and aging parents. Joan not only brings a wealth of research and experience in public health, but also shares her personal journey as a daughter navigating her mom’s dementia diagnosis. This one hits close to home.We unpack the psychological barriers that prevent caregivers from getting the support they need, the tension of being a “pre-caregiver,” and how to manage stress before burnout hits. Joan introduces us to a simple but powerful emotional regulation tool called WOOP (Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan)—and trust us, you’re going to want to try it. If you’ve ever felt stuck between showing up for your job and showing up for your family, this episode is for you. Episode Highlights: [2:13] - Welcoming Dr. Joan Monin and learning a fun fact about her town's connection to the Statue of Liberty [4:43] - Joan opens up about her personal caregiving story and her parents' challenges with dementia [7:53] - The emotional disconnect between academic knowledge and real-life caregiving [10:50] - Why accessing a therapist as a caregiver is harder than it should be [14:06] - How Joan’s caregiving journey shifted her perspective on work-life balance [16:39] - What Joan learned by watching her kids interact with their grandparents [19:05] - A deep dive into emotional self-regulation and the WOOP method for caregivers [27:52] - How WOOP works and how it’s helping caregivers manage guilt, anxiety, and stress [31:02] - Introducing Borrow My Glasses and their innovative caregiver education efforts [34:40] - The spousal caregiver dilemma and why unpaid caregiving laws need to change [35:55] - The double standard society places on women, spouses, and working caregivers [41:07] - The surprising divorce statistics among early-stage dementia caregivers [43:33] - Joan’s latest research focused on helping people live well with dementia [46:26] - How to connect with Dr. Monin and learn more about her work Links & Resources:·         Joan Monin PhD Yale Website:  https://ysph.yale.edu/profile/joan-monin/ ·         Joan Monin website:  https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=hwgGVxMAAAAJ&hl=en ·         Joan Monin LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/joan-monin-54153a8b/ ·         WOOPmylife.org:  https://woopmylife.org/ ·         "WOOP" study:  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38687142/ ·         Borrow My Glasses website:  https://borrowmyglasses.com/  If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow the podcast and leave a review. Remember to check out our website at invisibleemployeeadvocates.com for more resources, and subscribe to our newsletter for updates! We’ll catch you in the next episode.