Caregiver Tea Time with Val Halloway

00:30 Val acknowledges those who helped make this podcast a reality: producer Bianca Grooves, sound engineer Sammy Wags, song writing teacher Joe Marrero, and all of her friends and family who encouraged her along the way.03:45 Val shares a quote titled "The Value of Memories" from a devotional book called "New Beginnings" by Solly Ozrovich.05:10 Here's Val's special message: "You can choose whether to let the sorrowful memories color your world or focus on the happy memories as an inspiration to make choices that you'll look back on with a joyful smile."05:45 Honey Granola Recipe:Supplies: buttered jelly roll pan, 11 by 17 inches, a large bowl, wax or parchment paperIngredients:2 1/2 cups old -fashioned oats.1/2 cup brown sugar1/2 cup sunflower seeds1/3 cup melted butter1 /4 cup wheat germ1 teaspoon cinnamon,1 /2 a teaspoon of salt1 /2 cup honey.1 /2 cup raisins to stir in after baking and cooling the granolaPreparation:Preheat oven to 350 degrees.Butter jelly roll pan. Melt butter. Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl.Drizzle the melted butter and honey over the dry ingredients and stir together.Spread evenly in the pan.Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Stir halfway through.Pour it out of the pan onto wax paper or parchment paper, spread out and let cool.Place the cool granola in a bowl and stir together with the raisins.Bag up or put in sealed containers to keep it fresh. Can be frozen.07:20 Words to sing along version of Nothing but the Good Things:Nothing but the good things,Nothing but the good thingsIn this world,Living in my heart.I like dancing barefoot in the grass.I like ice cream and kittens make me laugh.Friends and family are sending love to me--Much more love than you or I could ever see.Don't get me wrong, there's tough stuff everywhere:Bad news, sad news, mad news and despair.Still the rising moon reflects the sun's bright light,And the stars break through the darkest night!Nothing but the good things,Nothing but the good thingsIn this world,Living in my heart,Living in my heart. Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

00:20 Val gives an example of how grief hits her at random times.01:00 Val shares how she feels stronger after doing this podcast.02:10 Val shares her thoughts about the masculine and feminine sides of grief. She found a book, "Swallowed by a snake. The Gift of the Masculine Side of Healing" by Thomas Golden. https://tgolden.com/books-and-videos/03:10 Thomas Golden's book reports the masculine path to grieving usually happens through taking action. and the feminine path through relating to others. He qualifies this statement with the known fact that men have a feminine side and women a masculine side and the mix of the two determines how an individual processes grief.03:50 Val shares about the importance of "standing in the tension of grief, " and choices that come with that.04:35 Val relates to a quote from the author Richard Rohr, https://cac.org/about/our-teachers/cac-founder-richard-rohr/who coined the term "hope infused with realistic awareness." She feels this is an attitude to strive for when handling tough times. Val shares how she struggled to feel as though she had enough information to have "realistic" awareness.06:20 Val shares her ideal for how the medical system could include a team member trained in palliative care to reduce emotional pain and suffering for the caregiver.07:45 Val returns to the subject of grief, and she uses examples from Thomas Golden's book to describe a grief ritual and how to structure it.09:13 Val shares how she structured grief in the early days after her son passed away and how she is structuring it now.12:50 Val shares about her grief ritual of going to a coffee shop to drink one of her son's favorite coffee beverages, a cortado.14:05 Val shares about hiring a death doula to be with her to offer support as she sorts through her son's things at home. Val is grateful to have the opportunity to work with Allie Jones, [https://soulcompanionservices.com/about]who recently opened a business called Soul Companion Services. Val explains what a death doula does and she shares that Allie has a unique perspective on life, because she was born with Fanconi Anemia, the same genetic disorder Val's son had.16:35 Val shares her special message about her fears related to needless suffering and that she believes it is necessary to feel the pain of grief, but we don't need to suffer from it.16:50 Val's cheer: "I'm feeling the pain of my grief, and I'm letting go of the suffering!" Cheers! Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

00:13 In this episode Val shares that pain is an inevitable part of caregiving, but there is something called palliative care that offers relief for suffering and hope for an improved quality of life for both the patient and the caregiver. Val was frightened when her son was first introduced to palliative care early in treatment. She felt it meant the doctors thought he would not get better. Now she realizes it doesn't mean "end of life care," and sees palliative care as an especially important service for caregivers, whose quality of life can suffer when they learn their loved one has a life threatening illness or disease. She feels palliative care is important to the future of medicine.01:58 Val compares hospice to palliative care. Val encourages all caregivers to ask their medical team about palliative care and learn more about it and options available.  02:34 Val explains that with hospice care, the hospice staff takes over the care of the patient and is trained to support the patient and family through the patient's final days. All treatment is stopped except for medications to reduce pain and anxiety.03:36 Val next explains that the aim of palliative care is to relieve suffering:   physically, mentally, and spiritually for both the patient and the family. The palliative care team includes doctors, nurse specialists, social workers, and chaplains. They work along side the medical treatment team.4:50  Dr. Rebecca Martin, a palliative care physician  https://www.wmchealth.org/physician-locator/a3f5fc1a-327e-4d50-be2e-8b4b773c3d71 was Val's source for information about the current state of palliative care in our medical system. Dr. Martin told Val that a good way to distinguish between hospice and palliative care is to understand that all hospice care is palliative, but not all palliative care is hospice.05:05 Dr. Martin explained to Val that palliative care staff know how to ask the right questions, and they know what words to use to put the patient and the family at ease. She shared it's even important to know the order in which to ask the questions. 06:22 Val's son was introduced to palliative care early on in his treatment, when he was seen at a specialty center. However, when he transferred care closer to home he was not offered palliative care. She shared that there was a staff position that would have helped him, but the position had not been filled and no one was designated to cover the responsibilities.06:49 Val wanted to know why palliative care is not offered to everyone and relays that Dr. Martin told her that the longer time a doctor knows a patient, the harder it is for that doctor to acknowledge a poor prognosis. Val mentions the the book, "Being Mortal" by Dr. Atul Gawande. https://atulgawande.com/ and shares that from Dr. Gawande's experience, doctors are trained to identify and solve problems, so when they're facing a patient that has a problem they can't solve, it's hard for them to acknowledge that.07:45 Val shares that she feels every medical team needs a member who will help patients and their families see the bigger truth for each individual case. She feels this will both alleviate  and prevent suffering during curative treatment and when curative treatment ends.09:24 Both Dr. Martin and Val's spiritual director Beth helped Val see events in her life for what they are: painful and tragic. Putting words to her experience has helped Val cope.09:49 Val shares that the next episode of Caregiver Tea Time will be about grief.10:15 Val shares an update about a new experience seeing eagles and this gives her a feeling of connection with her husband and son.11:34  Val shares the cheer she has for this episode:  "Help is out there, and I'm going to ask for it!" Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

01:09 Val warns listeners that in this episode she talks about end-of-life events. 01:34 Val shares that her situation is unique because her loved ones were young when they received their diagnosis. Her husband was 39 when he developed cancer in his tonsil and 50 when he developed leukemia from the radiation treatment 10 years earlier. Her son developed MDS because of a genetic disorder he had called Fanconi Anemia. https://fanconi.org/These events were unexpected and Val's family didn't have the life experiences to understand what they faced. Val felt a constant inner tension and she feels that our health care system is not set up to help young families like hers discuss end -of -life issues. This is what has led her to create this podcast.04:11 Val shares she is working on having compassion for herself and everyone involved in the situation. And especially compassion for just thinking things could have been done differently. Val feel her life lesson at this time is  "go with the flow, and let go of the need to know".05:04 Val shares the memory of the day her husband decided to go against his doctor's recommendation to try another treatment. Her husband had relapsed after a bone marrow transplant and his doctor wanted him to go through the process again. 06:32 A second doctor from the team presented a different point of view that was in line with her husband's wishes. Her husband decided to live his final days at home and not in the hospital undergoing more chemotherapy. She shares the immense appreciation she has for the doctor who took time to explain in detail what was happening and probable outcomes, even though others on the team disagreed with his approach.08:49 Val shares about the events that led up to her husband's passing. She reminds listeners that in Season 3, Episode 4 she shares the beautiful story of what happened after her husband passed.10:08 Val shares about the Ottawa Person Decision Guide. https://decisionaid.ohri.ca/decguide.htmlA PDF copy and an explanation of this guide can be found  here:  https://decisionaid.ohri.ca/docs/das/opdg.pdf12:26 Val's personal message today comes from Corrie Ten Boom, author of "The Hiding Place.""Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, It empties today of its strength."13:15 Val says, "Here's to the strength we have today! Cheers!" Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

Sitting and waiting and just being a caregiver gave Val, a long time nutritionist, the opportunity to learn more about the Mediterranean Diet. In a wonderful serendipity, Val's neighbor back home, Andrew Schmidt, had recently graduatedd from the American Culinary Institute of America, and helped her create three days of Mediterranean menus. Val called them "The Mediterranean Diet Adventure."  Shakshuka  for breakfast is Val's favorite recipe from this collection!You can learn more about Chef Andrew on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chefdrew22/#Chef Andrew is currently the Executive Chef at the Classic Cooking Academy in Scottsdale, Arizona.Look for more information about Val's Mediterranean Diet Adventure at https://www.caregiverteatime.com/01:09 Description of how to use the Shakshuka Sauce recipe for breakfast01:44  Ingredients for the Shakshuka Sauce recipe02:45 Instructions for Shakshuka Sauce preparation and cooking04:17 How to cook the eggs in the Shakshuka Sauce to make a complete breakfast04:40 How to serve the Shakshuka recipeEnjoy!  Cheers! Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

Val explains the steps for doing a Legs up the Wall relaxing routine. She provides 5 minutes of music to listen to while holding the pose.00:22 Music Begins Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

In this episode, Val shares events that confirmed her belief that there is a beautiful spiritual aspect to life - something powerful and loving that has  always been there for her when she sought to find it. There have been times when her life felt dark and scary, and that's when a source of love and light was there to overcome the darkness.02:35 Val shares that somehow, her husband Paul and son Loren’s spirits visited this earth in the form of eagles. After attending her husband's memorial service, several people asked if she saw the eagle soaring overhead as they left the building because they thought it was Paul. Earlier that same morning at the graveside service, an eagle was there. As the family stood up to leave, it took off in the direction of where the memorial service was to be held. Val's Aunt Jan shared how fitting she thought it was that Paul would visit in the form of an eagle - such a strong and regal bird - one to be there to watch over his family. 03:15 Other times Val saw an eagle that reminded her of Paul: at the farm, one surprised Val as it soared around the corner of the barn, driving home from church an eagle flew alongside her car for several miles, and at a car dealership an eagle was soaring over head as she traded in their old car for a newer one.04:20 Several years later, shortly after her youngest son passed away, two eagles visited her and her older son at the farm. Her older son had come home to be there for his brother and mother and was staying a few more months after his brother passed away. They were sitting in the yard late in the afternoon, when from quite a distance, they could see two eagles. One landed elegantly in a large tree and the other one crashed landed in the next tree. It reminded her of how her husband would stand back and let his children figure things out for themselves.06:15  Her last story is about what happened a few days after her husband passed away. She could feel her husband's presence while getting a massage and received  message that said, “Now I am seeing what you’ve been talking about all along!” and she had a vision of his spirit as a bright light shooting into a twilight sky like a rocket, and ashes of the old were falling away like dust.  She knew he must be headed to a wonderful Heavenly place, and he wanted her to know that what she believed about it was true. Later her massage therapist confirmed to her that she could feel the spiritual presence too, and that it had a message the therapist felt compelled to share: " I'm sorry." This was a personal message Val appreciated and felt she understood what it was all about.08:55 Val concludes Season 3 about Spirituality by providing listeners with information about the Spiritual Directors International Directory, https://www.sdicompanions.org/find-a-spiritual-director-companion/  a place to find a certified spiritual director or spiritual companion.  She provides a link on her website, caregiverteattime.com.11:20 And here’s Val's special message: "It’s easy to get all wrapped up in caregiving worries, fears, and feeling lost. The truth and the power of the Spirit can be difficult to find at times. But it’s there, so when it get dark and stormy,  I encourage you to take that deep breath - reach out your hand, and say, “help”. The love and light to show the way is always near! Cheers!"   Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

In the introduction Val shares about three personal retreats she has taken: the first was 15 years ago at a retreat center close to home where she spent the night at a Catholic retreat center reserved for quiet, prayer, and listening, the second was a year ago in Sedona Arizona where each day she met individually with compassionate caring women devoted to spiritual healing, and the third was just a few months ago with a small group of women at a retreat center in the Catskill mountains.She realizes that not everyone has the time or resources to get away - one can feel refreshed with quiet time at home, a big mug of coffee and a Hallmark movie. Others cherish watching their  children perform in a play or athletic event or helping them move to a new apartment.  Val loves those things too, but knows that getting away from her familiar environment and meeting new people renews her energy and it gives her strength.Share shares a quote from Albert Einstein: ‘We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.’ –  Her retreats were about discovering a different way of thinking.After her husband of 25 years passed away from leukemia, she realized that "today is all we have."  She awoke to the reality there is so very little she has control over. She felt herself spiraling down, and allowed herself to get away from everything at home and ponder her new life at a Catholic Retreat Center a few hours from home.  She read the book, Practicing the Presence of God, by Brother Lawrence. The story she remembers most was about how Brother Lawrence  lifted an uncomfortable situation to God, and God promised to take care of Brother Lawrence's reputation. She shares that April 2022- to April 2023 was a  year of full of losses:  a job, her 30 year-old son, 93 year-old father and a 10-year marriage.She searched the internet for "A retreat to get back on my feet” and found the Sedona Soul Adventure. After an interview with program representatives to determine her goals, she chose a 3-Day program where she would meet individually with two practitioners each day. A life coach helped her set the following intentions: -I am living fully and trusting – as my life unfolds as it should.-I am accepting of and healing from all the loss I have experienced this past year.-I am allowing myself to grieve the loss of my son, knowing it was his time to go.-I am taking the necessary steps to rid my body of emotions and physical pain.-I am feeling balance with my desired success and being nurturing to myself and my family.One practitioner at the retreat shared about the Soul Theory. This practitioner believes souls choose to be born into a human life in order to grow and change. The soul chooses the challenges it will have. The soul chooses this to evolve and overcome trauma and find spiritual peace and joy, even though the tragedies. The retreat helped Val see the tragedies of her life in a new way. The third retreat was organized by two Reiki practitioners to give their clients a place to heal in the presence of other caring women. Reiki is a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes energy healing. The retreat was a gathering of eight women at a yoga retreat center in the Catskill mountains. This time gave Val confidence to get writing on the scripts for caregiver tea time! Val's special message is this:Have you ever wondered what your soul came here to accomplish? If you feel something is holding you back from your soul finding joy and peace, the love and support you need is out there.   Val still has times of quiet and tears almost every day. To her, this just makes peace and joy in life all the more wonderful and an amazing adventure. Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

Val shares about people who have inspired and encouraged her with simple acts of love like holding her hand, praying with her, praying for her or by writing about their faith and spirituality.She shares about how fortunate she's been to have a Christian faith community wherever she's lived and friends who follow through with the nudge to pray with her. Once, when things looked discouraging for her loved one who was getting surgery, Val felt paralyzed by fear. Her pastor visited and asked her to let those who love her be like the friends in the Bible story who carried their paralyzed friend to Jesus to be healed and be able to walk again.  Later, after looking at an MRI to prepare for surgery, the doctors found a safe way to operate and the surgery was a success.Val shares about authors of books she's read that inspired her as a caregiver over a 30 year period. There was something about the way the words came across to Val that just made sense. Or, they offered specific things she could do to make her life more fulfilling and abundant.CS Lewis inspired her with his books, Mere Christianity and The Four Loves. Richard Foster provided practical ways to practice a life with God in his book, Celebration of Discipline. Maryanne Williamson shared about her insights from A Course in Miracles in her books A Return to Love and From Tears to Triumph. David Hawkins was a medical doctor facing death with he called out to God in prayer and was saved. He is able to explain spiritual things in concrete and scientific ways in the book, Transcending the Levels of Consciousness. Val shares that when she doesn't know what to think about what's going on in this crazy world today, David Brook's opinions encourage her, as does his book, How to Know a Person.Val finishes this podcast with a story about PAGL, a concept brought to her attention by her friend, which stands for Peace, Assurance, Gratitude and Love. It is a way to existentially validate decision making. Val shares that even though there are times she's felt alone, she believes we are never really alone and we can encourage one another by reaching out and lifting up each other in prayer.  Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

01:34 Val introduces Season 3. In this season she will share about her spiritual journey, spiritual mentors she’s had along the way, and about her spiritual growth by attending spiritual retreats. In the final episode of this season, she will share her personal, spiritual experiences with loved ones who have passed that bring her joy and hope. Val has always had a strong intuition about God and was raised in a Christian home. As a child she loved exploring the large King James family Bible. Her childhood was calm and loving and her faith was never challenged. 04:37 As an adult, her faith was tested and deepened when young family members developed cancer.  Bible study in community was key for her faith journey as well as buying a Bible that became her personal reference for learning about and understanding God.  During this time, the Caring Bridge website https://www.caringbridge.org/ provided a connection to friends and family. She could feel the love from a distance, and this provided inspiration for the line in the Caregiver podcast theme song that says, “Friends and family are sending love to me, much more love than you or I could ever see.” 08:37. Seeds for this podcast were planted long ago when Val heard a message on a radio program about people sharing their stories and how important our stories are for providing support to one another. When the idea for a podcast came up as a way for her to share her story, she was reluctant because she had fears about being misunderstood and appearing foolish.  As she was contemplating whether to do a podcast, a Bible story from her daily devotional highlighted how Jesus’ disciples were worried about appearing foolish when Jesus suggested to them that they drop their fishing nets in a place where they had been fishing all day and knew there were no fish. But they did it anyway and their nets came up bursting with fish.  Val’s takeaway from the Bible story is that sometimes the thing we are avoiding is the thing we need to do most. She knows from experience the support and encouragement caregivers need to take care of themselves so they can take care of others and that is the reason or her creating this podcast, “Caregiver Tea Time”. 11:15 Things came together quickly after that. She met new friends who had the technology and skill to help her record a professional podcast. 12:36 Val summarizes that Jesus’ teachings are what makes sense to her, and she shares her gratitude for the gift of her intuition that tells her she is not facing her life challenges alone. She encourages others to be curious about the love from God that is available to all and ends the podcast with a prayer. Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

Balancing Exercises: 1 minute of balancing on each foot. I'm providing this audio from my YouTube video as bonus material so it will be easy for you to find and use whenever you want to do the balancing exercises I suggested in Episode 3 of this season. In the podcast, Let's Get Physical, we did 30 seconds of balancing on each foot. In this bonus material, I provide support for a balancing a full minute on each foot. This is something that is still difficult for me to do, but I'm going to keep working on it. I hope you will too! Additional information and links can be found at: https://www.caregiverteatime.com/       Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

It might take a few days or weeks to get here comfortably, but don't give up! Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

Thank you to Sammy Wags for the wonderful guitar music to help me stay on track! Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

Val studied nutrition and provided weight management counseling for over 30 years and feels it’s probably the most confusing subject there is. She sees it as a part time job to follow-through with a healthy way of eating that fits our budget, lifestyle, access to food, the preferences of people around us, and time spent cleaning up after the meal.She shares the concept that nutrition plays a role in our genetics, contributing to factors that determine what genes turn off and on. She also shares that our genes are influenced by communication from our body's microbiome, the microscopic world that includes bacteria and fungi. She wishes there was strong evidence for specific nutrition recommendations around our microbiome, and hopes medical breakthroughs will be coming to teach us more.In this episode Val share her Top 10 Nutrition Tips. They are based on her culture and core values that focus on the ability to enjoy what we eat and drink with the people we love.2:36 Time stamp for Top 10 list:Drink fluids to keep yourself hydrated.Eat vegetables, fruits, herbs and spices in abundance! There are some delicious ways to drink them too!Develop a healthy relationship with sugar.Develop a healthy relationship with fat.Develop a healthy relationship with salt.Learn about your appetite signals, and what to do with themIf you start to feel totally confused about what, when, or why to eat, keep a 3-day food journal.Wear clothes that fit you, feel good, and make you feel like you look good in them!Consider that when you prepare food for a snack or meal it is an act of love.Eat in company with others whenever you can.3:55 Val goes into a deep dive for each one. 4:50  She suggests a way to make a rough estimate for how much fluid a person needs: round your weight up to the nearest 10 pounds, divide that weight by two and it will be the approximate number of ounces you need each day. 6:15 She provides a simple recipe for lemonade made with fresh lemon juice, real maple syrup, water, and a dash of cayenne pepper.08:50 She provides a smoothie recipe called The 3 B's. It includes blueberries, beets, raw organic broccoli, honey, grass-fed milk, olive oil, and kiwi.09:52 She suggests reading information about eating the building blocks of Nitric Oxide (something mentioned in Episode 3 from Season 2) from the University of Oregon Extension Service.https://extension.oregonstate.edu/sites/default/files/documents/8836/asay-no-disease-handout.pdfThis handout includes a recipe for Kale and Beet Salad.11:40 She gathers together Tips 3,4 and 5 and in summary, suggests we develop a healthy relationship with sugar, fat, and sodium. Individually each nutrient is naturally occurring in food and plays a vital role to our health and enjoyment of the flavors of food.  It is when they are combined into manufactured fast foods, they can quickly become a problem due to their effect on our brain that produces a huge surge of dopamine. Val recommends eating slowly and savoring each bite when food choices are limited and all we have to choose from are high sugar, high fat, and high salty foods.13:30 Val addresses artificial sweeteners and states that they have not been shown to help with weight management or improving blood sugar levels and suggests those who consume them take time to find out if they are a benefit for them or undermining their efforts in this area of health.15:25 Vals shares olive oil is her preference for salad dressing and cooking. She suggests ways to shop for olive oil and warns that heating olive oil to the smoke point is dangerous and very toxic. Oil that is heated to the point it smokes should be thrown away.16:40 Vals explains the importance of salt to our body. She shared a simple approach to keeping salt intake at a healthy level in the diet by eliminating processed meats, limiting cheese, use gray sea salt or rock salt such as Himalayan pink salt. She suggests drinking mineral water and soaking in a epsom salt bath as a great way to absorb essential trace minerals in salts.18:00 For Tips 6 and 7 Val suggests keeping a food diary for three days to learn about your appetite signals and food choices.19:08 Val's tip number 8 explains that wearing clothes that fit and make us feel like we look our best is a motivator to make healthier food choices.19:48 For tips 9 and 10 Val shares about the role of preparing food as an act of love. She suggests sharing eating with others and making the meal time pleasant by turning off the TV and playing soft music or the radio.In conclusion, Val feels the two tips that will most help caregivers is to drink enough fluids and keep a 3-day food journal.Val's special message:  "A person can be healthy at any weight and unhealthy at any weight. I hope you will consider my journaling tip as a way for you to put into words what’s happening in your body, so you can make your food choices as healthy as possible."Val's cheer:  “I take care of my health and happiness! Cheers!"   Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

This episode provides instruction for doing two exercise routines:  the Nitric Oxide Dump, created by Dr. Zach Bush, https://www.zachbushmd.com/  and four common balance exercises Val has learned while doing physical therapy.The Nitric Oxide Dump involves doing 10-20 repetitions of the 4 exercise movements 3 times a day, every day. It will be more effective to wait 2 hours between sets, giving the body time to rebuild the supply of Nitric Oxide. The Nitric Oxide Dump is explained here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwJCJToQmpsImportant Time Stamps for Nitric Oxide Dump:3:50 How to do the Squat4:33 How to do the Tin Soldier or Tin Man arm movements4:53 How to do the Snow Angel Arm movements5:22 How to do the Fist PumpThe balance exercises include standing on one foot, placing feet heel to toe, heel and toe lifts, and standing leg lifts to the side. It's recommended to do balancing exercises every other day without going more that two days. Val does balance exercises on even numbered days and rests on the odd days.Progress from 10-30 seconds on the balancing exercises and 10-30 repetitions on the standing exercises, resting after 10 or 15 repetitions.Important Time Stamps for the balance exercises:6:27 How to balance on each leg and heel to toe 6:53: How to do heal and toe lifts7:22 How to do standing leg liftsVal asks motivational questions, leading the listener to determine if doing these exercises is the right thing to do at this time. She suggests getting pen or pencil and paper and writing down the answers.9:18 Do you have any physical symptoms that bother you?10:26 On a scale of one to ten, rate yourself as to how likely you are to do something about it.11:22 What would need to change in my life in order to have a higher number?If you want to share your story, please email Val at val.bmtcare gmail.comVal's special message to you: "This is the good news: that where you are now is exactly where you need to be!"Val's cheer for today: "I will do what I need to do!"Audio workout with Val:14:07 Nitric Oxide Dump, 3 cycles 17:43 Four Balancing Exercises (Have chair ready, if needed)   Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

Val devotes this episode to sleep because difficulty falling asleep and waking up in the night are common experiences for caregivers.  Val shares that getting enough sleep supports a healthy immune system, cell repair, learning, memory consolidation, and it helps us maintain a healthy weight. Poor sleep lowers metabolism and affects the hormones that regulate hunger and appetite.Val offers a few tips for sleeping that worked for her. First, she explains the  "legs up the wall" technique and how to do it. Next Val shares a compilation of sleep hints from Michael Brues, PhD, and author of the book, The Power of When.  Dr. Brues has divided people into Chronotypes, which helps individuals learn the best time of day for their behaviors related to sleeping. Val shares the hints from his book she has found most helpful. They include a morning routine, information about caffeine intake, an evening routine, and ways to get back to sleep after waking in the night.Val also shares her experience with using the Dreampad Sound Pillow. This was her favorite way to improve her sleep.Val encourages caregivers to make it a priority the get the best night's sleep possible, whether it includes room darkening curtains, and eye mask, noise cancelling earbuds, or a DreamPad pillow.For this episode's cheer, Val leads listeners through a good night hug, and ends the podcast with "Good night Sweetheart!"  Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

In this episode Val reminds listeners that it’s good to stop and take a few deep breaths throughout your day. She suggests we take it one step further, and teaches the 4-7-8 breathing technique made popular by Dr. Andrew Weil.  His studies have shown that over time, regularly using this technique twice a day in cycles of 4 to 8 breaths physiologically calms the body. Val has found it to be simple and easy to do, and provides a recording for listeners to follow when practicing 4-7-8 breathing.Val also shares about "Calm Energy". She was introduced to this concept by a book by Robert Thayer: Calm Energy, how people regulate mood with food and exercise. Val feels that 4-7-8 breathing is a first step one can take towards finding Calm Energy. Val ends this episode with her cheer:   “I am taking time to breathe!” Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

In this episode Donna shares that research studies have found journaling brings emotional and psychological benefits. Her most consistent Journaling was inspired by Julia Cameron and her book The Artist’s Way. From this book, Donna learned how to write Morning Pages.  There was a time when it was difficult for Donna to journal. She found Dr. Caroline Leaf’s book Switch on your Brain  and its introduction to “Neurocycles” helpful to add structure to her journaling. Donna shares a conversation with a young girl named Beatrice she met while journaling one morning at the Ronald Mc Donald house. Beatrice had learned the importance of journaling and wanted to share the message with the world. Donna is so happy to finally be sharing that message with the world in this podcast! Donna ends her podcast with the cheer: “Here’s to the good things!” Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

Donna sought the help of a CBT counselor because CBT is goal oriented and she found herself at a loss after her son finished treatment and her caregiver duties were over. She was able to find a local CBT practitioner through the Psychology Today website. Homework assignments are part of CBT and Val shares about her assignment to find her “core values”. As part of the assignment, Donna printed a copy of her core values to carry everywhere as a reminder of what is most important to her. She found that making this podcast is in total alignment with her core values.  Donna finishes the podcast by sharing a tool she learned to get rid of thinking errors – her unwanted thoughts that do not bring anything good to her or anyone else. She created a poem from a favorite tecipe to help her remember the steps. On her Caregiver Tea Time website Donna provides that recipe for Sweet and Spicy Nuts. Donna's special message:  “Please don’t let your thinking errors come between you and the people who mean the most to you!” https://www.psychologytoday.com/us Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

In this episode Donna shares how to do the Tapping technique and how she explored using tapping when she was in New York City with her son, who was getting treatment at a speciality medical center in the city. Donna guides the listener through an example of tapping, which uses a set-up phrase and then repeated tapping at several sites on the body while restating a reminder phrase. The set up phrase states the emotional problem and ends with the words “I deeply and completely accept myself”. This phrase is  repeated 3 times to start the tapping round. The reminder phrase restates the problem. Val also shares a particularly stressful situation in which her Tapping provider guided her through the tapping technique and the great relief she felt from the experience. There is a link to a free EFT manual available for download. Donna's special message:  “Please remember you are totally worthy of being deeply and completely loved and accepted!” Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

In this episode, Donna shares she is a retired dietitian and has learned many skills in her career to help people find ways to reduce their stress levels in order to make healthier decisions. This is something very important for Caregivers of a spouse or child facing  cancer or other life threatening illnesses. One of these skills is Emotional Brain Training, or EBT, created by Laurel Mellin, PhD a health psychologist who developed EBT during her 40 years as a professor in the School of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.  Donna emphasizes she is not a certified EBT provider, but was part of the provider training program for several years. She shares about the two brains, the thinking brain and the feeling brain and the difference between the two. She leads her audience through a brain state check-in and then demonstrates how she uses the brain state 5 damage control tool to "Spiral Up!". Donna shares a special message for Caregivers of AYA's (young adults between 19-39 facing cancer or a life threatening illness) encouraging extra compassion for the challenges these caregivers face with their loved one. www.EBTconnect.net https://www.cancersupportcenter.org/ https://wondersandworries.org/ Donna's Favorite EBT Book:  The Pathway, by Laurel Mellin Originally published: January 21, 2003 Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!

In this introduction to her podcast, Donna describes how Caregiver Tea Time is devoted to family caregivers on their journey supporting someone they love going through a difficult medical treatment or living with a chronic illness. Listeners are encouraged to bring a cup of tea and pen and paper when listening to the podcast to take notes about topics of interest. Additional information and links can be found at:https://www.caregiverteatime.com/   Look for the full version of Val's theme song, Nothing But the Good Things on your favorite music streaming service now!