Caregiver 101: How I Became a Caregiver

In the first episode of The Caregiver Café with Roz Jones, Roz welcomes listeners into a space created to serve those caring for sick, aging, or vulnerable loved ones.

Roz shares the personal story that started her caregiving journey and how one unexpected hospital visit showed her just how quickly life can change. Through her experience, she reminds families of the importance of having documentation in order, including advance directives, healthcare surrogates, and backup support before a crisis happens.

This episode is a warm introduction to Roz, her heart for caregivers, and the purpose of The Caregiver Café: to provide resources, encouragement, and practical support that helps reduce stress, overwhelm, and safety concerns along the caregiving journey.

Pull up a chair. Roz has a seat waiting for you.

Thank you for listening. If this episode encouraged you, supported you, or gave you something to think about as a caregiver, be sure to stay connected with Roz Jones.

Visit Roz online for caregiver resources, blogs, books, speaking information, and support for families navigating the caregiving journey.

Website: www.rozjonesent.com

Read the Caregiver Cafe Blog: https://thecaregivercafe.net/

Follow me on Socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rozcaregiverconsulting/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rozjonescaregiver/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDFP2FF5QBbjVyaphhh3zdA/videos?view=0&sort=p

You can also subscribe, rate, and share this episode with another caregiver who may need encouragement today.

Because caregiving is not meant to be carried alone.

Transcript

Intro 0:00

Hey guys, how are you doing today? Can I get you started with something to drink? Is your aging loved one home alone? Forgetting to take medicine or pay bills? The Caregiver Cafe with Roz Jones has a menu of resources to serve your caregiver needs. As a caregiver, Roz understands your daily challenges. This podcast focuses on the unique and dynamic issues of caregiving.

Roz Jones 0:24

Hello, I am Roz Jones, the CEO and owner of Jacksonville's Best Caregivers, where we help expand the life of your loved one. Why do I do it? I do it to help the caregiver to reduce that SOS on their journey, which is being stressed, overwhelmed, and providing safety and security. When you can't do it all, give us a call. Today I am so excited that we are able to start our inaugural podcast, the Caregiver Cafe. So today I'm going to tell you what's kind of roasting on my mind, and I'm going to give you my rendition of my favorite coffee or tea and let you know what's going on with me as Ross Jones and the producer of the Caregiver Cafe. So we're going to talk about today. We're going to talk a little bit about me. I want you to know who I am. I already told you about why I do it and who do I serve, but let's find out a little bit about Roz. So what happened, let's say more than 10 years ago, I was in healthcare, but I was working for a health insurance company as an uh a writer for, a technical writer for health insurance company, which was uh handling the claims for part A, Part B. And during that time, I was, of course, in church. And one of the mothers of the church said, Roz, I'm going to the hospital and I want you to make sure that everything goes okay. And I said, Well, why me? Uh, you know, but she asked me that because first of all, she didn't have any children, her husband was deceased, her sister had stage four cancer, and there was really no one else to go with her to advocate on her behalf. So I went on to the hospital with her and said, okay, I'm going to go. So we went and the doctor said, you know, you have some blockage in your intestine. We're going to have to cut out a little section and we're going to cut the section and we're going to bring the other two sections together. And we only expect you to be in the hospital for about maybe two to three days for observation. And then you get to go home. You know, and you do your rehab at home. Okay, that sounds wonderful. So everything is, you know, in line. She goes in and the doctor comes back out. Now, you know, when the doctor has still has a little uh cap on his head and he's pulling his mask down, that's not a good sign. That's a warning sign. Run. That's a warning sign, honey. So when he came out, he said, Rosalind, um, Miss Rhodes is having some technical difficulties and we have to have emergency surgery. I was like, oh my God, are you serious? And they're like, yes, and we need for you to do this and do that. And I said, wait, pump the brakes. I don't have authority to make a decision about the surgery. I don't have authority to sign any documentation. I have no authority whatsoever to make any kind of decisions in this life or death situation. So my response was, whatever the hospital policies are, whatever you can do to save her life, do it. But I said, I don't have the authority to sign for anything. So needless to say, they did the surgery, everything went well. However, because of the extent of the damage, she had to be in the hospital a little longer, then she had to go to rehab, uh, you know, for three weeks, then she had to come home. So my life changed from Sunday to Sunday in just a matter of moments. How many of us as caregivers, our life changed so quickly? Sometimes you do have time to plan to be a caregiver, and other times we don't have time at all. And I didn't have time. I didn't have paperwork documentation. So, you know, today uh as a part of our inaugural show with the Caregiver Cafe, one of the things that I want to make sure that you all get is your documentation in order. That is so important, important to have advanced directives. An advanced directive is a GPS map to help you when you're aging to say these are the things that I want done as a caregiver to say, hey, you know, if I get sick or I can't talk for myself, I want you to make sure that you or whoever you designate as your health care surrogate, and you can have more than one, you can have two, and even a backup to the backup, which is always good. It's always good to have, you know, a team of people to understand in your family or those really great friends to understand what type of, you know, care you will need as a caregiver, um, and as a person receiving care, what that caregiver will need to do. So that's a little bit about me, how I came into being a caregiver. So I started off just taking care of someone, then I got into the field, and then I went on and got my license, and then I went on and started my business. So that's a little bit about Ross Jones. Uh the Caregiver Cafe has been on my heart for quite some time. It's been kind of in a file folder, but now it is time to launch uh this podcast. And so I am truly, truly excited. I appreciate each and every one of you for listening and for your support. Make sure not only that you like, that you subscribe, and you make comments about what type of show or guests you would like to have on the Caregiver Cafe. So let us know what's roasting on your mind and the things that you would like to see on uh the Caregiver Cafe. Once again, my name is Raj Jones, and we thank you for listening to the Caregiver Cafe.

Outro 6:08

Until your next visit to the Caregiver Cafe, connect with Roz on YouTube, LinkedIn, and her blog at thecaregivercafe.net. Caregiver Cafe Podcast specializes in serving those who provide care and support to a sick or aging loved one. I'm the voice guest, but I'm one of you. So when Roz has on experts or frontline workers, I'm listening. We hope you've enjoyed the show. In the meantime, don't forget to connect with Roz on YouTube, LinkedIn, or at the blog at the CaregiverCafe.net