Welcome to Season 2 of our podcast! We’re excited to kick off new episodes of our podcasts with amazing guests and more great information about caregiver wellness and well home design.

For 2022, Caregiving Club has chosen a theme of “The Year of Living Colorfully.” This theme connects to the 7 elements of our Me Time Monday Wellness Edit and as always we have another wellness hack at the end of our podcast episodes with this episode focused on the 7 Yellow Brick Roads to Happiness.

Sherri also interviews two great guests on this episode:

1. Since we’re talking about happy new year and creating happiness in life – author and clinical psychologist, Joan Neehall, PhD is here to talk about her new book, “Happy Is the New Healthy”.  Joan shares insights from her book including: time affluence and how to use it for caregiver self-care; how to bookend your day with happiness, the Matthew Effect, how to avoid the social media scorecard and how happiness is about what we manufacture not about what we acquire.
2. Our second guest is a national expert on financial wellness and since January is Financial Wellness Month we could not think of anyone better than Cindy Hounsell of WISER (Women’s Institute for a Secure Retirement) to tell us how we can achieve wellness in our financial lives. Cindy also talks about a new tool from WISER for caregivers called the Caregiver Financial Hub – you won’t want to miss this important information.

Caregiver Wellness News

• Sherri reports on the lates in Caregiver Wellness News including: Gallup’s Annual World Happiness Index – A Survey on Global Happiness, the U-Curve of Happiness research, the merger of Headspace and Ginger to form a $3 billion mental health company, the Viagra-Alzheimer’s connection, and the Blue Zones of Happiness book.

Pop Culture

Since this episode is focused on happiness, health and wealth, Sherri chose two TED Talks, and one viral YouTube video to showcase the “looking backwards, looking up and looking forward” when it comes to creating our own happiness.

Looking Forward. This TED Talk by Dan Gilbert, a social psychologist at Harvard University, posited a theory he called “Affective Forecasting for Happiness,” providing a plan on how to improve our ability to plan for happiness. Here is his talk on “The Surprising Science of Happiness”

Look Up. This phenomenal viral video by word artist Gary Turk says it all – how we miss the most important moments of life by looking down at our smartphones and other technology. It reinforces the digital detox Sherri advises caregivers do daily. This is one to share with kids and parents alike.

Wellness Home Design News

• Sherri also reports on the latest in Well Home Design news including costs of care at home versus assisted living and memory care to help family caregivers plan ahead during Financial Wellness Month (see resources below for more on costs of caring – housing). She also shares insights from her latest Thrive Global article on 2022 Home Design Trends that make sense for caregivers and older adults.

Me Time Monday Wellness Hack

Sherri ends each podcast episode with a special wellness hack from her upcoming book, Me Time Monday – The Weekly Wellness Edit for a Wonderful Life. To To kick off 2022 and the Year of Living Colorfully, Sherri presents her “7 Yellow Brick Roads to Happiness” Wellness Hack.

RESOURCE LINKS

“Happy Is the New Healthy” with more information on Joan Neehall, PhD

WISER

WISER’s new Caregiver Financial Hub

AARP’s Long Term Care Calculator is a tool to help plan ahead for long-term care costs

Eversafe – fraud protection service founded by a family caregiver whose mother was exploited out of her life savings and a former Manhattan district attorney who headed up the elder fraud division.

Genworth Annual “Cost of Care Survey” – state by state review of home care, assisted living, nursing home costs

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Long Term Care Clearinghouse – list of programs and services that can help with long-term care costs

National Council on Aging (NCOA) Benefits Check-up – more than 9 million Americans have discovered unknown covered benefits for seniors

Silver Bills – a concierge bills management service designed for older adults and family caregivers

USAging (for local area agencies on aging ElderCare.acl.gov or call 1-800.677.1116, which operates Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 8:00 pm ET) for local respite services

Sherri’s articles related to this episode

Finding Happiness As a Caregiver (Forbes.com)

Happiness article translated into Spanish for Univsion (Univision Spanish language)

How Comedy Can Help Caregivers Cope with Coronavirus (Thrive Global)

2022 – The Year of Living Colorfully

What Suze Orman Learned Caring for Her Mother (Forbes.com)

Shopping Made Easier for Caregivers (Forbes.com)

How to Avoid the Caregiving Cost Drain (USA Today supplement – the future of health)