EPISODE 52: HOW TO BALANCE WORK AND CAREGIVING FOR AGING PARENTS

Episode 52: How To Balance Work and Caregiving for Aging Parents

EPISODE SUMMARY:

As women in midlife, we often find ourselves struggling to balance everything in our lives. Whether it’s dealing with juggling work, aging parents, or stress, we all experience the feeling of being overwhelmed by all the things life throws at us. Liz O’Donnell saw the balancing act of women in midlife and sought to help women find ways to deal with it all. To do this, she founded Working Daughter, a community that is centered around helping and supporting women who are trying to balance caring for their aging parents along with their career, life, and kids. Working Daughter has helped women in midlife find community and share helpful tips for staying sane and balanced while dealing with so many things at once. In today’s episode, we sat down with Liz to discuss her book, self-care tips for care givers, how to deal with living far away from elderly parents, and recognizing eldercare in the workplace.

Liz O’Donnell

Liz O’Donnell is the founder of Working Daughter. In 2015, she created Working Daughter to be a community and safe space for women balancing eldercare, career, life and kids. Having previously worked as a marketing executive, Liz shifted her focus to helping working daughters balance eldercare and their career after caring for her own two parents. Along with founding Working Daughter, Liz is an award-winning writer. Her first book, “Mogul, Mom & Maid: The Balancing Act of the Modern Woman”, discussed and looked out how a woman’s personal life is impacted by her career. Her second book, “Working Daughter: A Guide to Caring for Your Aging Parents While Also Earning a Living”, was recently published and named one of the best books of 2019 by Library Journal. She’s written in publications such as The Atlantic, Forbes, Times, USA Today, WBUR, and PBS’ Next Avenue. Liz is also a cofounder of SheStarts, an organization for women entrepreneurs and women in Democracy-Dedham, a nonpartisan group that seeks to engage more women in local politics.

In this episode, we discuss…

[0:01] Introduction

[0:24] Guest Introduction

[2:28] Start of Interview

[2:40] How Liz’s Second Book Came About

[5:34] Liz’s Parents

[8:38] Intent of Liz’s Book

[10:56] Sharing the Grief of Losing Your Parents with Your Siblings

[12:50] Suggestions for Balancing Eldercare, Life, Career, and Kids

[17:15] Advice for People Who Live Away from Their Elderly Parents

[22:54] How Liz’s Book is Structured

[25:57] Most Important Self-Care Tips for Women Who are Care Givers