133 | When Your Parent Needs More Care: The Affirmation That Carried Me Through

When your parent can no longer live independently and you're suddenly responsible for life-altering care decisions—but you don't have all the answers. What then?

If you're paralyzed by the pressure to make the "right" choice for your aging parent, feeling lost about what to do next, or afraid that not knowing everything means you're failing them—this episode is for you.

In this deeply personal episode, Valerie shares what it's like to be "warped back in time" when her dad's care needs changed after two years in assisted living. She reveals the myth that keeps caregivers stuck (believing you need all the answers before you can move forward) and offers a powerful reframe: everything is ‘figureoutable’ (my go-to motto by Marie Farleo).

Here's what you'll discover:

• Why feeling lost and overwhelmed when your parent needs more care is completely normal—even if you've done this before
• Why your midlife wisdom and experience actually make you MORE equipped than you think.
• An empowering affirmation practice: "I may not have all the answers today, but I lean on faith and trust myself to figure it out."

Press play to release the pressure of needing to know everything and embrace faith over fear—because you were made for this, even when it doesn't feel like it.

If you’re interested in learning more of Valerie’s writing on her blog, check out ‘Oh, Hello Midlife’. And if you sign up for the newsletter, as a thank you, we’ll send you the “10 Min. Calm Kit for Sandwich Generation Moms.” It includes three guided sessions for morning, mid-day, and bedtime, so you can find your calm in the midst of this chaotic season of life.

You’re listening to the right show, formerly known as the Mindful Life Changes or Mindful Career Change. We’ve pivoted through the years, but finally landed on the right path: content for moms in the ‘Sandwich Generation’, because midlife disruption doesn't have to break you.

New episodes drop on:

• Sundays: 20-min episodes addressing common midlife challenges with practical strategies plus a mindfulness practice (affirmations, mantras, or meditations)
• Wednesdays: Bite-sized episodes to reinforce Sunday's mindfulness technique & reset your week

More from The Mindful Midlife Mom:

Discover Valerie's articles on ohhellomidlife.com or watch her videos on YouTube @ohhellomidlife

This podcast explores patience, meditation, confidence, presence, and overcoming resentment while cultivating calm, peace, mindfulness, clarity, mantras, and addressing loneliness and burn out; it covers boundaries, caregiving, guilt, affirmations, working moms, self-care, midlife crisis, empty nesters, empowerment, people pleasing, compassion fatigue, family caregiving, stress relief, self-worth, stress management, and how to shift from reactive to centered when feeling short tempered, offering tools for self acceptance, easing mental exhaustion, building emotional resilience, harnessing inner strength, and preventing caregiver fatigue for those in the sandwich generation through expert advice on boundaries setting.