WEBVTT - Being a Caregiver for a Parent with Jennie Garth (Abridged Version)

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<v Speaker 1>Hi everyone. I'm Holly Robinson, pete, actor, author, advocate, do

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<v Speaker 1>it all mom, and I'm also a caregiver. And this

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<v Speaker 1>is care Walks, a podcast from iHeartRadio and Voltaian Arthritis

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<v Speaker 1>Pain Gel. It's a show for family caregivers who give

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<v Speaker 1>everything to everyone and need to make time for themselves

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<v Speaker 1>through movement. Every episode is designed for you to walk

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<v Speaker 1>as you listen, so just think of me and my

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<v Speaker 1>guests as your weekly walking buddies. We'll discover a community

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<v Speaker 1>ourselves and maybe even alleviate some joint pain due to

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<v Speaker 1>arthritis in the process as we walk together and connect

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<v Speaker 1>to the best parts of being a caregiver. As a reminder,

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<v Speaker 1>right now you're listening to the abridged version of this episode,

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<v Speaker 1>but if you're looking to get a little extra inspiration,

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<v Speaker 1>don't miss a minute. Check out the full length version

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<v Speaker 1>of this episode in your podcast feed. OK. In today's episode,

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<v Speaker 1>we're going to be digging into the shifting dynamics when

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<v Speaker 1>adult children become caregivers for their parents. I am really

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<v Speaker 1>looking forward to speaking with today's guest on this topic.

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<v Speaker 1>Not only is she an actor, advocate and podcaster, but

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<v Speaker 1>she is also a family caregiver who took care of

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<v Speaker 1>her father when he suffered from a heart attack. I'm

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<v Speaker 1>talking about my friend Jenny Garth. I've known Jenny for

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<v Speaker 1>many years, and I'm looking forward to connecting with her

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<v Speaker 1>and comparing our experiences of caring for our parents. Yes,

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<v Speaker 1>it's challenging, for sure, but there's also something really special

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<v Speaker 1>about being a caregiver to a parent as their adult child.

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<v Speaker 1>It gives you a whole new opportunity to get to

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<v Speaker 1>know them, and I'm really interested to hear Jenny talk

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<v Speaker 1>about how it may have shaped her life and relationship

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<v Speaker 1>with her father in really positive ways. I also know

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<v Speaker 1>that Jenny has struggled with joint pain, as so many

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<v Speaker 1>of us caregivers do, so I'm going to ask her

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<v Speaker 1>about her own relationship with movement and how she keeps

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<v Speaker 1>active with osteoarthritis. Before we get to our conversation with Jenny,

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<v Speaker 1>let's get moving and start our walk with intention, an

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<v Speaker 1>intention of gratitude. We sometimes forget to express gratitude to

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<v Speaker 1>even the simplest gifts in our lives. There's a lot

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<v Speaker 1>to appreciate about where we are in this moment. Show

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<v Speaker 1>gratitude for your body on this walk and all that

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<v Speaker 1>is doing to keep you moving forward. Think about how

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<v Speaker 1>the parts of your body must work in harmony for

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<v Speaker 1>you to do the amazing things you do every day.

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<v Speaker 1>It's not always easy, I know, but your body shows

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<v Speaker 1>up for you. Use today as a reminder to share

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<v Speaker 1>that strength. Appreciate your movement, and consider how you can

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<v Speaker 1>connect with someone who might need that little nudge to

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<v Speaker 1>find that gratitude today too. We can only be as

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<v Speaker 1>strong as the connections we make, whether that is sharing

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<v Speaker 1>a buy beautiful memory or deepening your connection with yourself.

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<v Speaker 1>Give thanks for the important connections in your life as

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<v Speaker 1>you settle into the rhythm of your walk. I'm going

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<v Speaker 1>to keep talking and share with you my conversation with

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<v Speaker 1>our guests Jenny Garth, and together will widen our community

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<v Speaker 1>of caregivers. Today I have the pleasure of talking to

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<v Speaker 1>not only a great friend of mine, but also a

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<v Speaker 1>magnificent actress, fellow podcaster and caregiver, Jenny Garth. Like me,

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<v Speaker 1>Jenny cared for her father for many years, and she

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<v Speaker 1>has recently spoken out about living with osteo arthritis. Jenny,

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<v Speaker 1>thank you so much for joining us. Hey, Holly, I'm

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<v Speaker 1>so glad to see you too. This is an awesome

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<v Speaker 1>way to have some girl time catch up.

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<v Speaker 2>I know, I just follow you on the Instagram. I

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<v Speaker 2>see all your work. I saw the whales in Vancouver.

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<v Speaker 2>Oh my god.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh well, well I follow you as well. And that's

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<v Speaker 1>social media used for good. It keeps us in contact

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<v Speaker 1>with each other. Yes, exactly. This program is really designed

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<v Speaker 1>to support caregivers. Share a little bit with us about

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<v Speaker 1>your journey as a caregiver.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, it started off really young. I was about thirty

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<v Speaker 2>when my father suffered his first massive heart attack. We

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<v Speaker 2>lived in Illinois on farm. Everything was perfect and idyllic,

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<v Speaker 2>and my dad was this big, strong man. All of

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<v Speaker 2>a sudden he was, you know, incapacitated and having a

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<v Speaker 2>heart attack back then, all those years ago, was a

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<v Speaker 2>lot different than having a heart attack now. So it

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<v Speaker 2>was much more invasive and disruptive to life and so

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<v Speaker 2>much harder to come back from. So that really changed

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<v Speaker 2>my life as a young girl, uprooted our family. We

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<v Speaker 2>had to move to Arizona for a drier climate for him,

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<v Speaker 2>leave some siblings behind. It was really a pretty traumatic experience. Then.

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<v Speaker 2>This was a few years later. My mom was having

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<v Speaker 2>to work and continued to like do what she needed

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<v Speaker 2>to do to keep the household going, and so I

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<v Speaker 2>would fill in for her. And that was when I

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<v Speaker 2>was already living out in LA and acting, but I

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<v Speaker 2>would take breaks so that I could go back and

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<v Speaker 2>take care of my dad. This as a young girl

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<v Speaker 2>was like, Okay, Wow, I'm going to jump in and

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<v Speaker 2>do this the best I know how. And it was

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<v Speaker 2>a lot. I think that it had a lot of,

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<v Speaker 2>you know, impact on just every aspect of my life.

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<v Speaker 1>Like many caregivers, did you go through like an evolution

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<v Speaker 1>of emotions throughout your experience as a caregiver and what

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<v Speaker 1>or who were the strongest support systems for you and

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<v Speaker 1>your family?

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<v Speaker 2>For me, back then with my dad, I had my

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<v Speaker 2>mom to talk to. I have my siblings. Now with

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<v Speaker 2>my mom, I have my siblings to talk to about it,

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<v Speaker 2>sort of share stories and the ups and downs of

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<v Speaker 2>it and the frustrations of it. And I feel like

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<v Speaker 2>that's so important to have somebody or more than one

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<v Speaker 2>person that you can just talk to and kind of

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<v Speaker 2>vent with yes and let go of all that responsibility

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<v Speaker 2>for a minute. That burnout is so real and if

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<v Speaker 2>you don't address it, I feel like it's just a

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<v Speaker 2>disaster waiting to happen because you can't handle it all

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<v Speaker 2>on your own.

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<v Speaker 1>I want to talk a little bit about joint pain.

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<v Speaker 1>You recently shared that you are dealing with osteoarthritis, and

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<v Speaker 1>I would love to know what did the road to

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<v Speaker 1>your OA diagnosis look like.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, it was full of denial. Let's start with that,

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<v Speaker 2>because who wants to say, oh, I have joint pain.

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<v Speaker 2>I feel like I might have arthritis. For me, that

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<v Speaker 2>was like something that old people had to deal with,

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<v Speaker 2>and I was just not ready to cross that bridge

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<v Speaker 2>or just acknowledge it. And the fact is it's not

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<v Speaker 2>an old people's disease quote unquote. You can have osteoarthritis

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<v Speaker 2>or forms of arthritis. You can have joint pain at

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<v Speaker 2>any age, and it's just specific to who you are,

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<v Speaker 2>your genetic makeup, and what your lifestyle is like, and

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<v Speaker 2>the foods that you're eating.

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<v Speaker 1>Anything that you're doing, or products that you're using specifically

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<v Speaker 1>that have really help with your OA. Joint pain.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, there's over the counter voltairean arthritis pain gel is

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<v Speaker 2>something that you can rub on and get relief with that.

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<v Speaker 2>I use it, my siblings all use it. And then

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<v Speaker 2>people come out of the woodwork like, oh, Voltairean. I

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<v Speaker 2>use Voltairean too, because it's like it really does help.

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<v Speaker 2>You know, I have five dogs. I'm constantly bending and

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<v Speaker 2>lifting and taking care of them and playing, and you know,

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<v Speaker 2>I just want to stay really active. And also Holly,

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<v Speaker 2>oh my god, I'm so excited that I'm going to

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<v Speaker 2>be a grandma someday. Not yet.

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<v Speaker 1>Wait, I thought you were going to break some news

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<v Speaker 1>to me. I wasn't ready.

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<v Speaker 2>H No, no, no, I'm not ready either, But I'm

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<v Speaker 2>really looking forward to that. And I want to be

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<v Speaker 2>super like active and I want to stay like, you know,

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<v Speaker 2>tip top shape, not just for me and my dogs

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<v Speaker 2>anymore my husband, but for my grandkids someday. Realizing the

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<v Speaker 2>importance of exercise and movement the whole package, the whole

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<v Speaker 2>like physical, mental, emotional, all the well beings that go

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<v Speaker 2>on with a person, like all the parts of me

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<v Speaker 2>that I need to keep well. That's my goal.

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<v Speaker 1>What are some of your favorite self care practices? What

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<v Speaker 1>just makes you feel like you love yourself?

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<v Speaker 2>Being outside, being in nature, Like you know, just putting

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<v Speaker 2>down the work and going outside and having some good

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<v Speaker 2>fresh air is one of my favorite things to do.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm a meditator too. I love to just sit quietly.

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<v Speaker 2>It sort of grounds me back to my true nature

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<v Speaker 2>of just being quiet. I will light some incense before

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<v Speaker 2>I go to bed, just and also, you know, it's

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<v Speaker 2>so easy to watch the news before you go to sleep,

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<v Speaker 2>or watch something on TV before you go to sleep,

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<v Speaker 2>but I try to remember to turn the TV off

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<v Speaker 2>and just be in like silence and let my body

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<v Speaker 2>sort of calm down the way it's rhythmically supposed to

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<v Speaker 2>and have a good night's sleep. So sleep is the

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<v Speaker 2>most important thing, like I have. Like a thing that

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<v Speaker 2>I learned from a therapist was a seven day week,

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<v Speaker 2>Like look at your month in seven day increments, Like

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<v Speaker 2>if your life is a pie chart, right, and here's

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<v Speaker 2>the part where you're taking care of someone else, here's

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<v Speaker 2>your work, here's your romance life, here's your social life,

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<v Speaker 2>here's your self care life. Make sure your pie is

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<v Speaker 2>really as balanced as you can when you're divvying up

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<v Speaker 2>your time and your energy. It's really important orant to

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<v Speaker 2>have that balance as much as you can.

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<v Speaker 1>It is so important. And Jenny, I really appreciate this conversation.

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<v Speaker 1>It's been so awesome talking to you. I feel like

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<v Speaker 1>we see each other and we've worked together, We've done things.

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<v Speaker 1>We see each other in passing, but this is like

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<v Speaker 1>the longest conversation we've ever had and it's the best one.

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<v Speaker 1>And I hope that everyone listening. Well, we'll take something

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<v Speaker 1>from this, and I really appreciate you joining me for

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<v Speaker 1>care walk So thank you Jenny Garth.

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<v Speaker 2>Happy, so happy to do it. Great to see you

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<v Speaker 2>you too.

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<v Speaker 1>I want to thank Jenny Garth again for being my

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<v Speaker 1>guest today. Really enjoyed our conversation. We talked about the

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<v Speaker 1>parent child dynamic, how she saw her dad as such

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<v Speaker 1>a strong figure as a child, the importance of balance

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<v Speaker 1>in your life when you're a caregiver, and some of

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<v Speaker 1>Jenny's favorite self care practices. She loves her baths, so

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<v Speaker 1>do I, meditation and being in nature. Well that's it

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<v Speaker 1>for today's episode. Thanks again to Jenny for joining me.

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<v Speaker 1>Don't forget to tune in next week when we talk

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<v Speaker 1>all about nutrition and joint pain with doctor Monica Agerwall.

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<v Speaker 1>Care Walks is produced by iHeartRadio in partnership with voltairean

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<v Speaker 1>Arthritis Pain Gel, and hosted by me Holly Robinson Pete.

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<v Speaker 1>Our executive producer is Molly Sosha. Our head engineer is

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<v Speaker 1>Matt Stillo. This episode was written and produced by Sierra Kaiser,

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<v Speaker 1>with special thanks to our partners at GSK Platform, GSK, Weber,

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<v Speaker 1>Shandwick and Edelman.