Audio Transcript
Adrian Plitzco (Host) – 00:00:02: Hello and welcome to Tune in to Care, a podcast exploring the lives of carers. In this season, we shine a light on the diversity of caring communities from bustling cities to remote outback towns. Carers come from all walks of life, and though their challenges and experiences may differ, we hear how they all share the same resilience and dedication to their caring role. Tune in to Care is produced on Aboriginal land across Australia. We acknowledge the traditional owners as the custodians of this land. Tune in to Care is brought to you by Wellways Carer Gateway. Carer Gateway is an Australian government initiative providing free services and support for carers. My name is Adrian Plitzco.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:01:03: There is a wide range of caring roles, you might care for your daughter, your son, your sister or brother who’s affected by mental health issues, or you care for your wife, husband, mother, or father who lives with dementia. There is also a diversity of caring communities from big cities to far reaching outback towns. In season two of the podcast, Tune in to Care “No two carers are the same”, we will shine a light on these diverse roles such as aging carer, mental health carer, young carer, rural and regional carer and remote carer. We will also learn that Wellways Carer Gateway is able to tailor services to meet the unique needs of carers by partnering with other specialist organisations. Together they can provide support and services for any kind of carers. In this first episode, we will introduce you to the carers of these diverse groups with a sneak preview of who they are, what challenges they face, what gives them hope, and what impact possible solutions have on their life. Maybe you know a carer who belongs to one of these groups. If yes, then tell them about this podcast, it might also change their life, or you might even recognise yourself as being one of them. So, let’s begin.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:02:32: In the upcoming second episode, we look at one of the most common groups of carers, people who are looking after someone due to their old age and frail health, the aging carer like Kim and Liz. Kim began her caring journey by looking after her mother, who was terminally ill, and then transitioned to caring for her father who lives with dementia and multiple health issues. Juggling the responsibilities of being a single mother and a caregiver. Kim has witnessed firsthand the emotional and physical toll of caregiving.
Kim (Carer) – 00:03:05: So, mum’s not here anymore, and it’s just me and dad and my two children, and we are getting through it, but it’s tough. I should be enjoying my life at the moment, I’m really stuck. I’m in this role, and I mean, I wouldn’t have it any other way, but it is hard work. I, I find I’m very isolated. My friends are out having fun, and I, I still have the fun with dad, but it’s just not the same sometimes.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:03:42: At 78 years old, Liz has dedicated most of her life to caring for her husband, who is diagnosed with early cognitive decline due to multiple chemical poisoning. Liz also looked previously after her elderly parents.
Liz (Carer) – 00:03:57: So, this caring role has been part of me, a part of my being all my life. Mum had died in 2010. We nursed my dad up until two days before he died, when we could no longer clean him up. We just could no longer manage the physical part of cleaning him up, and he went into hospital and died two days later. That left an enormous hole in our lives cause we’d taken, well, me particularly had had this role of being a carer just as part of being me, and I’d really lost sight of who I was. When you just get lost, totally get lost within yourself, and you become last and your health suffers and your mental health suffers.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:04:41: Liz and Kim, navigating the complex realities of caring for elderly loved ones, they highlight the struggles of caregiver burnout, isolation, and the grief of losing a loved one. We will hear more of Liz and Kim in episode two, “Ageing Carer”, how they found invaluable support and community through Wellways Carer Gateway, which supported them in rediscovering joy and managed their caregiving responsibilities effectively.
Liz (Carer) – 00:05:10: I tell you what, I wouldn’t be here now if I hadn’t have come along. And I, I had hit rock bottom when I decided to ask my friend about the support group she told me about. And without it, I, I don’t think I’d be here.
Kim (Carer) – 00:05:24: I find it refreshing to know that I’m not the only one going through problems. Everyone’s got a story and it’s given me a little bit more compassion towards other people as well.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:05:51: In episode number three, we explore the essential role of mental health carers. The conversation with the two dedicated carers, Diana and Sandra, shines a light on critical issues such as the importance of receiving accurate diagnosis and the unique challenge faced by neurodiverse carers. Diana is a single mother of a 20-year-old son who’s diagnosed with severe autism. Diana herself has recently been diagnosed with ADHD, which has given her new insights into her own life struggles and her role as a carer. Her biggest challenge caring for her son was not having the right support for 20 years.
Diana (Carer) – 00:06:30: That was really hard and that was really challenging being told all the time and not a very good parent cause I’m not doing the right therapy for social anxiety. You know, only now finding out that he definitely has autism and now thinking, oh no, well now I have to…..how am I gonna undo the last 20 years of him getting the wrong therapy? You know, and, and that sadness, but how do I undo the last 20 years of his life?
Adrian Plitzco – 00:06:54: Sandra is a single grandmother who has been the primary carer for her two grandchildren, both of whom are affected by severe mental health issues. Her experience highlights the complexities of caring for children and supporting parents with mental health struggles. Sandra speaks openly about significant personal and financial sacrifices.
Sandra (Carer) – 00:07:17: I felt before I started getting support, and even after I got the support, I realised, I went through a stage where I realised I was totally worthless because we went through six years of court hearings with these children, and it cost a lot of money. Their dad lost his business. I lost my house. I used all my superannuation, so I ended up virtually destitute, from going to being quite having a house and quite saving, I went to destitute. So, the financial implications and the emotional implications were quite severe with me. I felt hopeless. I felt worthless. I felt useless.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:08:05: Diane and Sandra in the third episode “Mental Health Care”. They also discussed the added challenges and unique relationships that come from being neurodiverse carers themselves. They also stressed the invaluable benefits they received through counselling and access to support groups.
Diana (Carer) – 00:08:22: I never fit into any of the neurotypical groups, so it was a bit of a struggle to go to the group, I wanted to, but I never could fit in. Yeah, but I was so happy that Gateway kept, you know, letting me come back to these groups even though I wasn’t fitting in, I just kept going to the groups. Eventually they found a good group for me.
Sandra (Carer) – 00:08:44: We actually had a small group that used to meet for coffee after we’d meet up on a Thursday and just have coffee and just have a chat. I found that enjoyable and go home feeling better for having got it off our shoulders.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:09:04: Anyone can become a carer overnight, no matter how old you are or how young. For a young carer, the world can be complex and often challenging. In episode four, we peel back the layers of the caregiving experience faced by young individuals like Julia and Adam, revealing the profound impacts this role has on their personal growth, academic life, and overall mental health. Julia’s 22 years old and is a devoted carer for her older sister who lives with a severe intellectual disability. Julia has been caring for her sister from a very young age. She was literally born into her caring role. She didn’t find it out of the ordinary. She thought of it as normal. However, growing up she started to see more and more that some of her interests and some of her views were different to others her age
Julia (Carer) – 00:09:57: Definitely affected me when it comes to connection and sharing, and also shaped me to who I am as well. And I noticed that because I’m caring for someone and I always have to be there for my sister, and I am very connected to my family. Therefore, my Vietnamese is so good, but my English is very behind. So, when it comes to studying it, I realised that the delay of like understanding, learning, it also impacted me because I have to like learn English properly slowly as well. So, I didn’t have a chance to discover my interests at all, and I didn’t have the time to explore my strengths, my hobbies.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:10:36: The caring role does have an impact on both Julia’s and Adam’s academic life. While Julia studies mainly at night with hopefully no distractions, 17-year-old Adam is still in year 12, just about to finish his final exams next term. He cares for his father who’s compromised in his mobility due to a severe lower back condition.
Adam (Carer) – 00:10:58: I’d say my challenges is not being able to do enough for my dad because in that sense, I still have to go to school. I still have to get my education. And the problem is, while I’m at school, no one’s at home caring for my dad. I’m always like constantly worried whether he’s got out of bed yet, if he, if he’s alright going down the stairs or going up the stairs. I just message him every now and then to make sure he’s alright if he like needs anything. He took me for my P’s test, and I failed. It kind of just broke me down a little bit because it’s like, I felt like that I, I failed him pretty much.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:11:50: Rural and regional carer support challenges take centre stage in episode five. Limited resources, isolation and technical difficulties in communication clearly have an impact on carers like Dawn and Julie-Ann. Dawn lives in a small township with a population of about 90. Access to services is limited, affecting her mobility. Dawn had a spine stroke some time ago. She cares for her daughter who was born with hydrocephalus.
Dawn (Carer) – 00:12:21: It’s certainly tough. It is tough. I don’t go to people’s places. I find it very hard for us to leave our own house yard. This is our piece of paradise, we battle on here. I’m lucky in one way that I’m a very keen photographer. We hop in the car with our camera. That’s how most bad afternoons spent. No, it’s, it’s tough, it’s tough. We used to share this, but now it’s a battle on my own. No, we just, we just live on here. We, you know, I do find it, to be fair, I do find it very, very hard to ask for help because I’ve been a very independent person.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:13:06: Julie-Ann is a carer for her nephew and three grandchildren. She underscores the challenges of caring for loved ones in regional areas where services are scarce.
Julie-Ann (Carer) – 00:13:17: Sometimes it’s hard. I had to move from Camooweal here to find, to be diagnosed by the Royal Flying Doctor. So, I had to move in here for him to, because you can’t just get them in these little places, little towns. When you are in here, that’s why I say to people, these Mount Isa people just knock on your door, you got ’em standing at your front door, but out in these little remote places, you don’t get help. You try and get help and you; you can’t get them.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:13:43: More from Dawn and Julie-Ann, both rural and regional carers in episode five. Episode six takes us even further away to remote and Indigenous communities in Australia. We explore the importance of building respectful relationships with local councils and tribes who often require permission for services to enter the areas. Gloria is a remote carer, deeply rooted in her community on Mornington Island. She cares for her older sister after the passing of their parents. Her dedication to family and community care is unwavering, despite personal health challenges.
Gloria (Carer) – 10 00:14:26: Sometimes I find it hard because I’m not a well person. I’m a sick person myself. You know, looking after myself is a very hard thing because she’s not a well person and she, she’s older than me and you know, the challenges I face is a problem for her, you know, what she want, when she want and you know, there’s great challenges for me because I’m her younger sister and I’m not a well person at times, you know, because I go to the hospital at times and you know, my challenge is very, very hard.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:15:06: All too often caring for someone you love evokes, in remote carers, a passion to look after other people in their community as well, because there are simply not enough services available. Like Mossiearna, she also lives on Mornington Island. She not only cares for her 5-year-old daughter, but also for elderly people.
Mossiearna (Carer) – 00:15:26: Yeah, she’s with me 24/7. Like, she’s got a history of bronchomalacia on the right side and been flying in and out of Mornington since she was two months, going to Mount Isa and Townsville and down Brisbane there, get quite a lot in the hospital. I just get too attached to her and am just overprotective I guess, I struggle really.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:15:50: Both Mossiearna and Gloria highlighted the importance of familiar environments for their loved ones. The struggle for support in remote areas and the lifesaving role of community and family. They also reflect on the crucial role of Wellways Carer Gateway, which provides much needed assistance such as transportation, social activities, and emotional support.
Gloria (Carer) – 00:16:14: You know, sometimes they’re not much on the island at times. Only a couple of times they come on the island. And so, we just get little support from families, and you know, when these people are off the island, we don’t get that support.
Mossiearna (Carer) – 00:16:32: Well, I’ve been just getting help for the last three day, two to three days since they’ve been back. But I can manage, you know, especially the Elders, you know, they needed that more attention, you know, so I’m getting support. Like I said, the Elders like really need the more attention and this is where I step in. Yeah. Come and help.
Gloria (Carer) – 00:16:54: You know, I get so much help when I go to Mount Isa, when I go to the hospital. Yeah, they take me to the hospital. They sit there, they take me to shopping in, in Mount Isa. Yeah, I get a lot of help from them when I’m in Mount Isa too. The only time I get help from them when they come over here, you know, they support us, you know, when they come over, but when they go back, we don’t get no support after that. But they, they’re very nice people. They’re good people and they help us so much. You know,
Mossiearna (Carer) – 00:17:28: Like they take, they get a bunch of Elders and take them out fishing or down to the beach.
Gloria (Carer) – 00:17:35: Yeah.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:17:49: And this was an overview of Tune in to Care “No two carers are the same”. In all the episodes, we will also hear Louise Faulkner, the General Manager of Carer Gateway Services at Wellways, highlighting the importance of accessing support services like counselling, carer groups and practical assistance; and other experts shedding light on services tailored to the individual needs of the diverse carer communities.
Tenille Griffiths – 00:18:17: If we even reflect further, even people identifying themselves as a carer rather than a just a husband or wife or daughter or son, sometimes they don’t actually place that term ‘caring’ on themselves. So I guess, that’s, the first step is identifying that they are a carer and then finding out what supports and services are available to them, as well as the person that they’re supporting.
Louise Faulkner – 00:18:41: And I think that’s what happens so beautifully in any group setting with carers, is they’re so open to sharing their own story, incredibly generous with their own story and then very supportive of each other as well.
Carer – 00:18:53: And there’s that, that sense of relief when a young carer can be with peers and they don’t have to explain themselves. They don’t have to explain that they’re carer and they’ve got a sibling or a parent that they provide support for.
Adrian Plitzco – 00:19:08: Aging carers, mental health carers, youth carers, rural and regional carers or remote carers, they all share the same resilience and dedication to their caring role, although their challenges and experiences may differ. Tune in to Care “No two carers are the same” will throughout the upcoming five episodes, shine a light on the diversity of caring communities. Subscribe to the podcast on your favourite podcast platform or streaming service. Meet the carers who share the stories and hear the experts discussing robust support systems for carers to thrive in their roles. Tune in to Care is a podcast supported by Carer Gateway an Australian Government initiative. If you are a carer in need of support, call Wellways Carer Gateway on 1800 422 737. I am Adrian Plitzco, thank you for listening. I’m looking forward meeting you again in the next episode.