The Adapted Life
Welcome to The Adapted Life Podcast, a dedicated space for those who have faced profound challenges, particularly those who have navigated the journey of having a child born with severe disabilities. This podcast serves as a sanctuary for connection, offering support and strategies for building resilience when life unfolds differently than we envisioned.
In this series, I share my personal journey with my disabled son, detailing the ups and downs we experienced together. Our story is one of love, hardship, and ultimately, adaptation. But now, my focus has shifted to the complex and often lonely path of adapting to life after the loss of my son.
Grief is a powerful, consuming force that changes everything. It can feel isolating and overwhelming, reshaping how we perceive the world around us. Through this podcast, I hope to explore what it means to grieve, to honor the memory of my son, and to find ways to move forward while carrying his spirit with me.
We'll discuss practical approaches to adapting to loss, including how to find joy in small moments, the importance of community support, and strategies for navigating everyday life when the ground beneath you has shifted. This journey is deeply personal, yet universal in its themes of love, loss, and resilience.
Join me as we create a conversation around grief and adaptation, turning our experiences into pathways for healing and connection. Every story shared strengthens our community and reminds us that while loss is an inevitable part of life, we have the capacity to adapt and find new meanings, even amidst heartache.
The Adapted Life
DON'T TELL ME TO SELF-CARE!
SELF-CARE.
ONE OF THE DREADED PLATITUDES PEOPLE THROW AT CAREGIVERS LIKE MYSELF, IS "YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF TO BE A BETTER CAREGIVER FOR ....."
I don't share that opinion, because I see self-care as an extension of self-love for myself. Because I have to take care of my special needs needs son, is not the reason for self care, its a part of it, but it is so much more about me as an individual human being.
In this episode, my dear friends, I chat a bit about the latest things happening in my world with my 24 year old disabled son. I also recap and revisit the past few episodes where I shared my "tools for adapting" in the areas of meditation, gratitude, communication, and then I move into self care.
To be the best version of myself, has meant really taking steps to look inward. To stop the negative thoughts, and begin to nourish my soul with the love that it deserves. As my life continues to expand and be more abundant, as opposed to be stuck in scarcity, everything has shifted. Including the normal "self-care" people think of.
When you tell an exhausted special needs caregiver that if they don't take care of themselves, they won't be a good caregiver, it is a very insensitive thing to say. Life is exhausting. Painful. and at times there is no space for going to the gym and fixing super nutritious meals. Also, most of us caregivers ALREADY KNOW THAT WE SHOULD TAKE BETTER CARE OF OURSELVES. There is just so much more to it.
So I explain to my friends and listeners how I have brought myself to a place of true compassion and self-love. That taking care of me, is not about making a healthy robot to perform tasks, but more about enhancing life as whole. So much expands when abundance becomes our mindset. Self-care. Is about self. The most important part of your self, is your highest self, your soul, that inner energy that is truly the essence of you. I came to a realization, that it was incredibly powerful to be in stillness and listen gently to the silence. Without judgement, with love, and light. And this... has made me a better caregiver for myself first. Everyone else, including my son, receives the bonus prize of my positivity and strength.
I hope you will join us here often, or visit the YouTube channel "Julie Hasselberger" which is video journal of content, created to show the inside of life as a caregiver. Please find me on instagram, Facebook, and even at times, tik Tok
Here are the links.
YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQr7Ot0J0o6_gRnG_fJvzDg
Daniel's Special Art (our shop)
https://www.etsy.com/shop/DanielsSpecialArt?ref=seller-platform-mcnav
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/jhasselberger/
https://www.etsy.com/shop/DanielsSpecialArt?ref=seller-platform-mcnav
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQr7Ot0J0o6_gRnG_fJvzDg
