Dementia Education Program Newsletter
Caring Conversations听is an online forum for care partners of people living with dementia to learn from experts, share concerns and ask questions.
Recording of past sessions are posted below.
PREVIOUS EPISODES - SEASON 1
- September 22, 2022 a
罢辞辫颈肠:听Caregiving and COVID Fatigue听听
Lucy and Joanne lead a discussion about caregiving through two concurrent pandemics 鈥� COVID and mental health.听 They discuss the anguish and the triumphs and what we have learned about caregiving through both.听
听 - October 25, 2022听
罢辞辫颈肠:听How to manage challenging behaviours associated with dementia
Lucy and Joanne听lead a discussion about, and provide tips for, managing difficulties with the activities of daily living, verbal or physical aggression and inappropriate sexual behaviour.
听 - November 24, 2022听
罢辞辫颈肠:听How has dementia affected how you relate to the person you support?听
Lucy and Joanne lead a discussion about how caring for a spouse, parent or friend affects your communication, social life and intimacy.听
听 - December 20, 2022听
Topic: Home care or Care home?
Lucy and Joanne talk about recognizing if it is time to transition to supervised a care home, and coping with the feelings that accompany making that type of decision.听
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- January 17, 2023听
Topic: Conflict Amongst Caregivers听
Joanne and Lucy lead a discussion about what we can do when siblings, and other family members and caregivers do not agree.
听 - February 16, 2023听
Topic: The Positive Aspects of Caregiving
Lucy and Joanne share research results on the positive aspects of caregiving, including the health and wellbeing benefits that it can bring.听 A discussion on the value of acceptance followed.听
听 - March 28, 2023听
Topic: Using Positive Intelligence to Cope with Caregiver Challenges
Joanne and Lucy talk about how we can mute the voices in our head that generate negative emotions that can interfere with our ability to manage difficult situations. They offer tools to favor resilience and help identify our triggers, so that caregivers can respond constructively to challenging situations.
听 - April 27, 2023听
罢辞辫颈肠:听Your Questions Answered
Lucy and Joanne focus on the needs of Caring Conversations participants. They address topics raised in the evaluation forms of past episodes and leave time to respond to other questions.
SEASON 2
- September 26, 2023听
罢辞辫颈肠:听Hygiene and Dementia
Lucy and Joanne discuss what caregivers of people living with dementia can do when the person they support refuses personal daily care.听
听 - October 24, 2023听
罢辞辫颈肠:听Dementia and Inappropriate Sexual Behaviour听
A big challenge that caregivers might face is managing inappropriate sexual behaviour exhibited by a person with dementia. Lucy and Joanne discuss the feelings this can cause and provide some tips for dealing with it.听
听 - November 28, 2023
罢辞辫颈肠:听Caring for Someone with Dementia: What You Need to Know About Hallucinations, Delusions and Paranoia听
Joanne and Lucy explain the difference between these troubling experiences. They discuss听why these may听occur with dementia, and provide some tips on how to respond to each situation.
听 - December 19, 2023听
罢辞辫颈肠:听Safe Use of Medications for Seniors and Caregivers听
Lucy and Joanne explore possible side effects of medications and听the risks of falls when taking medications. They also discuss听common mistakes people sometimes make when taking medications.
听 - January 16, 2024
Topic: Questions caregivers ask themselves
Lucy and Joanne听have a personal conversation about the most challenging issues they have experienced as caregivers and witnessed in their practice, and talk about what helped.鈥�
听 - February 29, 2024听
Topic: A series of emotions - how to manage sadness, anger and uncertainty
Lucy and Joanne talk about the range of emotions that caregivers can experience and provide tips on how to manage them.
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March 19, 2024
Topic: Guilt and self-care
Joanne and Lucy will dive into the emotion of guilt and the importance of prioritizing self-care.听
April 16, 2024听
Topic: Using Positive Intelligence in Caregiving
Lucy and Joanne will discuss how this approach can help set boundaries and address many other difficulties that have been raised in earlier episodes of Caring Conversations.
SEASON 3
- September 25, 2024听
Topic: How to manage challenging behaviours associated with dementia
Lucy and Joanne lead a discussion about - and provide tips for - managing difficulties with the activities of daily living, verbal or physical aggression and inappropriate sexual behaviour.
听 - October 22, 2024听
Topic: How to manage hallucinations, delusions and paranoia associated with dementia
Joanne and Lucy explain the difference between these troubling experiences, why they occur with dementia, and provide some tips on how to respond to each situation.听
听 - November 20, 2024听
Topic: Home care or care home?
Lucy and Joanne talk about recognizing if and when it is time to transition to a supervised care home, and coping with the feelings that accompany making that type of decision.听
听 - December 18, 2024听
Topic: Hygiene challenges in dementia
Lucy and Joanne discuss what caregivers of people living with dementia can do when the person they support refuses personal daily care.听
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January 29, 2025听
Topic: Conflicts between caregivers
Joanne and Lucy lead a discussion about what we can do when siblings, family members and other care partners do not agree.
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February 26, 2025听
Topic: Managing emotions triggered by caregiving
Lucy and Joanne talk about the range of emotions that caregivers can experience and provide tips on how to manage them.
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March 19, 2025听
Topic: Guilt and self-care
Joanne and Lucy dive into the emotion of guilt and the importance of prioritizing self-care.听
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May 7, 2025听
Topic:听The positive aspects of caregiving听
Lucy and Joanne听share research results on the positive aspects of caregiving, including the health and wellbeing benefits that it can bring.听 Care partners share their positive experiences so we can collectively celebrate this special role.听听听
SEASON 4
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September 30, 2025
Topic: The Compassionate Lie
Lucy and Joanne discuss the challenge of balancing one鈥檚 right to honesty with lying and deception to minimize distress and anxiety when caring for a person who is living with dementia. They share advice on when, how and what justifies not telling the truth and will invite participants to share their own their tips and lived examples.
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- November 12, 2025
罢辞辫颈肠:听Practicing positivity and self-care through art
Lucy and Joanne focus on the importance of positivity and the healing power of art as a powerful medium to improve caregiver well-being. For this special Caring Conversation, we have invited art specialist听Cynthia van Frank听to talk about a series of paintings that she has created to reflect her personal journey as a caregiver to her mother who grapples with dementia.
- January 21, 2026
罢辞辫颈肠:听How to manage behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) /听Comment approcher les sympt么mes comportementaux et psychologique de la d茅mence (SCPD)
This episode took place in FRENCH.
Claire Webster and Carmen Desjardins听discussed how to manage behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia. They provided tips for managing difficulties with the activities of daily living, verbal or physical aggression and inappropriate sexual behaviour when caring for a person living with dementia.
- February听25, 2026
Topic: Sandwich Generation Caregivers
On this episode of Caring Conversations, Lucy and Joanne will discuss the significant emotional, financial and physical stress that sandwich generation caregivers may face as they juggle the needs of these two different generations. They will also discuss the role that grandparents may play in supporting their children in parenting. During this episode, Lucy and Joanne will be joined by caregiver Janice Heft who will share how this role has impacted her relationships.
Caring Conversations is supported by Petro-Canada .
