Education
Did you know that people are turning 65 at a rate of 10,000 people per day and that number isn’t expected to decrease for a few years? That’s a lot of people turning 65. A lot of the people who have had Great accomplishments throughout their lives Their stories might not have been told and if they have been, they might not be remembered. Welcome to seniors we love, a podcast designed to honor the people who have made a difference in our lives. Who might not have gotten the recognition they deserved any other way. It’s where we share stories of people who have made a difference Mixed in we talk about some of the difficulties they’ve experienced and some of the joys of their adventures. Trailblazers in their own subtle way. I hope throughout this podcast to share those stories of people who really made a difference and mixed in between some of the stories will probably be some of the difficulties of the senior life that people experience My name is Debbie DeChambeau and I am the host of this podcast and in 2019, I am also a caregiver. I didn’t plan to be a caregiver. I didn’t go looking for it. People tell me they don’t know how I do what I do. It’s something I have heard all of my life. Honestly, I just do what I think needs to be done and I keep moving forward. I’m a survivor. I don’t think twice about it. I focus on having a positive attitude and I think in many ways that’s what keeps me going In many ways I might have set myself up for it because I am so caring. I’m not afraid to jump in and try to figure it out. And I’m not that good at saying NO. My sister passed away in November, 1999. She was 34 and left behind 4 children. A year after her death, her husband was floundering so I was asked to care for her two youngest children for awhile. I went from two kids to four overnight. I figured it out. I was raising 4 children for over a year. What a challenging time that was in my life. I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I managed the care for my biological father during the last year of his life. You see he ended up in the hospital once a month and would be there for a week at a time. It was an hour away, but I drove there every day, met with the doctors, coordinated the care then came home to take care of the 4 kids. He would misbehave in the middle of the night and they would call me to come and sit with him because they didn’t have anyone else. While caring for him was different than the caring I’ve done for others, his taught me a lot that has helped me over the past 10 years. I also have a step father. Actually if you want to learn a little more about me outside of this podcast episode, go to episode 1 of Divorce Exposed, another podcast I host and you’ll get a lot of my backstory. I digress. When my step father passed away, he had a brother that he looked after every month. This was my Uncle Merrill. On the way to the funeral, I learned how much my dad was helping his brother. I said to my uncle, if you ever need any help, let me know, I live in a big house and I’m happy to help. It was my way of letting my dad know how much I was part of his family. Another story for another podcast. Little did I know that within 6 months he would be living with me. He was with me for almost 10 years. I was his caregiver and I’ll talk more about him in another episode. My mom and I have had an interesting relationship over the years. For the first 30ish, she was an alcoholic. Once she was in recovery, we made up for all of the lost years. I always told her there was a room for her in my home when she needed it and that I would never put her in a nursing home. I don’t believe in that. 3 years ago, my mom moved in with me. It was a short visit because she had fallen off the wagon and it was like reliving my teenage years. Fast forward 3 years and she is again in recovery but she’s also very sick and currently in hospice. I’m her caregiver. It’s so much more than I ever imagined. I’m good at providing medicine, doing laundry and keeping people doing the right thing. I’m not so good at some of the other duties of a caregiver. I really don’t like changing the porta potty or cleaning the wounds. With my sisters children, I had a husband who helped and I was 20 years younger! With my uncle, he did almost everything for himself, or at least tried to. My mom is a primadonna. She wants everything done for her. That might be because she currently weighs 79 lbs. And is also a fall risk so she can’t do much. But she doesn’t make it easy. Living with my mom for the first time in 30 years has been quite an adjustment. I’ve learned so many things about her that I was never aware of. Or maybe I just forgot or didn’t see them because of the alcoholism. There’s a reason we didn’t get along when I was a teenager, but I don’t think I was the issue! (wink wink) Because of the caregiving I’m doing for my mom, I decided to create this podcast. I’ve learned so much about her and I think it needs to be shared. Not in a negative way, but in a way that inspires others. I want to showcase how amazing people are. The little things that make a difference that don't always get talked about. I’m also an insurance agent. I started working for my step dad when I was 15. After my sister passed, I stepped away from the industry for awhile. I kept my license and did my required continuing education credits each year. I’m a certified insurance counselor, so I’ve taken a lot of classes. I kept my insurance license because I didn’t know what the future would hold. While caring for my mom and trying to figure out her medicare benefits, I was so overwhelmed. I figure if I’m having trouble with this stuff, how can seniors and other caregivers figure it out. I’m an insurance agent and I’m struggling. I realized why I kept my insurance license all these years. I’m now back in the insurance business as a medicare agent. I’m a resource for anyone eligible for medicare, helping them navigate the confusing waters. It’s a world filled with acronyms. Mops, QMB’s DSNPs to SEP’s. And the list goes on for the acronyms! I started my own insurance agency called Lynn Michel Insurance. Lynn is my middle name, Michel is my youngest son's middle name. He hates that name so I’m hoping to showcase how beautiful it is! I’m also hoping he’ll decide to join me in the business one day. If nothing else, It’s a lot shorter than DeChambeau! So if you know a senior that needs a review of their medicare insurance, I’d love to be the person you talk to. Technically, I’ve been an insurance agent for the past 40 years, and at the time of this recording I’m almost a year in the medicare space. Being new is a good thing. I’ll be thorough, do the research and provide you with the options that you are looking for. Everything is fresh because of all the studying I’ve been doing. While everything is highly regulated by CMS (centers for Medicare and Medicaid services) and I mean highly regulated, I’ve also completed the certifications for Part C and Part D. Talk about complicated. So if you need someone to talk to about medicare, go to LYNNMICHEL.com or call me at 301-996-2328. As a caregiver and as an insurance agent, I understand this complicated world of looking out for the Seniors We Love. I’m super excited to share these stories with you. I hope they motivate and inspire and provide talking points for your family as we remember the seniors we love. If you have someone you want me to talk about, please reach out to me at seniorswelove@gmail.com Seniors we love is my 4th podcast. If you want to listen to my other podcasts they are titled Divorce Exposed, Business In Real Life, The Business of Insurance and I hope to release Single and Over Sixty soon. I’ll link to them in the show notes which you can find at seniorswelove.com