Parenting UP! Caregiving adventures with comedian J Smiles
A Filmmaker, A Family Caregiver. Susie Singer's Story
Sep 15, 2026 · 51 min · 11 segments
The scariest part of caregiving is how quietly it starts, until one day you realize you’re making medical decisions, managing safety, and carrying a grief nobody warned you about. We’re joined by…
The scariest part of caregiving is how quietly it starts, until one day you realize you’re making medical decisions, managing safety, and carrying a grief nobody warned you about. We’re joined by filmmaker, producer, and activist Susie Singer, who cared for her mom through 16 years of Alzheimer’s and turned that experience into storytelling that doesn’t look away. We talk about the early symptoms that don’t feel like “normal aging” and the moment a simple cognitive test makes everything real. Susie gets honest about the common missteps many dementia caregivers make at first, like “testing” a loved one, then shares the mindset shift that changed everything: lean into their world instead of forcing them to stay in ours. We also dig into what happens when care moves beyond home, including why continuity, connection, and dignity matter as much as any medication. Then the conversation turns into a hard investigation of long-term care in the United States. Susie explains how her documentary No Country for Old People exposes nursing home neglect, understaffing as a business model, COVID-era lockouts, avoidable injuries like pressure sores, and the reality of chemical restraint, including off-label sedation with drugs like Depakote. She shares where you can watch the film (Amazon Prime and free on Tubi) and why she helped launch ROAR (Respect, Oversight, Advocacy, and Reform for Long-Term Care), including a National Long-Term Care Walk for Reform on September 27. Visit roar4ltc.org to find out more information. If you’re an Alzheimer’s caregiver, a dementia caregiver, or someone trying to choose memory care or skilled nursing, this conversation gives language, context, and a way to take action. Subscribe, share this with a family member, and leave a review so more caregivers can find it. Support the show *"*Alzheimer's is heavy but we ain't gotta be!"** IG: https://www.instagram.com/parentingup FB: https://www.facebook.com/parentingup YT: https://www.youtube.com/@parentingup TEXT 'PODCAST" to +1 404 737 1449 - to give J topic ideas, feedback, say hi! Be sure to leave us a review!
The scariest part of caregiving is how quietly it starts, until one day you realize you’re making medical decisions, managing safety, and carrying a grief nobody warned you about. We’re joined by…
