21-HT 2.0: 30in30 Featuring Megan Schwalm from the Tennessee Respite Coalition
- S8
- 25:18
- November 21st 2020
Welcome to Season 8, Episode 21 of Healing Ties 2.0, 30 podcasts in 30 days celebrating National Family Caregivers month featured on the Whole Care Network. In this episode it is a pleasure to welcome the Executive Director of the Tennessee Respite Coalition, Dr. Megan Schwalm!
The Tennessee Respite Coalition provides respite services to caregivers across the entire state of Tennessee. This important state-wide agency strives to provide caregivers with the tools to care for themselves so that they can better care for their loved one. "You can't pour from an empty cup." Additionally, One of Dr. Schwalm’s core values as a leader is providing support for her staff in their own wellness journey.
Listen in and learn how Dr. Schwalm and the entire staff at the Tennessee Respite Coalition are creating Healing Ties all around us!
Healing Ties
Beyond Caregiving...How do care?
How do we care for our family, friends, and the strangers we meet? How do we care for the community we live in?
How do we heal the physical, social, financial, spiritual aspects of our life and the lives of those around us?
We do this by creating Healing Ties!
By sharing their stories with host Christopher MacLellan, our guests reveal how they are creating Healing Ties in their community by their words, actions, and deeds.
Meet the Team
Affectionately known as “The Bow Tie Guy" in the vast network of family caregivers, Christopher MacLellen is the Author of "What's The Deal with Caregiving" and the host of Healing Ties podcast featured on The Whole Care Network.
The story of Chris and his deceased partner, Richard Schiffer was chronicled in a 2015 Pulitzer Prize nominated story “In Sickness and In Health: A Couple’s Final Journey” about their journey of caregiving. Seen by over 500,000 people world-wide the story told of the challenges that LGBT partners have in dealing with the medical and legal system, but it also told of the love and joy that Richard’s last years had on their relationship.
Chris' masters degree thesis, Caregiving, Stress and its Impact on the Work Place was accepted by the faculty at Gonzaga University in 2016 where he earned a masters degree in Leadership and Communication.
Chris founded the Whole Care Network in 2016, presents regularly on topics that impact family Caregivers and now is Aging Gayfully after caregiving has ended.