About The Host

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!...