Caregiver's Spotlight: Jeanette Yates
'Jeanette is a writer, public speaker, and caregiver coach for women.'
This is the second Caregiver’s Spotlight Article. The first Caregiver Spotlight article was with
, which you can read here. Today, the Spotlight is on .Hello, Dear Reader! Welcome to our new Carer Mentor community members!’m Victoria. You can read why I’m publishing Carer Mentor here: Who Started Carer Mentor and Why?
In short, after a career climbing the corporate ladder and 18 relocations across 10 countries, I made a head-heart-gut-aligned decision to help my Mum care for my Dad. He had a litany of health issues that were destabilised by a major hospitalisation in 2015: congestive heart failure and rheumatoid arthritis were compounded with a diagnosis of vascular dementia and then bladder cancer.
Dad passed in January 2020. Shortly after his funeral, we moved to another rollercoaster— treatment for Mum’s cancer.
Today, we count our blessings and greatly appreciate our small moments while I continue my small mentoring business and network empathy and inspiration within our Carer Mentor community.
I've been caring for my mom since she was diagnosed with an illness when I was 8. Fast-forward thirty-plus years and I am married, have kids, and dreams and goals of my own.
After watching her interview with Micheal Pope, I connected with Jeanette and asked if she could share a short introduction of herself so we could get to know her better.
Here’s Jeanette sharing a little about her journey as a caregiver.
Here’s Jeanette’s interview with Micheal Pope: ‘How To Become a Guilt-Free Caregiver with Jeanette Yates’.
It’s a 47-minute video interview. I listened to it as audio while I walked and then re-watched specific parts later.
🎙 In this episode, we invite you to listen to an inspiring conversation with Jeanette Yates, Self-Care and Boundary Coach for Caregivers.
✨ Jeanette has cared for her mom since she was eight years old, experiencing firsthand the challenge of prioritizing others over herself. Now, she is dedicated to empowering women who care for aging parents to reclaim their time and embrace their needs without guilt.
✨ Jeanette aims to share her knowledge with the world through speaking and writing, inspiring hope and a way forward, one person at a time. Her engaging and relatable style makes her a popular speaker and author, and her focus on actionable advice ensures that caregivers walk away with concrete strategies for improving their lives.
I think you’ll love Jeanette’s humour. The interview resonates because she get’s it. No telling, preaching or scolding, and definitely no ‘do as I do’ lectures.
Two insight-soundbites that felt like a deep exhale for me
I’m paraphrasing what I heard into two takeaway thoughts that are meaningful to me.
Every caregiver is going to burnout at some point. It’s a fact and part of the course. The key is not to burnout out at high-speed. There’s ways to slow things down so we don’t hit a brick wall in a high speed crash. (Start listening from 7:15 onwards)
This is SO true. There’s more grace, ease and forgiveness in accepting we’ll be depleted of our energy at some point. The key is not to waste our energy trying to avoid it at all costs and instead, try to make small choices that slow the burn, before we’re all out!
Setting boundaries is one of the tools, Jeanette has used to make those small choices. She shares her thoughts, and useful journal prompts in her book ‘‘From Guilt To Good Enough.
Mindfulness is not about trying to carve out a specific time to meditate on the floor or in a comfy space. Within whatever routine you have, like brushing your teeth mindfully notice your actions, your breath, use your senses to feel in the moment what you’re experiencing. mindfulness is Non-judgmental awareness. (Discussed from Timestamp 28:00 onwards)
Yes! We can’t add self care onto our To Do list like another action but we can fold the action into our day. Phew! Thanks, Jeanette.
This resonated because whether you’re in the hypervigilant walking on eggs part of the rollercoaster, or in calmer waters adding more pressure onto our full plates can feel heart-sinking. This reframe of ‘self-care’ for caregivers felt like a good-click.
A few thoughts by Victoria
Every journey is unique. I can relate to various choice-points Jeanette shares, AND I can also see how my journey is different.
As with all things in this rollercoaster life of caregiving, since humans, relationships and history are involved no two journeys are the same. In that respect, we’re united in our unique stories.
And yet, there are similar thoughts/questions within the different contexts that we may all face at one time or another.
This is why it’s good to hear from long-term caregivers like Jeanette, who’ve found ways to navigate their journey and thrive in a way that’s meaningful and fulfilling.
Sharing our insights can expand our awareness of possibilities/solutions, help us consider if they apply to our situation, and choose how to navigate ourselves forward.
Or very simply we can feel resonance and be less alone in it all!
An important note for us all: If you or someone you know is anxious or worried there are several organisations in the UK, the USA and Canada with professionals that can listen and support you. While we share our experiences to network support, remember that there are also experts who you can reach out to if you feel overwhelmed.
I’m looking forward to hearing/reading more from Jeanette. I’ve already finished her book!
Please ‘❤️’ LIKE the article and consider subscribing to Jeanette’s publication ‘From Guilt to Good Enough: Real Caregiving Conversations’
Many thanks to ALL our readers, especially our Carer Mentor community of subscribers, who support each other in comments; I see and appreciate you!
A big ‘Thank you!’ to all sponsors, patrons, and generous paid subscribers. You humble me with your appreciation of Carer Mentor, its mission, and my work.
Jeanette Yates is a lifelong lover of books and writing. As a little girl, she could often be found with her nose buried in a book or listening to her favorite stories on cassette tape. This passion for the written word led her to become an English major in college, where she dreamed of one day writing books of her own.
Today, Jeanette is a blogger, public speaker, and caregiver coach for women. Her writing is inspired by her experiences of trauma healing and her life-long caregiving journey. She hopes to inspire others to create healthy boundaries for their own healing, even as they care for others.
Through her writing, Jeanette aims to share her knowledge with the world and inspire hope and progress, one person at a time. Her engaging and relatable style makes her a popular speaker and author, and her focus on actionable advice ensures her readers walk away with concrete strategies for improving their lives.
Jeanette resides in Florida with her husband and adorable mini Australian Shepherd, where she enjoys spending time with her two young adult sons, especially during college football season.
Yates, Jeanette. From Guilt To Good Enough: A Caregiver’s Journey of Overcoming Burnout Through Healing Childhood Trauma (p. 198).
From Guilt to Good Enough (Kindle Edition February 11, 2025)
Feeling overwhelmed by caregiving? Stuck in guilt but craving freedom?
In From Guilt to Good Enough, Jeanette Yates offers a powerful guide for caregivers struggling to find balance and peace. Having been a caregiver for her mother since childhood, Jeanette knows firsthand the emotional toll caregiving can take. In this memoir-turned-self-help guide, she shares her journey of healing, setting boundaries, and reclaiming her life.
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Meaningful read.