If you're watching someone you love... | Georgia Telehealth Therapy

Okay. So, welcome to today's deep dive. We are so glad you're here. Usually, um, when we talk about a medical diagnosis, there's this expectation of precision, right? Like an exac science. Exactly. It's kind of like engineering or something. You break your arm, the X-ray shows that jagged white line, and the doctor just points at the film and says, "Well, there it is. That's the problem." Yeah. It's undeniable. But then you step into the world of neurocognitive decline and suddenly, you know, that X-ray machine is just broken. We're looking at a diagnostic landscape that is entirely murky. And it's not just murky for the patient, which is the crazy part, right? The impact isn't just on

the person sitting in the examination chair. So, today we were looking at the uh the blast radius of neurocognitive decline. We're really focusing on the hidden secondary patient sitting out in the waiting room, meaning you, the caregiver. Yes, you. And to unpack this, we are looking at excerpts from this incredibly insightful framework called the caregivers's compass navigating neurocognitive support with CHC counseling. It's a completely necessary shift in perspective. I think we spend billions of dollars and you know endless research hours focusing on the patient experiencing the decline, which makes total sense obviously, right? Of course it does. But the fallout of that diagnosis creates this secondary medical crisis that usually just goes completely untreated. Okay,

let's unpack this because while this source material is brief, it carries an immense emotional and practical weight. Our mission today is to look at CHC counseling down in Georgia as a specific blueprint for um accessible mental health support. It's a fascinating case study in how modern mental health care is finally trying to solve the real barriers that trap caregivers. But before we get into the solution, I think we have to establish the exact medical reality of what the caregiver is actually up against. We need to draw a hard line between a medical disease and just, you know, natural aging. The terminology really matters here because it defines the boundaries of the problem, right? And the

text specifically talks about major neurocognitive disorder, which I think most of us casually just call dementia. Yeah. But this isn't just some umbrella term for getting older. Major neurocognitive disorder is a profound structural decline in memory and executive thinking. It's serious enough to disrupt daily life. Exactly. We have to separate it from the benign forgetfulness that well happens to all of us. See, I want to push back on that a little or at least pause on that line between disease and getting older because society blurs this line constantly. Oh, all the time. People will say, um, well, grandpa's 82. Of course, he forgets where he put his keys, right? But the text gives specific symptoms.

Forgetting recent conversations entirely, getting lost on familiar roads, searching for everyday words. I mean, assuming these symptoms are just getting older is kind of like ignoring a flashing check engine light because you assume, well, it's just an old car. I love that analogy. What's fascinating here is that the mechanism in the brain is completely different. Wait, really? How so? Well, when you forget where you park your car at the mall, your retrieval system is just slow or you were distracted. But the map of the mall still exists in your brain. Oh, wow. Okay. In major neurocognitive disorder, the map itself is being actively deleted. That is terrifying. It is getting lost on roads you've driven

every day for 20 years. These aren't retrieval errors. They are structural failures of the brain. So, the text is vital here when it says this is never just a normal part of getting older. Precisely. Attributing severe cognitive decline to just getting older is a massive dangerous mistake. Because if you just write it off as old age, you're basically ignoring a fundamental breakdown of reality. Yes. And more importantly, it delays intervention. This is why the source specifically carves out a mandatory role for physicians and neurology. A medical diagnosis has to come from them. Acknowledging the medical reality is step one, right? You cannot manage the emotional fallout until you accept the clinical facts. Okay, so the

physician names the disease. They prescribe the medication. But here's where we hit the systemic failure. They pack their briefcases and go home at 5:00 p.m. So who handles the family? Historically, nobody. No. That is the massive gap left behind, that terrifying vacuum that caregivers are just dropped into. And that leads us directly to the core message of the source text, the emotional toll on the caregiver. The caregiver is the forgotten patient. Watching this unfold is arguably one of the hardest, loneliest things a family goes through. Here's where it gets really interesting to me. The source talks about grief. And there's a phrase here. The grief is real even while your person is still here. Yeah,

that's a heavy line. It is because wait, we usually associate grief with a funeral, right? A casket. Finality. How do you process grief for someone who is sitting right next to you at the dinner table? What you're touching on is this deeply complex psychological state known as ambiguous loss. You are literally grieving the living. Grieving the living. Yes. Grief isn't just the reaction to physical death. It's the reaction to the loss of a relationship as you knew it. The loss of the future you had planned together. It makes me think of like reading a biography of someone you've cherished your whole life, but the pages are slowly being erased from the back to the front.

That's a great way to put it. The cover is exactly the same. They look like your husband of 40 years, but the story you share is just vanishing. Or consider a parent child dynamic. It's your mother sitting across from you, but she's looking at you as if you are a stranger trying to steal from her. Oh man, that is brutal. You aren't just losing her memory. You are losing the dynamic of your entire relationship. She was your protector and now she is entirely your dependent. And because it happens so slowly, it's just this insidious kind of trauma. It's not an explosion, it's an erosion. And that is exactly why the text notes that anxiety and

depression quietly settle in. It's a slowmoving trauma. You exist in this constant state of hypervigilance, waiting for the wandering to start. Right? And the text's core thesis is that caregivers simply carry too much. They are allowed to need support, too. Therapy gives them that steady footing. Okay, but let's look at the actual application here. Acknowledging a caregiver needs help is the easy part. Logistically, we have a huge hurdle. The biggest hurdle. Let's say you're the sole caregiver for a spouse who wanders. How do you leave that vulnerable loved one at home to actually go sit in a therapist office across town? Logistically, in a traditional model, you don't you can't. So, what does this all

mean for the listener? Well, it means the therapy has to come to you. And this directly sets up the practical solutions offered by coping and healing counseling, CHC, right? Their model is completely built around this reality. They offer a 100% teleaalth IPA compliant therapy model. It's like a lifeline thrown directly into your living room. It eliminates the impossible logistics of travel. You don't have to hire a rest bit nurse just so you can go cry in a therapist's office. You can open your laptop at the kitchen table while your loved one maps. And they serve all 159 Georgia counties, which is wild. All 159. If we connect this to the bigger picture, it solves the

geographic inequality of healthcare. Whether you're in downtown Atlanta or a deeply rural county, your access to care is exactly the same. But you know, it's not just about a screen. It's about who is on the other end of that screen. The text highlights that CHC has 15 plus licensed therapists. The multiddisciplinary aspect is key here, right? Because they mention LCSWs, LPC's, and LMFTs and specialties that match the caregivers's exact struggles like anxiety, trauma, PTSD, grief, stress. You need that variety because the fallout of cognitive decline doesn't just hit the primary caregiver. It ripples through the whole household. Oh, absolutely. The text mentions they offer couples therapy, family therapy, and even teen therapy for ages 13

and up, which is so important. Think about a 14-year-old whose grandmother lives in the house. That teenager is watching a woman who used to bake them cookies suddenly become aggressive or forget their name. That is deeply traumatizing for a kid. It really is. And the parents are usually so exhausted managing the medical needs that they don't have the emotional bandwidth for the teenager. So CHC can have an LPC working with the mom and an LMFT doing family therapy and maybe someone else helping the teen. Exactly. And another crucial element the text emphasizes is that they have a diverse culturally competent team. Why is that specifically so important in this context? Because different cultures have vastly

different expectations about elder care. In many cultures, placing an aging parent in a facility is a fundamental betrayal. Oh, I see. So, the expectation is that the family, maybe the eldest daughter, provides the care no matter what. Right. And if you go to a therapist who doesn't understand that cultural weight, you waste months just explaining your background and why you feel so much shame. That's a huge cognitive tax on a caregiver who is already exhausted. Exactly. A culturally competent therapist already knows the weight of that taboo. It accelerates the healing. Okay. Okay, so we have tellahalth solving the geographic and logistical hurdles. We have a diverse team solving the clinical friction. But there is always

one final roadblock for families. The cost. It always comes down to the financial reality. Always. And this is where the specific numbers change the narrative. CHC accept major insuranceances Etna, Sigma, BCBS, UHC, and Humanana. Which brings the cost down significantly down to just $10 to $40 per session. Yeah. And even more amazing, Medicaid carries a Z co-pay. That combination is systematically dismantling every excuse a burntout caregiver might use to delay getting help because caregivers deal with so much guilt, right? If medical bills are piling up for the patient, how guilty does a caregiver feel spending money on their own therapy? They'll put themselves last every time. But a 0 Medicaid co-pay or a $15 session

fee removes that guilt. It's a permission slip. It really is. And for anyone listening who needs this permission slip, the contact pathways are straightforward. You can go to treetherapy.com, email them at supportchet theapy.com, or call 404832102. The access is right there. So to wrap up this deep dive, the core message from our source is clear. Major neurocognitive disorder is a devastating medical reality, but the family members navigating it do not have to carry the burden alone. Having a steady footing through the changes ahead is invaluable. Prioritizing your own mental health is a necessary non-negotiable part of caregiving. Reach out tonight. Don't wait until you break. But before we go, I want to leave you with

a final lingering question that really builds on this theme of grieving while they are still here. I'm curious to hear this. Well, if we finally acknowledge this invisible, slowmoving grief and we actually treat it, how does that fundamentally change the way we interact with our loved ones in their final chapters? Wow. Does accepting our own need for help, dropping the whole perfect caregiver facade, actually make us far more capable of cherishing the time they have left? If we treat the trauma of the caregiver, do we ultimately save the memory of the patient? That is a beautiful way to look at it. Something for you to mull over. Thank you for joining us today on this

deep dive. Take care of yourselves out there and we'll catch you next time.