Family Caregiving Stress

At this time, managing family stress and relational conflict has been hard on everyone. I can help support you and identify key strategies to feel more authentic and self-accepting as you care for others and manage family conflict.

I specialize in working with parents of infants and children with special medical needs, including neonatal hospitalization (NICU, CICU) and managing the transition home after hospitalization. I also provide support to parents of older children, whether facing a new diagnosis or managing their child's chronic medical needs at home.

You try so hard to be there for your aging parent, as well as for your own family. No one seems to know struggle it is to balance these parts of your life. It's just expected that you will be there when your parent falls and is rushed to the ER. It's just expected that you will attend a daughter's soccer game, when all you really want to do is slip into a bath & then head to bed. You are exhausted. My name is Lisabeth Wotherspoon, and I help with Caregiver Burnout.

Together we will: Decrease the physical and emotional sensations of overwhelm, exhaustion, and burnout Learn about anger, frustration, and sadness and how to manage them in the throws of a toddler meltdown or after endless sleepless nights. Work on softening insecurities and feelings of inadequacy so that you can get back to enjoying being a parent. You are not alone in parenthood. Let me help you find yourself again.

Many of my clients are adult children caring for a parent or a spouse caring for a spouse. Our work together can focus on grief, stress, decision-making, anxiety, pain, purpose, you name it. I am here for you and have supported over 100+ family caregivers throughout their experiences caring for a living family member as well as after the family member dies.

Caregiver burnout is incredibly common and challenging! Our providers will work to find equity, connection, attunement, attachment, and meaning in your relationships with those you love and care for. If you are a parent, partner, or otherwise relationships are complicated and can create stress that is necessary of tending to.

I am in a caregiver role in the world of developmental disabilities, I understand how isolating it can be and how exhausting it is to battle the system.

I am a certified case manager in addition to a clinical social worker with extensive healthcare and advocacy experience. I can help address caregiver stress and help you develop new coping skills to manage these transitions.

Are you a sibling, parent, caregiver, or partner of a person with a chronic illness such as diabetes, Alzheimers, or Cancer? Even if you aren't the family member living with the chronic illness, life can be extremely challenging and exhausting. As a caregiver, you can also experience burnout. Therapy can be a safe space for you to process your emotions surrounding your role and identify ways to help you both heal and care for yourself.

I am a single mother of an adult child with a significant developmental disability and I have served on our Governor appointed WA State Developmental Disabilities Council. In addition, I have counseled family caregivers during my time in community mental health.

I have extensive experience in working with families dealing with conflict and parents of strong-willed children. While working with children with extreme externalizing behaviors for many years, I learned the root cause of many of their issues came from undersupported caregivers. Children cannot thrive when parents are not emotionally well, and I help families maintain stability by providing emotional support for caregivers.

Alzheimer's and chronic illnesses affect everyone in the family. Caregiver mental health is just as important as the health of the person with the illness. I have extensive experience working with both types of family members.

“Six in ten adults in the US have a chronic disease and four and ten adults have two or more.” That comes directly from the Center for Disease Control & Prevention. That means that our chances in the United States of having a chronic disease or caring for somebody with a chronic disease, or both are more than 60%! Regarding therapy, that means: - You are not alone. - There are lots of tools out there to explore to get you through, and a therapist may be one of them.

Being a parent or caregiver of someone with a disability (physical, developmental or mental), can take a toll on the parent or caregiver. In addition, this can impact the family unit. As an OT i've worked with many individuals from acute onset of someone experiencing a diagnosis of a loved one with a disability or illness to those coping with the life long stress and worry caring or their loved with a disability.

I work with people at end of life as well as caregivers.

Apart from the difficulties of day-to-day living with chronic illness, there are often unprocessed wounds that affect us and our relationships. The trauma from diagnosis is not un-identified but it can really be an important part of your story. You may be experiencing anticipatory grief, guilt, anger, and shame that is affecting you but seems to have no place or space in the medical world that you live in. A safe space to talk about this with someone experienced and knowledgeable could help.

I specialize in working with parents of infants with special medical needs, beginning in pregnancy with fetal diagnosis and through delivery. This includes neonatal hospitalization (NICU, CICU) and managing the transition home after hospitalization. I also provide support to parents of older children whether facing a new diagnosis or managing their child's chronic medical needs.

Together we will: Decrease the physical and emotional sensations of overwhelm, exhaustion, and burnout Learn about anger, frustration, and sadness and how to manage them in the throws of a toddler meltdown or after endless sleepless nights. Work on softening insecurities and feelings of inadequacy so that you can get back to enjoying being a mom. You are not alone in motherhood. Let me help you find yourself again.

Often care giving for a loved one falls on one person. It is my hope to provide support to you as you manage and balance this. I have experience aiding those whose loves ones have chronic medical concerns, terminal illness, or mental health diagnoses.