Podcast

Episode 155: Healing through memoir with Sherry Sidoti

Sherry Sidoti is an author and a yogi. She recently published her first book, a memoir about her own healing journey, A Smoke and a Song. This is such a powerful and moving story highlighting how we can heal ourselves by exploring and accepting our experiences, and coming to terms with the past.

We talk about:

  • What inspired Sherry to write her book
  • Sherry’s journey to writing a memoir
  • Sherry’s experience as a yoga teacher and how it has helped her learn to use language sparingly and effectively
  • Writing a memoir with a focus on self-expression and ethical considerations
  • How Sherry was able to write about trauma without triggering trauma
  • Motherhood and healing generational trauma
  • Using meditation and sensory awareness (five sense awareness)  to access memories
  • What it means to be living in the layers
  • What it’s like living on Martha’s Vineyard

And more!

Sherry’s website: sherrysidoti.com

Facebook | Instagram | Youtube

Sherry’s book: A Smoke and a Song: A Memoir

Why not explore more…

Writing your story with Julia Brewer Daily

Julia Brewer Daily wrote her first novel when she was over 50 and is the host of the Authors Over 50 podcast.

Caring for a loved one with dementia with Carolyn Birrell

Carolyn Birrell shares her own journey navigating her mother’s path into dementia, so that others may be better prepared.

Mothers, daughters, estrangement and healing with Laura Davis

A profound and deeply moving conversation with Laura Davis, author of The Burning Light of Two Stars: A Mother-Daughter Story.

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Podcast

Episode 125: Caring for a loved one with dementia with Carolyn Birrell

Carolyn Birrell

Carolyn Birrell is the author of Walking with Fay, a moving book about her mother’s uncharted path into dementia. Carolyn’s writing began as a way to help her make sense of what was happening and quickly turned into the book she herself had needed, to provide relatable caregiving help. It’s a beautiful, empowering book and I really loved it.

We talk about:

  • What led Carolyn to write such a personal and difficult book
  • Why it took so long to realize how bad things had got with her mother
  • The process of learning her mother had dementia and the early signs
  • Working out what level of interference in her mother’s affairs was appropriate
  • Coming to terms with realizing more help with caregiving was required
  • The kind of support that was needed and how Carolyn found that both for her mother and herself
  • Coping with a lack of recognition from her mother
  • The impact of the global pandemic on her mother’s care
  • What readers can expect from the book
  • Carolyn’s advice for people who fear they are starting to see signs of a parent’s dementia
  • Learning what to say and what not to say to a person with dementia
  • What makes the book different from other memoirs
  • What Carolyn hopes readers will get from the book
  • Carolyn’s advice for anyone just beginning on this path with their loved one

And more!

Find more about Carolyn:

Carolyn’s website: carolynbirrell.com

Linkedin | Instagram | Facebook

Carolyn’s book: Walking with Fay: My Mother’s Uncharted Path into Dementia

Walking with Fay: My Mother's Uncharted Path into Dementia

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Find out how to leave a review here.

Carolyn Birrell
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