One of the hidden heroes of a cancer journey are the caregivers. They take on so much to make sure their loved one doesn’t have to. My mom was my caregiver and I cannot ever express my appreciation enough. She’s written some articles here on ABSOT, and recently conducted her very first ABSOT interview with Caroline Pincus, Director of Content for FindCenter. 

MOM: Caregivers play such an important role in society today. Tell me about your new venture you call Find Center.

CAROLINE PINCUS: Our venture aims to give support to anyone going through life challenges, including physical and mental illness, job loss, burnout, divorce, addiction, unmanageable stress. Some are simply looking to live lives of deeper purpose and meaning. We offer this support in the form of carefully curated collections of podcasts, articles, videos, books, and more on hundreds of topics related to wisdom and well-being and teachers offering the same.

MOM: What prompted you to create such an important venture? 

CP: The founders of FindCenter, of which I am one, have all faced our share of highly challenging life difficulties, including midlife breakdown, debilitating anxiety, coming close to death from sudden illness, and share a deep desire to throw lifelines to others in similar straights. We know there are others seeking out resources to help them find well-being and feeling very alone. We are building a community of support on the site as well.  

MOM: Why do you feel that many caregivers don’t focus on taking care of themselves?

CP: From personal experience and the experiences of those around us, we see it all the time. So many caregivers’ time and energy is outer-directed, toward a parent, a spouse, a child(ren), or client who is ill or disabled, frail, or elderly. The needs of those we care for will always seem more pressing than our own, and yet we neglect our own care at our peril. We can’t keep giving if our own cup is empty.  

MOM: I struggled with being part of the “sandwich generation” when my son was going through cancer and my mother was diagnosed with dementia, how do you feel that Find Center could have helped me deal with the struggles of caring for both my son and my mother?

CP: Simply by sharing wisdom from others who have been there. I’m in that generation, too, and even though I know my friends and colleagues are in the sandwich, too, I often felt so alone when my mother was dying 3000 miles away and my daughter really needed me right here at home. Plus I was working full time! There was one year where I flew back and forth from coast to coast 7 or 8 times. I know how much I would have appreciated having these beautifully curated collections of meditations, articles, talks, videos, interviews (podcasts), and more to accompany me. 

Mom and me MOM: What are your goals to help those facing challenging life situations?

CP: Our goal is to be there–through the wise resources on our site–for people who are struggling and feeling disconnected, whenever and wherever they need us. Our goal is also to build communities of mutual support around specific challenges. 

MOM: What’s your main message that you wish to share with my son’s readers about Find Center?

CP: Our main message is that we’re here, it’s free to use our site and join our community of users, and you can use our site to create and share your own collections of favorite informative and inspiring material. Come one, come all. Share what helps you get through your day, your ordeal, your life. 

By the way, we not only have the caregivers collection, we have curated content specifically for people living with cancer, too. You’ll find it at findcenter.com/identity/living-with-cancer. Other life identities for whom we offer curated content related to well-being: athletes, mothers, entrepreneurs, persons of color, veterans, college students, and more. Check out our “identities” page at findcenter.com/all-identities.  

A big thank you to my mom and Caroline for their candid discussion

I also think I deserve a big thank you for explaining to my mom what a “written interview” entails and that SHE was the one asking the questions, not answering them. 

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