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Speaker 1 00:00:06 You're listening to parent projects.
Speaker 2 00:00:11 Hey guys, welcome to this week's show, uh, Boost Kate Farms Poise Depends, um, McKesson Tranquility. These, these may be brown brands that you just, you have no clue about. There's not something you would've run into until you do. And today we're gonna talk with Bianca Padilla, who has learned to help family caregivers understand what those brands mean to you. How to find, how to connect to them. Where do they come into play. If you're a family caregiver and you are trying to figure out what product, when it goes, how do you use it, who can help you? And what's the best way to approach? You need to sit and buckle up for this episode.
Speaker 1 00:01:09 You're listening to Parent Projects, a Family Media and Technology Group Production. Now, here's your host, Tony Sears.
Speaker 2 00:01:18 Hey, guys. Uh, 2015 2016 2017. I know those years meant a lot to me as I started looking around and seeing huge shifts in the silver tsunami. And we talk about it pretty regularly here, but there's some other people that really caught onto that and have done amazing things. And today I want to introduce you to Bianca Padilla, who is one of those people. Bianca has taken her own parent project, uh, and what that felt like with her grand, with her grandparents. Uh, she's been able to pour into it, to listen, to respond, and to put together, um, one of the fastest growing organizations in the country to help caregivers find the products they need and to do so in a safe and uh, efficient manner. So please welcome to the show at Bianca Padilla. With me everybody. Hi Bianca.
Speaker 4 00:02:09 Hi there, Tony. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 00:02:11 Oh, it is really, really a pleasure to have you on. Love seeing, uh, other business leaders out there, uh, that have that, that passion to serve. Just, it get scratched as an itch and you just run with it. So really, uh, congratulations. I, I look at the, the slew of successes with care and with your brand, uh, over the last few years. Uh, I, it just brings warmth to the heart to see people doing well, and we're happy to highlight you today, but also learn from what that experience looked like from you.
Speaker 4 00:02:41 Absolutely. Thanks for having me again.
Speaker 2 00:02:44 So how, you know that where you've gone to, you've had a lot of achievements and, and raise, it took a lot to put the organization together at a core of, it was a personal experience for you to, what, what was your parent project? How, how did that land for you?
Speaker 4 00:02:59 Sure. So, um, I graduated from college, um, with a degree in economics and I ended up moving back home with my mom to attend a software engineering school. Uh, and when I was there, um, uh, my grandmother, uh, had a life changing surgery that left her pretty much, uh, immobile. You know, she can get to the bathroom and back and, and, uh, but it's, it's, it's very difficult for her to leave the house. Um, and it was, you know, for the first time that me, my and my family, my mom, my sister, um, who had no caregiving, uh, experience or background, um, had to really step up and care for her. She lived again, uh, with us and we felt really lost and alone. Um, we had no idea when we brought her home back from the hospital, um, what products to use or where to even find them, cuz they were not even available in local stores.
Speaker 4 00:03:52 Uh, and we had really nobody to turn to for guidance. I mean, there really wasn't a lot of blogs or resources out there. Um, we, we reached out to doctors and nurses, but they really, they didn't, they weren't experts on these products and, and how to do this in, in an at home setting. Um, and so, you know, I did some research, of course, uh, being a millennial, the first thing I do is go online. Um, and I was like, there's just, it's impossible. There's no way that there's so few resources. Uh, I did a little bit of research. It was 53 million caregivers in America, right? That's 20% of the entire population, um, are family caregivers. Yeah. And so as I look into this, you know, the vast majority of the people who are providing care are family members or friends or spouses caring for the sicker spouse as they age.
Speaker 4 00:04:40 Um, and we, we saw this massive need, um, to build a convenient, um, one stop shop where people could find, uh, the resources, people could ask questions and, and we can provide the education and the guidance. And not just that, but also the emotional support, uh, that's required when you are dealing with a situation like this. And when, when you're watching somebody who helped raise you or raised you, um, going through this, um, you know, end of life period. Yeah. Um, and so we, we decided to, to launch Care Wall. It was me and my husband. Uh, we bootstrapped the company for, for three years, uh, before bringing on, uh, you know, additional investors. And, and, and really we carry a vast and just growing assortment of home health and wellness products of all the things that you need to, to care for your loved one.
Speaker 4 00:05:32 Uh, we also have a 24 7 team of, of care specialists who, bilingual English and Spanish, who are there to offer and, and, and, um, are, are trained to offer help, not just with, with orders, but to provide those product recommendations, that guidance that, that you don't even know that you need. Um, and to offer that advice on, on all these different caregiving, uh, related, uh, topics. Um, and then, uh, increasingly we are, uh, using all of this knowledge and all of this information, um, and, and publishing it online so that anybody across the entire world can access it. Um, and so that's kind of how we started.
Speaker 2 00:06:11 Yeah. So, uh, a lot of that comes back to use a really key phrase, uh, you use caregiver, and I know in, in our organization for parenting projects, we spent a lot of time looking around to find where that was and how the audience was. We found a lot of things that talked to mom and dad. We found almost everybody was talking to mom and dad are trying to, uh, but it tended to be somebody else that was taking care of them or had to step in and usually doing so completely scared to death, not even knowing exactly who they were in the relationship or how they were or where it came about. How did you land on caregiver? How did you know? Was it, did you see something that just struck well and you went, Oh yeah. That, that resonated with you personally and you kept working from there? Or is that something more deliberate?
Speaker 4 00:06:54 Sure. Uh, when we launched the company, um, we, we launched it because we found ourselves being this primary, uh, person who was providing care. Um, and when I did all the demographic research on, you know, who are these people? Is it just like me? Are there, um, professional caregivers out there, or nurses? Um, and it, it came down to the fact that, uh, the number is, is about almost 90% of all of the care and support that's received by older, um, adults comes from these inexperienced, um, family caregivers. And so we chose the word caregiver, um, to, to continue using, Most people don't identify as caregivers. Yeah. Um, but I think, um, by creating and, and by continuing to use that word, um, really what we need to build as a community so that people can understand, uh, and talk about the issues that they're facing.
Speaker 4 00:07:42 Cuz it is a taboo subject. Nobody wants to talk about the fact that, you know, they're in this position caring for this person who cared for them their whole life. Um, and so, uh, that's, that's one of our goals is to continue, um, uplifting the voices of caregivers, making them, um, you know, uh, a topic of conversation, uh, because they do, they're like the, the, um, the backbone of health, of the health system in America, right? Who else, if, if not the family members and, and the friends, um, caring for these individuals would be doing it. Um, and so, so that's why we chose the word caregiver. Um, and, and then that's why also we name the company care Well, Right? We're here to help, um, caregivers provide the best care possible so that they can care well, uh, to their, their family or their friends, um, and, and, and the rest of their loved ones.
Speaker 2 00:08:32 I, I think you lock that up really well. It, it's explained really, really well. I, I know we are on board as part of that community in the same way. Uh, I think caregiver is a great, uh, approach to it. If you're out there, you know, and our members, you don't identify to come to that. I, I drop into the polls, you know, talking and share if there's something else that sits. But really that seems to be something that we could rally behind and start leveraging some technology and some great solutions now to make those conversations a lot easier. Cause when you understand, you know, start to understanding, start to finish, that family member being able to see a lar maybe a wider perspective than a doctor who gets a a three and a half or a seven and a half minute visit, um, can really go a long way in providing care more compassionately or where it goes.
Speaker 2 00:09:17 So, um, I like the, I can appreciate that. I'm gonna, um, you know, we're gonna take a, a pivot here, uh, to be able to get a word from our sponsors, uh, that work out at the Manna House, and particularly a group just the same way looking at the totality of a circumstance. And when those caregivers and professional caregivers kind of step up into help, here's a way that you can help them out as well. Hey guys, uh, this is Tony at the Parent Projects podcast. And if you are powered by Coffee the way that I'm powered by coffee, I think you'll appreciate knowing a way that you can help the last lost and least of us that didn't have a great transition. You see, The Refuge Coffee Company is a social enterprise operated by Catholic charities of central and Northern Arizona, where they use this coffee and this business model to help homeless veterans at the Mana House transitional community get back on their feet, help a veteran turn a handout into a hand up by giving them the opportunity to earn your business. Purchase coffee [email protected]. That's the refuge az.com. If you order six or more bags, shipping will be free. And if you tell 'em that parent projects sent you, I'm gonna send you a travel coffee mug. Thank you again, and let's get back to the show.
Speaker 2 00:10:39 And we're back. Today. We are responding to change and responding to change. We're talking with Bianca Padilla, a co-founder and CEO of Care Well, uh, where, um, they work to help caregivers provide that best care. And if you're not sure what a caregiver is and you're just joining us, make sure have the broadcast to go back and check out that first chapter coming through. Cause I think it'll really help you grasp that. Um, you, you, Bianca, you did a great job, you know, walking how you came to there. Um, there is that desire. There's a lot of people who go through a parent project or through a move and, and a and a challenge with a family member and become a caregiver. And afterwards, there tends to be some bit of a passion, knowing what to do with that passion or where to place that passion or the best place to go. What was it, um, what were you responding to? What was it that made you see that there is a, um, there is a, a group of people coming at you and, uh, that, that how large that market's going to be to start developing, uh, a way to serve them? How did you see that?
Speaker 4 00:11:46 Uh, there's a, there's a few things. Uh, it was a culmination of like many years of, of kind of, uh, points in my life. The, the, the first thought that I'd had, or that I knew that this kind of demographic was aging was I, I had an internship in, in a private equity firm, uh, during my college years. And, uh, I learned about the, this, this massive shift in, um, demographic that was gonna happen, um, over the, the 2020 and 2030s, um, whereby, uh, baby boomers, all the entire generation were going to begin, um, aging. Uh, and by, I think it's 2034, all of them will be over the age of 65. And so this was gonna be a huge transition period, um, for us as a country, um, to be able to support this population. Um, and then of course, through my own caregiving experience, I realized, wow, this is really a huge challenge that I'm completely unprepared for.
Speaker 4 00:12:40 So from a personal perspective, I was like, something, something needs to change. Um, because look at all the resources we have for, uh, you know, newborn parents, um, or even pet parents is why I, what I always say. And, and really no, no community, no source of support, no resource, um, or book, right, that explains to you what it is that you need to know or how to prepare. Um, and that, that then we ended up launching the, the, the business and, um, and realizing, you know, through so many hours of conversation is my husband and I on the phones with customers, um, just the different challenges that, uh, were so unique, uh, to each individual, to each family. Um, and, and, and really that's, that's what urged us to, to start and, and to continue, um, on the path towards building this, this company. Cuz it a hundred percent of people will need care in their life, right? If, if, if we're lucky and we make it to older age. Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:13:35 Right?
Speaker 4 00:13:35 Yeah. And, and 75% of Americans will, uh, will care for somebody at one point in their life. Um, and so I'm, I'm thinking about, you know, how do we build this company, not just, uh, you know, to solve my immediate need of caring for my grandmother, but also in the future when I'm in a position hopefully to care for my own mother and my own father, uh, and where my children will eventually care for me. Um, and building a solution and building a community around that. Um, so that we're all best prepared to do that, um, is, is really, you know, something that I, I feel very blessed to be able to, to, to, to do and, and to also build a company, um, a successful company, um, is there's not much opportunity to kind of do good and, uh, and, and be able to make a profit. So,
Speaker 2 00:14:21 You know, the silver tuna you talk about, you know, if you're, if this is, uh, new to the show, someone that, that hadn't watched before, we do talk about this quite often. That's the term that's often used for this. Um, a couple of newer sys statistics we're seeing, uh, World Health Organization releasing a statistic that for the first time in human history, the average person across the world, uh, can expect to live the age of 65. That's mind blowing. So that, that just goes to set that this is, this is now a bar that's moving in this direction. This is an enduring issue. It will happen generation after generation after generation. But to put scope and scale, I know that moved us, in particular at parent projects and, uh, family meeting technology group was dealing with those solutions, especially at that global scale. You're talking a move from 900 million people over the age of 65 to being 2.1 billion people over, uh, the age of 65 and doing that in just the next 25 years, which is a tremendous short, short runway to have to develop products and services and ways to work around, especially if you depend on government, uh, services or not-for-profit services.
Speaker 2 00:15:30 There's only, there's only so much that that can do. And I think you really tapped into something great with care. Well, because the family caregiver, when you think I'm an emergency management guy outta the military, right? So, uh, my experiences are there. I'm the guy who has that experience knowing that as bad as things are the next morning, generally a lot of people are gonna wake up, their feet are gonna hit the ground and they're gonna have to do something. And even when, uh, something like a silver tsunami were to hit at you, uh, there's gonna be a group of people around and they're gonna need to care. They're gonna need to understand that if government can't step in to do it, and nonprofits can't scale in time to do it, uh, families really, not only do they have that vision to see the whole problem, but, um, they're, they're probably, uh, people like you and I, I think we hope to arm them with the solutions that they need to keep tackling on their own. So I love that. I absolutely love that, and thanks for being a part of that. I wanna take a, uh, a second here and I wanna, uh, I think we're gonna highlight you guys. Let's go into our, uh, our next break here and get a chance to see a little bit more about care.
Speaker 5 00:16:36 This is Liz. She just stepped up to care for her mom, and she has questions. Luckily, Liz has care. Well, it's a one stop shop for everything your loved one needs, founded by actual caregivers and staffed by real caregiving specialists. They'll show you all the best brands and products, and they're trained to take your questions, even the embarrassing ones with care. Well, you've got this. Go to care well.com to get $10 off your first order.
Speaker 2 00:17:07 And we're back with Bianca Padilla, founder and Cook Grounded CEO of Care. Well, and, uh, Bianca, we have heard a great journey. What kind of got you started where you saw it, how you recognized the scale of a problem, all good things when you're building a business, especially that it's gonna endure from one generation to the next to the next. Um, a really key mark of what, uh, I know you pride yourself on at care well and is clearly being recognized is your ability to listen and to understand things. I, it's not even it, I didn't miss the point in your spot talking about even those embarrassing questions, right? Or those, those really hard things. We say in parent projects, if you've seen one parent project, you've seen one parent project, um, they all may be different, but they do tend to have some of those really different, similar questions at the root, and they're hard and they can be embarrassing and difficult. How is it that you listened and what types of things did you hear outta caregivers as you guys started responding and putting a platform together? What was it, um, that they were saying that they really needed to see?
Speaker 4 00:18:10 Sure. It's, it's a great question and, and it really varies, um, from situation to situation. I think there were themes, uh, that that still come up today, right? Um, increasingly so is, is fear. Um, you know, I don't know what I'm doing and I need help and I don't know where to go. Um, and then a sense of, of being overwhelmed, right? Because you, you, you don't know what you're doing. Um, and so I think those are kind of the big two or is fear and, and a sense of just being overwhelmed. I think the other part is, is feeling frustrated or angry, um, at being at this situation. And that's one that, that typically people don't even like to talk about because there's a, a big sense of, of guilt, um, when admitting that. But it's okay. Uh, caregiving is hard and it is difficult.
Speaker 4 00:18:58 Um, and, and being able to express that anger and that resentment sometimes, um, is, is, is, uh, is healthy. Um, and, and that's part of kind of the service that we provide. Uh, I mentioned earlier we have a 24 7, um, team of care specialists who are there and they're trained, um, to listen, not just provide advice around the products and the guidance that we sell, but really to provide that emotional support and give you an outlet, um, that's, that's safe. Um, that, that you can, you know, express both the joys and, um, the, the, the, the anger, um, and the frustration of, of what it's like on a day to day basis. And, and, um, you know, I'm a big proponent in letting it out. We have a lot of people and even our care specialists who cry on the phones, um, because it is overwhelming and it is emotional and seeing, you know, the loved one, um, who most of the time, you know, provided care for you. Aging is, is difficult. And, um, and it's a normal experience. And, and I just wanna highlight that, um, that there's no need to feel guilt, um, and, uh, you're doing your best. Uh, that's something that we tend to remind people. You're doing your best. It's difficult, uh, and, and there's nothing we can do to change that. Um, other than saying thank you and working
Speaker 2 00:20:15 Well and working our way out of, um, you know, challenging yourself. If you're making a decision and it's based in guilt or fear, uh, for one reason or another, or in an assumption you're working on those, this is the time and this would be a time to challenge yourself on that. This should be, if nothing else, develop a discipline to challenge any assumption. If you, uh, that somebody doesn't have time to help, somebody doesn't wanna help, uh, they're, they haven't been involved in the past, just let those things kind of go and walk your way through. Be right, be wrong, be be unafraid. Uh, but, but don't do, um, don't, don't work just based off of those assumptions. And don't, don't, um, be afraid to be vulnerable. I think at some level that can be really hard. I think we see in this demographic, uh, many of the times it's the oldest daughter, the steps forward that kind of takes point on these, uh, have you guys, not I, for men, when men get involved and need to get involved, that can look a little bit different how you communicate to them and the softness or, um, what they need to grab their attention, uh, in order to understand what they're coming or really to get vulnerable so you can understand what the real problem is and not deal with something at the surface.
Speaker 2 00:21:26 Anything in there that you guys, um, have picked up or lessons that you've gleaned from seeing the difference between how men and women might tackle caregiving as a family caregiver?
Speaker 4 00:21:37 Um, in our, I don't, you know, that's a good question. Uh, and I can speak kind of to what I've seen, uh, in, in different families that I've been part of, uh, men to be men to be a little bit, Um, they tend to have less, less kind of guilt, um, really, And, and, and that's a good thing, uh, in my perspective, because they're able to make those decisions not out of guilt or out of fear. Um, and that's why it's, it's always an important reminder. And I, and I love that you said that around having discipline, um, to, to not make the decisions in fear guilt, because it, it does hold you back, um, and it adds an additional complexity to the situation and a different emotional component that like you're gonna have to deal with. Um, so I, I tend to see that men, um, you know, are tackle it differently as like a point like, Hey, this is just something that happens in life and I'm not, you know, there's no need to feel guilty.
Speaker 4 00:22:28 I think women take it on as like, you know, in a more motherly approach, and they wanna make sure that they solve not just the, the physical pain and the, all the aspects of caregiving, but then they take on the emotional pressure. Um, and so, you know, one of the things we always say is, is to ask for help, right? Don't exactly. Don't make the assumption that somebody doesn't wanna help, because most of the time they just don't know that you need it. Um, and they don't wanna ask you, do you need help because maybe they feel like they might offend you. Um, yeah. And so, you know, lower <laugh>, uh, make sure to, to ask for help. That's the biggest piece of advice that I can give, um, and, and, and be vulnerable about it, right? And, and there's a few ways that, that you can even suggest help.
Speaker 4 00:23:12 And there's, to me, there's two ways, right? There's financial help. If, if you can't be here, you know, for a certain time, Hey, maybe we set up a caregiving fund because, uh, I think it's 26% of, um, or more than 50% actually of, of, um, of caregivers are paying for their care recipient's needs and, uh, about, uh, 20, uh, and then they spend about 26% of their income on caregiving related costs. So there is a big financial component that, that, you know, is there. And if you're hearing this and you know of someone who's providing care, asks them how you can help, right? It could be that they're afraid and, and that's another piece of advice, you know, um, and, and, and suggest ways that you can help, right? You can provide time, um, and offer some, some respite. Um, and you can also say, Hey, you know, I'd like to reserve 200 bucks, 300 bucks a month and send over to make sure that I'm doing my part.
Speaker 2 00:24:05 That's, that, that's great. Uh, your in and specifically, what's, what's great is that, um, that that reminder and again, that that reminder to stay out of the guilt and fear, uh, to drive through, to ask, just ask. I know from personal situations how difficult that can even be. Uh, and you just, you set that aside. Sometimes people really, that that's the way they want to help, they're waiting to be asked. It, it makes us feel good as human beings to be able to help in some way. So giving that outlet in a family in particular, we've seen giving some outlet for people to contribute to or to be a part of, can immediately open the door to a whole different dynamic than the way that everybody approaches everything longer term. Um, so even start small, just, just think small start. It's like a muscle, like anything else.
Speaker 2 00:24:55 You have to learn to use it in the first place. First you figure out you got it, then you start exercising it and stretching it and, and figuring out how that works. And over time, it will really develop an ecosystem. And dynamics do change. They can change. In fact, change is going to happen when you're going through a caregiving situation. So, uh, don't be afraid to have some influence in how that change happens by leading with help. That's, I, uh, I really appreciate those dynamics. I appreciate having you on. Bianca, thank you so much. It's really been a pleasure to hear from you, very, very wise person and how you looked at this problem, recognizing it. I love the product you're putting through. I truly see it's a, it's a tree who shade. You'll probably never get to really sit under when it's fully grown. Uh, but I think hopefully it will be there for your kids to use with you and I and their kids and their kids after that. So best of luck to you, and thank you so much for joining us today.
Speaker 2 00:25:50 Well, that's it, Fitz team this week, and thanks for joining us. If you've enjoyed the content, remember to subscribe and to share this episode on the app that you're using right now. Your reviews and your comments, they really help us expand our reach as well as our perspectives. So if you have time, also drop us a note. Let us know how we're doing for tips and tools to clarify your parent project, simplify communication with your stakeholders, and verify the professionals that you choose. You can find us on YouTube, follow us on Instagram and Facebook. Thanks again for trusting us. Until our next episode, behold and behold,
Speaker 1 00:26:22 Thank you for listening to this Parent Projects podcast production. To access our show notes, resources, or forums, join us on your favorite social media platform or go to parent projects.com. This show is for entertainment purposes only. Before making any decisions, consult a professional. This show is copyrighted by Family Media and Technology Group Incorporated and Parent Projects, llc. Written permissions must be granted before syndication or rebroadcast.
