challenges - Barb Fletcher

When Caring Starts to Hurt: The Invisible Pressure Personal Support Workers Carry

There is a kind of pressure that rarely gets named in care work. It is not just the schedule. Not just the short staffing. Not just the heavy lifts, the emotional moments, or the long days that follow you home. Sometimes the deepest pressure is the one you place on yourself. It sounds like this: […]

Barb Fletcher

4 weeks ago

Why You’re So Tired After “Easy” Days

You walk through the door and drop your bag. Not because it was heavy. Because you are. It was supposed to be an easy day. No crisis calls. No aggressive behaviors. No last-minute staffing chaos. And yet your body feels wrung out. Your head is foggy. Your patience is thin. You might even feel a […]

Barb Fletcher

2 months ago

Does mental health need to be the new cancer prevention

I remember when I began my career nearly 40 years ago (holy cow, the time has gone quickly), there was an expectation that any issues, challenges or stress you experienced should be “parked at the door“. In other words, don’t bring it to work. Although that sounded like a good idea at the time, it […]

Barb Fletcher

3 years ago

Turning Challenges into Opportunities – Lessons from a Lakefront Home

Spring is a time for fresh starts, but living on a lake has challenges, including extended conversations with my husband. Our home was built with the lake’s potential to swell beyond its banks in mind, but in 2018 and 2019, we experienced the reality of a flooded basement with five feet of water. Since then, […]

Barb Fletcher

3 years ago