We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Heather Oglesby a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Heather thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?

As described in a previous story, I became a Health and Wellness Coach after my moms was diagnosed with Alzheimers. As her full-time caregiver, I watched her slowly decline to this horrific and incurable disease. My health as a caregiver began to decline, and as I became enlightened to the statistics for caregiver health, I knew I needed to take charge of my own health and wellbeing. In May 2022, after 7 years of caring for my mom, I had to place her in a personal care home, “Brighter Beginnings” of Lawrenceville, GA, as her needs became so great. I knew that my time with her on this earth would be short, so every chance I got, I visited her. She eventually was unable to walk for long periods of time, but that did not stop us. We would pull out the wheelchair and still visit her favorite destinations, the mall, the movies, a restaurant and her favorite lake, Lake Lanier.

On June 5, 2022, my mom entered the hospital with extreme weight loss and pneumonia, and after one week stay, the doctors recommended hospice. there was nothing more they could do. My mom was 70 pounds and lost her desire to eat or drink. I was now enrolling my mom into hospice after years of fighting for a quality of life amidst so much despair tied to this disease. We were together, about to enter the final stages of this journey and I was devastated. I cried through the 5 hours of paperwork, signing DNR’s and reviewing the “keep them comfortable” medication lists. For the first time of caregiving, I inhaled despair and exhaled exhaustion, as there was no more hope for my mom and the disease had finally brought her to the end.

In the middle of all of this, I had enrolled in two coaching classes to keep my Health and Wellness Coaching Certification current. One of the classes was entitled “Resilience to Thriving”. So for the next three weeks, I would work my full-time job, teach spin class at two clubs, go visit my mom in hospice, and then go home and sit in evening classes and learn more about humanity’s abilities to thrive in the midst of extreme adversity. I did this routine, over and over, watching my mom dying during the day, and then pulling on my own resilience to continue to work, teach, persevere with my coaching. On the morning of July 2nd, I rolled out of bed, with a sick feeling in my stomach and immediately drove to see my mom. When I entered the home, the phenomenal Director of the home, Norma Clark, and the hospice nurse were standing at the door. I looked desperately into the nurses’ eyes, yearning to hear some glimmer of hope. Instead, in almost slow motion, the words from her lips spoke, “we gave her the meds to make her comfortable and its time to call family and friends to say good-bye.”

My heart immediately exploded and I ran into my moms room. As I laid my eyes on her, I saw the end and began grappling for those final words to say to my mother, my best friend, and confidant in life. I kicked off my shoes, jumped into bed with her and for the next 5 hours, held her hand, wiped her forehead, wet her tongue , and prayed with her. She gurgled and gasped for air for hours, desperate to breathe and as I watched her lips turn blue, I knew that his was going to be the last day on earth with her. As she slowly took her last breaths, I placed my hand on her heart, kissed her cheek, told her I loved her and that her journey would not be in vain. I would use our journey together, the values she planted in my life and her love for others, to now help “humanity” who struggle with similar tragedies.

At 2:40pm. on July 2, 2022, my mother lost her battle with Alzheimers, but gained an eternity of peace, joy, love and healing. Before the funeral home came to take my mother, my dear friend, Sandy Frendt, assisted me with preparing my moms body, gathered her personal items and held me while I hysterically cried. The day had come. After years of slowly grieving the loss of my mom, she now was physically gone. This pain was on another level and nothing I had felt before. I was now going to take this pain, and incorporate loss, tried and mental health topics into my coaching business. I am participating in grief coaching and will eventually become a Certified Grief Coach. My mom’s diagnosis saved me, her journey inspired me and her impact on my life will now impact so many more as I ground and root everything Ive learned in Vivrant Wellness.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

My professional background and career for the last 25 years has been in both is in Mental Health and Public Health. After my mom’s diagnosis, I became certified in Health and Wellness coaching and obtained my certification as a Spin Instructor. I have a Masters of Education in Counseling and have worked in the local community, health departments, schools and Federal government. I currently work for the Center for Disease Control and Prevention as a Public Health Advisor, at Lifetime Fitness and the PGA as a Certified Spin Instructor and the Founder of Vivrant Wellness.

Vivrant Wellness is a coaching and consulting LLC, that focuses on a public health approach to the caregiving crisis in America. Through this LLC, I have provided consultation to national level organizations working on caregiver legislation. I have also provided group health coaching in the community along with individual health and wellness coaching to caregivers in my community. Vivrant Wellness has a blog that documents my journey as a caregiver and desire to care for my own health and wellbeing.

I am an expert in navigating systems of care, like Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security and Social Security Disability Insurance Program. I have navigated through each of these while caring for my mom and can provide training and technical assistance community organizations that serve caregivers. I use national and local level data on caregiving to assess the needs of this target population so that the services are relevant and in real-time.

What makes Vivrant Wellness unique is that it incorporates the Social-Ecological, Model (SEM) to assess and address all factors that put caregivers at risk for negative outcomes. These levels include the Individual Level (caregiver), the Relationship Level (caregiver’s social circle), the Community Level (caregiver school/work/neighborhood) and the Societal Level (healthcare systems/economy). In addition, we provide an element of creativity to assist with the chaos and stress of caregiving. We provide simple and applicable approaches to caregivers that will aid them in the daily tasks go caring for a loved one. Those approaches are centered around the caregiver, not the loved one, as this is what is missing from the field.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

In the last two years, I have personally experienced multiple losses in the midst of a historical pandemic. In January 2020, I filed for divorce from my husband and the process took over ten months due to the “shut-down” of America. The courts shut down, the system slowed and the process changed. A year later in January 2021, I lost my first dog, my companion and little love bug, to cancer. Then, the following year, 2022, lost my mom to Alzheimers. Through all of this tragedy, I never stopped moving through life. I continued to work all my jobs, kept my Health and Wellness business open, and pursued classes to continue my Wellness and Health Coaching certification.

I have a deep pain in my heart that feels like it will never go away, but I have channeled that pain into the greater good for others. I am thankful for my community that has been a “protective factor” for me on this road of caregiving. Many kind souls surrounded me, from my workplace to my gyms to my long distance friends. Part of my resilience and now, thriving has come from my community. I have no family to support me, so my community has become my family. As I think about the experience I am going through and the process of healing, I am capturing the importance of those around you during traumatic times.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

Experience, experience, experience! The direct experience of caring for my mom with Alzheimers has taught me about systems of care, caregiver needs, including health, resources, finances and supports. I am able to take this seven year journey, and apply the skills I have gained from my career and education to the future work of Health and Wellness. The combination of direct experience with my professional background will enable me to continue to build Vivrant Wellness, centered around caregiver needs.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://caregiverspotlight.blog
• Instagram: instagram.com/vivrantwellness
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vivrantwellness
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/spiritofthrive
• Twitter: twitter.com/spiritofthrive