Narratives of Care

Maria Cristy understood healthcare. She was a medical technologist, her husband was a physician, and they had insurance that covered his cancer treatment. Yet navigating his care was still difficult. If their family struggled with all those resources, she wondered what the experience was like for people who had fewer.How much can one caregiver manage alone, and what does it take to let someone else help?In Episode 6 of Narratives of Care: Puerto Rico, host Charlotte Bayala brings together four women's experiences to explore the responsibilities cancer caregivers carry and the people who help them manage those responsibilities.Maria Cristy cared for her husband through two different cancers while drawing on years of professional experience working with cancer patients. Despite her medical knowledge and access to healthcare, she encountered barriers that left her thinking about families without the same resources.Barbara Ríos became her young son's primary caregiver during leukemia treatment. She kept detailed records and wanted every part of his care handled her way. Years later, she recognized how fear had made it difficult to allow others, including her husband, to participate more fully.Wilkiria Pichardo also kept a notebook while caring for her daughter Emily, but she used hers differently. Friends could stay with Emily, document what happened, and make it possible for Wilkiria to step away to eat or handle errands. Volunteers at the hospital offered another kind of support.Dolores García Ojeda, learned to provide cancer care while working and raising her daughters. As she cared for different family members over the years, she learned to share responsibilities with others while confronting the emotional demands of caregiving.Through their stories, this episode explores the importance of caregiver support, the challenges of accepting help, and why knowing what needs to be done doesn't always mean having the time, resources, or ability to do it alone.In This EpisodeMaria Cristy's experience navigating cancer care despite having medical knowledge and comprehensive insuranceWhy Barbara struggled to let others participate in her son's leukemia treatmentHow two mothers used caregiving notebooks for different purposesThe friends and hospital volunteers who helped Wilkiria care for her daughterHow Dolores and her family divided caregiving responsibilities around work and daily lifeThe emotional demands of caring for someone with cancerWhy caregivers sometimes need another person to recognize when they need supportHow family, friends, volunteers, and healthcare professionals can become part of a caregiver's support systemPeople You'll HearMaria Cristy — A wife who cared for her husband through two different cancers. She reflects on the challenges of navigating healthcare even with medical expertise and insurance coverage.Barbara Ríos — A mother whose son Gerardo was diagnosed with leukemia at age two. She reflects on fear, responsibility, and learning to allow others to participate in caregiving.Wilkiria Pichardo — A mother whose daughter Emily was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. She describes how friends, volunteers, and healthcare professionals helped her manage caregiving responsibilities. Wilkiria speaks in Spanish in this episode.Dolores García Ojeda — A caregiver who supported multiple people with cancer, including a man she welcomed into her home and members of her own family. She discusses sharing responsibilities, the emotional demands of caregiving, and the importance of caring for yourself. Dolores speaks in Spanish in this episode.Charlotte Bayala — Creator, host, and narrator of Narratives of Care.The Story in ContextCancer caregiving often involves responsibilities that extend well beyond accompanying someone to medical appointments.Caregivers may need to understand treatment information, track medications, coordinate schedules, manage household needs, communicate with healthcare professionals, and make decisions about who can safely provide care.For families in Puerto Rico, the resources available to manage these responsibilities can differ significantly.Maria Cristy's experience raises questions about the barriers families encounter while navigating cancer treatment, including those who lack medical knowledge or adequate insurance.Barbara and Wilkiria demonstrate how caregivers may approach sharing responsibilities differently. One initially relied heavily on her own ability to manage every detail. The other developed systems that allowed friends and volunteers to help.Dolores's experience reveals how caregiving responsibilities can be divided among family members while everyone continues managing work, relationships, and their own needs.Together, these stories raise an important question: What determines how much one person can carry, and how does that change when others are able to help?About Narratives of Care: Puerto RicoNarratives of Care: Puerto Rico is a 12-part narrative podcast series created by Charlotte Bayala.Through oral histories with families navigating dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and cancer, the series explores what caregiving asks of families and how the place where care happens shapes what becomes possible.These are individual stories, not a definition of caregiving in Puerto Rico.Listen and FollowListen to Narratives of Care on your favorite podcast platform, and follow the series for a new episode every Tuesday.Website: https://charlottebayala.com/narratives-of-careApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/narratives-of-care/id6808407626Share This StoryKnow someone who struggles to ask for help, feels responsible for managing every detail of a loved one's care, or has become part of another person's caregiving support system?Share this episode with them.Knowing how to care for someone doesn't mean you should have to manage every responsibility alone.CreditsCreated, hosted, and produced by: Charlotte BayalaMusic and sound effects: EnvatoAudio production and editing: Hindenburg Pro

Episode 5: When Everyone Still Needs YouBarbara Ríos was 23 years old when her two-year-old son was diagnosed with leukemia in Puerto Rico. She needed to stay with him at the hospital, but she also had a three-month-old daughter at home. Her family needed her in two places, and she couldn't be in both.What happens to the life you're already living when someone you love needs cancer treatment?In Episode 5 of Narratives of Care: Puerto Rico, host Charlotte Bayala introduces three women whose experiences with cancer caregiving began under very different circumstances.Barbara Ríos was raising two young children when her son Gerardo was diagnosed with leukemia. Hospital stays separated her from her baby daughter, who was being raised day to day by other family members while Barbara remained with her son.Wilkiria Pichardo took her young daughter Emily for bloodwork, never expecting that they would be sent to another hospital by ambulance. Emily was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and Wilkiria soon learned that treatment would last 105 weeks. Alongside her daughter's medical care came questions about work, income, housing expenses, and how to maintain their life together.Dolores García Ojeda, known as Lolín, became a caregiver in a different way. While raising two daughters, she agreed to welcome a man with cancer into her home. They were practically strangers when he arrived. Over five years of caregiving, he became part of her family.Through their stories, this episode explores the responsibilities cancer caregivers take on, the disruption of everyday family life, and the people who help keep things going when treatment changes everything.In This EpisodeBarbara's experience caring for her son with leukemia while separated from her infant daughterHow prolonged hospital stays affect relationships and family routinesWilkiria's unexpected transition from a routine medical visit to her daughter's leukemia diagnosisThe financial and employment challenges of managing more than two years of cancer treatmentHow unpredictable hospital admissions changed the way Wilkiria prepared for appointmentsDolores's decision to care for someone outside her immediate familyHow caregiving transformed a stranger into a member of Dolores's householdThe ways relatives, friends, and other community members became part of these women's caregiving experiencesPeople You'll HearBarbara Ríos — A mother in Puerto Rico whose son Gerardo was diagnosed with leukemia at age two, while she was also caring for an infant daughter.Wilkiria Pichardo — A mother whose daughter Emily was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia at three years old. Wilkiria shares the challenges of balancing cancer treatment with employment, finances, and daily life. She speaks in Spanish in this episode.Dolores García Ojeda (Lolín) — A caregiver who welcomed a man with cancer into her home while raising her daughters. Over five years, he became part of their family. Dolores speaks in Spanish in this episode.Charlotte Bayala — Creator, host, and narrator of Narratives of Care.The Story in ContextA cancer diagnosis can change far more than a family's medical schedule.For parents caring for a child with cancer, treatment may require extended hospital stays, unexpected admissions, time away from work, and separation from other children.For caregivers supporting adults with cancer, responsibilities may include learning unfamiliar care tasks, rearranging household routines, and making room for someone who needs ongoing assistance.These three stories from Puerto Rico reveal different ways cancer caregiving can enter a person's life.Barbara was only fifteen minutes from home, yet hospital stays kept her away from her daughter. Wilkiria faced a lengthy treatment schedule while trying to maintain her financial responsibilities. Dolores opened her home to someone she barely knew and gradually became part of a larger caregiving family.Their experiences are different, but they raise a shared question: How do you continue caring for everyone and everything that mattered before cancer entered your life?About Narratives of Care: Puerto RicoNarratives of Care: Puerto Rico is a 12-part narrative podcast series created by Charlotte Bayala.Through oral histories with families navigating dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and cancer, the series explores what caregiving asks of families—and how the place where care happens shapes what becomes possible.These are individual stories, not a definition of caregiving in Puerto Rico.Listen and FollowListen to Narratives of Care on your favorite podcast platform, and follow the series for a new episode every Tuesday.Website: https://charlottebayala.com/narratives-of-careApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/narratives-of-care/id6808407626Share This StoryKnow someone whose family has been changed by a cancer diagnosis, or who has struggled to balance caring for a loved one with the responsibilities of everyday life?Share this episode with them.Cancer treatment may become the center of a family's attention, but the rest of their lives doesn't stop needing them.CreditsCreated, hosted, and produced by: Charlotte BayalaMusic and sound effects: EnvatoAudio production and editing: Hindenburg Pro

Episode 4: The Decision They Had LeftMargarita had always told her daughters she never wanted to be placed in a nursing home. But after years of caring for their mother in their own homes, her family reached a decision they had spent so long trying to avoid.What happens when keeping someone you love safe means making the decision they asked you never to make?In Episode 4 of Narratives of Care: Puerto Rico, host Charlotte Bayala concludes the story of Margarita Bermudez Ortega and the family who cared for her as her dementia progressed.Her daughters, Maria and Iris, had tried different arrangements to keep their mother within the family. Their partners, Petra and Julio, helped make that possible. But eventually, Margarita needed more care than they could safely provide at home.Moving Margarita into residential care brought new responsibilities, including the cost of care that her Social Security benefits could not fully cover. And when COVID-19 restrictions prevented visits inside the facility, Iris and Julio continued going to see her, speaking to Margarita from the street while she stood on a balcony above them.Margarita still wanted to return to her own house.Through the voices of Maria, Iris, Julio, and Petra, alongside patient advocate Dalia Cabrera, this episode explores the difficult decisions families face when caring for someone with dementia, the emotional and financial responsibilities that continue after residential placement, and the questions caregivers can carry long after their loved one has died.In This EpisodeWhy Margarita's family ultimately chose residential care despite her wishesThe financial responsibilities that continued after she moved into a care facilityPetra's experience recognizing when she needed help caring for a family memberDalia Cabrera's perspective on families navigating complicated care systems in Puerto RicoHow COVID-19 restrictions changed the family's visits with MargaritaJulio's private experience of grief, responsibility, and caregivingHow Maria's caregiving records helped her reflect on the decisions she madeThe role of forgiveness and acceptance after caregiving endsPeople You'll HearMargarita Bermudez Ortega — The woman at the center of this family's story, whose wish to remain in her own home shaped many of her family's caregiving decisions.Maria Santos Bermudez — Margarita's daughter, who reflects on choosing residential care and the importance of the records she kept throughout her mother's care.Iris Bayala — Margarita's daughter, who describes the pain of making a decision her mother had always opposed and the difficulty of visiting during COVID-19 restrictions.Julio Bayala — Iris's husband, who shares the emotional weight of caring for Margarita and the feelings he rarely discussed with anyone.Petra Torres — Maria's partner, who draws on her own family caregiving experiences to reflect on asking for help and learning to live with difficult decisions. Petra speaks in Spanish in this episode.Dalia Cabrera — A patient advocate in Puerto Rico who describes the uncertainty and frustration caregivers experience while navigating complex care systems.Charlotte Bayala — Creator, host, and narrator of Narratives of Care.The Story in ContextFor families caring for someone with dementia, moving a loved one into residential care can be one of the most difficult decisions they face.The decision may come after years of trying to provide care at home, adjusting family routines, sharing responsibilities, and finding new ways to meet a loved one's changing needs.But residential placement does not necessarily end a family's caregiving responsibilities.Margarita's daughters continued managing expenses, medical needs, and visits. When pandemic restrictions changed how they could see their mother, the family adapted again.Margarita's story also reveals the emotional responsibilities that can continue after caregiving ends. Her family's memories of what they did, what they could not do, and the decisions they made became part of how they lived with her loss.Their experiences raise a larger question: How do families live with the decisions they made when every available choice came with a cost?About Narratives of Care: Puerto RicoNarratives of Care: Puerto Rico is a 12-part narrative podcast series created by Charlotte Bayala.Through oral histories with families navigating dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and cancer, the series explores what caregiving asks of families—and how the place where care happens shapes what becomes possible.These are individual stories, not a definition of caregiving in Puerto Rico.Listen and FollowListen to Narratives of Care on your favorite podcast platform, and follow the series for a new episode every Tuesday.Website: https://charlottebayala.com/narratives-of-careApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/narratives-of-care/id6808407626Share This StoryKnow someone who has faced the decision to move a loved one into residential care or who continues questioning the choices they made while caregiving?Share this episode with them.Sometimes the hardest part of caregiving isn't making a decision. It's learning to live with it afterward.CreditsCreated, hosted, and produced by: Charlotte BayalaMusic and sound effects: EnvatoAudio production and editing: Hindenburg Pro

Episode 3: When Care Moves InWhen Margarita could no longer live safely on her own in Puerto Rico, her daughters brought her into their homes. But caring for someone with dementia meant more than making room for another person. It changed how everyone in those homes lived.What happens when the person you love needs more care than your family knows how to give?In Episode 3 of Narratives of Care: Puerto Rico, host Charlotte Bayala continues the story of Margarita Bermudez Ortega and the family navigating her growing need for care.Her daughter Iris worried about how bringing Margarita into the house would affect her marriage. Her husband, Julio, surprised her by stepping into caregiving himself, making Margarita coffee and breakfast each morning.But daily life also required constant attention. Iris watched over her mother's safety while trying to respect her independence, even as their relationship became increasingly difficult.In another household, Maria and her partner Petra found their own ways of caring for Margarita. Maria kept detailed records of her mother's meals, medication, sleep, and changing needs. Petra supported Maria through the experience while drawing on years of caregiving in her own family.Through the voices of Iris, Julio, Maria, and Petra, this episode explores the emotional and practical demands of dementia caregiving, the strain on family relationships, and the often unseen ways caregivers support one another.As Margarita's needs continued to grow, the family faced a question they could no longer answer simply by taking turns.In This EpisodeHow bringing an aging parent into the family home changes daily routines and relationshipsJulio's unexpected role in caring for his mother-in-lawThe constant vigilance involved in keeping someone with dementia safeHow Maria documented Margarita's meals, medication, sleep, and changing needsPetra's experience supporting a caregiver while also participating in caregiving herselfThe personal interests, relationships, and time caregivers can gradually loseWhat happens when sharing caregiving responsibilities is no longer enoughPeople You'll HearMargarita Bermudez Ortega — The woman at the center of this family's story, whose growing care needs changed life in both daughters' households.Iris Bayala — Margarita's daughter, who describes the challenges of caring for her mother while managing the changes within her own home.Julio Bayala — Iris's husband, who stepped into an unfamiliar caregiving role when Margarita moved in.Maria Santos Bermudez — Margarita's daughter, who managed her mother's daily care while relying on support from her partner.Petra Torres — Maria's partner, who shares her own experience of family caregiving and the personal costs of caring for others. Petra speaks in Spanish in this episode.Charlotte Bayala — Creator, host, and narrator of Narratives of Care.The Story in ContextWhen someone living with dementia can no longer safely remain alone, family members may become responsible for providing care inside their own homes.That care can involve much more than helping with everyday tasks. Family caregivers may need to watch for safety concerns, monitor medication, track changes in behavior, and adjust routines around another person's needs.For Margarita's family, caregiving became a shared responsibility across two households. Iris and Julio made room for her in their home. Maria and Petra did the same in theirs.But sharing care did not make Margarita's needs smaller.Petra's story also reveals another part of caregiving that can be difficult to see: the gradual loss of time for personal interests, relationships, and the parts of life that once belonged to the caregiver.This episode asks what happens when a family continues finding ways to care for someone they love, but the amount of care needed keeps growing.About Narratives of Care: Puerto RicoNarratives of Care: Puerto Rico is a 12-part narrative podcast series created by Charlotte Bayala.Through oral histories with families navigating dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and cancer, the series explores what caregiving asks of families—and how the place where care happens shapes what becomes possible.These are individual stories, not a definition of caregiving in Puerto Rico.Listen and FollowListen to Narratives of Care on your favorite podcast platform, and follow the series for a new episode every Tuesday.Website: https://charlottebayala.com/narratives-of-careApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/narratives-of-care/id6808407626Share This StoryKnow someone who has welcomed an aging parent into their home, rearranged their life around caregiving, or struggled to find time for themselves while caring for someone else?Share this episode with them.Caregiving doesn't only change the life of the person receiving care. It can reshape an entire household.CreditsCreated, hosted, and produced by: Charlotte BayalaMusic and sound effects: EnvatoAudio production and editing: Hindenburg Pro

Episode 2: Getting Her HomeAfter Hurricane Irma damaged her mother's house in Puerto Rico, Maria had to arrange repairs, restore electricity and water, replace furniture, and keep track of every expense. All while caring for her mother, Margarita, who wanted only one thing: to go home.How much work does it take to get someone home and what happens when going home is no longer possible?In this episode of Narratives of Care: Puerto Rico, host Charlotte Bayala continues the story of Margarita Bermudez Ortega, an independent woman whose family was beginning to recognize changes associated with dementia.Her daughter Maria describes the enormous amount of work involved in rebuilding Margarita's home after Hurricane Irma. There were contractors to find, bills to pay, paperwork to complete, and two binders filled with records. It was caregiving work that extended far beyond helping her mother with everyday needs.Eventually, Margarita returned to her own house. But less than two weeks after Irma, Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico, damaging her home again.This time, her family faced a different decision.Through the voices of Maria and Iris, this episode explores the often invisible responsibilities of family caregivers, the importance of independence, and what happens when keeping someone safe begins to mean taking them away from the place they most want to be.In This EpisodeThe physical and financial work of rebuilding Margarita's home after Hurricane IrmaHow Maria became responsible for paperwork, expenses, repairs, and caregiving coordinationThe invisible administrative work that often falls to family caregiversMargarita's determination to return to her own homeHow Hurricane Maria changed what her family believed was possibleThe difficult decision to bring Margarita into another family member's homePeople You'll HearMargarita Bermudez Ortega — The woman at the center of this family's story.Maria Santos Bermudez — Margarita's daughter, who coordinated repairs, expenses, and many responsibilities surrounding her mother's care.Iris Bayala — Margarita's daughter, who describes the family's changing decisions about where her mother could live.Julio Bayala — Iris's husband, whose concern about Margarita living alone helped move the family toward a new caregiving arrangement. His role is described in this episode by Iris.Charlotte Bayala — Creator, host, and narrator of Narratives of Care.The Story in ContextIn September 2017, Puerto Rico experienced two major hurricanes: Irma, followed less than two weeks later by Maria.For Margarita's family, those storms were not only natural disasters. They created additional caregiving responsibilities at a time when the family was already concerned about changes in Margarita's memory and behavior.The work of restoring her home involved repairs, utilities, contractors, finances, and extensive recordkeeping. These responsibilities illustrate an often-overlooked part of caregiving: the administrative and logistical work required to make everyday life possible for someone who needs help.The storms also forced the family to confront a difficult question. When a loved one wants to remain independent, how do you decide when living alone is no longer safe?About Narratives of Care: Puerto RicoNarratives of Care: Puerto Rico is a 12-part narrative podcast series created by Charlotte Bayala.Through oral histories with families navigating dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and cancer, the series explores what caregiving asks of families—and how the place where care happens shapes what becomes possible.These are individual stories, not a definition of caregiving in Puerto Rico.Listen and FollowListen to Narratives of Care on your favorite podcast platform, and follow the series for a new episode every Tuesday.Website: https://charlottebayala.com/narratives-of-careApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/narratives-of-care/id6808407626Share This StoryKnow someone who has spent hours making phone calls, handling paperwork, managing expenses, or arranging care for a loved one?Share this episode with them.Not all caregiving happens at someone's bedside. Sometimes it happens in the work required to make a home, and a life, possible.CreditsCreated, hosted, and produced by: Charlotte BayalaMusic and sound effects: EnvatoAudio production and editing: Hindenburg Pro

Margarita Bermudez Ortega was fiercely independent. Well into her later years, she was still living alone in Puerto Rico, mowing her own lawn and deciding for herself what she could and could not do.Then little things began happening that were harder for her family to explain.In the first episode of Narratives of Care: Puerto Rico, Margarita’s daughters, Maria and Iris, and her son-in-law Julio look back at the period before anyone would have called what they were doing caregiving. When forgetting, accusations, arguments and increased checking-in slowly began changing the family’s relationship with Margarita.As her family started organizing around her, Margarita’s home remained an important part of her independence. Then Hurricanes Irma and Maria brought another kind of disruption, forcing the family to confront a question that would follow them into the next stage of her care: What does it mean to get someone home when both the place they call home and their ability to live there are changing?In this episode* Margarita before care became part of the family’s everyday life* The early changes her daughters struggled to understand* How checking in, taking turns and stepping in gradually became caregiving* The family network beginning to form around Margarita* How Hurricanes Irma and Maria changed the decisions surrounding her home and independenceFeatured voices (In order of appearance)Iris Bayala — Margarita’s daughterMaria Santos Bermudez — Margarita’s daughterJulio Bayala — Iris’s husband and Margarita’s son-in-lawAbout this seriesNarratives of Care: Puerto Rico is a narrative podcast series about what caregiving asks of families, what feels familiar wherever we live, and what changes because of the place where care happens.Through the experiences of families caring for people with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and cancer, the series looks closely at the relationships, homes, healthcare systems, communities, and circumstances surrounding care in Puerto Rico.The series is reported, written, and presented by Charlotte Bayala.Links & resourcesNarratives of Carecharlottebayala.com/narratives-of-careCreditsReported, written, and presented by Charlotte BayalaEditing and production by Charlotte BayalaMusic and additional audio: EnvatoFollow the seriesFollow Narratives of Care in your podcast app to receive each new episode of Narratives of Care: Puerto RicoLearn more about the series at charlottebayala.com/narratives-of-care.Narratives of Care: Puerto Rico is part of Narratives of Care, created and presented by Charlotte Bayala.

Is caregiving the same everywhere?When someone you love needs care, how much does where you live change what happens next?Narratives of Care is a narrative podcast about caregiving, told by the people who have lived it. Each season explores how place, culture, family, community, history, and the systems around us shape the way care is experienced.Hosted and produced by award-winning podcaster Charlotte Bayala, creator of The Cancer Caregiver Podcast and Caregiver Breathing Room.Season One begins in Puerto Rico, where voices in English and Spanish tell stories of cancer and dementia caregiving on the island and what those experiences can reveal about the ways we care for one another.Caregiving, told from the inside.Follow Narratives of Care now so you don’t miss Season One.Thank you to my tribe of supporters who listened to many early versions of this tralier and shared thoughtful feedback.