Tell Us Your Story

Here are topics to help guide you through what you want to talk about when sharing your story:

• Tell us about a joyful moment in your caregiving journey, or share a story that sparked joy.
• If you can have 24 hours when your loved ones have their memory back, what would you do with them?
• Has your loved one experienced any challenging behavior (such as agitation, refusal to bathe, etc. ) and, how did you overcome it?
• When was the last time you cried?
• What have you given up in order to provide caregiving to your loved one?
• What have you gained throughout your journey as a caregiver?
• What do you miss the most about your loved one?
• Caregiving can sometimes be isolating and requires emotional and physical effort. How do you take care of yourself to ensure you stay well?
• What message would you give for a person that is just starting their caregiving journey? / What would you tell your younger self? What advice would you give yourself?
• When I started to learn about what memory issues/aging is or is like for (my loved one’s/older adult I care for), I was surprised to learn/see that…
• Before experiencing memory issues (my loved one’s/the older adult I care for) loved to… But then I started to notice… (changes that affected his/her daily life, etc.)
• Watching (my loved one/the older adult I care for) live life with memory issues was…(hard /painful to watch, explain)
• Overall my experience with caregiving has been… (positive, difficult, emotional, rewarding, etc.)
• Is there anything else that you would like to add?

Filming Instructions & Tips:

IMPORTANT:

• DO NOT state your last name or the full name of the senior you were partnered with (you can say, “the senior I was partnered with” or use their first name).
• Please sit in front of a neutral background with no advertisements or marketing information to keep the focus on you and your words.
• Make sure you are not backlit. This often happens if sitting with a window directly behind you.

1. What to wear
   1. Put on your favorite top (please avoid tops with text) and wear pajama bottoms if you want, viewers will only be able to see your torso. What is most important for this video is that you are comfortable.
2. Light is key
   1. Your light source should come from in front of you or from the side, not behind.
   2. More lighting is almost always better.
3. Position of camera
   1. Depending on which device you use to record (e.g., smart phone, laptop, tablet) you will need to position the device so that the webcam captures your face in a flattering way. Simple backgrounds are best so as not to distract the viewer from the main focus: you. People like to film at their kitchen tables, on their couches or their home-offices.
   2. It is important to film in a place and in a position that makes you feel comfortable.
4. Sound
   1. When recording make sure you are the only one in the room. This will help to optimize your audio. Speak clearly, loudly and annunciate.
5. Using the Space Bar
   1. Always look where your webcam is/recording from. Look directly into the camera while filming. When you want to start recording, hit the space bar.
6. Using the Prompts
   1. It is helpful for us if you use the full prompt sentences to begin each section so that we can review videos for HIPAA compliance and ethical concerns as well as tag videos for viewers who may want to find stories like yours.
7. Record Your Video
   1. You can record your caregiving story from any smartphone, tablet, or laptop with a camera. We have provided a set of storytelling topics to choose from to guide you through your storytelling. You can select any of these topics.
8. Submit Your Video on Box.com
   1. Please submit your video to the folder on Box.com that our team will email to you.
9. Have fun!
   1. This is your unique story so have fun telling it!

Download this consent form and complete it. Then email the completed form back to us at Nakram@mednet.ucla.edu.