E166 | When Care Calls | Change Makers – Bhavana Issar
What if love isn’t enough when care gets real? We sat down with Bhavana to trace a bold pivot from corporate certainty to building Caregiver Sathi, a mission grounded in lived experience, practical skills, and the quiet courage to act. The journey starts with an unlikely spark—a return to motorcycles that rekindled agency and joy—then unfolds into a deeper inquiry about living a dharmic life, moving beyond personal suffering, and doing work that serves the greater good.
Across this conversation, we unpack why caregiving needs training, language, and community, not heroics. Bhavana shares how her father’s rare neurological illness shaped her worldview and why family caregivers often carry invisible burdens: decision fatigue, cultural pressure to “leave no stone unturned,” and the myth that money or sheer attitude can solve everything. We challenge assumptions—such as women as default caregivers and love as a form of preparedness—and map a more humane approach: building skills in symptom literacy, communication with clinicians, home safety, grief navigation, and coordinated decision-making. Post-pandemic, the urgency is shared; elder care, mental health, and long-term illness intersect in ways that demand better systems and kinder narratives.
We also widen the lens to society. Care is a life skill we should all learn—like cooking, cleaning, budgeting, and dignifying labor—and it belongs in schools for every gender. Aging should be integrated, not isolated, honoring the wisdom older adults bring to families and communities. Along the way, Bhavna offers striking metaphors from riding: you gear up, calibrate to terrain, accept you’ll fall, and rely on your crew. Preparation doesn’t eliminate uncertainty; it builds resilience, clarity, and grace.
Listen for practical takeaways and micro experiments: set parallel goals across career, health, learning, and service; list your childhood dreams and pick one; read or write poetry to keep beauty in view. If this conversation resonates, share it with someone who might need strength for the long ride, and subscribe to keep these humane, skill-building stories in your feed. Your review helps more people find the tools—and the courage—to care.
