Episode Details

Are your parents living longer, but not necessarily living well? In this episode, Sarah Macdonald talks with author Lucinda Holdforth about the private thoughts many carers have but rarely say out loud: what happens when old age stretches on, frailty deepens, dementia changes the person you love, and the caring role starts to swallow your own life.

Ageing parents? You’ve got them. We’ve got you.

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In this episode
The Conversation: Sarah Macdonald and Lucinda Holdforth unpack the emotional, practical and political reality of longer lives: dementia, chronic illness, caregiving overload, driving, advance care directives, assisted dying, and the urgent need to move from life at all costs to live well and die well.

This Week’s Hack:
Do the advance care directive early, but do not stop there. Make sure your family knows what it says, where it is, and how it will actually follow your parent into hospital or aged care when a crisis hits.

Listener Letter:
This episode speaks directly to the clubber who loves their parent deeply but is quietly wondering how much longer they can keep doing this, or who has heard Mum or Dad say “I’m done” and had no idea what to say next.

Hot Mess Moment:
Your parent is back in hospital after another fall. You are exhausted, scared, trying to make sense of medical language, and having the thought you feel ashamed to say out loud: are we helping them live, or just helping them go on?

Topics covered in this episode

• why Australians are living longer and what that means for families
• the 12-year burden of chronic illness and disability
• dementia, frailty and the long goodbye
• the emotional toll of years of caregiving
• the administrative burden of advocating for ageing parents
• when driving becomes dangerous and taking the keys feels impossible
• ageism versus the structural tilt of wealth and policy
• whether sandwich generation women ever get to “live their own life”
• assisted dying, a “completed life”, and end-of-life choice
• why advance care directives often fail in practice
• how hospitals default to treatment and intervention
• the case for moving from “life at all costs” to “live well and die well”

Sponsored by:
This episode was supported by Australian Unity, home health and care services. Proactive local care that helps your parents live well at home, less stress for them, less worry for you, and more time for the good stuff. Visit

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