9 Ways to Cut Prescription Costs, Part 1

By Roz Jones

For April, we’re covering spring cleaning – getting your ducks in a row in your physical home, as well as clearing your mental space by practicing forgiveness. We hope you’ll be ready to charge into May with a new spring in your step!

Everything related to medical care is expensive.

Medical expenses are responsible for well over 60% of the bankruptcy filings in the United States. Prescriptions can be a significant expense with some pharmaceuticals can cost over $1,000 a week!

If you don’t have comprehensive insurance, paying for your medications or the medications of a loved one can be a real challenge.

Use these strategies to reduce your prescription costs:

Ask for the generic version. Anytime your doctor writes a prescription, ask if there is a generic equivalent. Generics can be much less expensive and some pharmacies will fill many generic prescriptions for $4! Most of us can afford $4.
Ask for price matching. Sometimes your pharmacy will match the price at another pharmacy, even if that other pharmacy does business strictly via mail order. Pharmacies are competitive, just like any other business. It never hurts to ask.
Get a phone app. There are phone apps that will compare the cost of your prescription at multiple pharmacies in your area. There are several, just do a search and find one that works for you.
Split the pills. Many medications cost about the same, regardless of dosage. So you might be able to buy the prescription at double strength and split the tablets with a pill splitter. You just saved 50% on the cost of your medication.
Cut coupons. There are also coupons for many medications. Check the magazines in your doctor’s waiting room. You can also look at these websites: www.internetdrugcoupons.com, www.optimizerx.com, and www.goodrx.com.

Check back in with us next Monday for part two!

EXCITING NEWS!!

I am excited and thrilled to share with you my new adventure, “The Caregiver Café Podcast”. This podcast tackles and highlights the daily situations caregivers face with their aging loved ones. We also empower you to navigate the care and challenges of your loved one with relevant topics and through the voices of your peers and their life experiences.

Monday April 4th we launched our first episode, and you can learn all about it at this link.

Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing issues that caregivers face on a daily basis, and check out my newly-published book!

Budget-Friendly Ways to Eat Healthy

By Roz Jones

Finding healthy ways to feed your loved ones can often be challenging because it’s not always the most affordable option, and can make nutrition feel overwhelming for a caregiver. However, with just a little creativity, it’s very possible to find healthy, budget-friendly food choices so your loved ones and your wallet can reap the benefits!

Tips That Can Instantly Save You Money!

Consider the following tips that are sure to cater to your wallet and your palate:

Eat out less often. Limiting eating out has two wonderful benefits:

In one instance, your expenditure on food will be significantly less because eating at a restaurant is often pricier than you might realize.
In the second instance, eating out doesn’t allow you to control the ingredients in your meals. Even if you order something that sounds healthy, there’s a strong likelihood that the overall meal won’t be healthy enough for your liking.

Grow your own veggies and herbs. You’d be surprised at how much savings accrue if you grow your own vegetables and herbs at home. Even if you have a small home with very minimal outdoor space, it’s still possible to have your own garden in pots.

Fresh herbs and vegetables are tasty and healthy, yet quite expensive if you buy the organic versions at the grocery store. By growing your own, you’ll know that they’re organic, picked at the peak of perfection and nutrition, and you’ll save money as well.

Cooking Techniques That Are Affordable and Healthy

Try these healthy cooking ideas for a change of pace and more change in your pocket:

Go grilled, not fried. If you have kids in your household, then there’s a great chance that they will want kid friendly meals like fish fingers or chicken nuggets. While those items may not necessarily be very expensive in the supermarket, they’re not as nutritious as their grilled counterparts.

It’s easy to avoid the unhealthy way of preparing these things for your kids by grilling or oven-cooking their favorites.

Use homemade condiments. A great alternative to unhealthy store-bought condiments is to make your own relishes and sauces at home. The added benefit is that they’ll be much less expensive than the grocery store variety.

Make your own juices. You’d be surprised at how much sugar or artificial sweetener is contained within many of those “zero sugar” juices on the market. Why not save yourself the extra dollars and your family the extra calories by making juices yourself? Fruits are relatively affordable – especially if you buy them locally and in season – so buying your own and making your own juices is a healthier and more affordable option.

Many people end up choosing the more expensive and less healthy eating options for their loved ones simply because they assume healthy eating is more expensive. While it can be more expensive in certain instances, a little creativity and imagination can definitely allow you to have a healthier option on a budget.

So now is the time to put your thinking cap on and find smarter ways to eat with healthier and money-saving outcomes! Your limited pocket doesn’t have to equate to limited nutrition; find creative ways to make “1+1” equal healthy and affordable alternatives!

I’ve just launched Shop With Roz, my online store filled with supplies and gifts for every caregiver. You can find a wide variety of products in the store to help yourself and your loved one. Check it out here!

After you have a look through the store, see any products you use and love as a caregiver, and think we should share them with everyone? Let me know!

It’s here, I am so excited to share a new caregiver app called CircleOf….This app will allow you to surround yourself with resources and experts from your community including ME!!!! As you are looking through the app, you will see my familiar face. I’m excited about this partnership and new ways to support you as you support your loved one. Here’s the link so you can explore the app. I would love your feedback and spread the word by sharing the link to family and friends.

Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing mental health as a caregiver and check out my upcoming book!

This is Harming Your Productivity

By Roz Jones

There are a few things you’re doing almost daily that are harming your productivity. You may be aware of them, or you may be living in denial. Let’s get real and examine these eight things you’re doing that make for unproductive days.

Not Planning – If you are not sitting down and making plans based on your objectives and goals, then you are wasting time. There is no possible way to get things done without having a notion of the direction you need to take and what needs to be done first, and what comes next, and what comes last.

Rushing Around – If you find that you are often rushing around, especially in the morning, there are ways to stop this. Get more prepared the night before, get up a little earlier, and only do what needs to be done.

Using Screens with No Objective – If you look at your phone every time you feel it vibrate or hear it beep, and keep the TV running for background noise, you’re using these screens in a wasteful way. Try turning the devices off when you’re doing something else. Only use these screens for specific, immediate information.

Not Eating Right – If you are not eating a healthy diet, find yourself skipping meals, and especially if you eat a lot of fast food, you are ruining your ability to focus. Try eating meals that are high in nutrition and easy to make. A chopped veggie salad with roast chicken is an example of a fast and easy meal.

Avoiding Exercise – If you don’t get intentional exercise, and you have a sedentary job, you may be causing yourself to be less able to focus, understand directions, and have energy. Food is even more important than exercise in terms of your health, mentally and physically.

Not Getting Enough Down Time – If you’re not adding in planned breaks to your task list, you’re making a huge mistake that can cause you to get done slower. Your brain is not meant to work without breaks.

Doing Busy Work – Checking your email every thirty minutes is a poor use of time, but it can make you feel busy. Instead, check your email at specific times throughout the day and only then.

Not Understanding the Results – If you don’t know what “finished” looks like, it’s hard to reach that point. When you know what the goals or the final stage looks like, you can make more specific and clear plans to reach your goals.

When you know what results you are working toward, and you have developed a well-thought-out plan that looks at all the factors involved, and you avoid distractions in your life, you’ll get so much more done. Just changing one of these factors can boost your productivity exponentially.

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After you have a look through the store, see any products you use and love as a caregiver, and think we should share them with everyone? Let me know!

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Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing mental health as a caregiver and check out my upcoming book!

6 Powerful Ways to Use Positive Affirmations for Living in the Now

By Roz Jones

As the holidays come to a close, we may still find ourselves stressed from the different routines, the uptick in social gatherings, the mess of presents and food, or the extra responsibilities of caring for a loved one. This is a great time to take a few moments to practice mindfulness to bring that stress under control.

You probably already know that affirmations can help you be more successful in your life. Did you know there are ways you can supercharge your affirmations to make them even more powerful?

Use these six steps to up your affirmations’ effectiveness.

Make your affirmations in the active voice. For example, “I am (positive verb).”
Include emotions that are positive. You want them to make you feel good.
Make them in the present tense. For example, “I am” instead of “I will.”
Try to make them concise and focused but short and memorable.
Switch them out if they aren’t working well.
Focus on the positive, what you want.

Play around with the wording until it feels right for you. Some examples include:

“I enjoy getting healthier and slimmer every day.”

“I feel stronger and fitter choosing a healthier lifestyle.”

Say your affirmations at least two times a day.

After you have a look through the store, see any products you use and love as a caregiver, and think we should share them with everyone? Let me know!

Interested in making your own contribution to the Caregiver Cafe? There are guest blog spots open for December. Email assistrozjones@gmail.com for more info!

Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing mental health as a caregiver and check out my upcoming book!

How to Balance Practicing Self Care with a Busy Life

By Roz Jones

One of the most difficult challenges a lot of people face with self-care is finding the time to fit it in. When you live a busy lifestyle, it can seem almost impossible to find extra time to look after you.

So, how can you balance practicing self-care with a busy lifestyle? Below you’ll discover some more great tips you can follow. Take a look back at my last post here with other ways to integrate self-care into your routine over the holidays.

Schedule it in

A good tip you can follow to ensure you can fit self-care into your busy routine is to schedule it in. Think about it, you schedule in everything else, so why not self-care? When you set a time to focus on yourself, you are much more likely to stick to it. No matter how busy you think you are, there will always be time for self-care somewhere in your schedule.

Establish a morning routine

If you are struggling to find the best time of day to practice self-care, you might find it easier in the morning. If you’re a busy parent, you might disagree here but think about it. In the morning, you could get up just 30 minutes earlier, or 15 minutes if you want. This can be the perfect opportunity to practice self-care.

Alternatively, if you are a parent you could focus on self-care in the evenings when the kids have gone to bed. It doesn’t take long to practice self-care so you should always be able to squeeze it in somewhere.

Look at automating daily tasks

There are all kinds of tools and gadgets that can automate various aspects of our lives. If you are constantly busy, you’ll find automating certain tasks can be a game changer.

For example, you could switch from going to the grocery store, to ordering groceries online. If you have items you frequently purchase, these can be added to your favorites list, making it easier to add them to your order next time. Doing your grocery shopping online can free up a lot of free time during the week that can be used on self-care.

Start small

You don’t have to start by completely overhauling your lifestyle. Instead, you can start small with self-care. Begin by taking just 10 minutes out of each day to focus on a self-care activity. Focus on developing one positive self-care habit at a time. Once you have mastered that, you can move on to the next task.

By starting small, it makes it easier to fit self-care into your busy life. Many people mistakenly think they need to begin with at least 30 minutes a day. The truth is, however much time you can free up for self-care is enough. Once you get started, you’ll find it easier to start focusing more on self-care due to the benefits you experience.

Overall, balancing practicing self-care with a busy lifestyle isn’t easy. However, the tips above can really help. You’ll find a lot of tips online too from busy people just like you. Remember, self-care is essential to your health and wellbeing. So, no matter how busy you are, you should always try and make time for self-care daily.

After you have a look through the store, see any products you use and love as a caregiver, and think we should share them with everyone? Let me know!

Medicare Open Enrollment ends December 7th!

Navigating the Medicare Open Enrollment process can be confusing and difficult your first time, and I want to help out! For caregivers and their loved ones who are in need of advice and help planning their Medicare enrollment, I’m offering a discounted counseling session for just $97! Go to https://rozjonesent.com to sign up!

Interested in making your own contribution to the Caregiver Cafe? There are guest blog spots open for November and December. Email assistrozjones@gmail.com for more info!

Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing mental health as a caregiver and check out my upcoming book!