Lynda Shrager OTR MSW

Lynda Shrager began her journey on the day she and her daughter were simultaneously diagnosed with life-threatening medical conditions more than 23 years ago. After successfully negotiating the crisis and not cracking up along the way, she realized it was her organizing skills that she had called upon to get her through. By the time her mother was diagnosed with a very aggressive cancer, Lynda had become the expert in organizing all the tasks that needed to be done to both simultaneously manage a serious illness and keep up with life. The Organized Caregiver was born. Lynda is a registered occupational therapist with a master's degree in social work. Occupational therapy practices the art of taking seemingly overwhelming tasks and breaking them down into smaller, more manageable sub-tasks. Social work practices the art of empowering people to draw from their inner strengths to overcome adversity. She has practiced in the medical field of geriatric rehabilitation for over 37 years, the last 14 working with patients and their families in the home care arena. Since 2009 Lynda has been a featured columnist (The Organized Caregiver) for Everyday Health (everydayhealth.com), one of the country’s leading online consumer health web sites. A 23-year breast cancer survivor, her first book Otherwise Healthy® - A Planner to Focus Your Thoughts on Organizing Life after Being Diagnosed with Breast Cancer, has helped countless women negotiate the breast cancer journey. Lynda is a certified aging in place specialist (CAPS). This certification focuses on evaluating and understanding the unique housing needs of people as they age, including home modifications, common remodeling projects, and solutions to common barriers. A CAPS professional is versed in the strategies and techniques for designing, renovating and building aesthetically pleasing and barrier-free living environments. Lynda is the owner of At Home for Life, a business that provides complete residential assessments to help seniors safely and successfully age in place. An international speaker, Lynda presents numerous lectures and workshops that focus on a variety of issues including caregiving, aging in place, organizing health and home, senior health and wellness, and breast cancer treatment and survivor issues.