My Chronic Illness and Me

Katie shares a quick update on timing.

In this episode Katie talks to Jennifer, an artist, wife, and mom who lives in Toronto and deals with over 25 diagnosed chronic conditions. For this conversation they focus on Jennifer's experience with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome -- including her frequent joint dislocations, long healing times, and being made to feel "weak" before receiving her diagnosis.

Katie talks with Tim, the founder of Invisible Condition and the host of Invisible Condition podcast, about his 30-year journey with Crohn's disease. They commiserate and laugh about people telling them to "just drink more water," talk about how making 1% changes in mindset can be game-changing, and get inspired by all the work to come across the chronic illness space.

March is Endometriosis awareness month! Both episodes this month feature women dealing with endometriosis. In this episode, Katie talks to Melissa, a community organizer from southern CA, about her 6 (SIX!) surgeries, the inadequacies of our health system's pain classifications, and how we can level up the conversation about endometriosis.

March is Endometriosis Awareness Month! Both episodes this month will feature women dealing with endometriosis. In this episode, Katie talks to Maggie, a pre-K teaching assistant, wife, and dog mom from Georgia who, at 38, has already had 4 surgeries to deal with her endometriosis. They talk about her journey and how she's doing now following her recent excision.

Katie talks to Catherine, a lawyer and mom of two, who was diagnosed with MS in her early twenties. They talk about how years spent dealing with an all-consuming health event can change your personality, as well as their different approaches to sharing information about their health with others.

Katie talks to Shannon, a community engagement professional who has dealt with chronic migraines since middle school. They talk about the vast range of symptoms and experiences included under the migraine umbrella, how sharing your experience with friends and colleagues can be both liberating and challenging, and how chronic conditions bring people closer to their own humanity.

Katie talks to Brenna, a graduate student who has dealt with severe endometriosis -- and severe mishandling of her care by doctors -- for almost two decades. They talk about medical trauma, how difficult it can be to see others receive better care than you, and about their experiences with chronic illness impacting their career choices.

In this educational episode, Katie describes the definition, symptoms, myths and misconceptions, treatment options, and research surrounding Endometriosis, a disease that affects more than 1 in 10 women worldwide.

Katie talks to Maddy, a recent grad school graduate who experienced an acute onset of PCOS and a confusing diagnosis-to-treatment process. They talk about how social media can be both a helpful tool and a potentially detrimental one when searching for information on your illness, the gray area between "officially" having a diagnosis and not, and the process of experimentation when it comes to finding solutions to your own health needs.

Katie talks to Tricia, an entrepreneur and mom of two who dealt with life-threatening chronic infections around the birth of her children and still navigates T-cell dysfunction, Lyme disease, and more. They talk about the mental math people living with chronic illnesses go through day-to-day and how the unpredictability of health challenges can affect long-term partnerships.

Katie talks to Maz, a young woman living with severe Endometriosis and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, about her dance career, her struggle to find a balance between her work and caring for her body, and her relationships.

Katie introduces herself and shares the idea behind & purpose of this new podcast: to create a community for people living with chronic illness.