Podcasts about recovery story

You thought it was bad behavior… but your child was secretly terrified.   In this episode of The OCD Whisperer Podcast, Kristina Orlova speaks with Keesha Scott, mom, entrepreneur, podcast host, and author, about her daughter's deeply personal journey with OCD, emetophobia (fear of vomiting), panic disorder, and recovery.   Together, they explore what it's really like to parent a child with OCD, the painful road to getting the right diagnosis, and how exposure therapy (ERP) helped her daughter reclaim her life.   Keesha opens up about: • How OCD first showed up as “bad behavior” before anyone realized what was happening • Going through multiple therapists before finally getting the correct diagnosis • How talk therapy unintentionally made OCD worse • Why ERP therapy (Exposure and Response Prevention) changed everything • The role medication played when OCD became too severe to engage in treatment • Parenting a child whose OCD impacted school, friendships, and family life • The emotional toll of supporting a child through severe anxiety and panic disorder • What OCD recovery looked like over the years — and where her daughter is today   This is an honest, emotional, and hopeful conversation for parents navigating OCD, anxiety, panic, or intrusive thoughts in their children — and a reminder that recovery is possible, even when things feel impossible.   Whether you're parenting a child with OCD, struggling yourself, or supporting someone you love, this episode offers hope, practical insight, and a reminder that healing happens one step at a time.  

Send us Fan MailPierre shares his journey through crack cocaine addiction, drug trafficking, organized crime, prisonment for 2nd degree murder, identity struggles, and recovery. From growing up as the son of an OPP officer to becoming incarcerated for manslaughter, this conversation explores trauma, Indigenous identity, harm reduction, healing, and rebuilding purpose after addiction and incarceration. Learn more about CRISM QuebecSupport the showSEIU-WestWellness NewsParenting in the Storm Check out Parenting in the Storm HEREAre you getting something from our content? Tap here and buy us a coffee to say thanks and help us keep this train on the tracks!Check out the speakeasy podcastFollow Daniel Unmanageable on FacebookFollow Project Sparky We've got fresh merch and it's amazing! Pick yours up HEREFor business or speaking inquiries: Daniel@hardknoxtalks.comFollow Hard Knox TalksFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/hardknoxtalkspodcast/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hardknoxtalks/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hardknoxtalks?lang=en Check us out on YouTube:ht...

Join the Restore Program: https://thehasociety.com/restore-liveRomi did everything “right.” She worked out. She ate clean. She was disciplined, knowledgeable, and praised for it. And still...her period disappeared.In this episode, Romi shares what it actually looked like to unravel years of restriction disguised as health, control disguised as discipline, and an identity built around being the “fit, healthy girl.” Her journey wasn't fast. It wasn't linear. And it didn't fit neatly into a 10-week recovery "timeline", but that's exactly why her story matters.We talk about low energy availability that hides behind salads and productivity, binge eating that was really just hunger, the fear of eating more and resting more, and the deep resistance that comes up when healing asks you to let go of who you've been praised for being. Romi opens up about body changes, grief around muscle loss, developing body image for the first time, and the quiet but powerful moment when her body finally felt safe enough to ovulate again.This episode is for the woman who feels stuck even though she's “trying.” For the one whose labs aren't moving, whose body won't respond on command, and who secretly wonders if she's broken. Romi's story is a reminder that recovery is not just about food and exercise, it's about trust, identity, and learning how to stop micromanaging your body long enough to let it heal.If you've ever thought, “Why is this taking so long?” or “Why can't I just fix this?”- this one is for you.Restore Your Fertility Group Programhttps://www.thehasociety.com/restore-liveJoin The HA Societyhttp://thehasociety.com/joinWork 1:1 with us to get your period backhttp://thehasociety.com/coachingVisit us on YouTubehttps://youtube.com/c/danisheriffJool Wellnesshttps://joolwellness.comFollow us on IGhttp://instagram.com/thehasocietyhttp://instagram.com/danisheriffhttps://instagram.com/ashley_marie_smith_https://www.instagram.com/itsmishigarcia/https://www.instagram.com/abbylowekey/The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician.

Sheila Paul reflects on the role cultural expectations and painful childhood experiences played in her developing body dysmorphic disorder. And she describes how sharing her experiences within the African Caribbean community is helping to shine a light on mental health issues.

Send us Fan MailEdmundo shares his journey from psychedelic ceremonies in Mexico to crystal meth addiction in Canada, navigating HIV, trauma, spiritual experiences, academic discrimination, and recovery. This conversation explores healing, identity, mental health, and finding new tools for sobriety and self-respect. SEIU-WestWellness NewsParenting in the Storm CRISM QuebecSupport the showSEIU-WestWellness NewsParenting in the Storm Check out Parenting in the Storm HEREAre you getting something from our content? Tap here and buy us a coffee to say thanks and help us keep this train on the tracks!Check out the speakeasy podcastFollow Daniel Unmanageable on FacebookFollow Project Sparky We've got fresh merch and it's amazing! Pick yours up HEREFor business or speaking inquiries: Daniel@hardknoxtalks.comFollow Hard Knox TalksFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/hardknoxtalkspodcast/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hardknoxtalks/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hardknoxtalks?lang=en Check us out on YouTube:ht...

Hi, I'm Melissa Reeves! I am 6 years sober, thanks to our loving Father in Heaven. I was an addict for 20 years and God healed me. I'm passionate about connecting with people, exploring new ideas, and making every day count. As the leader of Daughters' Heaven Bound Church, I find joy in sharing moments, helping others, and staying positive. Above all, I love telling people about Jesus and inspiring hope wherever I go. Let's encourage one another—feel free to reach out! Hi, I'm Melissa Reeves! I am 6 years sober, thanks to our loving Father in Heaven.I was an addict for 20 years and God healed me. I'm passionate about connecting with people, exploring new ideas, and making every day count. As the leader of Daughters' Heaven Bound Church, I find joy in sharing moments, helping others, and staying positive. Above all, I love telling people about Jesus and inspiring hope wherever I go. Let's encourage one another—feel free to reach out!   On the SoberTown Podcast, Melissa shares how her faith in Christ led her out of a 20-year opioid addiction that began after dental surgery and escalated into homelessness, repeated overdoses, and losing her marriage and children. Raised in church as a music minister's daughter, she describes childhood illness, being told she couldn't have children, later having four, and emotional pain tied to her mother's bipolar disorder that fueled her drug use. After periods of sobriety, she relapsed following the deaths of her mother and husband, then overdosed while her children were with strangers, which she describes as the moment God told her “no more.” Melissa recommitted her life to God, regained stability, and founded a women's ministry, Daughters Heaven Bound, urging listeners to seek help, hold onto God, and find purpose in sobriety.   Other Sober Resources: I Am Sober App Sobertown Podcast Zoom Discussion Groups Sobertown Podcast Resource Center Recovery Online Meetings No Sippy No Slippy. Not Another Drop No matter What.   Remember to Pour The Poison Down The Sink!! Sobertownpodcast.com

On Today's episode we will be sharing a storing of recovery.  Dr. Karen Nelson is joined by Eric who will take us through his journey of diagnosis, treatment and what it means to live in recovery. 

After a serious 22-foot fall onto a cement pool deck, Brock Martin was rushed to The University of Kansas Health System with multiple traumatic injuries, including facial fractures, broken ribs, a collapsed lung, broken toes and a shattered kneecap. In this Morning Medical Update, Brock shares his trauma recovery journey alongside members of his care team, including ENT surgeon Dr. Omar Karadaghy and orthopedic trauma surgeon Dr. Archie Heddings. They explain what happens after a fall from a significant height, how doctors repair complex injuries, and what recovery can look like after multiple fractures, surgery and physical therapy. Brock's story is a powerful look at trauma care, orthopedic trauma surgery, facial fracture treatment, knee surgery, rehab and the long road back after a life-changing injury.

What does addiction look like from both sides—living it and loving someone through it?In this powerful episode of From Beer to the Bible, Susan and her daughter Kathrynanne open up about their deeply personal journey through alcohol addiction, recovery, and healing. From withdrawal seizures and rehab to faith, boundaries, and unconditional love, this conversation is honest, emotional, and full of hope.You'll hear:Kathrynanne's battle with alcoholism and near-death momentsSusan's perspective as a mother navigating fear, heartbreak, and supportHow boundaries and faith transformed their relationshipWhat real support actually looks like for someone strugglingEncouragement for addicts and the people who love themIf you or someone you love is struggling, this episode is a reminder: you're not alone, and recovery is possible.

In today's recovery story, Ashley sits down with Jasmine, a psychologist from the UK whose journey challenges the idea that you need to completely lose your period to struggle with Hypothalamic Amenorrhea.For over 10 years, Jasmine lived in the gray area: irregular cycles, delayed ovulation, low estrogen, intense exercise, chronic stress, and constant reassurance from doctors that everything was “fine.” Because she still got periods (sometimes), she convinced herself it couldn't be HA.But beneath the surface was a body running on stress, control, perfectionism, and chronic under-fueling.In this conversation, Jasmine opens up about:Being dismissed by doctors for years despite obvious cycle irregularitiesThe connection between chronic pain, perfectionism, control, and HAGoing from 10 periods a year > 6 periods a year > 70-day cyclesCrossFit, running, Hyrox training, and why exercise became emotionally complicatedExtreme hunger, weight gain, and the fear of “losing control”Delayed ovulation, temping anxiety, and becoming obsessed with chart dataWhy recovery wasn't a dramatic overnight transformation, but consistent forward movementLearning that your body doesn't need to be your sole source of happinessRecovering physically while also healing your relationship with food, rest, and yourselfThis episode is especially for the women who:Still get periods “sometimes”Have long or irregular cyclesFeel stuck in denial because they don't fit the stereotypical HA pictureAre high-achieving, Type A, and used to pushing harder for resultsKnow deep down something is off, even if labs come back “normal”Jasmine's story is a powerful reminder that you do not need to wait until your period disappears completely to start listening to your body. Sometimes recovery isn't about one massive breakthrough. Sometimes it's about consistently not going backwards.Join The HA Societyhttp://thehasociety.com/joinWork 1:1 with us to get your period backhttp://thehasociety.com/coachingFollow us on IGhttp://instagram.com/thehasocietyhttp://instagram.com/danisheriffhttps://instagram.com/ashley_marie_smith_https://www.instagram.com/itsmishigarciaThe Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician.

Host: Melissa Hadley Barrett   Guests: Rob and Linda  Category: Penile Implants| Prostate Cancer | Buried Penis | Penile Rehabilitation | Erectile Dysfunction| Men's Health | Peyronie's Disease  Episode Summary:   On this episode of The Penis Project Podcast, Melissa Hadley Barrett speaks with Rob about his experience of prostate cancer, recovery after treatment, and the very real ups and downs of getting back to life after diagnosis.  This is a practical, honest, and hopeful conversation that walks through what recovery can look like for a man after prostate cancer treatment. Rob shares his story with openness and humour, talking about everything from preparing for surgery and losing weight beforehand, through to dealing with a catheter, continence recovery, penile rehabilitation, Peyronie's disease, and eventually having a penile implant.   Melissa reflects on working with Rob across different stages of his recovery, including using tadalafil, a vacuum pump, injections, and later navigating a period of Peyronie's disease. What comes through strongly in this episode is that recovery is rarely a straight line. Sometimes things improve steadily, sometimes there are unexpected detours, and sometimes the plan changes along the way. That does not mean things have failed it just means the journey is real and sometimes there is a bend in the road(pun intended).   Rob also talks about the emotional side of surgery and treatment. He was not necessarily thinking the worst would happen, but there was still worry about consequences, loss, and what life might look like on the other side. Melissa also brings in Linda, Rob's partner, which adds another important layer to the conversation, the support of a positive, involved partner can make a real difference during recovery.   One of the really valuable parts of this episode is the reminder that there is no single “right” recovery story. Rob had early continence challenges, but improved quite quickly with pelvic floor exercises, walking, and staying engaged in his rehab. He later developed Peyronie's disease, which Melissa discusses in the context of connective tissue tendencies and risk factors, and eventually went on to have a penile implant, which he describes as something he noticed was there but did not find especially troubling and has improved his quality of life.   Rob shares that his PSA is now undetectable, and despite the wobbly recovery path, he and his partner are active, travelling, getting on with life, and doing well. That matters, because many men fear that prostate cancer treatment means life is permanently diminished. This episode is a good reminder that life can still be full, active, intimate, and meaningful after treatment.   Thankfully, recovery is often less about one magical fix and more about stickability(Melissa's favourite made up word), persistence, support, and finding the right next step.  Who should listen:  This episode is for:  men preparing for or recovering from prostate cancer treatment  men dealing with erection changes or continence issues after surgery  men curious about penile rehabilitation or penile implants  partners supporting someone through prostate cancer recovery  health professionals wanting a real patient perspective on rehab and recovery    Need support?  At Restorative Health Clinic, we support men and their partners with:  penile rehabilitation after prostate cancer treatment  erectile dysfunction  peyronie's disease  premature ejaculation  intimacy and sexual recovery  partner-inclusive support where appropriate  practical, evidence-based strategies for getting confidence back  We offer telehealth consultations Australia/ World-wide, making it easier for men to access experienced, compassionate support no matter where they live.  Resources & Links:  Book a telehealth consult with our sexual health nurse practitioners at Restorative Health Clinic  For more information check out our websites www.rshealth.com.au , www.makehardeasy.com.au and www.melissahadleybarrett.com  Listen & Subscribe  If you found this episode helpful, don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast! Your feedback helps us continue bringing important conversations to light. Search for The Penis Project Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or your favourite podcast app.  Connect With Us  We love hearing from real people, navigating penile health. If you'd like to share your journey or ask a question, get in touch. Email: admin@rshealth.com.au    Websites:  https://rshealth.com.au/  All genders  https://makehardeasy.com.au   https://melissahadleybarrett.com   Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/melissahadleybarrett/  https://www.instagram.com/restorativehealth.clinic/  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@melissahadleybarrett   TikTok: @melissahadleybarrett  Facebook:  https://m.facebook.com/p/Melissa-Hadley-Barrett-100085237672685/  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100085146627814  Linkedin:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-hadley-barrett/   TEDX:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjHj1YTmLoA 

Send us Fan MailKaylee shares how addiction pulled her into a world of cartel violence, ritualistic environments, and severe meth-induced psychosis. What started as early substance use turned into trauma, survival, and losing touch with reality. SEIU-West Wellness News Parenting in the Storm Support the showAre you getting something from our content? Tap here and buy us a coffee to say thanks and help us keep this train on the tracks!Check out the speakeasy podcastFollow Daniel Unmanageable on FacebookFollow Project Sparky We've got fresh merch and it's amazing! Pick yours up HEREFor business or speaking inquiries: Daniel@hardknoxtalks.comFollow Hard Knox TalksFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/hardknoxtalkspodcast/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hardknoxtalks/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hardknoxtalks?lang=en Check us out on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@hardknoxtalksWant to watch our episodes uncensored? Become a channel member here!

In today's episode, we sit down with Keven Kohs who is celebrating 3 years of sobriety—and this conversation is as real as it gets.With honesty, vulnerability, and incredible courage, he shares his journey through addiction, the breaking points, and the moments that led him towards recovery.This isn't a polished story. It's a real story of hope.FindingHope.Today HopeAfterLoss.Today FHRetreat.com HALRetreat.com

In this episode of Sobertown Podcast, sober warrior Lauren Macpherson and host Michal Charles discuss Lauren's recovery journey, with Lauren emphasizing the importance of fully committing to recovery. Lauren shares how her challenging home life played a role in her early use and dependence on hard substances, discussing how she experienced multiple relapses over several years before achieving sobriety. She describes her struggles with heroin, benzos, and alcohol, as well as the impact of addiction on her relationships and physical health. Lauren explained how a particularly abusive relationship served as a wake-up call, leading her to gradually quit substances over time, including benzos a year ago and heroin 14 months ago. She emphasized that this time, her recovery efforts are self-driven rather than motivated by her son, and she has incorporated various approaches including therapy, meditation, support groups, and gym membership. Lauren's recovery story is truly one of dedication and inspiration, which demonstrates what can happen when you refuse to give up! Lauren's Bio: Recovering from addiction and trauma, sharing my story to spread awareness and show that change is possible - one day at a time ✨

AVM Burst in the Brain: A Recovery Story of Patience, Aphasia, and Finding Your Way Back Jennifer Tomscha was 39, driving her three-and-a-half-year-old daughter home from preschool, when an AVM burst in her brain. She felt a wash of dizziness first. Then her vision started collapsing on the right side. She pulled onto a narrow verge on the highway between Greytown and Carterton in New Zealand, tried to reach her husband, got no answer, and dialled 111 instead. When the dispatcher asked what was wrong, she said something she still can’t fully explain: “I think I’m having a stroke.” She didn’t know yet that she had two arteriovenous malformations in her left frontal lobe — one discrete, one diffuse. She didn’t know that within hours she’d be helicoptered to Wellington Hospital for an emergency craniotomy, or that the following Monday a neurosurgeon named Dr. Woon would spend thirty hours trying to remove both malformations from her brain. She just knew something was wrong, and that her daughter was in the back seat, and that she couldn’t keep driving. That moment — pulling over, self-diagnosing, refusing the urge to simply lie down and rest — may be the reason she’s alive. What happens when an AVM bursts in the brain An arteriovenous malformation is a tangle of abnormal blood vessels that connects arteries directly to veins, bypassing the capillary network that normally regulates blood flow. Most people with an AVM never know they have one. But when an AVM bursts in the brain, blood floods into surrounding tissue at high pressure, and the consequences are almost always severe: haemorrhagic stroke, seizures, sudden neurological deficits, and in many cases, death. Jennifer’s first surgery controlled the bleeding. The second, five days later, was supposed to remove both malformations. It didn’t go as planned. The surgical team discovered that blood flow to the first AVM was feeding the second one, causing the brain around it to swell. Dr. Woon had to make an impossible decision in the middle of the operation: let her die, or remove a portion of healthy brain tissue along with the malformation. He chose to keep her alive. The surgery took thirty hours. When it was finally over, he called her husband and said, “Well, you’ll be lucky if she talks.” The six weeks she can’t remember Jennifer has no memories of the first six weeks after her AVM burst. She was in a medically induced coma for the surgery, then in intensive care, then transferred to rehabilitation. Everything she knows about that period has been told to her by other people. When her memory started returning, she found herself in a rehabilitation ward in Masterton, using adult nappies, unable to sit up in bed. The front of her skull had been removed and wouldn’t be replaced for months. She wore a protective helmet whenever she walked. And yet — she insists — she felt fine. [Quote block — mid-article] “I kept saying, ‘I’m okay, I’m fine. You guys should just take it easy around me.’ But of course, I wasn’t really fine.” — Jennifer Tomscha The honest recognition of what had happened to her didn’t come for almost two years. It took that long for her brain to have enough capacity to think about her brain. The myth of the one-year recovery window Most stroke survivors are told, either directly or by implication, that the first year matters most. That after twelve months, improvements slow. That after two years, you’ve plateaued. Jennifer’s experience — and the experience of nearly every long-term survivor interviewed on this podcast — contradicts that narrative. Four years after her AVM burst, she is still discovering what recovery means. Her academic writing, once her profession as the Director of the Writing Program at NYU Shanghai, doesn’t flow the way it used to. She can’t recall songs from memory anymore, or sing the ones she used to sing. Her aphasia shows up most at night, when she’s tired. She still takes an afternoon nap most days. But she’s also finishing a PhD. She can read as well as she ever could. She’s speaking, articulately, in a podcast interview eighty minutes long. And the parts of recovery she thought had stopped improving are, quietly, still improving. What Jennifer wants other survivors to know Her advice, offered near the end of the conversation, is short and unsparing: “You can rest, and that’s okay. You can be as slow as you want to be, and that’s also okay. But don’t give up. Just keep going — at whatever pace feels right.” It’s a rejection of both the productivity culture that tells survivors to push harder and the clinical culture that tells them to accept their limits. Recovery, for Jennifer, isn’t a race against a deadline. It’s a long, patient process of finding out what comes back and learning to live fully with whatever doesn’t. Bill’s book and community If Jennifer’s story resonates with you, Bill Gasiamis’s book — The Unexpected Way That A Stroke Became The Best Thing That Happened To — explores the same territory: the slow, unexpected, sometimes beautiful work of rebuilding a life after a brain event. Get the book here Readers who want to support the podcast and connect with the community of survivors it serves can do so at Patreon. Support on Patreon This blog is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please consult your doctor before making any changes to your health or recovery plan. Jennifer Tomscha: An AVM Burst in Her Brain at 39, and the Four-Year Climb Back to Herself She self-diagnosed her own stroke while driving with her daughter. Four years on, she’s still discovering what recovery really means. Highlights: 00:00 Introduction and Background 10:00 Reflections on the Experience 18:00 Long-term Effects and Adaptations 26:45 Identity and Self-Perception Post-Stroke 38:48 The Long Game of Recovery 51:07 The Journey of Recovery 01:03:42 The Evolution of the Podcast Transcript: Introduction and Background: AVM Burst in the Brain Jennifer Tomscha (00:00) Dr. Woon was my neurosurgeon. And he just said, I’ll never do another surgery like that ever again. it was really long. And I think he definitely had made me worse. Like they had taken out. too much of my normal brain. when he called my husband after the surgery was over, Dr. Woon said like, well, you’ll be lucky if she talks. he was just so discouraged from how the AVM surgery went. when I finally talked to him on Zoom. was so you And I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah, of course I can. He was like, will you show me? and I walked up and down the room and he was like laughing so hard at my being able to walk. He was like so enthusiastic about it. Bill Gasiamis (00:44) Welcome back everybody. I am Bill Gassiomas and my guest today is Jennifer Tomche. In March, 2022, Jennifer was 39 years old living in New Zealand, finishing the first year of a PhD program when something happened to her brain that changed everything. What followed was a medical emergency unlike anything I’ve heard described on this podcast and a recovery story that quietly dismantles one of the most damaging myths in stroke survivor community. That after a certain point, the window for improvement closes. Jennifer is four years out from what happened to her. She still takes an afternoon nap every day. She still notices the edges of what her brain can and can’t do. And she is also finishing a PhD, raising two children and speaking with a clarity and warmth that will stop you in your tracks. This is a conversation about what it actually means to play the long game and why might be the most important thing any survivor can do. Before we get into it, if this podcast has been part of your recovery journey, I’d love for you to check out my book, The Unexpected Way That a Stroke Became the Best Thing That Happened, at recoveryafterstroke.com/book. And a genuine thank you to everyone supporting this work on Patreon. If you wanted to support the show, you can go to patreon.com/recoveryafterstroke. really helps me keep the conversation going. Let’s get into it. Bill Gasiamis (02:12) Jennifer Tomscha welcome to the podcast. Jennifer Tomscha (02:14) Thank you. I’m glad to be here. Bill Gasiamis (02:17) It’s lovely to have a local with me. Usually all my guests are from the United States or Canada or the United Kingdom. You’re just a hop, skip and a jump away in New Zealand. Jennifer Tomscha (02:20) Yeah. Mm hmm. Yep. Yep. I’m American originally, but we moved here in 2020. So ⁓ we I’m grew up in Iowa. And then and then I after but we were living in Shanghai for us for almost seven years, my husband and I were living in Shanghai and I was teaching at New York University, Shanghai and then when COVID happened in China. Bill Gasiamis (02:35) Where are we from in America? Jennifer Tomscha (02:54) they told us to leave the country because it was where it started. So, and we had two kids, so my husband didn’t want to go back to the United States. And so my sister lives in New Zealand. So we moved here and then we just stayed here. mm-hmm. So, yeah. Bill Gasiamis (03:11) So in China, was it just a request? Was it a directive? What was the situation? Jennifer Tomscha (03:18) From New York University, they said if you weren’t a Chinese national citizen, they strongly urged us to leave because they just didn’t know how they were gonna manage it. everyone, mean, in China, they had had SARS in the early 2000s, so they had already had it. And so right away, everyone had their masks on. They were ready to… go and I was like, I want to get out of here. So we went to New Zealand and they also had a lockdown, but it was just for a month and then everyone could wander around because the virus was not here. we just stayed and I got into this PhD program. So that’s why we’re still in New Zealand. Bill Gasiamis (04:00) Wow. That kind of brings us to the first question I ask most people these days is what was life like before stroke? So there was a little bit of stuff going on. was, work in China. There was a bit of, ⁓ travel from the United States to China. was children, but daily life. What, what was that like before the stroke? Jennifer Tomscha (04:21) When I saw my stroke happened in March of 2022 and at that time I had been in my PhD program for about a year. And I was just finishing up my research proposal. And so I was doing that during the day and my kids were both at, I have an older son who was in second grade year two. And then I have a daughter who was in preschool. And so my days were I dropped them off at their schools and then I would work for a little while. And then I would. go and get them. So, and then they would come home and we would do all the other stuff in parenting. And my husband at that time was working at the library. So he had, he was at the libraries from nine to five every day. So he was at work. And that’s what, that’s what we were doing. Yeah. When I had my stroke. I was busy trying to finish up this research proposal. And then, yeah. Bill Gasiamis (05:14) 39 years old at the time as well. Jennifer Tomscha (05:16) Yes, was 39. Bill Gasiamis (05:18) any signs, any kind of inkling that something was not right. Jennifer Tomscha (05:23) I didn’t, weirdly, so I’m trying to think about, my whole life I’ve had this thing where if, especially at just certain points if I hit my, this is maybe nothing to do with anything, but if I hit my elbow or my wrist, then I would pass out. And sometimes I would have like a little seizure while I was passing out. So wasn’t just like a regular fainting, it was like a seizure. And I had some of those in high school and I actually went to the, hospital for those at one point and I think they didn’t know what that was and they just did an EEG. I don’t even think we had an MRI where I lived. So I didn’t really know and then that sort of passed. But I was feeling when I have a daily journal that I was writing and when I go back and read that daily journal, the whole, for a couple months ahead of time, I was like, I just feel kind of weird. I don’t feel great. I feel like a little bit sick and I don’t know what’s wrong with me. And at that time they were allowing COVID to enter New Zealand. They were putting it in. So I was like, I think I might have COVID, but I took a bunch of tests. They were all negative. And then my stroke happened on Tuesday, but the Friday before I was so sick. And then that weekend I was really sick too. And then I got, like, I kind of felt like I woke up, I felt really nauseous. And then I felt better on Monday and Tuesday. And Tuesday was when my stroke happened. So I think that was all, it was all, think, my body reacting to, I was probably bleeding in my head at that time or something. mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (06:57) I got it. And we’re to have to go back and talk about how it was that when you got hit on your, on your wrist and your elbow, how hard was the hit? Jennifer Tomscha (07:05) I don’t know. Not super hard, I just, I don’t know what, I actually don’t know, and maybe it’s nothing to do with it. You know, maybe it’s something else in my body that I am prone to fainting. But I don’t know, I don’t really know why that, and maybe it wasn’t anything like that. But I had one day when I was 16 and I passed out three times and that did seem kind of funny. And I went to the doctor and I passed out while I was at the doctor’s office. So they were like, there’s nothing wrong with you. So they put me to the hospital. They did the EG. stayed the night. And then they were like, there’s nothing wrong with you. So that was it. But I think if nowadays they probably would have done an MRI, maybe, and they would have seen that I had my AVM and my whole life would have been different because I wouldn’t have done all the stuff that I’ve done now. Like my mom was like, if we had known you had had an AVM, you would have gone to school. in Sioux City, you know, or we would have done something to keep you nearby because we would be worried about you. Instead, I was just like, doing whatever I wanted to, which is good. Bill Gasiamis (08:14) Laze, but that’s kind of good. But also I get the preventative thing. One of the, my former guests had a daughter who had an AVM and I think she was five when she passed away from a bleed in the brain because of an AVM. That’s horrific. And one of the, it’s actually worth listening to that episode and it’s worth me interrupting this right now to jump on and find that episode so that I can share it with people. And this particular lady has made it her life’s mission to raise money, get an MRI machine and do preventative scans for people in case they have an AVM or some other undiagnosed neurological condition. I think it’s Gina. Gina Keely. OK, it’s. And her ⁓ foundation is now called the Paige Keeley Foundation, it’s the most heartbreaking story. It’s episode 141 and I’ll have the link in the show notes and I’ll have it in the YouTube description. So for anyone listening, jump back and have a look at that. And also maybe even consider supporting the foundation because the story is heartbreaking and the efforts that this lady is going to ensure that this doesn’t happen to other people is just amazing. So. I wanted to, I raised that because I had a, in 2011, no, no, in 2010, about 18 months before my actual AVM bled, I had a really terrible negative episode, nauseous, room spinning, like all the signs of stroke, but completely missed the, completely missed Jennifer Tomscha (09:47) Mm. Bill Gasiamis (09:55) the AVM when I went and actually had an MRI. So yeah, I went to the hospital, gave them my, rundown of what was happening to me and they were so switched on and they got me in and they did all the tests, but they didn’t find anything because they didn’t know what they were looking for. And there was no obvious sign of bleeding. So they didn’t dig deeper. And I have a friend of mine who is a radiographer who actually did my MRIs Jennifer Tomscha (09:58) ⁓ really? Mm. Reflections on the Experience Bill Gasiamis (10:22) when I was in hospital being treated after my AVM burst in 2012. And he said to me, the preventative stuff is very difficult because if you don’t specifically know what you’re testing for, you don’t know how to set up the machine and how many slices that it needs to take and at what resolution. So that when you deliver that to the radiologist and they’re looking at it, can they see an AVM and then pass that on? Jennifer Tomscha (10:37) Mmm Bill Gasiamis (10:49) that information onto the neurologist. They might even miss it, even though they’re doing MRI. But what Jena is doing, it sounds like they’re specifically going after aneurysms, AVMs, other malformations, and therefore they have kind of this better opportunity to find it. So if somebody is considering getting a preventative scan of their brain, you have to be very specific. Jennifer Tomscha (10:53) Bye. Bill Gasiamis (11:14) with the team of doctors, radiographers, neurologists, as to what you want them to look for and make sure that they adjust the scan so that it’s fit for purpose. Jennifer Tomscha (11:25) That’s interesting. That’s really interesting. Bill Gasiamis (11:26) Yeah. So what was the day of the stroke like? Was it, you said you’re feeling better on that Tuesday. Jennifer Tomscha (11:34) Mm-hmm. I had a good day. I have like lots of notes from my research proposal and I went to pick up. I don’t know why I did it this way actually. I went, my daughter’s preschool is in our town, Greytown, and I went and picked up her first and then I went to get my son. His school is a Montessori school. It’s in one town north. And so I went and got her and we were driving in the car and when I turned onto the highway that connects Greytown and Carterton, I just felt like a wash of dizziness and I started losing sight, I think, in my right eye. And it’s seven kilometers from Graytown to Carterton. And right before we got into Carterton, I pulled over onto the side of the highway. I tried, so by that time I think I had lost most of the sight in my one, my right eye. And so it wasn’t very long actually. And so I tried to call my husband, he didn’t answer. And then I just called 111 and I was like, I don’t know why I was like, I think I’m having a stroke, but I don’t know why I even thought that actually. Do know what I mean? I just, was like, something is wrong with me. And so my daughter was fussing in the back and, I don’t really remember anything after that. I don’t remember the paramedics coming. I don’t remember talking to anyone. but so when they, I think the police came first and then Then the paramedics came and they said I was nauseous, but talking a little bit. But then they moved me into the ambulance and, I started, choking and, or something, and they had to intubate me in the ambulance. And then they took me in. I was helicoptered off to Wellington hospital. So. Bill Gasiamis (13:12) How did you feel about it? I know you did the right things. You nailed it. But how did you feel? What were you thinking? I was completely oblivious to the risk I was at or in. Jennifer Tomscha (13:14) Yeah. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. I don’t know. just, let’s see, I think… I think when I was losing my vision, that was hard. I mean, I’m really lucky. There was a little ⁓ path on the side of the road right before you enter Carterton. So I pulled over there so I could still control the car. You know what I mean? I wasn’t so bad. And I could dial 111 on my phone. I could still think about those things. But it wasn’t very long after I dialed 111 and talked to those people that I’d that my memory is gone. So I think, I mean, I have spent a lot of time trying to like go back and figure out like, what was it? What could I have done early? know, like I was really lucky I was in the car, because honestly, because if I was at home, I might’ve like laid down and taken a nap and not called anybody actually, or called Dan and half have not answered. So then I could just see myself. Bill Gasiamis (14:14) you Jennifer Tomscha (14:22) It was actually really lucky that I was in the car with my daughter because it made me, I mean, I couldn’t keep driving very well. And so it made me pull over and it made me, I’d have to do something because I wasn’t in town. So I had to like figure out how I was going to manage the situation. And so I was really lucky actually that I was in the car and that I was in a public space where I was easy to find and like I could, so I felt like really lucky that all that happened. in that time period, but also that soul that my daughter was with me because it made me, I had this like parental responsibility that I had to, I couldn’t keep driving with her in the car. Like I just, I knew I had to do something and quickly. I feel like, I feel really lucky that that was the situation that I was in because I could see a different day where I didn’t go get the kids at that time. And I maybe would have tried to take a nap and it would have been totally different. So you know what I mean. Bill Gasiamis (15:19) It’s such a common thing for people to go, oh, I’m not feeling well. I think I’ll just go lay down and have a rest and see if I can just get over it, sleep through it or whatever. yeah. And then it just leads to even more and more trouble or problems. The fact that you said, I think I’m having a stroke, right? That is so cool and bizarre and amazing. Jennifer Tomscha (15:29) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. The guy was like, why? And I was like, well, I’m losing my sight. I was like, I mean, I don’t know how it was. I was like, why do you think you’re having a stroke? I was like, I don’t know. But there was something wrong. You know what I mean. Bill Gasiamis (15:52) Yeah, that’s such a good question for me. Why do you think I’m going to strike? I don’t know, but I just came up with it. What? That was enough though. Like that was such a response from you to say, I think I’m having a stroke. It’s very, very rare that people get there, but the fact that you got there kind of gave, gave them also like an understanding of how to attend the site and what to do. Jennifer Tomscha (16:01) Mm. Bill Gasiamis (16:18) And that saves time as well. That saves a ton of time. Jennifer Tomscha (16:21) Right. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (16:23) and gets them, even though you may have been wrong, right? Gets them looking in the direction because they’re already got that in their mind. And then, well, let’s look at that first and then let’s suss it out. She might be completely wrong. But I walked into the hospital after my, while I was having the third blade and said, I’m having a brain hemorrhage or something like that. And I was in the hospital upright, standing, looking normal and Jennifer Tomscha (16:27) Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that’s true. That’s ⁓ Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (16:51) They were looking at me like, okay, what are you on? This guy, this guy must be on something because it doesn’t look like he’s having a stroke. And then I had to try and convince them, but I wasn’t giving them my contact details. So they weren’t able to bring up my record. And all they were saying was just give us your name, give us your name. We’ll put it in the system. We’ll have a look. And eventually they got it out of me and, ⁓ and I was right. But yeah, such a good thing. Jennifer Tomscha (16:54) Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, uh-huh. no. Hmm. you Bill Gasiamis (17:21) I love those little bits and pieces that go well together because you often hear I often hear the bits and pieces that didn’t go well and and it turned out differently and how old was your daughter at the time? Yeah, wow. Jennifer Tomscha (17:30) Mm-hmm. She was three and a half. And so she was still in the backseat, know, backwards in her car seat. And then we stopped and she was like, why are we stopping or whatever in her three and a half year old voice? And I was like, I just had to make a couple of phone, you know, I don’t know what I said to her. And then I think when the police came, she was asleep. Like she fell asleep back in the car. then, and then. It’s just, I, I’ll, so then for the next six weeks I don’t have any memories of anything. So all, all of the information has been given to me by other people. But, so, yeah. Long-term Effects and Adaptations Bill Gasiamis (18:04) So was quite a large blade after all of that. Jennifer Tomscha (18:06) Yeah, it was large. They took me, so I flew in the helicopter from Masterton to Wellington and I think they, by then my sister had gotten to the hospital and they, yeah, I think they said, yeah, they did an emergency, is it craniac? Or what’s the? Bill Gasiamis (18:25) Craniotomy, Jennifer Tomscha (18:26) Yeah, they did an emergency cradionomy and they saw that I was bleeding. And then they saw that I had this large left frontal or frontal lobe AVM. So, and then they said that at that moment they couldn’t tackle that AVM. So they, controlled the bleeding and then they, and they left my skull out and then, yeah. And then, then they, they talked to the neurosurgeon and He, that was a Tuesday and he said, why don’t you, I was in a coma, just keep her in a medical coma. And then Monday they would do the, the, the surgery to get rid of the AVM. Bill Gasiamis (19:05) And then that surgery happened. Jennifer Tomscha (19:07) That happened and it was, had my, actually had two AVMs. One was really discreet and they could see all the endings of it. And the other one was diffuse. I don’t really understand it, but, the neurosurgeon said there was like parts of regular brain in and around the AVM. I don’t really understand how that happens, but, ⁓ so they started in the morning and they did, they got rid of the one AVM. They were taking it out. And then something about the blood vessels that had some of they had been putting blood into that AVM. They then started feeding into the other AVM. So then that AVM made my brain sort of swell where that AVM was. And so the neurosurgeons had to decide if, mean, basically it was like, let me die. because they couldn’t do anything about it, or they would get rid of that AVM and they would just take out the brain that was, the normal brain that was in the regular AVM. So they took, they decided not to let me die, thank goodness, and they decided to do that. so, but it was really long surgery, it was 30 hours, I think they just didn’t, yeah, it was really long. And… And I think Dr. Woon was my neurosurgeon. And he just said, when he went and sewed my head back together, he didn’t think I was listening, but I was in the other room and I could hear him after I had my skull put back in. And he was like, I’ll never do another surgery like that ever again. it was too, it was really long. And I think he definitely thought that he had made me worse. Like they had taken out. too much of my normal brain. when he called my husband after the surgery was over, like they didn’t call him. Dan, my husband was waiting for the whole 30 hours and they only called him one time at like 11 o’clock that night. And they were like, we’re finishing up. But then they had all this other stuff happen. So they didn’t actually call him again until noon the next day. And Dr. Woon said like, well, you’ll be lucky if she talks. Because we had to take out. he was just so discouraged from how the AVM surgery went. And so, yeah. Bill Gasiamis (21:24) Dr. Woon needs to give himself way more credit. Jennifer Tomscha (21:27) I know, I know, I also think that. I also think that, I mean, it’s, I mean, neurosurgeons, they’re, it’s amazing that you could, I’ve just, it’d be so weird if your job was to cut people up and go into their brains and try and fix something in that organ, which is so mysterious, do you know? Like, yeah, so. Bill Gasiamis (21:48) Wow. 30 hours. So he also is thinking in his career, he’s probably never going to come across another 30 hour surgery. Yeah. Well, only if it’s necessary to make somebody better, but yeah, we definitely want to avoid that if we can for every human on the planet and for Dr. Woon, but I just, I’m just completely in awe of these people. I bumped into my surgeon last year. Jennifer Tomscha (21:57) I hope not. mean, I hope, you know, yeah, I don’t think, yeah. Right. Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (22:15) because I had another MRI, because I had another bout of headaches and all that kind of stuff. still, you know, it hasn’t ended. I still go through all these things. And I mean, I mean kind of, I get emotional when I’m around her and when I’m in the room with her. If she told me to jump off a cliff because there is something positive down there and I would do it. If she said, if she said punch a hole through that wall, I would do it. Like I would do whatever she said because Jennifer Tomscha (22:20) no. Yes. Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (22:44) I just cannot get over the, know, when, you know, when you make a decision, some people, my phone is weird. I’ve never done this before, but you have a piece of fabric and it’s got some lines on it. And you know, if you cut it wrong, that you can’t use that piece of fabric for that pair of trousers anymore. You’ve got to use it for something else. Like that’s a pretty mild problem to happen. Like you cut wrong, you go in the wrong place. You pop that aside and. You’re useful. If you do that to a human, there’s no going back. And you’ve got to make that decision every single time you walk into the operating theater. And imagine his family. Like, I feel like we need to reach out to his family and say, is there anything we need to make up for? I know we had your husband for 30 hours, but like, how can we support your family now that he’s done that for my family? Jennifer Tomscha (23:40) Yeah, yeah, yeah. Bill Gasiamis (23:40) Do you know, like it’s so interesting that these people have been able to get to that level of capability. Jennifer Tomscha (23:49) Yes. Bill Gasiamis (23:50) with humans and helping people stay alive and be here with their family, be a mom, be a wife, be a daughter, be a member of the community. Jennifer Tomscha (23:51) Mm-hmm. Yep. Yep, exactly. It’s just, it’s amazing. It’s just so, and I’m so grateful to him and he had another neurosurgeon working with him and yeah, it did, I mean, yeah, it’s amazing. I always think though, I’m trying to think about like, did, why, if he cut out those parts of my brain, why weren’t they, why? I mean, I have some things I can’t do that I could do before. Like I can’t, this is so weird. I can’t recall songs very well and I can’t sing songs from memory, like at all. Like that part of my brain is done, which is fine, but I used to sing a lot. but I think because if the AVM is there when you’re in your, if it’s there when you’re in your mom’s womb, like if you’re, when you’re developing. It’s probable that my brain was like, there’s a little issue here in this brain. We’ll move some of the stuff away from, don’t you think that would be, yeah, because I just think like, I think where my AVMs were, my brain was like, we’re gonna move, we’re not gonna put stuff by those AVMs because yeah, because your brain is really adaptable. Like that’s one of the things that I’ve been reading since I had my stroke. Bill Gasiamis (24:59) Wow. Yeah, I’ve never thought about that. Why not? That makes sense, Jennifer. Because it’s… Yeah. Jennifer Tomscha (25:18) My mom’s like, your brain is so adaptable and flexible and it can do different things. You just have to try doing things, you know, and failing. Bill Gasiamis (25:26) And the blood flow is not right. So you imagine with blood flow not being right, then the brain’s not developing correctly in that spot anyway. And it’s just developing where there is blood flow. Jennifer Tomscha (25:37) Yes, exactly. Exactly. I just I feel like that makes sense to me. And that’s why if you’re the neurosurgeon, I mean, you really don’t know. Like Dr. Woon didn’t know what was there. But I just feel like maybe my brain when it was developing was like, well, this isn’t a good spot and this other spot isn’t a good spot. So we’ll just do everything in a different place. And the brain is really you can really do that. I think your brains are really plastic in the way that they can order themselves. And so I So it’s still all Dr. Woon. I’m just so grateful to him and everything that he did. Because honestly, I feel like I come from the States. I don’t know that a neurosurgeon, I just don’t know how long a neurosurgeon would have, they might be like, I’m done, I can’t do this anymore. I just don’t really know. It just all depends on the doctor and who sees you and everything. So I just felt so lucky to have been here. Bill Gasiamis (26:30) Imagine doing a 30 hour shift on any day for anything. Jennifer Tomscha (26:34) No. And the thing about neurosurgery is like you’re in, I mean you’re doing like, you’re in a microscope or whatever doing that little and you’re tying off a little blood vein and I don’t know, it’s nuts, it’s so nuts. mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (26:39) them. Identity and Self-Perception Post-Stroke Yeah. And they talk about, you know, how dangerous it is to drive when you’re off a take when you haven’t slept, when all those things. And these guys are going for 30 hours and they’re doing the most intricate, life altering surgery and it all goes perfectly well. So how wrapped was he when he realized how well it went. Jennifer Tomscha (27:09) I didn’t talk to him until June, so that was at the end of March. And then I was in the ICU for a while. then they moved me to Masterton and I did rehab. And then I went to this last clinic, this ABI, this brain clinic for people who had brain injuries. And that’s when I finally talked to him on Zoom. And he was like, so can you walk? And I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah, of course I can. He was like, will you show me? and I walked up and down the room and he was like laughing so hard at my being able to walk. He was like so enthusiastic about it. I was, you know, I mean, we can talk about this too. was, everyone was like, when I finally have my memory back, I was in Masterton and I was using a diaper. I couldn’t walk. I couldn’t step in bed, but I remember being, actually, ⁓ I remember being like, I’m fine. I’m fine. Everyone is just fussing over me. But of course, they were right too. Do you know what I mean? But I was like, I’m okay. Everyone needs to just like, let me just relax around me. And everyone was like, everything I did, they would be like, you know, I couldn’t feed myself. And then, you know, there’s all this stuff. And I was like, I’m really okay. You guys should just. take, like, I’m fine. I kept saying that, like, I’m okay, I’m fine. You guys are all. But of course, I wasn’t really fine, but I felt like, Bill Gasiamis (28:36) It sounds like you weren’t physically there yet, but you were emotionally and mentally fine. Like it sounds like you were on the, you kind of knew that things were going to turn out or. Jennifer Tomscha (28:48) I think so. I think, or maybe, I always think like maybe you can only manage so much. like at that time I had my front part of my skull was gone because it had been taken out when they did both my surgeries. And so I had to wear like a rugby helmet or whatever when I walked. But otherwise I would sit in my room and it looked terrible. It’s just so terrible. but I just didn’t really recognize that. Like I didn’t, wasn’t, I couldn’t do all the things at once. So I think I was just thinking about like, and finally at the middle of May, my mom and sister, I still had my like long hair in the back and short in the front. So my sister was gonna cut the long hair in the back. And I saw myself in a mirror and I was like, that doesn’t look very good. You know, like I wasn’t, I don’t feel like I was totally aware. I wasn’t, my brain wasn’t. totally back in it. It’s a long time to recover and I feel like my brain only gave me, I don’t know, I felt like I couldn’t think about my own brain, maybe for like a year or something, really think about it in a second order way. Bill Gasiamis (29:59) allow yourself to kind of observe your state, your brain condition. Jennifer Tomscha (30:02) Yes. Yes, I think I was like, it was like that my it was like maybe in October of the next year, October of 2023, where I was like, Oh, I can think about my brain and what it is in a way that I couldn’t. Because I don’t know, you have to go through, you just have to relearn a lot of stuff. But I didn’t like I’m lucky, like, it didn’t affect my reading, so I could read right away. I’m not a very good writer, like, I don’t have good handwriting anyway, and my handwriting still maybe isn’t as good as it was before I had my stroke, but, yeah. I feel like, felt like, the actual healing was a longer process than I thought it was going to be, especially right when I first woke up, because I was like, I’m fine, but I wasn’t really fine, actually. Do you know what I mean? Bill Gasiamis (30:55) 100%, they can make doctors and neurosurgeons do a 30 hour surgery, find that part, fix it, ta-da-da-da-da, do all those things, but they can’t make a helmet for God’s sake look half decent after they’ve taken your skull out. Like as if it’s bad enough, have skull missing and then they put this terrible looking thing over your head. Jennifer Tomscha (31:11) No. It’s true. It’s true. It’s true. Yeah. Yeah. So, yeah. Bill Gasiamis (31:22) And I know for women like hair is a big deal and become. Jennifer Tomscha (31:27) It was really, I have always liked my hair and it was, I had short hair for about a year and a half maybe, you know, and I started growing out more and that was a little bit hard. I felt like that’s really vain, but I was like, man, I just did not like that short hair. Cause it’s not very, I don’t know. I just, wanted my old hair back. So I was lucky that it came back though. You know, everything, it’s not cancer. It’s a different thing. So you have a different, you know. Bill Gasiamis (31:51) I never would have told you that your hair didn’t look good, but my favorite hair is brunette curly hair. Yeah. My wife is a brunette naturally and she has curls in her hair and she straightens it all the time. I haven’t seen her brunette curly hair for 30 years. Jennifer Tomscha (31:57) Thank you. ⁓ yeah. no. Bill Gasiamis (32:13) I’m like, woman, that’s what I like. Like that’s my thing. you stop straightening your hair, but I can’t get it to stop. ⁓ Jennifer Tomscha (32:20) Yeah, that’s fine. Everyone has to do what they want with their hair and everything. you know, that’s something that one thing I think about my stroke is you just got to go live your life. Like you can’t and you’ve done that beautifully. You know what I mean? Like this podcast is amazing. it’s just like, you just got to go do what feels good for you at the time and what you want to do and just do it. and stop saying no, or you know what I mean. Bill Gasiamis (32:49) I’m trying. am. know exactly what you mean. One of the biggest things is identity is a big, big thing. And I don’t talk about me so much. I’ll talk about what happened to me, my stroke journey, but I don’t really give people a look behind the curtain. You know, sort of really understand what’s going on. This is just all a facade. And one of the challenges that I have is this painting company that I started 20 years ago was the main source of income. And it stopped abruptly seven years in when I became. Jennifer Tomscha (33:02) Hmm. Mm-hmm. Great. Bill Gasiamis (33:17) and it sort of still kept bubbling along. And then I got back to it in 2019 because my clients were still calling me and I was well enough after seven years of going through stroke and all the stuff of surgery, learning to walk again and all that. I was good enough to sort of get back into it. And of course in 2019, I only had six months and then we were in lockdown. And then in lockdown, we had two years of lockdown in Melbourne, and then I’m trying to keep that thing going again. And then there was this massive influx of work after lockdown because everyone’s going, I’ve been looking at these walls for two years. They look terrible. Let’s get them painted. They had spare money because they hadn’t spent anything for two years. And that was like, let’s do this and let’s do that. And there was this massive amount of work for about 18 months. And then that was done. It was gone. And it’s been a steady decline since as soon as Trump opened his mouth and did something in Iran and said what he said, and he plummeted like we’ve got no work. And I’m okay to have no work because I’ve been there before and we’ve managed our affairs so that we’re okay. But I can’t employ people right now at all. That’s gone. And getting people back and starting that again is going to be extremely difficult because the curve Jennifer Tomscha (34:27) Yeah. Mmm. Hmm. Bill Gasiamis (34:36) is not it’s not going to be a sharp dip and then it’s going to be a big spike of work and demand and all that kind of stuff. this podcast has been my saving grace every time I’ve needed to occupy myself with a project and make it so that I’m not thinking about me. The podcast was there. I did. I did an interview. It got me over the line. But now the biggest void that’s going to occur is not that I’m going to Jennifer Tomscha (34:47) Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (35:05) potentially not have work in this field and after shut it down, which is gonna be fine if I do that, I’m okay with that. I’ll kind of pass it on to my younger son who’s looking to do some work in a similar space. I’ll give him the phone number and he’ll be able to take those types of inquiries and then he’ll do it on his own, like very small, the way I started at the beginning. And is that I’m gonna have all the time in the world. Jennifer Tomscha (35:23) Mm. Bill Gasiamis (35:29) on my hands to do the thing that I’ve been avoiding doing because I had this business that relied on me and the thing was to do public speaking. Right. And to actually do it the way that I’ve wanted to do it for more than a decade, which was to talk about the topics that I want to talk about, which no one’s talking about post-traumatic growth, overcoming trauma, how that’s applicable in organizations. Jennifer Tomscha (35:38) yeah, yeah, Mmm. Bill Gasiamis (35:56) how to treat people better in an organization so they have less mental health issues, so they have less physical issues, so they’re sick less, so they enjoy their work, so they’re not hating their life. And now I’m going to have all the time in the world to do it. And I’m shitting myself. That’s the biggest issue, right? So that’s a little bit of a look behind the curtain. I am loving this. This is an amazing thing. And I do remember when I first started it, I was concerned about what people would say about me. You’re going to sound dumb, Bill. You you’re not going to, you know, what authority do you have? All those kinds of things, they were coming up in my head. And then when I wrote the book, the same thing, I wrote my first book, The Unexpected Way That a Strike Became the Best Thing That Happened to Me. Everyone has said, don’t write that book. Don’t write that. Jennifer Tomscha (36:27) Mm. Bill Gasiamis (36:39) Don’t let that be your title. It’s bizarre, it’s weird, like it’s strange, it’s too long and all these things. So I did it. And of course, the first time I spoke about it on YouTube, one of the first comments was a negative comment on my YouTube channel. It’s like, ⁓ okay. My God, that’s a kick in the guts. Jennifer Tomscha (36:44) really? ⁓ yeah. Bill Gasiamis (37:03) So those little kicks in the guts that I’ve had along the way have been few and far between, but they’re the ones that seem to persist the most. And they stay in that part of your head, which says, you know, that public speaking gig, you’re probably going to do the first one and they’re going to say you were terrible. And then you’re to feel all sad at 52 about, you know, yourself and all these things. Jennifer Tomscha (37:15) Yeah. you Bill Gasiamis (37:29) how you’re going to overcome that emotionally and mentally and all this kind of stuff. It’s like, Bill, relax. You’re gonna have time to build your new career at 52. You’re gonna have time to do it. So that’s like, all right. I find myself getting pushed into a corner and only then responding with, all right, all right, I better step up again. I better do this again. Jennifer Tomscha (37:33) Mm-hmm. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (37:58) Very strange, re-imagining yourself and recreating yourself after stroke is a huge thing because you’re also doing it with a stroke brain. Whereas before I had no excuses, I was doing it still. Like the pattern is the same. The stroke brain part of it is an obstacle that I wish I didn’t have, but somehow this stroke brain part has made me do things I’ve never done before. Jennifer Tomscha (38:14) You The Long Game of Recovery Bill Gasiamis (38:27) a podcast, a book. You know, I was a tradie. I was like, I didn’t study. didn’t read. In my, by the time I got to the age of 37, honestly, Jennifer, I reckon I’d read maybe seven books. And they were about this criminal underworld figure in Melbourne who had this, who had this career and of being like really terrible and somehow. He was the thing that I was interested in reading about. Like that’s the only thing that captured my imagination. Everything else, everything else I picked up from listening to podcasts or watching shows on TV and that kind of stuff. So I wanna just, I wanna make people understand that the battles that you’re fighting, I’m fighting, it’s real. Like you’re not doing it alone. Everyone’s fighting this. How do I reimagine myself? Jennifer Tomscha (38:56) Bye! Bill Gasiamis (39:20) after stroke, you know, I don’t tell people I’m an author. Still, this book has been out for three years. I’ve had amazing reviews. I’ve had a couple of, you know, negative reviews and that’s okay. I’m not, I’m not an intellectual. I haven’t, I’ve never studied how to write literature, any of that stuff. And it’s sold about seven or 800 copies just through the podcast. Jennifer Tomscha (39:21) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. That’s pretty good. That’s actually quite a bit, I feel like. It’s quite a bit, actually. Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (39:47) I feel like to like I don’t promote it. I don’t tell anyone about it just in the podcast. And it’s like, I still don’t say I’ve authored a book. Nobody knows. Jennifer Tomscha (39:56) You should say it. mean, I do think the what are you going to do after you have a stroke? How are you going to do it? It’s all very strange and scary, I think. And like, yeah, I, I totally get your feeling about it. And it’s just really tricky to know what is the You know, for me, I feel like I was in middle of my PhD, so I took 22 months or 20 months off of doing the PhD just to rest. And then I went back in and it was, it is still, it was really hard. I like, wasn’t very good at figuring out how to write in the academic way. Which was my position. I was director of the writing program at NYU Shanghai. So I was like, that was my thing. And it was very hard to figure out how to return to do the critical work of my thesis. was just, it’s just, I don’t know, my brain just couldn’t figure out how to do it right. It was really interesting. was like, the sentences I was writing weren’t as good. They probably still aren’t as good. You know, like when I look at what I was writing before I had my stroke, which is part of my thesis, and then the stuff I wrote after my stroke, I feel like I can tell a little bit of a difference in the fluency of my writing, for sure. So, yeah. And I just, so… Yeah, I don’t know. It’s tricky. It’s tricky to figure out. But I was really lucky, actually. I think the PhD was helpful because… I could just go at it on my own time and I could just take however much time I needed. And I, I had a deadline. but it was good to just, it was actually like a really good place to start to work my brain again, to be like, okay, I have to, I’m going to write on this author and what she thinks about character. And I’m just going to, and I have these other texts that I’m interested in and I have to figure out how I’m going to. Represent them in my own work. And so it was really good to do all that. It was a good stepping stone for me I think actually to get back into it and to see What I could and couldn’t do very well, like I feel like I’m a really good reader. I’m a really good Critic and I’m not so good at ⁓ writing down what I think anymore as well So I’m just I really have to work on and I don’t know how you get it back like Bill Gasiamis (42:26) articulating Jennifer Tomscha (42:28) Yeah, articulating what I mean and yeah, I feel like I can’t, I can’t say things as artfully or as proficiently as I used to. So I don’t know, this woman who is getting her PhD at Vic too, she’s like, she studies how people learn to read. And she was like, if you’re having problems with academic writing, you should get a, and I still haven’t done this, you should get an academic book and you should listen to it because a lot of learning to read is listening to how sentences sound. She was like, so you should listen to an academic book and that will help you think about how those sentences work and how they’re maybe different from like, I write fiction. So fiction is one thing and then this is a different way of writing. So she said that was one thing that she thought I should do to help. develop my proficiency in academic writing, which was really interesting. So. Bill Gasiamis (43:25) Yeah, it’s a different approach. You know, it’s coming from the auditory, you know, system and therefore the auditory digital system. Therefore you go in and you you, you pick up nuances that you wouldn’t have known were there if you’ve never heard an academic speak or if you’ve never read an academic document in that way. So you might read it. Jennifer Tomscha (43:28) Mm-hmm. Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (43:51) to get something out of it. Like, okay, what is this academic saying about this topic? But that’s not paying attention to the structure of how it’s written. That’s a different filter. Jennifer Tomscha (43:55) Mm-hmm. No, exactly. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Exactly. So I thought that was an interesting way to think about, like, how I could get better at that thing. That was, like, a really important thing for me. That, for some reason, it did just get a little bit, I don’t know, stunted? Or I don’t know what happened, you know? Or I just haven’t been in academia as much. So you know what I mean? So, yeah. Bill Gasiamis (44:17) Yeah. Yeah, 100%. The skill is not as refined or, or practiced as your other skills. So it’s not the thing that you’re the best at. and you’re getting better at it. The thing about it is also, may I add you’re only four years out from all the drama that you had with your brain. So there’s a lot of healing to happen that is going to improve. That’s going to get better and better. And in four or five years from now, you will have Jennifer Tomscha (44:29) Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (44:49) turn the corner again, you’ll see that there’s more and more improvement. It’s really important for people to hear this, who are three, two, one, five, six years in, there’s still heaps of healing and recovery to come. So it’ll happen. Jennifer Tomscha (45:07) Yeah, that was something that my husband and I, in my first year after my stroke, he would be like, go to the gym. And he did. He, I went to the gym and I, had me lift weights and he wanted me to like exercise. And he was like, what are you doing to improve your mind and your body over this first year? And I was like, I’m, I’m again, I was like, I’m fine. I’m really fine. And, and, ⁓ he thought I wasn’t doing enough. Like he wanted me to just go at it with this intensity. I don’t know. was an, cause I was like, I am going at it with my own sort of intensity, but he wanted me to be more aggressive than I wanted to or something. You know what I mean? He wanted me to be like, he wanted to see me really working at it and like sweating or doing, you know what I mean? And I was like, I don’t wanna, I don’t know. Bill Gasiamis (45:59) He wanted it to be more masculine. Jennifer Tomscha (46:01) Yeah, I guess. And he’s not very masculine guy. I mean, he’s a masculine guy, but he’s like, he was just he just wanted to see me sweating it out or doing the really see my focus. And I just yeah. And that has been an issue because he’s like, yeah, he’s just like, are you going to work again? I was like, yes, I’ll work. I just don’t know what I’ll do. And I don’t know if I could do a full eight hour day right now. I still take a nap every day in the afternoon. So But yeah, it’s just, don’t, yeah, so. Bill Gasiamis (46:34) It’s easy for a caregiver to say that because they haven’t had a stroke. Thank God. Thank God. ⁓ Jennifer Tomscha (46:40) No, I know. Thank goodness. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Actually, I mean, I feel really bad for Dan and my mom and my sister. Like, it’s actually worse to be the caregiver in some ways because you just, you don’t go through it. So you, you don’t really know what it’s like. Bill Gasiamis (46:55) I and you, and if you’ve got an imagination, a wild imagination, you could turn it into something completely way worse than what it is. And if you’re ignorant, which most family members and caregivers are, let’s face it. And that’s okay. Then you do the other thing. You play it down and you assume she should be going harder than that or Jennifer Tomscha (47:11) Yeah. Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (47:19) If I was, if it was me, I’d be doing that. But your brain has actually been injured and in that space, perhaps where motivation is for some people. And there is no way that you can make that person more motivated by willing them on or telling them to go to the gym or whatever. That could actually be missing the motivation part. So there’s a whole bunch of things that caregivers and family members miss. And it’s for me, it’s when I’m surrounded, when, when the people that are around me are Jennifer Tomscha (47:33) Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (47:46) ⁓ people who don’t want to engage deeply in those types of troubles, life and all that kind of stuff. they’re great people. They’re just like, emotionally they don’t go deep, right? They love it that there’s ambiguity around like what’s wrong with me. Cause they look at me, I look right. And then they just go, everything’s fine. He looks amazing. I feel better now. And when I’m around him, I can just talk about dumb stuff. Jennifer Tomscha (48:07) Mmm, yeah, yeah. Bill Gasiamis (48:14) And we can talk about things that are not important and everything’s fine. And it’s kind of like head in the sand. It’s a, you know, one step, one emotional step removed from the actual goings on. And it kind of also helps me strangely enough, because then I don’t have to deal with their inability to handle actual life and the real things that are going on. Jennifer Tomscha (48:39) Mm. Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (48:43) that can just be living in La La Land and I don’t have to deal with that level of complexity. So it’s kind of, they’re both situations are helping me in a way. Whereas at the beginning I was taking that negatively. The thing I do, the thing I would like to do is challenge caregivers to listen to the podcast, especially of the spouse who I’ve interviewed. Jennifer Tomscha (48:50) Yeah. Yeah, that’s true. Bill Gasiamis (49:09) You know, and then a couple more after that to get an insight so that they’re not guessing or second guessing or think they know better, et cetera. No doubt about it. they, know, they know some things about us that they can see that we’re not doing a pattern in behavior that we’re avoiding. Perhaps they know that part and all that type of thing. But we’ll say, we’re also dealing with a messed up brain. So have a bit of a kind of a Q Jennifer Tomscha (49:13) Hmm. Right, right. Bill Gasiamis (49:36) be curious about where that person’s coming from, not how you’re feeling about where they’re coming from. And that’s what family members and caregivers do. They make it about them. And I had to say a few times to people in my circles, like, it’s not about you. Jennifer Tomscha (49:43) Right. Ha Tomscha Tomscha! Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Bill Gasiamis (49:56) It’s actually really about me. cannot walk and I can’t use my left hand. It’s not about you. Like I know you woke up with a numb leg one day because you slept on it wrong, but it’s not the same. Jennifer Tomscha (50:05) Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That’s funny. Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (50:14) My wife was dragging my foot in the wheelchair. It had fallen off the, you know, the rest where your leg, your feet sit. It had fallen off and I hadn’t noticed. This is like day three or day four after brain surgery. And it was dragging underneath the footrest. And she noticed that the wheelchair wasn’t moving and she was shoving it until we realized. Jennifer Tomscha (50:22) higher. Bill Gasiamis (50:40) My foot was stuck underneath the rest and we had a laugh. that kind of like, that’s one of those, if those people were there and they saw that, they would realize like, it’s not about your numb leg when you slept on it weird one night. take your stuff and just, you know, park it for now. So it’s interesting. That’s kind of why I think I do this podcast. I think it’s for those Jennifer Tomscha (50:44) Yeah, yeah, Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. The Journey of Recovery Bill Gasiamis (51:08) people if they, I’ve never told them that they should jump on, but if they, for example, get curious one day and they want to know what it’s like to be in Bill’s head, pick one of the 400 episodes. Just have a listen. Jennifer Tomscha (51:09) Mmm. I have a question for you. you, this is something that, so you think you could just, you can keep improving from your stroke. There’s not like a deadline. There’s not like a couple of years or any. Bill Gasiamis (51:36) One of the things I learned from my wife and my brother, my brother is my biggest nemesis. You he’s older and he’s the most loving guy. He’s the most supportive guy, but he has a weird way of doing it. Just, you know, we’re different characters, right? So he just is a bit different in the way. one, one of the things my brother said was that I picked up, I reckon it was five, six years ago is he’s in it for the long game. Jennifer Tomscha (52:03) Hmm. Bill Gasiamis (52:04) When I was young, I had 20 jobs in 10 years. He said two jobs in 40 years or 30 in 30 years. So he just chips away, works away, works away, works away. This is an analogy, right? But also a true story. My wife started her, her, her master’s in psychology. She only started that a few years ago, but the whole. Jennifer Tomscha (52:08) Hmm. Hmm. Bill Gasiamis (52:28) journey to get to the Masters of Psych started in I think late 2011 or early 2011, about a year before I ended up in hospital. She is just now finishing the last part of her Masters degree and she found a job literally a week ago in her field two days a week. Jennifer Tomscha (52:35) Mm. Mmm. ⁓ Bill Gasiamis (52:56) to work as a provisional psychologist so that she can get the 1500 hours of work in the field before she actually gets her actual full psychology license. And I’m like, dude, I get it. So what you’re telling me is that if you just start and never stop, you’re gonna see some kind of progress. And I apply that to… Jennifer Tomscha (53:08) Right. That’s amazing. Mmm. Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (53:27) stroke recovery. I know that people are dealing with far more deficits that perhaps you and I show visibly and that their hand may not specifically work the way that it always that they wanted it to work or that the way that it worked before. But that doesn’t mean the brain’s not continuously continuously healing that part of the brain might be gone. But as far as healing the parts around the brain that are still there, that’s continuing. Jennifer Tomscha (53:28) Uh-huh. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (53:58) And if, and, and one of the questions that I have for people is like, is what I’m doing supporting my recovery or is it hindering my recovery? Because I’ve met stroke survivors who have gone back to the smokes, who have gone back to alcohol. And if you’re doing things that are getting in the way of recovery, then you’re not allowing the brain to continuously do what it does best, which is overcome challenges, rewire. Jennifer Tomscha (54:05) Mmm. Bill Gasiamis (54:25) find new ways around, know, develop new neural pathways and adapt. And that’s kind of where I think it’s at adaption, right? And the great thing about understanding these days about neurodiversity and understanding what somebody with ADHD goes through is the one skill they’re really, really good at is adaption. Jennifer Tomscha (54:31) Mm-hmm. Mm, that’s interesting. Yeah, yeah. Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (54:49) because and people with dyslexia. my God, like some of the biggest, most wealthy billionaires on the planet had dyslexia. Richard Branson is a classic example of that. Yeah. And they adapt. They find a way to somehow overcome the normal world and be weird in the way that they see letters and what letters do and how they move on a page and all that kind of stuff because their brain adapts and they can just continuously improve their adaption strategy. Jennifer Tomscha (54:57) really? didn’t know that. Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (55:17) to get to a point where no one knows that they have this condition. So that’s what I’m really passionate about. That’s why the podcast exists. I’ve interviewed in my 400 episodes, I’ve certainly interviewed stroke survivors who I’ve had improvement 10, 11, 12, 13 years post stroke, got a finger movement back. Yeah, got sensation back, something rewired. So yeah. Jennifer Tomscha (55:19) Right. Mm-hmm. really? That’s amazing. Yeah, becau

A little gopher shows us how animals recover from a volcano. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A real OCD recovery story: How Jaro broke the fear loop after 10+ years — and what finally worked.If you've been struggling with OCD for years — trying therapy, reading books, understanding everything intellectually, but still feeling stuck — this episode is for you.Matt Codde, LCSW, sits down with Jaro, a member of the Taking Back Control (TBC) program, for an honest conversation about his 10+ year journey with OCD: from compulsive behaviors he couldn't explain, to fear-based decisions that damaged relationships, to finally breaking the loop and experiencing what real recovery feels like.Whether you're just beginning your OCD recovery journey or you've tried everything and feel hopeless, this episode offers real insight into what it takes to get to the other side.

Personal stories of addiction and recovery touch us the most and have the greatest potential to heal and educate.  Sam D. joins us to share his recovery journey in the next installment of our series "Recovery Stories."

Send us Fan MailKent overdosed, coded, and was brought back with multiple Narcan shots. During it, he describes watching himself from above as nurses worked to save his life.His story goes deeper than that moment—early trauma, addiction starting in childhood, years in the drug trade, violence, loss, and the cycle that kept pulling him back. This conversation is about what it takes to finally break that cycle and rebuild a life from the ground up.SEIU-West –Wellness News –Parenting in the Storm –Support the showAre you getting something from our content? Tap here and buy us a coffee to say thanks and help us keep this train on the tracks!Check out the speakeasy podcastFollow Daniel Unmanageable on FacebookFollow Project Sparky We've got fresh merch and it's amazing! Pick yours up HEREFor business or speaking inquiries: Daniel@hardknoxtalks.comFollow Hard Knox TalksFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/hardknoxtalkspodcast/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hardknoxtalks/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hardknoxtalks?lang=en Check us out on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@hardknoxtalksWant to watch our episodes uncensored? Become a channel member here!

Send us Fan Mail Jamie shares a powerful story of addiction, abuse, psychosis, losing custody, and how faith became the foundation of her recovery and survival. SEIU-West –Wellness News –Parenting in the Storm – Check out Jamie's booksDragon Fruit FlowerIf Only They KnewSupport the showAre you getting something from our content? Tap here and buy us a coffee to say thanks and help us keep this train on the tracks!Check out the speakeasy podcastFollow Daniel Unmanageable on FacebookFollow Project Sparky We've got fresh merch and it's amazing! Pick yours up HEREFor business or speaking inquiries: Daniel@hardknoxtalks.comFollow Hard Knox TalksFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/hardknoxtalkspodcast/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hardknoxtalks/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hardknoxtalks?lang=en Check us out on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@hardknoxtalksWant to watch our episodes uncensored? Become a channel member here!

Send us Fan MailScott shares his story of addiction, toxic relationships, homelessness, relapse, survival, and the moment recovery became about helping other people stay alive. SEIU-West –Wellness News –Parenting in the Storm – Email Scottthelastcurbguy@gmail.comSupport the showAre you getting something from our content? Tap here and buy us a coffee to say thanks and help us keep this train on the tracks!Check out the speakeasy podcastFollow Daniel Unmanageable on FacebookFollow Project Sparky We've got fresh merch and it's amazing! Pick yours up HEREFor business or speaking inquiries: Daniel@hardknoxtalks.comFollow Hard Knox TalksFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/hardknoxtalkspodcast/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hardknoxtalks/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hardknoxtalks?lang=en Check us out on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@hardknoxtalksWant to watch our episodes uncensored? Become a channel member here!

Margaret Lloyd Seger shares her recovery story—getting sober at just 25 years old and transforming her life into one of purpose, research, and impact. From early struggles with alcohol and Adderall to becoming a PhD researcher studying addiction and pregnancy, her journey highlights the reality of addiction, the difficulty of early recovery, and the hope that keeps people going. This conversation dives into: What early addiction really looks like The hardest parts of early recovery How recovery can rebuild a life The truth about substance use during pregnancy Why people deserve recovery—no matter what Recovery is possible. And it starts one day at a time.0:00 – Margaret introduces herself (15 years in recovery) 1:05 – “I had a great childhood… still became an alcoholic” 1:40 – First exposure to drinking & drugs 2:27 – Early red flags: “I only wanted to drink to get drunk” 3:00 – Why addiction is hard to see when you're in it 4:00 – Loss + addiction getting worse 5:00 – The moment it finally clicked 5:25 – First recovery meeting at 25 6:10 – “Drugs and alcohol stopped working” 7:30 – Early recovery was the hardest thing she's ever done 8:00 – 10 days sober… nervous system completely shot 9:15 – Surviving early recovery (meetings + “hope shots”) 10:45 – Rebuilding life in recovery 13:30 – Working with kids affected by addiction 16:50 – Her focus now: pregnancy & addiction 20:40 – Research + TikTok education 22:10 – Cannabis use during pregnancy 24:45 – The risks most people don't realize 28:50 – Advice for someone in their first 24 hours ----Across the Web----

What happens when a motorcycle accident changes your life in an instant?In this powerful and inspiring episode, I sit down with motorcycle accident survivor Shannon Michelle, who shares her incredible journey of survival, resilience, and recovery after a devastating crash left her in a coma for months. After waking up, Shannon had to relearn basic life skills like walking, talking, and reading — rebuilding her life step by step after a traumatic brain injury.But the challenges didn't stop there.Just a year and a half into her recovery, Shannon was diagnosed with breast cancer, forcing her to face another life-altering battle. In this conversation, we talk about resilience, recovery after brain injury, mindset, and how Shannon learned to embrace a new version of life after trauma. Shannon also shares powerful advice for anyone facing adversity and discusses her inspiring new book Step Into Your Miracle.If you or someone you love is navigating brain injury recovery, a motorcycle accident, cancer diagnosis, or major life challenge — this episode is for you.In this episode, we discuss:Motorcycle accident survival and recoveryLife after coma and traumatic brain injuryRelearning basic life skillsFacing breast cancer during recoveryAdapting to memory challenges and limitationsAdvice for overcoming trauma and adversityShannon Michelle's book Step Into Your Miracle[00:00] Shannon's motorcycle accident and coma[11:43] Facing breast cancer during recovery[16:51] Adapting to new abilities and limitations[20:43] Advice for others facing trauma[26:45] Shannon's book Step Into Your MiracleFollow the Podcast & Host Devon Wieters:https://wheelwithit.com/followusFollow Shannon Michelle:Website: https://stepintoyourmiracle.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannon-michelle-a870a4371?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_appInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/stepintoyourmiracle?igsh=bXE5dmSubscribe & Listen:Subscribe on YouTube: https://wheelwithit.com/youtubeListen on your favorite audio platform: https://getwheelwithit.comIf you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow, rate, review, and share the podcast with someone who could use a little inspiration today.

When addiction hits a family, everyone feels it – but recovery can ripple through a family too.In this powerful episode of The Zac Clark Show, Zac sits down with siblings Sean and Kathleen McGowan, two people whose lives were once consumed by addiction and chaos, and who today both work in the behavioral healthcare field. Sean shares the moment that changed his life: waking up in a hotel room after a cross-country road trip, facing the reality of his heroin addiction, and finally surrendering to treatment. Kathleen tells her own devastating story – from drug arrests and life on a California weed farm to a severe nitrous oxide addiction that left her unable to walk.Their paths diverged for years until a desperate phone call brought their family back together. Today, both siblings are sober, working at High Watch Recovery Center, and using their experiences to help others find hope.This episode includes:The cross-country trip that ended with Sean entering treatmentWhat heroin addiction looked like behind closed doorsGrowing up in a loving family that didn't talk about addictionThe hidden addiction that nearly left Kathleen paralyzedNitrous oxide abuse and its devastating neurological effectsHow denial can persist even in the face of life-threatening consequencesThe moment Kathleen called her father and asked for helpSean driving overnight to rescue his sister from an abusive situationWhat it's like when siblings recover togetherHow recovery rebuilds families, trust, and relationshipsWhy families should never give up hopeThis is a very honest and raw conversation about family, accountability, second chances, and the power of showing up when someone you love asks for help.Connect with Zac:https://www.instagram.com/zwclark/https://www.linkedin.com/in/zac-c-746b96254/https://www.tiktok.com/@zacwclarkhttps://www.strava.com/athletes/55697553https://twitter.com/zacwclarkIf you or anyone you know is struggling, please do not hesitate to contact Release Recovery:(914) 588-6564releaserecovery.com@releaserecovery

  In this episode of Sobertown Podcast, Misty Christmas shares her journey through addiction and recovery, highlighting key moments that led her to sobriety, including a transformative prayer experience and a decision to move to Bowling Green, Kentucky, for sober living. She describes her struggles with various substances and mental health disorders, and her eventual recovery through a combination of therapy, support groups, and personal growth. Misty emphasizes the importance of changing one's environment, seeking treatment, and finding a higher power, while also acknowledging the ongoing variable nature of recovery. She concludes by encouraging others to pursue recovery and sharing her plans to create resources to support individuals in early sobriety. Amazon: Bearing Fruit: Journal For Women #2 Facebook: Misty Christmas Author Email: MistyChristmasAuthor@gmail.com   If you have an idea for an Early Days podcast episode, or would just like to say hello, please reach out at earlydaysPC@gmail.com  About Michal: Michal is an American podcaster and sober warrior who believes every recovery journey is as unique as the individual traveling it. With over a decade of sobriety garnered through various recovery systems, programs, and support networks, she's passionate about breaking down stereotypes and smashing through the shame that can keep those suffering with addiction in the dark. Michal is an animal lover, rescue advocate, and tattooed motorcycle chick who has dedicated her life to helping others, whether in her personal or professional life.  Nothing makes her happier than hearing from her podcast listeners, so if you're so inspired, drop an email with a suggestion for an Early Days podcast episode, feedback, or just to say hello! Contact Michal at: EarlydaysPC@gmail.com   Other Sober Resources: I Am Sober App Sobertown Podcast Zoom Discussion Groups Sobertown Podcast Resource Center Recovery Online Meetings No Sippy No Slippy. Not Another Drop No matter What.   Remember to Pour The Poison Down The Sink!! Sobertownpodcast.com    

In this inspiring client story episode, Victoria sits down with former client Allison to share her powerful fertility journey. After 10 years without a period, multiple doctor visits across the country, and being repeatedly told she would likely need Clomid or IVF to get pregnant, Allison began to believe motherhood might not be possible for her. Despite being told she was "healthy" and having a normal BMI, her cycle never returned after coming off birth control. Doctors diagnosed her with PCOS and offered birth control or fertility treatments as the only options. But something didn't feel right. When Allison discovered Victoria's work, she decided to try one last approach before accepting fertility treatments. In this episode, she shares the truth about her recovery journey, including the emotional challenges of changing long-held food and exercise habits, the mindset shifts required to heal, and what happened when she finally gave her body the safety signals it needed to ovulate again. Within one month of beginning recovery work, Allison got her first period back. Over the following months, her cycles regulated. And when she and her husband eventually began trying for a baby…She got pregnant the first month. Now 19 weeks pregnant, Allison reflects on what she wishes she had known sooner and how doing this work before pregnancy made the experience far less stressful physically and mentally. If you've ever wondered whether you're the "exception," this conversation will give you both hope and clarity. Today's episode is brought to you by our exclusive program, Premier Period Recovery for Fertility. Reach out to chat 1-1 with me to see if it's exactly what you need to get your period back and get pregnant in 2026, by applying here.  This period recovery method will change your life...and I've laid it all out for you in my NEW free course, Restore Your Fertility in 90 Days (or less). Download and watch it today!

Return to Work After Stroke: How Marco Calabi Rebuilt His Career, His Purpose, and His Life At 47 years old, Marco Calabi was a DevOps engineer living in Italy – someone who spent his days automating systems, solving complex problems, and helping companies stop wasting time on repetitive tasks. He was healthy, working, paying bills, and spending time with friends. Life was normal. Then, without warning, everything changed. A small hole between the two chambers of Marco’s heart, a condition known as Patent Foramen Ovale, or PFO, had allowed blood flows to mix. A clot formed. It travelled to his brain. By the time his partner and sister realised something was terribly wrong, Marco was moving his arm involuntarily, unaware of what was happening to his own body. The emergency services were called twice. The second time, they came. Marco underwent eight hours of brain surgery. He was placed in a medically induced coma to allow his brain to rest. When he finally opened his eyes, he was on a hospital bed, and the road back had only just begun. The Reality of Stroke at 47 Marco woke from surgery to find the right side of his body had been affected. His arm, hand, and leg were weak. His speech was impaired. He left the hospital in a wheelchair. For many stroke survivors, this is the moment that defines everything that follows, not the stroke itself, but the first honest look at what recovery is actually going to require. “In the beginning, I was helped in everything,” Marco recalls. “They prepared my lunch. They helped me go to the bathroom. My family never left me alone.” His mother, his partner, his sister, and a close friend in the Netherlands all rallied around him. At home, physiotherapists and local health professionals visited him directly, a level of care he describes as incredible. Step by step, he began to reclaim his independence. First, the bathroom. Then the kitchen. Then the stairs. Each small act of autonomy arrived with a feeling he hadn’t expected: power. “You feel good because you think you have power again,” he says. “It is a very important moment.” Return to Work After Stroke: Why It Matters For working-age stroke survivors, the question of whether they can return to work after stroke is one of the most pressing they face. Identity, purpose, financial security, and routine work carry all of these things, and a stroke threatens all of them at once. For Marco, returning to work wasn’t just a financial necessity. It was evidence that his life still had forward momentum. He went back to his role as a DevOps and Site Reliability Engineer, initially working six hours a day instead of eight. The work itself, automating processes and improving systems, remained the same. Only the pace had changed. “I do the same things, but with different speeds,” he says simply. That shift in pace is something many stroke survivors recognise. Recovery doesn’t demand perfection. It demands persistence. “The right moment is now. Not after, not tomorrow, not next week. Now.” — Marco Calabi Recovery Happens in Steps One of the most grounded things Marco shares is this: recovery cannot be rushed. “The experience is made of steps,” he says. “You must live every step. The first steps are physical. And then your mind changes. But you must let yourself be.” This is the part that rarely gets talked about openly. The pressure to recover quickly — to prove to yourself, your family, and your employer that you are still capable — can work against the very process you are trying to complete. Marco’s advice is to resist the urge to skip ahead. Physical recovery comes first. Mental and emotional transformation follows naturally from there. Trying to rush past the physical phase doesn’t speed up recovery. It disrupts it. The Book, the Purpose, and the Shift Deep into his recovery, Marco did something unexpected. He wrote a book. Cambio di Vita, translated into English as Life Change: To Hell and Back, is his account of what happened, what he felt, and what he learned. Available on Amazon in digital and paperback. Writing started as a personal exercise. Somewhere in the process, its purpose shifted. “I said, my story is useless in this moment. I can make something,” Marco explains. “And so the book has another meaning to share.” For a man who had always found purpose through his career, the stroke opened an unexpected door. Helping others became a new calling. Speaking engagements, podcasts, and community conversations, Marco has built a new layer of meaning onto the life he already had. His best friend told him he had become wiser. His own reflection on what changed is striking: “Heartlessness is useless. You reach the hearts of people with softness.” What Stroke Taught Him About Life Perhaps the most powerful thing about Marco’s story is not what he lost, but what he found. He found that the right moment is always now, not when conditions are perfect, not when recovery is complete, but right now, with whatever capacity you currently have. He found that family and friends matter more than most of us acknowledge until we truly need them. He found that purpose doesn’t require a perfect body or a full working week. It requires a decision. If you are navigating life after stroke, wondering whether you can return to work, rebuild your identity, or find meaning in what remains, Marco’s story is proof that it is possible. Not easy. Not fast. But absolutely possible. If you are rebuilding your life after stroke and want a guide for the journey ahead, Bill’s book The Unexpected Way That a Brain Injury Can Change Your Life is waiting for you at recoveryafterstroke.com/book. If this podcast has supported you, consider supporting it back at Patreon. Your contribution keeps this community growing. FAQ: Return to Work After Stroke Can you return to work after a stroke? Yes, many stroke survivors do return to work, though the timeline and capacity vary depending on the severity of the stroke, the type of work, and individual recovery. Marco Calabi returned to his role as a DevOps engineer, initially working six hours a day instead of eight. The key is a gradual, supported transition. How long does it take to return to work after a stroke? Recovery timelines vary widely. Some survivors return within weeks; others need months or years. Factors include the type and severity of stroke, the physical and cognitive demands of the job, and the quality of rehabilitation support. There is no universal timeline. Patience and persistence matter more than speed. What can I expect when returning to work after a stroke? Many survivors return at reduced hours or modified duties. Adjustments to pace, task complexity, or physical demands are common. Open communication with employers and occupational therapists can help structure a gradual, sustainable return. Marco worked six-hour days and describes it simply: “I do the same things, but with different speeds.” Does returning to work help stroke recovery? For many survivors, returning to work contributes positively to recovery, providing routine, purpose, social connection, and a sense of forward momentum. Marco Calabi describes his return to work as evidence that life still had forward momentum. However, the timing must be right, and the transition should be gradual. What if I can’t return to my previous job after a stroke? Some survivors find that stroke opens doors to new kinds of purpose volunteering, writing, advocacy, or a different career direction. Marco Calabi used his recovery to write a book and speak to others about life after stroke. The key is finding what gives you meaning, even if it looks different from before. For more guidance on rebuilding life after stroke, visit recoveryafterstroke.com/book. This blog is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please consult your doctor before making any changes to your health or recovery plan. Marco Calabi — From Induced Coma to Back at Work: A Stroke Survivor's Honest Recovery Story At 47, Marco Calabi had a stroke caused by a hole in his heart. Today he's back at work, has written a book, and is helping others go on. Marco’s Facebook Marco’s Instagram Marco’s Book: Life Change Highlights: 00:00 Introduction: Return to Work After Stroke 02:27 Life Before and After the Stroke 05:23 Health Awareness and Stroke Causes 09:22 The Day of the Stroke 15:02 Writing the book “Life Change: To Hell and Back” 27:51 The Importance of Support During Recovery 33:15 Gaining Autonomy and Finding Purpose 39:14 The Power of Mindset in Recovery 43:24 Life Lessons Learned Post-Stroke 47:24 Inspiring Others Through Personal Experience Transcript: Introduction: Return to Work After Stroke Bill Gasiamis (00:00) what kind of things is okay to complain about? Like in Italy, if the pasta is not cooked al dente, you must complain. Marco Calabi (00:07) Okay, yeah. Okay, yes, yes. Bill Gasiamis (00:08) you Marco Calabi (00:13) Okay, but you complain, you learn to complain about very important things. Bill Gasiamis (00:24) Hello everyone and welcome to the recovery after stroke podcast. Before we get into today’s episode, I want to tell you about a tool I’ve been using and genuinely love turn to.ai. If you’ve ever tried to keep up with the latest stroke research, you’ll know how overwhelming it can be. There are literally 800 new things published every single week about stroke research papers, patient discussions, expert comments, clinical trials, events. Nobody has time to read all of that. Turn2.ai is an AI health sidekick that does it for you. It searches everything published in the past week and sends you what’s most relevant to your situation personalized every week straight to you. It’s my favorite new tool for 2026. It’s just $2 a week, patient first, low cost. And here’s what I love about this. When you sign up through my link, you’re supporting this podcast at absolutely no extra cost to you. Use code Bill10 for 10 % off and try it free at the link below or scan the QR code on your screen. Speaking of resources, if you’re rebuilding your life after stroke and want a roadmap for what comes next, my book, The Unexpected Way That a Stroke Became the Best Thing to Happen is available at recoveryafterstroke.com/book. It’s written from experience, my own and other stroke survivors. And I hope it helps you the way writing it helped me. And to everyone supporting the show Patreon, thank you genuinely. This is not possible without you. Now today’s guest is Marco Calabi, a DevOps engineer from Italy who had a stroke at 47 caused by a hole in his heart. He went through eight hours of brain surgery, wake up from a medically induced coma, left hospital in a wheelchair and went on to return to work, write a book, and find a new sense of purpose. This is a remarkable conversation. Let’s get into it. Bill Gasiamis (02:18) Marco Calabi welcome to the podcast Marco Calabi (02:21) Yes, I’m ready and thank you for your invitation. Life Before and After the Stroke Bill Gasiamis (02:27) Tell me a little bit about what your life was like before you had the stroke. Marco Calabi (02:33) Yes, before my stroke, my life was normal, I say. Working, paying bills, going outside with friends and so on. After the stroke, everything changed because… Bill Gasiamis (02:53) Yeah. Did you have a, what kind of work did you do before the stroke? Marco Calabi (02:58) Before the stroke, even after the stroke, I work ⁓ in computer science field. I’m a DevOps engineer. And after the stroke, I work a little less. Six hours, I can do eight hours before the stroke. But I do the same things. I do normal things. project something about I’m very, very, very vertical in this moment. I work in a site, the reliability engineer field. my aim is to help this system to service. to automate things. And I’m like a robot. I like a robot. Bill Gasiamis (04:05) to automate. To automate things. So, okay, to automate manual processes or something like that. Marco Calabi (04:10) ⁓ so pretty. Yes, yes, I try to automate everything because the people, the company now try to avoid to make the people to repeating things. because you want people… make more important things and the repeating things are not very important. in my opinion, diminishing view of the work. And I try to make the things better in some way. before the soak and even after the soak. I do the same things but with different speeds. Health Awareness and Stroke Causes Bill Gasiamis (05:23) Yeah. With you regards to your health, how did you view your health before the stroke? Did you think you were healthy? Did you think you were well, or was there some things that you were dealing with that were related to the stroke that occurred? Marco Calabi (05:38) Yes, before the stroke I was healthy, but I was very worried about my health because I found a lot of health problems in my body, but the problems were not there. because after the stroke, I did understand I was healthy in that moment. And the stroke teached me to understand my health better. yes, yes, yes. Bill Gasiamis (06:30) You were heavy? Marco Calabi (06:37) because I went out from the hospital with wheelchair. And now I’m able to walk. Bill Gasiamis (06:51) Aha. So were you overweight? Marco Calabi (06:56) No, no, I’m not. I had a stroke maybe because the doctors doesn’t know the motive. Perhaps, perhaps it was a genetic problem in my heart because of FOP, because a small all between the two chambers in my heart. And the mixing of the two flow bloods makes problems to the brain. And after the stroke, ⁓ the stroke happened. But I… Bill Gasiamis (07:51) Yeah, did they? Did they find a hole in your heart? Marco Calabi (07:55) Yes, yes, and I was operated in my heart. Closing, yes, closing the hole because people suffer this common problem. But sometimes the problem is huge. A lot of people… Bill Gasiamis (08:01) to fix the hull. ⁓ huh. Hmm. Marco Calabi (08:25) don’t suffer major problems. But sometimes it is very, very important. In my case, was very, very important because it created the mixing of the blood flows, created ⁓ a blood costrain. to the brain and the platypus brain ⁓ created a stroke. It is the opinion of the doctors. Bill Gasiamis (09:04) on the How old were you at the time? Marco Calabi (09:10) I softened the stroke at 47 and now I’m 51 years old. Yes. The Day of the Stroke Bill Gasiamis (09:22) 41, 47 when the stroke happened. On the day of the stroke, did you notice there was some, something wrong? Did you feel strange, feel different? Marco Calabi (09:31) Yes, during the stroke it was terrible because I did a lot. My mate called the emergency number and they thought it was a problem of annotation. the neck. And my sister, because my brother called my sister, and my sister came into my house and she understood something was wrong, because I moved my arm in the air. Bill Gasiamis (10:02) Mm-hmm. Marco Calabi (10:30) And I had, sorry, because remembering these things makes me a little uncomfortable. yes, but okay. And my sister, together with my mate, decided to call again the Belgics. and then they went to buy house and my story began. Bill Gasiamis (11:14) Hmm. So I’m going to go back for a moment and ask you about what just happened. You got uncomfortable. it emotional to talk about what happened to you sometimes? Marco Calabi (11:23) Yes, yes, yes, because I know I never accepted this thing I’m living together with it but yes, because yes, yes, because I think Bill Gasiamis (11:42) Uh-huh. You haven’t accepted it yet. Marco Calabi (11:52) I will never accept this thing. But I try to go on. I try. Bill Gasiamis (12:01) Why? Why do you think you won’t accept it? And is that helpful to not accept it? Marco Calabi (12:08) Because it is very hard to accept. Because it is not normal, in my opinion, to accept the bad things in life. ⁓ We must live together with them. Because… because we must live and stop. But living gains understanding is very different. Yes. Bill Gasiamis (12:48) If you’ve chosen to live with it and overcome the challenges that it gives, isn’t that a form of acceptance? Marco Calabi (12:58) Maybe. is, in my opinion, it is a form of acceptance. Because sooner or later I make something, I do something. And my father said it is useless to look through the ceiling. And it is a big truth. It is useless. Your life is in your hands. And you in that moment, your life is a lot in your hands. And you must decide your future because No people are able to help you. No other people, friends, family, relatives, and so on. You must do only with your strength and soul. Bill Gasiamis (14:18) Yeah. And to me, that sounds like acceptance. You have taken responsibility for the ⁓ recovery that you have to do. You’ve taken responsibility for your life. You’ve made steps to rehabilitate yourself, your emotions, your mental health. You wrote a book about what happened to you. And that sounds like you have accepted a lot of what happened to you, even though perhaps what it sounds like you’re saying maybe, and you can correct me if I’m wrong, it sounds like you’re saying, ⁓ I’m not going to give up. Writing the book “Life Change: To Hell and Back” Marco Calabi (15:02) Yes, yes, because I wrote a book because I followed a possible path because it was a path of recovering not only physical recovering but mainly mental recovery and writing the book was very helpful for me. And I hope it is helpful for others. Because in the beginning, I wrote the book because I tried to tell my story. And then I said, my story is useless. in this moment. I can make something. And so the book has another meaning. And because I want in this way to help, to share, to share. It is the right word. to share my experience. Not to… to share. To share. Bill Gasiamis (16:36) Yeah. Life change to hell and back is the English title, but you wrote the book in Italian and then had it translated to English. Correct. Marco Calabi (16:45) Yes, yes. In Italian, it is called Cambio di Vita. And in English, is ⁓ called Life Change. And to hell and back is the subtitle, because I went to tell. it was an help for me and perhaps I come back to tell to share to the others what I saw and what I did feel and I hope this experience will help in some way other people. Bill Gasiamis (17:17) Mm-hmm. Understand. Your journey started after the second time the emergency services were called to your house. What happened after that? Did they come to your house and then they took you to hospital? Did they treat you at your house? What happened? Marco Calabi (17:59) No, no, the physiotherapist and the therapist went to my house because I was not able to go to the hospital again. And then Italian hospitals decided to come directly. to my house and help me in my house. And so physiotherapists and local beauties, they were incredible. They were very, very professional and very, very helpful for me. Helped me to recover a little my body. in my speech. Bill Gasiamis (18:59) Before the recovery, I just wanted to understand what happened when you were having the stroke, the day of the stroke. your sister called the emergency services a second time. Did they take you to hospital to understand what was wrong? Marco Calabi (19:14) Yes. Yes, and I was operated immediately because my brain started to grow. And then I was operated because they didn’t want to… Bill Gasiamis (19:23) huh. Expand. Marco Calabi (19:47) to have to experience later problems. And they operated to me for eight hours. And then I was inducted with a comma. because my brain needed to rest. And then I woke up on a bed looking around and seeing people. And I remember I remembered a woman said, it is time to walk. And with a lot of difficulty, I started to walk. And then I was transferred to another hospital. to specialize ⁓ in stroke recovering. And there I was there for two months. Bill Gasiamis (21:10) Mm-hmm. And what were the deficits you needed to get rehabilitated from? Did you have problems with your body, with your limbs, with your, what was the problem? Marco Calabi (21:27) Problems with the walk, problems with the speaker. a problem to it because I was, I don’t know, it is visible. Yes, yes, because during the search they opened a hole. ⁓ Bill Gasiamis (21:47) ⁓ trick you trick you asked me Marco Calabi (22:05) And then the wall remains open for all of that time. And then I was eliminated from this wall. And one month later, the wall was… All was closed. Bill Gasiamis (22:36) Okay, so you had the chocostomy in for a long time and ⁓ they removed the chocostomy, then the hole is there, takes a month to close. Marco Calabi (22:39) Yes. Yes. Yes, yes, yes. And my mate says it seems a cross. I don’t know, I don’t. Okay, Why not? Bill Gasiamis (22:56) It seems across. ⁓ Why not? Yeah. So, so you had to also learn to walk again, which side of your body was impacted by the stroke, which one was it your left side or your right side that didn’t work. Marco Calabi (23:14) my right side my right side my leg my arms my arms my hands and okay all the right side and ⁓ i am weaker to the right side and okay Bill Gasiamis (23:16) Mm-hmm. Waker. Marco Calabi (23:38) In the beginning, I was not able to write. And then after a long, very long training, I am able to write again. Very, very slowly, but I am able. Bill Gasiamis (24:00) Mm hmm. And when you were in hospital, what was the hardest part of the recovery for you? Did you, when you started walking again, what was that like? Marco Calabi (24:14) In the hospital, never stop, always on the wheelchair. And I stop when I come back home. But yes. No, no, no, no. Bill Gasiamis (24:38) You stood up when you came back home, but in rehabilitation, you didn’t stand up. Marco Calabi (24:44) very very sad. very very sad. ⁓ Above all in the transportation for example from the wheelchair to the bed or do an exercise bicycle maybe but stop stop stop. ⁓ I remembered sometimes they tried to make me walk on the stairs, very, very, very few stairs, and tried to make ⁓ me walk in corridors and stuff. Bill Gasiamis (25:48) Okay and your arm, your right arm, you couldn’t use it at the shoulder and the hand, is that what the problem was? Marco Calabi (25:58) Yeah, I can use it. I can use it. It is weaker. A little weaker. But I can use it in this moment. When I was in the hospital, my right arm had problems. Because ⁓ the mobility was limited. And after two months, I was able to move it freely. And now I’m able to move it again in every direction. Bill Gasiamis (26:49) Hmm. ⁓ Very good. When you came home from hospital, who was at home with you? Were you living alone or did you have some family with you? Marco Calabi (26:58) No, no, no, with my family, with my sister and with my mate because my sister and my mate never leave me alone. Leave me alone. they encouraged me. Thanks God because… ⁓ I think in this moment, family, friends, relatives, mates are very, very important. Above all, in this moment. Bill Gasiamis (27:44) Was there somebody that helped guide you through the recovery? Someone that stepped up and you had a lot of support from? The Importance of Support During Recovery Marco Calabi (27:51) My Yes, my friends. Above all, one of my friends who lives in the Netherlands because he was very worried about my health. And my bait talked to him to synchronize him about my condition and after and when I went back home he was very very very present and he was very very he was a very good friend. Bill Gasiamis (28:52) understand. So he came, supported you, was very present when you came back home. Yeah. Marco Calabi (29:00) Yes, yes, yes. Above all, my mom, my sister, my baby, obviously, my friends. Because in this moment, it is a moment you understand very well the friends. more close in the friends maybe, ⁓ maybe are fearful of your situation. Bill Gasiamis (29:44) Yes, yes, very much. Lots of people get fearful ⁓ when somebody they know how to stroke, they don’t know how to help and what to do. Marco Calabi (29:53) Yes, because I think it is natural. I understand it is natural because the first thing a friend, a person who knows you in things is what I can do. And she is very fearful because the situation is huge. And I understand in this moment, in that moment, you understand very well the people. And you understand very well the quality. Bill Gasiamis (30:39) Yes. Marco Calabi (30:46) Yes, you are the same. You are the same. Bill Gasiamis (30:47) your friends. Yeah, very common, very common. Doesn’t matter if you live in Italy, America, Australia, experience is very similar. People have very similar ⁓ reporting about friendships. Marco Calabi (30:59) Yes, I don’t think it is different from country to country because we are human being and stop and and stop. ⁓ Bill Gasiamis (31:08) you People are people. What kind of things did you need help with at home? Could you go to the bathroom on your own? Could you eat on your own? What help was your family providing you? Marco Calabi (31:28) Yes, in the beginning I was helped in everything because they prepared my lunch, ⁓ they helped me to go to the bathroom, they face outside the door, checking the situation. Okay, okay, okay. I understand, okay. And then, with time, I conquered my autonomy. Because, for example, going to the bathroom, cooking something. Bill Gasiamis (31:58) Thank God. Thanks a lot. Marco Calabi (32:22) and doing my pet and so on. It is very important because in these moments you say to yourself, I’m able again. My life is not useless. It is silly to say. I know. It is very, very silly to say. But… Bill Gasiamis (32:54) in the moment, it’s probably okay in the moment, but now on reflection, it’s silly to say that, but at the moment it’s difficult and it’s a emotional experience and it’s a relief that you have and you have some autonomy now again, and you feel good about it. So yeah. Gaining Autonomy and Finding Purpose Marco Calabi (33:01) Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes, yes, you feel good because you think you have a power again. I don’t know. And it is a moment. It is a very important moment for you. I understand. I understand the luckiness. able to know because other people ⁓ has no luck ⁓ like me. Like me. And I understand. And this thing makes me run because, OK, I’m lucky and so I want Bill Gasiamis (33:55) Mm-hmm. Marco Calabi (34:11) I want to help others because I’m black. And so. Bill Gasiamis (34:16) Yes, have luck. You have a bit of luck on your side. You are improving. You’re getting better. You have autonomy. Again, you want to help other people because it’s important. Marco Calabi (34:25) Yes, very. In my opinion, it is very, very important because life otherwise is meaningless. you have to give some meaning to your life. And the stroke in some way helped me to discover my possible goal in my life. Bill Gasiamis (34:44) Yeah. calling in life, understand. So you didn’t get married, you didn’t have a family. Marco Calabi (35:09) No, I never married, but I have made a girlfriend for, I don’t know, 11, 12 years. We are like married. No, no, no, no. Bill Gasiamis (35:28) Okay, but you didn’t have children. Okay. So for you made a good point about purpose and meaning in life and helping other people. If you’re, if you don’t have family to, ⁓ fuss over to ⁓ to help out, to support, et cetera, when they’re young, like children, it could be a little bit of a gap in your life about purpose and meaning. And now that you had the stroke, you found that supporting other people provides you with some additional purpose and meaning above your relationship as well with your partner. Marco Calabi (35:50) Yes. Yes. Yes, because not ⁓ having keys makes me available, let me see, help others who have keys and maybe ⁓ they are busy, too busy. Bill Gasiamis (36:22) Yeah. Marco Calabi (36:35) for other things and I try to make ⁓ my life helpful for those ones. Bill Gasiamis (36:46) Yeah, you have more spare time and you can allocate that to helping other people. Yeah. So, you know, the Marco Calabi (36:50) Yes, yes, yes, yes. Bill Gasiamis (36:59) You talk very positively about your recovery. You’re focusing on all the positive things. You wrote a book. You want to help other people. But was there some times that you really struggled, that you had a really hard time and you needed more support emotionally or mentally? Marco Calabi (37:18) both of things. I had ⁓ moments with a lot of climate. Bill Gasiamis (37:21) Both. crying, yeah, very common. Marco Calabi (37:32) because ⁓ in those moments I was ⁓ I saw my life had problems. And for example, my mother’s teach me again ⁓ to wake on the shoes. And so in that moment, I… was I was ⁓ I… ⁓ I understood my situation very deeply. And why I wanted to prove it? Because every day I wanted to go on and every day I wanted to progress because I don’t want to live was moments again. I would like to make my life better. Bill Gasiamis (39:06) Uh-huh. Understand. Yeah. But it was difficult to make your life better because you’re just in the recovery phase. You’re very restricted. Things are difficult. The Power of Mindset in Recovery Marco Calabi (39:14) Yes. It is very, very, important the presence of your family, of your friends, because otherwise I would not be here. ⁓ Bill Gasiamis (39:40) Yeah, that helped to bring you back. Marco Calabi (39:41) Yes, yes. And then after their help, you must help yourself. Because I understand, I understand you have everything to complain, but complaining is useless. It’s useless. Bill Gasiamis (39:54) as well. Marco Calabi (40:09) Complaining is natural, but it must be very short. A moment of self-reflection, a moment and stop. And then you must do something for yourself and stop. Stop to look to the ceiling. This useless. I wanted to say this useless. Bill Gasiamis (40:45) Yeah, I agree. But it’s something we all do. We all find ourselves complaining about our situation, but as long as you don’t stay there for a long amount of time, you can do the complaint and then move on and continue looking at things that you… Marco Calabi (40:57) Hmm. Hmm. Yes, Complaining is not a part, it’s a mainly part of my spirit. I complain ⁓ very, very few times. I understand people are different and the complaining is different, but… You must very, very, very aware of your situation and this stroke maybe makes you aware, more aware about yourself, about your problems, about your weakness and starting, starting, I interline, starting. from that you can go on. Bill Gasiamis (42:04) You can go on. Yeah, I agree. When you complain about things, like what kind of things is okay to complain about? Like in Italy, if the pasta is not cooked al dente, you must complain. Marco Calabi (42:23) Okay, yeah. Okay, yes, yes. Bill Gasiamis (42:24) you It’s important. You have to tell the chef, I’m sorry, the pasta is not al dente. You have to take it back. Marco Calabi (42:35) Okay, but you complain, you learn to complain about very important things. Yes. Bill Gasiamis (42:46) Yes, it’s feedback. It’s not complaining. It’s feedback. My food is not al dente and I need you to make it again so I can eat it because I can’t eat like this. It’s too cooked. Marco Calabi (42:51) What? I never was, I never liked a very, very precious food and I ate everything. I tasted everything, I ate everything. Even in the hospital, I ate everything. Life Lessons Learned Post-Stroke Bill Gasiamis (43:24) Is Italian hospital food good or is it terrible? Marco Calabi (43:31) It is a hospital book. And so it is very light. It is very, very, very simple. And it is very teachable. it is not a good book. Bill Gasiamis (43:43) Yeah. Yeah. You spoke a little bit earlier about how you have to go on with your life. So looking back now, how have you changed the way that you go about your life? How do you do things differently now? Marco Calabi (44:15) everything, everything, everything. I looked at the life in different way because I put the things in different priorities, working, having good time with friends and so on. Because before stroke you… to think about the things you do every day, but you don’t do that. Those ones. Then after the stroke, you start to do immediately the things. You don’t want to wait for things, the right moment and stop. Because the right moment, you understand, is now, not after, not tomorrow, not the next week. Now, it is a new way of singing life. You stop to wake because you understand time is very very precious. Bill Gasiamis (45:50) Yeah, and we may not have tomorrow. Understand. Marco Calabi (45:53) Yes, yes, you must do the things now and stop. As you can. You must not be a Superman. You must not do ⁓ things, a lot of things. You must do what you can and stop. But you must do. Bill Gasiamis (46:24) Yeah. Marco Calabi (46:25) and stop. Not tomorrow, not in one week, and not in one month. Now. You must do now. And stop. Never you understand, never stop you. Bill Gasiamis (46:47) Yeah, I agree. Once you have a stroke, you realize that you are mortal and that maybe you don’t have… Marco Calabi (46:53) It’s just… Bill Gasiamis (46:58) another 50 years or 40 years ahead of you. maybe you need to do, take more action, do more things, have the experiences you want to experience, whatever you can, I agree. ⁓ It’s something I think that is a good way to inspire people who have had a stroke, who have injuries, that you can find a way to do something that you want to do that you haven’t done. Inspiring Others Through Personal Experience Marco Calabi (47:24) Yes. Bill Gasiamis (47:24) that you love. very important to try and get it done, find a way to make it happen. Even if you’re in a wheelchair, even if it’s difficult, even if you need a lot of planning, you know, has to be something that you tick, you tick off your list of things to do. Marco Calabi (47:42) And it is not important what type of disease you suffer, cancer, stroke, leukemia, so on. It is, in my opinion, very important your mind, the way your mind, the way… Bill Gasiamis (48:10) your minds. Marco Calabi (48:10) want you, your mindset, the way you want to go on and stop. But I want, I want, I want to tell my story. Maybe, tell. If I am able to go on, everyone is able to go on. Bill Gasiamis (48:19) Yeah. Marco Calabi (48:41) It is not something special. Everyone can go to work and so Bill Gasiamis (48:51) Yeah, I agree. Everyone should go on with their life in some capacity as much as they can. ⁓ Yeah, that’s excellent. What about strengths? What have you discovered in yourself that you didn’t know was there? Did you uncover some new powers, some new strength, some better understanding of what you’re capable of? Has it been a learning experience for you to Marco Calabi (49:05) Okay. Yes. Yes, after the writing of my books was a moment of reflection because in that moment I asked to myself, I’m able to write a book, so what can block me? And in this moment, in that moment, I was able to do other things. Maybe here write another book, like choosing a social media manager for my Facebook and Instagram and asking. to hospitals and associations to tell my stories, creating podcasts and so on because writing the book created a moment, a precise moment of going forward. And in that moment, I aware. of my powers and my skills to go on. It was… Bill Gasiamis (51:02) Yeah. Yeah. You wrote a book, you did podcasts, you helped your community by speaking. You did all these things that you haven’t done before the stroke. Marco Calabi (51:10) Yes. Yes, and for example, now I’m discussing with a company for a possible speech of myself to inspire other people. And I’m telling the truth. I’m very, very happy because I hope this… Bill Gasiamis (51:30) Yeah. Marco Calabi (51:41) will ⁓ create something beautiful because I’m available to tell my story, to sell, perhaps something helpful. My best friend. Bill Gasiamis (52:01) Yeah, you know what I like about what I like about strokes and bio-codes? Sorry, go ahead. Marco Calabi (52:08) My best friend said, you are wiser. I don’t know. don’t know. I don’t know. Yes, yes. Before, was very hard. I was very, because my father was very hard. And I learned. Bill Gasiamis (52:19) Wiser. Wiser than before. Maybe. Marco Calabi (52:37) to be very hard. after the stroke, understood that heartless is useless because you reach the hearts of people with softness, not with heartlessness. Heartlessness makes ⁓ you more hateful. and not more lovable. Bill Gasiamis (53:10) Yeah, understand. Yes, I agree. Very wise. That’s very wise. Very wise. ⁓ You know what I like about your telling your story in for another organization or to inspire people is a lot of the people in the audience will not have had a stroke or another health issue or anything like that. Marco Calabi (53:11) Go on, go on, sorry. Yes. Bill Gasiamis (53:37) And what I like about it is that now there’s several years have passed since your stroke. So you’re standing on a stage telling your story. And one day, if those people happen to have a stroke or a negative medical experience, they have a picture in their mind of once upon a time, I was sitting in a room and there was this gentleman who… told his story and he was telling us about how he overcame his challenges, how he ⁓ improved, how he got better. And maybe those people who are unwell now because something happened to them, like everybody in life, things go wrong. Maybe they could say, I remember that man and the story that he told me, and maybe I can take some action and do similar things and get better. Marco Calabi (54:27) Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (54:32) like he did. Marco Calabi (54:32) Yes. I tell the truth. It is not easy. It’s not easy. The experience is made of steps. In steps, steps. In the beginning, I… Bill Gasiamis (54:50) steps. Marco Calabi (54:58) You want to prove yourself, you are able to do things. And these are very important to you. And then you change. Steps, you change. Because the situation is changing. And you cannot, cannot, get things before you experience all the steps. It is, in my opinion, impossible. You must live every step. The first steps are physical. And then your mind changes. But the first steps are physical and soft. and you can you must you must us us us let that eat you must us let you be because you are not a superman you are not a special man and every every person experience these steps little by little and so you must aware of this situation. Otherwise, try to go forward faster. And in my opinion, it is a very wrong way to go on. Bill Gasiamis (56:55) Very wise, my friend. Marco Calabi (56:56) Thank you, thank you! Thank you, thank you! Bill Gasiamis (57:03) Your friend was correct when he said that you are much more wise now. I agree with him. Marco Calabi (57:07) Okay, okay, okay. I will report you. Bill Gasiamis (57:15) Report back to him, let him know that I agree with him. Now, your book is available online, correct? We can get it on Amazon, everywhere. Marco Calabi (57:21) Yes. Okay. Because in Italy, ⁓ I found a publisher. In the world, I decided to publish myself the book because I wanted to spread my story. as full as possible, I would say. And so I think what is the best platform, in my opinion, it is in this moment, Amazon. Because it can provide a digital version, paper version. ⁓ Bill Gasiamis (58:07) Yeah. Marco Calabi (58:18) is only for US countries and so on. Instead, digital fashion is worldwide. And so, it is very powerful because I can reach every person in the world. Bill Gasiamis (58:44) Yes, hopefully. Marco Calabi (58:45) It was my idea. And I started and I make my book translated. I published it in Amazon. I created a digital paperback version and so on because I wanted to make it available. Very, very much. Bill Gasiamis (59:19) Yes, indeed. you have well done. I’m going to have a link to the Amazon ⁓ book. And also you will send me some links to ⁓ any other areas you would like us to send people if they’re interested to find out more information about it. I thank you for reaching out and joining me on the podcast. I very much appreciate it. It’s nice to meet you and to hear your story and all the best with your ongoing recovery. Marco Calabi (59:24) Okay. Okay. Thanks. Yes. Okay, and I say thank you, thank you, Bayard for your time, people, and thank you very much to tell my story and to give me the possibility to tell my story. Bill Gasiamis (1:00:08) Well, what a lovely conversation and what a journey and what wisdom to our listeners. If today’s episode resonated with you, please share it with someone who needs to hear it. Leave a comment and leave a review. Subscribe if you haven’t already. Marco’s book, Life Change to Hell and Back is available on Amazon. The link is in the description below. And remember, if you want to stay on top of the latest stroke research without the overwhelm, turnto.ai has you covered. just $2 a week use code bill for 10 % off. Link is in the description And until next time, keep going. The post Return to Work After Stroke – Marco Calabi’s Honest Recovery Story appeared first on Recovery After Stroke.

Gio doesn't sugarcoat it. “I honestly hate it.” In this raw and honest conversation, Gio opens up about what it's really like being a young person in early recovery — watching friends party in their late twenties while choosing to stay sober. From COVID day drinking to waking up shaking at 7am… from checking into detox alone to walking back into recovery after a relapse… this episode captures the uncomfortable, necessary truth about getting sober young. Gio talks about: Growing up with two alcoholic parents Realizing AA wasn't the right pathway — and feeling shame about it The relapse that brought them back Why connection at a Recovery Community Center became their “saving grace” And how hope now looks like helping others This is an honest look at early recovery — not polished, not perfect — just real. If you've ever wondered what it's like to choose sobriety when everyone else is “having fun,” this episode is for you. ----Across the Web----

The Nurses Report on America Out Loud with Ashley Caputo, RN, FMP – Jessica Lapicki unpacks her personal journey through mold exposure, Lyme disease, and Epstein-Barr virus — and how those experiences completely reshaped her understanding of health and healing. Jessica shares what it was like navigating years of fatigue and uncertainty, searching for answers, and eventually realizing...

The Nurses Report on America Out Loud with Ashley Caputo, RN, FMP – Jessica Lapicki unpacks her personal journey through mold exposure, Lyme disease, and Epstein-Barr virus — and how those experiences completely reshaped her understanding of health and healing. Jessica shares what it was like navigating years of fatigue and uncertainty, searching for answers, and eventually realizing...

In this episode, Ashley shares her decade-long journey with HA from losing her cycle during an eating disorder in college, to being reassured by doctors that it was “normal” and nothing to worry about.She was praised for her low weight. Told to eat 1,800 calories. Advised to go on birth control if that didn't work.At one point, she was even misdiagnosed with type 2 diabetes due to an elevated A1c, which pushed her into more restriction, only to later discover she was severely anemic from malnourishment, falsely elevating her labs.After joining our FREE Recovery Bootcamp, she finally had the tools to fully commit and recover on her own.In this episode, we cover:The subtle behaviors that kept her stuck (even when she thought she was "all in")The comfort zone disguised as “healthy habits”How validation from her GP reinforced the problemUsing FAM to objectively track progressThe discomfort of real recoveryHer biggest regret: waiting so longIf you're hovering in half-in recovery, told you're “fine”, know deep down you're not doing everything…This one is for you.Jool Wellnesshttps://joolwellness.comHHAP Period Recovery Mastermindhttps://www.holistichapractitioner.com/mastermindJoin The HA Societyhttp://thehasociety.com/joinWork 1:1 with us to get your period backhttp://thehasociety.com/coachingVisit us on YouTubehttps://youtube.com/c/danisheriffFollow us on IGhttp://instagram.com/thehasocietyhttp://instagram.com/danisheriffhttps://instagram.com/ashley_marie_smith_https://www.instagram.com/itsmishigarcia/https://www.instagram.com/abbylowekey/The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-hypothalamic-amenorrhea-podcast/donations

We share Ashley's journey from bedbound to rebuilding a joyful life, showing how belief, somatic work, and gentle pacing opened a path out of long COVID. The body is not the enemy; safety, connection, and consistent practice turn symptoms from threat to guidance.• fast pre‑illness life and early warning signs• collapse after pushing through infection and isolation• lack of medical answers and disbelief from clinicians• finding recovery stories and protecting hope• moving from trigger‑hunting to nervous system healing• brain retraining, visualisations, somatic practices and EFT• pacing within a true window of tolerance• progress through consistency and self‑compassion• redefining recovery, processing trauma and shifting limits• life rebuilt with nature, community, creativity and workLinks:Connect with Ashley: www.embodimentwithashley.co.ukMessage the podcast! - questions will be answered on my youtube channel :) For more information about Long Covid Breathing courses & workshops, please check out LongCovidBreathing.com (music credit - Brock Hewitt, Rule of Life) Support the show~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The Long Covid Podcast is self-produced & self funded. If you enjoy what you hear and are able to, please Buy me a coffee or purchase a mug to help cover costsTranscripts available on individual episodes herewww.LongCovidPodcast.comFacebook Instagram Twitter Facebook Creativity GroupSubscribe to mailing listI love to hear from you, via socials or LongCovidPodcast@gmail.com**Disclaimer - you should not rely on any medical information contained in this Podcast and related materials in making medical, health-related or other decisions. Please consult a doctor or other health professional**

In this episode of the Sober Motivation Podcast, Philip Barb shares how a DUI at 22 became the turning point that led to 18 years of sobriety. This is a powerful conversation about alcohol addiction, anxiety, grief, and long-term recovery. Philip opens up about using alcohol to silence anxiety, growing up under pressure, and how ego and perfectionism kept him stuck. What started as drinking to cope eventually led to arrests and legal consequences — and ultimately a decision to quit drinking for good. We discuss: • DUI and the wake-up call that changed everything • Alcohol addiction and anxiety • Ego in recovery • The role of community and support meetings • What long-term sobriety really requires If you're struggling with alcohol, thinking about quitting drinking, or looking for insight into long-term sobriety, this episode offers real perspective and hope. ---------- Philip on IG: https://www.instagram.com/phillipbarbb/

To be clear, Allison's story is not about weight loss or chasing thinness, perse, but more so about being a regimented, disciplined athlete who wanted to see what she was capable of as a runner—and who wanted to leverage her nutrition to support that pursuit.   In addition, Allison was coming into running as a young adult in this time of thriving influencer culture, so this is also a story about negotiating popular narratives around nutrition and athletic performance. Narratives that often fail to clarify who they truly benefit, if anyone, and the fact that what they're proposing can actually be harmful for some populations, like women endurance athletes.  And then, there are just the garden variety persistent narratives like thinner is better: it isn't. And, that menstrual cycle disruptions are normal: they are not.  Not getting a regular period is a big red flag that something is seriously wrong. And yes, it's very common with women athletes, but that doesn't mean it's normal. That sort of thinking—that losing one's period is a normal part of being a woman athlete—just emphasizes how much we've normalized under-fueling for women athletes. And, we know very well now, and have for a long, long time, that under-fueling has both short-term and long-term consequences. Left unattended, under-fueling can have serious and lasting, sometimes permanent health issues, like poor bone health and fertility issues, including infertility.  And in the short-term, under-fueling impacts training, recovery, and mood. You'll hear Allison talk about these issues in her story. As she learned, you cannot fire on all cylinders when you aren't eating enough, often enough.  Through her time experiencing and then recovering from reds, Allison learned a lot. But it wasn't easy; it never is. The whole journey had such an impact on her that she's now focused her career on coaching and sports nutrition. Her aim is to help provide the comprehensive support she didn't have during her recovery from reds. She has also come to a place in her running journey that is both, as she says, flexible and sustainable.  Allison's story is both cautionary and inspirational. Mentioned in this Episode Allison Yamamoto Instagram: @allisonyamamoto WRS Substack newsletter: womensrunningstories.substack.com To support WRS, please rate and review the show iTunes/Apple:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/womens-running-stories/id1495427631⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Spotify:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ https://open.spotify.com/show/4F8Hr2RysbV4fdwNhiMAXc?si=1c5e18155b4b44fa⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Music Credits Cormac O'Regan, of⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Playtoh⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Coma-Media⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, via⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠PaulYudin⁠⁠, via⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Rockot⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, via⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Pixabay⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠chillmore⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ways to Connect and Engage with Women's Running Stories WRS Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@womensrunningstories⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ facebook.com/WomensRunningStories⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ womensrunningstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

On this episode, we will be sharing a story of recovery. Dr. Karen Nelson is joined by Emily, who will take us through her story of diagnosis, treatment, and what it means to live in recovery.

In this powerful recovery interview, Kyle shares his journey from debilitating OCD, intrusive thoughts, panic, and feeling “broken” — to discovering inner freedom, emotional regulation, and peace.If you've ever felt trapped in the OCD loop, overwhelmed by anxiety, or consumed by intrusive thoughts, this conversation will resonate deeply.

In this episode of the Brain & Life Podcast, host Dr. Daniel Correa is joined by musical legend Gloria Gaynor. Gloria talks about her journey in music and opens up about living with a spinal cord injury (SCI), undergoing surgery, and navigating the long road to recovery. She shares what the experience taught her about resilience and adapting when life doesn't go as planned. Next, Dr. Correa is once again joined by Dr. Shelly Hsieh, attending physician and Assistant Professor, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Montefiore Einstein. Dr. Hsieh dives further into the multifaceted approach to rehabilitation for spinal cord injuries and the lifestyle factors that support healing.   Additional Resources How Spinal Surgery Helped Gloria Gaynor Beat Chronic Pain and Return to the Stage What is Spinal Cord Injury? HEP2go Rehabilitation   Brain & Life Podcast Episodes on These Topics Answering Your Spinal Cord Injury Questions with Dr. Shelly Hsieh "Roll with Cole & Charisma" On Building a Life Together as an Interabled Couple How Disability Advocate Wesley Hamilton Became Empowered by Adversity   We want to hear from you! Have a question or want to hear a topic featured on the Brain & Life Podcast? ·       Record a voicemail at 612-928-6206 ·       Email us at BLpodcast@brainandlife.org   Social Media Guests: Gloria Gaynor @gloriagaynor ; Dr. Shelly Hsieh @MontefioreHealthSystem Hosts: Dr. Daniel Correa @neurodrcorrea; Dr. Katy Peters @KatyPetersMDPhD

There's a point in many recovery journeys where insight stops being the problem. You know what to do. You understand your patterns. And yet… change still feels hard. In this episode, I talk with Paula Robbins, author of Hitchhiking Into Recovery, who has over 37 years of sobriety, about why that happens—and what actually sustains healing over the long haul.     The Ride That Opened the Door Paula's recovery didn't begin with a dramatic intervention. It began when she was picked up hitchhiking in 1988 by someone living a sober, connected life. That single interaction mattered because it interrupted isolation. Not with willpower. With connection.     Addiction Is a Disconnection Problem Paula grew up with trauma, neglect, and instability. Alcohol became a way to shut down overwhelming emotions long before she had language for what was happening. By age 12, she was drinking to blackout. What stands out isn't just the trauma—it's what was missing: Safety Emotional guidance Consistent connection Addiction wasn't a moral failure. It was a survival strategy.     Feelings Aren't Facts One of Paula's most grounding principles is simple: Feelings and facts are not the same. Recovery didn't eliminate difficult emotions—it created space to respond instead of react. That pause is where real change happens.     The Four Pillars That Sustain Recovery After decades of sobriety, Paula distilled what actually works into four stabilizing forces: Community – healing happens in relationship Mentorship – someone to help you see clearly Service – contribution rebuilds self-esteem Daily spiritual alignment – prayer, meditation, or quiet time These pillars show up in every effective recovery model because they address the root issue: disconnection.     Divine Alignment vs. Self-Will Paula explains divine alignment not as certainty, but as a felt sense. When she's controlling outcomes, she feels restless and tight. When she surrenders—even briefly—things soften. Sometimes all it takes is the simple phrase: "Thy will be done."     A Gentle Reminder If change feels hard, it doesn't mean you're failing. It may simply mean effort isn't the missing piece—connection is.     One Small Action Try just one: Strengthen one pillar that feels weak Take a 5-minute daily pause Offer one small act of service Notice a feeling without acting on it Healing doesn't require fixing yourself. It starts with not doing it alone.     Resources Mentioned Hitchhiking Into Recovery 12-Step Recovery Programs Step 3 Prayer Step 11: Prayer and Meditation Service work in recovery Guest Contact Info: 

Lexi's story is one so many women in HA recovery will recognize. On the outside, she looked healthy, disciplined, and “high functioning.” On the inside, her body was quietly waving red flags. Years of under-fueling, over-exercising, and being praised for it made it hard to see there was a problem at all.In this episode, Lexi shares what it was like to live in half-recovery—doing some of the work, but still negotiating with food, exercise, and control. We talk about how identity and denial can keep you stuck longer than you realize, and the moment she finally understood that real healing required full surrender, not just small adjustments. If you've ever felt like you're doing “enough” but still not getting your cycle back, this conversation will hit home.Jool Wellnesshttps://joolwellness.comJoin The HA Societyhttp://thehasociety.com/joinWork 1:1 with us to get your period backhttp://thehasociety.com/coachingVisit us on YouTubehttps://youtube.com/c/danisheriffFollow us on IGhttp://instagram.com/thehasocietyhttp://instagram.com/danisheriffhttps://instagram.com/ashley_marie_smith_https://www.instagram.com/itsmishigarcia/https://www.instagram.com/abbylowekey/The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-hypothalamic-amenorrhea-podcast/donations

In this incredibly raw and hope-filled episode, actress Jen Lilley (Hallmark Channel, Great American Family, Days of Our Lives, The Artist) sits down with host Heather Creekmore to share the full story behind her 15-year battle with bulimia—and how faith, grace, and the power of honesty led her toward freedom. You may know Jen Lilley from her cheerful Christmas movies and bubbly TV roles, but behind the scenes, she silently struggled for years with an eating disorder. In this conversation, she doesn't hold anything back. Jen bravely walks us through her childhood, the devastating origins of her eating disorder, and the shame-filled secrecy that followed her well into adulthood—even after launching a successful career in Hollywood. But this is not just a story about struggle—it's about healing and truth. Jen opens up about the flawed advice and myths she encountered about eating disorders, the power of spiritual conviction over mere willpower, and the crucial turning point when she allowed herself to trust God fully with her recovery. She shares the deeply personal moment she finally brought her struggle into the light with her husband—and how that act of vulnerability ushered in a new season of hope and healing. Listeners struggling with their own cycles of shame, secrecy, or body-image battles will find comfort, challenge, and encouragement in Jen's passionate, faith-filled story. This episode also explores practical wisdom for those walking through recovery, the essential difference between conviction and shame, and how to trust God even when it feels impossible. If you’re ready for a conversation packed with honesty, grace, and actionable hope—listen in as Jen and Heather go deep, get real, and remind us that freedom is possible, no matter how long you’ve struggled. Jen Lilley's story of her 15-year battle with bulimia will encourage your faith and help you find your own healing and recovery through Jesus. **Why Listen?** - Hear the *real story* behind Jen’s journey through bulimia—far beyond Hollywood glitz- Find hope and faith-based encouragement for overcoming shame and secret struggles- Learn about the difference between conviction and shame—and why it matters for true healing- Be inspired by Jen’s hard-won lessons: how vulnerability and trust can unlock your path to freedom Don’t miss this episode—it could be the reminder you or a loved one needs that hope and healing *are possible*. **Resources Mentioned**- Jen’s new devotional: Wake Up Your Faith (amazon affiliate link -tiny portion of your purchase supports this ministry)- 40-Day Journey at improvebodyimage.com Tune in now and share this powerful conversation with someone who needs it! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Today I'm sharing my personal journey with overeating & binge eating. I talk about my experiences with everything from calorie counting and bulimia to intuitive eating and weight loss programs. Eventually, I discovered tools and strategies that helped me develop a healthy relationship with food and eat normally again. These are the tools I now share with you.I cover…- Why I started binge eating- All the methods I tried to stop overeating that didn't work- How I became a binge eating coach- The role of sugar addiction & quitting sugar in my journey

Maggie's recovery story will resonate with runners and women who learned to equate control, performance, and worth with staying small. After years of restriction, being told she was “healthy,” and struggling to maintain cycles while trying to conceive, Maggie realized recovery required more than willpower.Through the Restore Program, coaching, and community inside The HA Society, she learned to let go of body control, navigate weight gain, and rebuild trust in her body, even when the process wasn't linear. Her story is a powerful reminder that healing often begins when we give ourselves permission to honor what our bodies actually need.Apply for the Restore Your Fertility Group Program | Starts January 19th 2026https://thehasociety.com/restore-liveWork 1:1 with us to get your period backhttp://thehasociety.com/coachingVisit us on YouTubehttps://youtube.com/c/danisheriffFollow us on IGhttp://instagram.com/thehasocietyhttp://instagram.com/danisheriffThe Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-hypothalamic-amenorrhea-podcast/donations

Andrew Grazen shares his journey from a seemingly normal childhood into years of addiction, incarceration, and near-death experiences, and how recovery, community, and writing ultimately saved his life. From discovering substances at a young age to overdosing in his car and writing a memoir while incarcerated, Andrew reflects on loss, resilience, and why staying connected—and holding onto hope—can change everything. ----Across the Web----

Julia never felt “skinny enough,” grew up in a health-conscious home, and lost her period after only a few cycles as a teen. Like many women, she tried to DIY her recovery until she realized that HA recovery wasn't just physical… it was deeply mental.In this episode, Julia shares what it was like to get support via coaching, stop overriding her body, trust extreme hunger and fatigue, and accept that healing isn't linear. From needing more rest for her second cycle to letting go of being “the boss” of her body, this conversation is an honest look at what happens when recovery feels wrong, but is exactly what your body needs.Register for Bootcamp | Starts January 12th 2026https://thehasociety.com/bootcampApply for the Restore Your Fertility Group Program | Starts January 19th 2026https://thehasociety.com/restore-liveWork 1:1 with us to get your period backhttp://thehasociety.com/coachingFREE 7 Day HA Recovery Challengehttps://www.thehasociety.com/7-day-challengeVisit us on YouTubehttps://youtube.com/c/danisheriffFollow us on IGhttp://instagram.com/thehasocietyhttp://instagram.com/danisheriffThe Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-hypothalamic-amenorrhea-podcast/donations

Book your free discovery call directly, visit: www.robertjamescoaching.com Robert James interviews a former client, who shares her experience overcoming relationship OCD while planning and ultimately having her wedding. She explains how therapy, acceptance and commitment techniques, and group support helped her sit with uncertainty, cancel and later reschedule a smaller ceremony, and move forward with her life. The episode offers practical hope and concise advice for anyone struggling with relationship OCD and anxiety Disclaimer: Robert James Pizey (of Robert James Coaching) is not a medical professional and is also not providing therapy or medical treatment. Robert James Pizey recommends that anyone experiencing anxiety or OCD to seek professional medical help straight away to get a medical opinion and rule out other conditions or illnesses. The comments and opinions as written on this site are simply that and are not to be taken as professional medical opinions. Robert James Pizey provides coaching, education, accountability and peer support around Anxiety through his own personal experiences.  

Raised around biker culture, gangs, and addiction, Dave began using drugs and alcohol at a young age, experienced multiple overdoses, and lived a life surrounded by violence, crime, and loss. After losing both parents, surviving near-death experiences, and reaching a breaking point, Dave made a life-changing decision to seek recovery.In this episode, Dave talks about trauma, addiction, spirituality, accountability, and what it truly means to rewrite your story. Today, he is a tattoo shop owner, mentor, and someone deeply committed to service, recovery, and personal growth.This is a raw, honest conversation about addiction, recovery, faith, and transformation.00:00 Introduction & Dave's recovery time01:00 Growing up around biker culture and gangs03:00 Early trauma, loss, and first substance use06:00 First overdose and rehab at 1409:00 Exposure to heroin and escalation12:00 Gangs, weapons charges, and self-destruction15:00 Spiritual breaking point and near-death experience18:00 Entering treatment with willingness21:00 Emotional breakthrough in rehab24:00 Early recovery and rebuilding trust27:00 Tattooing, service work, and purpose30:00 Life today in recovery33:00 Giving back and redefining success ----Across the Web----

In this episode, Lydia shares her recovery story and the moments of courage it took to break long standing patterns around food, exercise, and control. After years of disordered eating, inconsistent cycles, and being told she was pre-menopausal, Lydia struggled to accept that HA could apply to her, especially since she didn't relate to the “typical” HA story.Skeptical but encouraged by her husband, she joined our Bootcamp and found the clarity and direction she had been missing. That led her into the Restore Program, where she received the structure, support, and education she needed to heal both physically and mentally, regain her cycle, and release the final grips of her eating disorder. This episode is an honest look at what recovery can look like when you stop doing it alone.Register for Bootcamp | Starts January 12th 2026https://thehasociety.com/bootcampApply for the Restore Your Fertility Group Program | Starts January 19th 2026https://thehasociety.com/restore-liveWork 1:1 with us to get your period backhttp://thehasociety.com/coachingVisit us on YouTubehttps://youtube.com/c/danisheriffFollow us on IGhttp://instagram.com/thehasocietyhttp://instagram.com/danisheriffThe Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-hypothalamic-amenorrhea-podcast/donations

For Ad Free shows go to:www.patreon.com/dopeypodcastDave kicks off the first-ever Wednesday Dose of Dopey talking about post-Thanksgiving food insanity, a brownie-topped cheesecake Linda brought home, and his evolving stance on cheesecake as a “real” dessert. He updates the Dopey Nation on the Dopey Fitness Challenge, his failed attempt at jogging with his dog Winnie that ends with him eating pavement, ripping his pants, smacking the dog in frustration, and then feeling guilty about it all week. Dave reads an email from Haley in Mississippi, who loved the Glenis and Billy Strings episodes and promises heavy dopey stories from homelessness, prison, and IV meth. He begs for more voicemails and then plays a chunk of Miles Davis's autobiography, where Miles describes sliding from snorting heroin into shooting it, realizing he has a habit, and sinking into a four-year “horror show” of heroin and cocaine in New York.Then Dave introduces Naughty God (Dakota), a heavily tattooed Instagram/TikTok/YouTube creator who built a big following rating nod videos “sportscaster-style.” Dakota tells his story: growing up between a sweet, young mom and a meth-addicted dad, starting drugs at 13 by snorting random pain pills he found in a friend's brother's room, and becoming the classic weed-identity kid with a pot-leaf MySpace. He forms the band LAW with his friend Jacob Nowell (Bradley Nowell's son, who now sings for Sublime), and they grow up playing shows in San Diego and Long Beach while having access to grown-up levels of partying. Dakota falls in love with cocaine in his mid-teens, then with speed, and his using gets him kicked out of LAW when Jacob gets sober and can't handle him showing up high to everything.After moving to Orange County, Dakota dives into selling and using coke in San Clemente, then adds Oxy 30s (“blues”), fentanyl pills, and heroin to his daily rotation. He and his tight crew—especially his best friend Robert—live in a constant loop of dealing, partying, and using. Over two months, Robert, Dakota's cousin, and three other friends all die from fentanyl. The losses break him: he has a mental breakdown, calls his grandma, and checks himself into a San Diego hospital detox, where he's put on 100mg of methadone and spends years on the clinic grind.Dakota talks about being on methadone for four–five years, barely using anything else, then deciding—with help from a therapist—that he'll never fully turn a corner if he stays on it forever. He tapers himself from 100mg down to 4mg over about a year, jumps off, and goes through a long, foggy, uncomfortable withdrawal. He's now about a year and a half off methadone, occasionally smokes weed, sees a therapist, plays bass in his band Somehow Unseen, and works on content. He and Dave riff on nodding (“my whole life”), nod techniques, fentanyl's short “legs,” and the economics of why heroin likely won't “come back” in a big way.Dakota explains how he built NaughtyGod into a fast-growing account by structuring it like a recurring “show” and inventing/collecting phrases like “Charm City Rainbow,” “Nodwalk Shuffle,” “Baltimore Street Yoga,” “Sheriff of Nottingham” to describe different nod poses. They talk about Instagram flagging and banning drug content, other junkie meme/recovery pages, and how both of them accidentally stumbled into helping people through content that started out as pure jokes and self-centered ambition. They agree to collab on a nod reel, and Dakota shouts out his band and pages.All that and more on a brand new WEDNESDAY Episode of the good old dopey show! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jonathan talks with Atomic athletes Daron Rahlves and Janelle Yip, and Noah Wallace, the global manager for the Atomic freeski program. We get into what Daron and Janelle are doing just before ski season kicks off; the return of a beloved event put on by Daron; and Janelle tells the story of her gnarly crash this past winter. That then segues into why Atomic decided to cover their entire global freeski team with BLISTER+, and why we all want to see companies continue to take better care of their athletes.Note: We Want to Hear From You!We'd love for you to share with us the stories or topics you'd like us to cover next month on Reviewing the News; ask your most pressing mountain town advice questions, or offer your hot takes for us to rate. You can email those to us here.RELATED LINKS: BLISTER+ Get Yourself CoveredGet Our 25/26 Winter Buyer's GuideDiscounted Summit Registration for BLISTER+ MembersNon-Member Registration: Blister Summit 2026Get Our Newsletter & Weekly Gear GiveawaysCHECK OUT OUR YOUTUBE CHANNELS:Blister Studios (our new channel)Blister Review (our original channel)TOPICS & TIMES:Intros & Snow Reports (2:06)Pre-Season Training (5:49)Upcoming Season & the Return of Bonzai (13:59)Why Atomic Covers Their Athletes w/ BLISTER+ (23:36)Industry Responses to Team Coverage (27:43)The Culture of the Ski Industry (35:56)Janelle's Crash & Recovery Story (39:42)Eliminating “Gotcha” Clauses & Providing Coverage (48:07)Coverage For All — Not Just Pro Athletes (53:02)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicCRAFTEDBikes & Big IdeasGEAR:30 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Let's get honest for a second. Porn addiction isn't really about sex. It's about connection… about loneliness, shame, and the ache to feel close to something when life feels empty or overwhelming. My guest for this episode, Sathiya Sam, knows that pain deeply. After a 15-year struggle with porn addiction, he rebuilt his life and now helps others do the same through his Deep Clean program - a compassionate, science-meets-spirituality approach that helps people stop using porn and start building real connection again. We're talking about what really drives addiction, the role of purpose and community in recovery, how to protect kids in this new digital world, and what AI “relationships” mean for the future of intimacy. It's a deep, human conversation about healing, hope, and the real work of reclaiming yourself. Episode Breakdown: 00:00 Porn Addiction Is About Connection, Not Willpower 01:17 Sathiya Sam's Recovery Story and Deep Clean Method 07:21 Purpose, Boredom, and the Root Causes of Porn Use 13:44 Protecting Kids From Early Exposure 18:24 AI, Loneliness, and Synthetic Intimacy 30:11 Healing Through Community and Real Connection 34:32 Why Your Partner Shouldn't Be Your Accountability Partner 39:34 First Steps to Quit Porn for Good Sometimes the hardest part is admitting you need a little help, and the bravest thing you can do is take that first step. If you're ready to start your own growth and healing journey, you can get support from Sathiya here: https://www.sathiyasam.com/growing-self. Let them know Dr. Lisa sent you! ❤️ You don't have to carry this by yourself. Real change is possible… and it starts with connection. xoxo, Dr. Lisa Marie BobbyGrowing Self P.S. I'd also love to hear what resonated for you or what ideas you'd like me to explore next. Let's keep the conversation going!