Sjögren's Disease Explained with Dr. Kara Wada

This week on Calling in Sick, Dr. Kara Wada is back and we're pulling back the curtain on what patients almost never see: what it actually takes to become a doctor, and what their day looks like once they are one.  We're diving into:  💰 Do doctors go into medicine for the money? The online discourse, and what the training and the finances actually look like  🕐 What medical training really involves: the hours, the sleep, and the sacrifices that rarely get talked about  📉 A career that starts late: debt, delayed savings, and why doctors can be "behind" their peers on financial milestones  🧠 The culture of training: no one asking "are you okay?", imposter syndrome, and the weight of decisions where someone's health is on the line  🔁 Alex's investment banking parallels: the 2am "crisis" calls and the handful of "protected weekends"  📋 A day in the life of a provider today, and the changes Dr. Wada has made in how she practices  🔧 If she could make one tweak to how complex chronic illness patients move through the system, what would it be?  🩺 What being both a patient and a provider has changed about how she practices medicine  xx, Alex  💬 Comment: What's one thing you didn't know about what your doctor goes through, and does it change how you show up to appointments? TIMESTAMPS: Intro: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick! Why Do People Go Into Medicine?  00:01:00 Do doctors go into medicine for the money?  00:04:25 Choosing a specialty, burnout, and the 2am call  00:12:13 What the hours of training actually look like  The Cost of Becoming a Doctor:  00:13:21 Sleeping 4 to 6 hours and "protected weekends"  00:17:10 The first chapter: residency and fellowship, low pay, and medical debt  00:19:50 Training culture, imposter syndrome, and the pressure of the job  The System Today & What Needs to Change:  00:22:02 A day in the life of a provider today  00:24:13 What Dr. Wada has changed in how she practices  Conclusion:  00:29:00 Thank you for listening! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 Connect with our guest, Dr. Kara Wada: • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/immuneconfidentmd/?hl=en • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@immuneconfidentmd • Website - https://www.drkarawada.com/ • Podcast - https://www.youtube.com/@drkarawada ---------------------------------------------------------------- Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ #DoctorLife #BehindTheCurtain #MedicalTraining #PhysicianBurnout #DrKaraWada #CrunchyAllergist #HealthcareSystem #PatientAdvocacy #MedicalSchool #Residency #DoctorsAreHuman #ChronicIllness #ChronicIllnessCommunity #InvisibleIllness #ProviderBurnout #HealthcareReform #Allergist #Immunology #CallingInSickPodcast #AlexWildeson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Calling in Sick, I'm sitting down with Dr. Kara Wada: quadruple board-certified allergist, immunologist, and lifestyle and functional medicine physician, founder of The Crunchy Allergist, host of the Becoming Immune Confident podcast, and a Sjögren's patient herself. We're getting into the full 411 on one of the most underdiagnosed and MOST common autoimmune diseases out there. We're diving into: 🔬 What Sjögren's disease actually is, and why it's so much more than dry eyes and dry mouth 🧩 How it's diagnosed, why testing can miss it (including seronegative Sjögren's) 🩺 Dr. Wada's own diagnostic marathon, and what she learned from the patient's side of the table 🌫️ The "grey zone" of autoimmune diagnosis: what happens to patients who don't fit neatly into a diagnostic box 💊 Sjögren's treatments on the horizon Come back Wednesday… we’re diving behind the scenes on what it’s ACTUALLY like to practice medicine in today’s system. xx, Alex 💬 Comment: How long was YOUR diagnostic journey?! TIMESTAMPS: Intro: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick! 00:00:47 Meet our guest, Dr. Kara Wada - patient and physician The 411 on Sjögren's Disease: 00:03:53 What is Sjögren's disease 00:09:55 Why is Sjögren's so hard to diagnose?  00:16:08 Normal-looking bloodwork & the overlap with MS, lupus, fibromyalgia, RA & MCTD  00:20:50 Biopsies, ultrasounds & why where you test matters  00:24:59 The "activation point": when mono, strep or COVID flips the switch  Misdiagnosis & the "Grey Zone":  00:27:04 Christina Applegate & changing diagnoses… how common is this? 00:29:25 The "laundry list": 2 diagnoses vs. 20 and what it does to your identity 00:34:15 When a diagnosis feels like good news: "it's not all in your head" 00:38:37 Medicine is an art and a science: why the patient's story matters The Diagnosis Odyssey, Functional Medicine & Hope:  00:41:24 Storytelling, the hero's journey & the grief curve of chronic illness 00:44:13 Conventional vs. functional: why patients may pick just one world  00:48:25 Food, supplements & natural vs. pharmaceutical "medicine"  00:54:08 The new Sjögren's medication: is there hope?  Conclusion:  01:02:15 One Brain Cell Show: The Diplomat (Netflix) & Ted Lasso (Apple TV+) 01:04:44 Thank you for listening: come back Wednesday! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 Connect with our guest, Dr. Kara Wada: • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/immuneconfidentmd/?hl=en • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@immuneconfidentmd • Website - https://www.drkarawada.com/ • Podcast - https://www.youtube.com/@drkarawada ---------------------------------------------------------------- Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Calling in Sick, Bre Giglio is back and we're going through the some of the most intimate questions we’ve heard around navigating life with chronic pain. Tune in to hear our thoughts on everything from chronic pain and motherhood, entrepreneurship, identity and more!! We're getting into:  🤰 “Should you be a mom if you live with chronic pain?” 🧩 “Is entrepreneurship the solution to chronic illness?” 👥 “Can you actually build a company around your health?” 💸 “Is outsourcing help an accommodation?” 📰 “Does chronic pain have a LOOK?!” (Yep... we’re talking about THAT article!!) 🔍 “Can you share your story if you don’t yet have a diagnosis?” 🧸 “Should you explain your pain and health to your kids?” Tune in to hear our thoughts on all the above + more!!  xx, Alex 💬 Comment: What’s something people tend to doubt you’re able to do because you live with chronic pain?  TIMESTAMPS:  Intro: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick! Questions on Motherhood & Entrepreneurship With Chronic Pain:  00:00:37 "If you have chronic pain, you shouldn't be a mom"  00:01:59 Is entrepreneurship the ultimate accommodation for chronic pain?  00:04:25 Can you build a company around your health? 00:07:13 Bre’s NUMBER ONE reframe on motherhood and chronic illness Questions around Sharing Your Story & Being "Sick Enough":  00:08:13 What is “sick" even supposed to look like?! 00:10:51 Are you allowed to share your story online before you have a diagnosis? 00:14:26 Can you stay ambitious with chronic pain?  Questions on Parenting With Chronic Pain:  00:18:45 How do you explain a bad pain day to your kids?  00:23:36 Is parenting HARD with a chronic illness? Conclusion:  00:28:26 Where to find Bre Giglio 00:28:57 Thank you for listening — see you next Monday! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 Connect with our guest, Bre Giglio: • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/bre.giglio/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@bre.giglio • Bre’s Company, Bashify - https://www.instagram.com/bashify.co/ ---------------------------------------------------------------- Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ #ChronicPain #ChronicIllness #ChronicPainHotTakes #BreGiglio #Bashify #ChronicPainMom #ChronicIllnessMom #ChronicIllnessMotherhood #ChronicIllnessEntrepreneur #InvisibleIllness #SpoonieLife #Hypermobility #hEDS #UndiagnosedChronicPain #TelegraphArticle #ChronicIllnessCommunity #CallingInSickPodcast #AlexWildeson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Calling in Sick, I'm sitting down with Bre Giglio — former PICU nurse, founder of Bashify, wife, mom of two, and fellow chronic pain girlie. We're getting into what chronic illness does to your plans, and how becoming the master of pivoting is the only solution, especially when your body keeps changing the rules.  We're diving into:  🏥 From PICU nurse to chronic pain patient — from self-gaslighting to her body giving out, forcing her to leave her dream career 🌪️ The perfect storm — the recipe that sent Bre’s health into a spiral  ⏩ Pivoting too fast — why processing change is important and lessons learned from focusing on fixing instead of healing 🕰️ Feeling "behind" in life — how prior generations shape our preconceived “timelines” for life + how chronic illness moves us further away from those timelines 🤰 Pregnancy, postpartum and navigating marriage with chronic pain & the care giver dynamic 🧘 The wellness stack — the tools Bre uses to manage her health And come back Wednesday for the chronic pain hot takes!  xx, Alex 💬 Comment: Where in your chronic illness journey did you pivot too fast — and what do you wish you'd given yourself time to process? TIMESTAMPS: Intro: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick!  Bre’s Health Journey: 00:01:10 What it's actually like being a nurse at Seattle Children's  00:02:26 When her body gave out 00:04:44 Pivoting from nursing to her next venture, before processing anything 00:14:41 Emotional stress as a flare trigger & the friends who couldn't show up  Marriage, Pregnancy & Motherhood With Chronic Pain:  00:16:40 Meeting her husband, marrying at 21 & still feeling "behind" in life  00:20:48 Pregnancy with chronic pain 00:25:55 Birth, feeding struggles & a hard postpartum  00:31:07 Tips for communication in marriage while managing chronic health issues Scaling Back Work & Building a Life Around Your Body:  00:41:36 What entrepreneurship teaches you about yourself 00:43:33 What nobody tells you about entrepreneurship with chronic illness 00:50:11 Bre’s weekly wellness stack 00:54:04 How to pour BACK into your partner // caregiver’s cup Conclusion:  00:56:11 One Brain Cell Show: Girls (HBO Max) & The Great British Bake Off (Netflix) 00:57:46 Thank you for listening — come back Wednesday! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 Connect with our guest, Bre Giglio: • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/bre.giglio/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@bre.giglio • Bre’s Company, Bashify - https://www.instagram.com/bashify.co/ ---------------------------------------------------------------- Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ #ChronicPain #ChronicIllness #BreGiglio #Bashify #PICUNurse #NurseTurnedEntrepreneur #ChronicPainMom #ChronicIllnessMom #Hypermobility #hEDS #PMDD #PregnancyWithChronicIllness #ChronicIllnessMarriage #InvisibleIllness #SpoonieLife #ChronicIllnessEntrepreneur #ChronicIllnessCommunity #CallingInSickPodcast #AlexWildeson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Calling in Sick, Anna Harris, NP is back and we are getting into something I have never broken down on this show before: why do certain medical videos go completely viral? And what does that actually say about the world we are living in?  We're diving into:  🤠 The Cowboy Boots video — 12 million views on a man handed an ER bill before he even left the hospital. Why did it blow up — and what does that tell us about the fear Americans live with around medical care?  💸 The new born medical billing reality 📋 How to audit your medical bill line by line 🏥 The ICU fall video — what medical staffing ratios can cause harm 🤖 The nursing payment model — making nurses bid against each other for the lowest wage 🚫 Is universal healthcare the REAL solution?! And more… like Anna's most controversial take, the underbelly of socialized medicine, and why AI fighting AI to approve your treatment is genuinely Sci-Fi level terrifying!!  xx, Alex 💬 Comment: Have you paid a medical bill before care because you thought you HAD to?! TIMESTAMPS: Intro: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick! Why Medical Videos Go Viral:  00:00:51 Why do certain medical videos go viral — and what does that say about our healthcare system?  00:08:21 How to audit your medical bill line by line — common errors and AI as a tool  00:10:33 The ICU fall video — staffing ratios and why fewer people are going into medicine  00:18:08 The nursing payment model — making nurses bid against each other for the lowest wage Our Hottest Healthcare Takes:  00:20:24 Anna's most controversial take — the solution that isn't universal healthcare  00:23:44 Is AI is being used to deny your medical care? 00:27:00 Why patients and providers having a voice online gives hope for real change  Conclusion: 00:31:10 Thank you for listening! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 Connect with our guest, Anna Harris: • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/anna.harris.rn • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@anna.harris.rn • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/people/annaharrisrn/61589286002165/ • Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/@Anna.Harris.RN4 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ #HealthcareSystem #MedicalBilling #AnnaHarris #ICUNurse #PatientAdvocacy #InsuranceDenial #UniversalHealthcare #NurseLife #CowboyBootsVideo #AIinMedicine #MedicalDebt #PregnancyBilling #ChronicIllness #HealthcareReform #CallingInSickPodcast #AlexWildeson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Calling in Sick, I'm sitting down with Anna Harris, RN — former ICU nurse, patient advocate, and the woman behind THAT 12 million view video. Her tagline says it all: healthcare isn't confusing on accident. And this episode explains why, and how to navigate it. We're diving into:  🏥 Why patients need an advocate — what changes when someone is in that room with you and why navigating this system alone is setting you up to fail  🩺 Providers vs. the system — what’s really making getting critical care difficult? 💰 What “The System” actually IS — ICD codes, billing incentives, group KPIs, and why a for-profit model is making decisions about your care that have nothing to do with your care  💊 The IVIG story — what happens when an insurance company denies a medication that's keeping you alive, and what your provider can and can't do about it  📋 Anna's appointment playbook — the pre-appointment prep that actually helps you get what you need out of the little time you have 🤖 AI in medicine — the wonderful and the genuinely terrifying ways AI is being used in hospitals and insurance companies right now  🔒 Your health data — who already has it, what they're doing with it, and the question nobody is asking loudly enough xx, Alex 💬 Comment: What is the one thing about navigating the healthcare system that you wish someone had told you earlier? TIMESTAMPS: Intro: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick! 00:03:22 Get to know our guest, Anna Harris What's Actually Broken about the US Healthcare System: 00:05:29 What patients don't know they don't know — and why that costs them  00:09:04 Providers vs. the system — who is actually failing patients?  00:14:11 What the healthcare system actually IS — billing codes, KPIs and for-profit incentives  What It Costs Patients & How to Fight Back:  00:19:13 3 changes that would fix the current healthcare system 00:22:51 Fighting insurance denials while already in crisis and balanced billing  00:28:14 The medical appointment playbook — before care, during care, and after  00:32:54 Predatory online health coaching — how to spot the vultures  00:42:19 Risk tolerance and treatment decisions — and how to talk to your family about them  00:49:46 How to actually use AI before a medical appointment  00:55:13 How hospitals and insurance companies are using AI — the good and the terrifying  Conclusion:  01:01:38 One Brain Cell Show: Friends (Netflix) & Dancing with the Stars (Disney+, Hulu)  01:04:45 Where to find Anna Harris online  01:05:06 Thank you for listening — come back Wednesday! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 Connect with our guest, Anna Harris: • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/anna.harris.rn • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@anna.harris.rn • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/people/annaharrisrn/61589286002165/ • Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/@Anna.Harris.RN4 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ #HealthcareSystem #PatientAdvocacy #MedicalBilling #AnnaHarris #ICUNurse #ChronicIllness #MedicalGaslighting #HealthInsurance #PatientRights #AIinMedicine #HealthData #AppointmentPrep #ChronicIllnessCommunity #InvisibleIllness #CallingInSickPodcast #AlexWildeson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Calling in Sick, Shayla Talei McCain is back and we are breaking the fourth wall on what it actually costs to share your chronic illness life online — the emotional and physical costs and benefits. And in light of everything going on recently, we get down to one important question… would we start posting our health journey online again?  We're diving into:  🎥 Hitting post on the first feeding tube video — the moment before, the spiral of what ifs, and what actually happened when the world responded  🎭 The pressure to "put a bow" on chronic illness content — why creators feel pushed to thrive publicly even on their worst days, and why that's a form of dishonesty  🏅 The sick Olympics — the credibility tax of not looking sick enough, the community policing that comes with smiling in a video, and why comparison is the thief of joy in this space  🧍 Parasocial relationships — why they're uniquely valuable in the chronic illness community, when that can become toxic, and what it feels like when someone who doesn't know you feels entitled to weigh in on your medical decisions  💻 The physical toll of creating — what it costs to film content on a bad pain day, why you can't just stop the machine, and the permission to take breaks without announcing them  💬 The moments that make it FULLY worth it — the DMs, the comments, the stranger who says "I'm going to use my mobility aid tomorrow because I saw you use yours"  🔄 Would she do it again? — her honest answer xx, Alex 💬 Comment: Would you share YOUR health journey online? TIMESTAMPS: Intro: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick! The Cost of Sharing Your Chronic Illness Life Online:  00:02:06 Hitting post on her first feeding tube video 00:05:06 Finding humor in chronic illness content (the $1,000 dinner series) 00:06:58 The unspoken pressure to perform chronic illness in a certain way  The Sick Olympics, Parasocial Relationships & The Real Cost:  00:13:38 The chronic illness credibility tax and having to keep proving your chronic illness  00:16:32 The Oreo analogy — why one person's win shouldn't feel like another's loss  00:24:06 Parasocial relationships — healthy, unhealthy and where the line is  00:29:53 The underbelly of being a chronic illness content creator  00:31:08 Why chronic illness content costs more to make than any other kind  Would You Do It Again?:  00:36:35 What is the actual goal of sharing your story online?  00:39:13 Would we do it all over again? 00:41:10 For anyone thinking about becoming a chronic illness creator — listen to this!!! Conclusion: 00:42:46 Where to find Shayla McCain online 00:43:38 Thank you!!! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 Connect with our guest, Shayla McCain: • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/shaylatalei • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@shaylatalei • YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@Shaylatalei • Website - https://www.ShaylaTalei.com ---------------------------------------------------------------- Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ #ChronicIllnessCreator #ContentCreation #ShaylaTalei #ChronicIllness #SickOlympics #Sickfluencer #ParasocialRelationship #ChronicIllnessCommunity #InvisibleIllness #CommunityPolicing #ChronicPain #SpoonieLife #ContentCreatorLife #MentalHealthOnline #ChronicIllnessAwareness #FeedingTube #Gastroparesis #CRPS #CallingInSickPodcast #AlexWildeson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Calling in Sick, I'm sitting down with chronic illness content creator, Shayla Talei McCain. She was diagnosed with CRPS at 17, and a decade later her body pivoted again — into gastroparesis, a diagnosis that took eight months and 100 lbs of weight loss to finally get answers on. We're diving into: 🔥 CRPS at 17 — what Complex Regional Pain Syndrome actually is, why it's so misunderstood even by providers, and what it looks like when you have no choice but to grow accustomed to the pain 📉 The gastroparesis chapter — eight months of unexplained weight loss, being told it was her ADHD medication, the medical gaslighting while visibly malnourished, MCAS and what finally got her answers 👶 Pregnancy and chronic illness — the medical clearance process, the remission-like state that surprised her, and what it means to be preparing for the worst while hoping for the best  🧒 Motherhood — what it looks like to parent when you can't always show up the way you planned, how she explains her illness to her kids, and the profound lessons her daughters have taught her about living life inside chronic illness parameters  📱 Building a platform — when sharing became healing, why chronic illness content hits differently than any other kind, and what it means to lose the choice to hide your illness when it becomes visible ✍️ Throwing away the script — what chronic illness is "supposed" to look like according to the world, why that framing is wrong, and how to build something of your own inside the parameters you've been given  Come back Wednesday — we are breaking the fourth wall on content creation and asking the one question we've both wondered about: would we do it all again?  xx, Alex 💬 Comment: What's one part of chronic illness you WISH was showed online more? TIMESTAMPS: Intro: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick! 00:00:48 Get to know our guest, Shayla McCain The Diagnosis Journey — CRPS, Gastroparesis & Finding Answers: 00:02:27 Life before symptoms 00:04:01 What CRPS is — the diagnosis, management tools, mirror therapy 00:11:09 Identity, guilt & the before and after of diagnosis 00:14:21 The acceptance curve — grief, chronic illness & what acceptance actually looks like 00:17:44 The gastroparesis chapter — weight loss, medical gaslighting & finally getting answers 00:21:08 When your illness becomes impossible to hide Life, Love & Motherhood With Chronic Illness: 00:24:46 Deciding to have children with chronic illness 00:31:01 Losing the choice to hide your illness when it becomes visible 00:32:14 Being a chronically ill mom & explaining the unexplainable to kids 00:39:42 Lessons from motherhood on this side of all of it Redefining Life With Chronic Illness: 00:43:08 Throwing away the chronic illness script — making it your own 00:47:18 The Telegraph article & what chronic illness is "supposed" to look like Conclusion: 00:48:32 One Brain Cell Show: We Were Liars (Prime Video) & Below Deck Mediterranean (Bravo) 00:50:44 Where to find Shayla McCain online 00:51:03 Come back Wednesday — breaking the fourth wall on content creation! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 Connect with our guest, Shayla McCain: • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/shaylatalei • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@shaylatalei • YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@Shaylatalei • Website - https://www.ShaylaTalei.com ---------------------------------------------------------------- Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ #CRPS #Gastroparesis #ComplexRegionalPainSyndrome #ChronicIllness #ChronicPain #ShaylaTalei #ChronicIllnessMom #InvisibleIllness #SpoonieLife #MedicalGaslighting #ChronicIllnessContent #Motherhood #ChronicIllnessMotherhood #ContentCreator #ChronicIllnessCommunity #TPN #PivotingWithChronicIllness #ChronicIllnessAcceptance #CallingInSickPodcast #AlexWildeson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ellie Klein is back for this week’s Calling in Sick Wednesday episode — and we are myth-busting the most common and most maddening things the internet says about scoliosis and hypermobility. Some of these she has been told by providers. Some she has read online. And some she has been gaslit into doubting herself about for years.  We're busting:  🚩 "Scoliosis doesn't cause pain" 🚩 "Wear this hard brace all day every day and don't worry about your muscles atrophying" 🚩 "Sleeping in a hard scoliosis brace will be no problem"  🚩 "Hypermobility is only being flexible — there's nothing else that comes with it" 🚩 "Hypermobility cannot cause fatigue"  Plus the conversation about what it actually feels like when someone doesn't believe you… do you over-prove or do you gaslight yourself into thinking maybe you're not in pain? And when does it stop mattering?  xx, Alex 💬 Comment: When you get caught in a sleepless night… do you flow with it and distract yourself, or do you clock watch and stress out?!?!  TIMESTAMPS Intro: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick! Scoliosis & Hypermobility Fact or Fiction: 00:00:32 Myth 1: Scoliosis Doesn't Cause Pain & self gaslighting about pain 00:06:00 Myth 2: Wear a Hard Brace All Day & Don't Worry About Muscles Atrophying  00:09:21 Myth 3: Sleeping in a Hard Scoliosis Brace Will Be No Problem  00:13:28 Myth 4: Hypermobility Is Only Being Flexible — Nothing Else Comes With It  00:17:05 Myth 5: Hypermobility Cannot Cause Fatigue  00:20:37 The double-edged sword of pushing through when you're chronically sick Conclusion: 00:22:01 Thank you & where to find Ellie Klein & Jelliebend  00:23:45 Thank you for listening! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 Connect with our guest, Ellie Klein:  • Instagram, Personal - https://www.instagram.com/ellie.unicorn.klein/?hl=en • Instagram, Jelliebend - https://www.instagram.com/jelliebend/?hl=en • Website - https://jelliebend.com/  ---------------------------------------------------------------- Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ #Scoliosis #Hypermobility #ScoliosisMythBusting #HypermobilityMyths #Jelliebend #EllieKlein #ChronicIllness #ChronicPain #ScoliosisAwareness #HypermobilityAwareness #ChronicFatigue #ScoliosisBrace #InvisibleIllness #SpoonieLife #MedicalGaslighting #MythBusters #AutoimmuneDisease #ChronicIllnessCommunity #CallingInSickPodcast #AlexWildeson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Calling in Sick, I'm sitting down with Ellie Klein — founder of Jelliebend, former competitive ballet dancer, contortionist, and someone who has been navigating scoliosis and hypermobility since childhood. And let me tell you… this conversation took us places I didn’t even anticipate (like just being a female in the US right now…) We're diving into:  🩰 Growing up as a ballerina with scoliosis and hypermobility — the brace, the ballet intensive, the teachers who used her body as the "bad example" in class, and what it does to a young girl to be publicly identified as wrong in a space where your body is everything  🤸 Life after ballet — the pivots she took from school to contortionism to becoming a founder all while juggling her health 💡 Building Jelliebend — the moment her body craved support but couldn't tolerate traditional braces, how her ADHD sensory needs shaped every design decision, and the completely bootstrapped journey of making the samples herself 💸 The fundraising reality — pitching a women's health product to mostly male investors who thought she was making shapewear, going $20K into credit card debt because she believed in what she was building, and what it actually takes to crack into VC without connections  🌸 The women's health funding gap — why products outside the "bikini zone" struggle to get investment and what that means for founders like Ellie  💪 The delusional optimism it takes to build something — and why she wouldn't change a single thing  xx, Alex  💬 Comment: Have you ever been made to feel like your body was the problem — and what did you do with that? TIMESTAMPS Intro:  00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick!  Ellie’s Story with Scoliosis, Hypermobility & Jelliebend: 00:00:38 Who is Ellie and what the heck is Jelliebend?! 00:07:53 What building a product for yourself that turns into a company is like 00:12:47 Growing up as a ballerina with scoliosis 00:24:19 The 411 on scoliosis treatments and surgery 00:29:57 Being used as the "bad example" in class due to a disability… and processing it alone  Life after ballet: 00:44:14 Contortionism, her coaches & what that world gave her  00:52:09 Building Jelliebend — bootstrapping, samples & early days  00:53:22 Fundraising reality — pitching to investors who don’t understand chronic illness & doubling down 01:04:34 The VC fundraising playbook problem — selling to women when the VC world is mostly men  01:06:37 What success actually looks like when you're self-funded Ellie’s next frontier (diagnosing the mystery illness): 01:07:44 Suspected POTS, the diagnostic journey & what's next 01:11:04 The female experience of invisible illness & finding the right providers  01:12:43 Women's health, bikini medicine & getting louder together  Conclusion:  01:13:04 One Brain Cell Show (SPOOKY SZN!!): Monster & American Horror Story (Hulu) 01:16:15 Where to find Ellie & Jelliebend  01:16:31 Thank you for listening… + Come back Wednesday for Fact or Fiction! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 Connect with our guest, Ellie Klein:  • Instagram, Personal - https://www.instagram.com/ellie.unicorn.klein/?hl=en • Instagram, Jelliebend - https://www.instagram.com/jelliebend/?hl=en • Website - https://jelliebend.com/  ---------------------------------------------------------------- Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ #Scoliosis #Hypermobility #Jelliebend #EllieKlein #ChronicIllness #ChronicPain #ScoliosisAwareness #HypermobilityAwareness #WomensHealth #ChronicIllnessEntrepreneur #InvisibleIllness #SpoonieLife #Ballet #Contortionism #WomenInBusiness #VCFunding #WomensHealthFunding #BikiniMedicine #CallingInSickPodcast #AlexWildeson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices