My Invisible Disease

My Invisible Disease

The mental, the emotional, and the spiritual side of living with chronic illness and invisible disease. Hosts, Jenny Nicoll and Kassy Draper, longtime friends and young moms share their experience while in the trenches with symptoms and side effects of chronic illness. Jenny’s wait for transplant and Kassy’s journey to diagnosis inspired the podcast where they interview guests and discuss hacks to keep their heads above water. They see you, and your own struggle with your own invisible disease. And the challenges of balancing motherhood, managing a household, family, and career! Not all days are good and sometimes you don’t make it out of bed, or struggle to make it through the week. With a focus on mindset and a positive perspective, they strive to create a community where mamas can come together and be seen for more than their invisible disease.

Episodes

November 26, 2023 42 mins

Amanda, a resilient and determined advocate for invisible diseases, embarks on a mission to shatter misconceptions, forge connections, and reclaim her identity amidst the isolating journey of chronic illness. She has firsthand experience living with lupus, an incurable autoimmune disease. After going undiagnosed for 21 years, Amanda has gained a deep understanding of the challenges that come with seeking a diagnosis and navigating ...

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Get ready to meet Saffron Cassady, a talented filmmaker and an incredible woman who has been living with ulcerative colitis since her early twenties. With her background in filmmaking, Saffron took her personal experiences with chronic illness and turned them into a powerful documentary. She dives deep into the world of alternative treatments for ulcerative colitis, shining a spotlight on the intriguing and somewhat unconventional ...

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Unlocking the Hidden Secrets of Your Health: The Power of Functional Testing with Heather Gray


Struggling with relentless health issues that seemed to have no cure, Heather Gray's life was a constant battle. From Lyme disease at 13 to severe neurological problems, she felt abandoned by the Western medicine system. But just when she thought all hope was lost, a chance encounter with a podcast introduced her to a re...

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Advanced Directives and Advocacy: Jenna Swanson's Journey with Chronic Illness

Join resilient nurse Jenna Swanson as she battles Vesicoureteral Reflux and Chronic Kidney Disease, advocating for self-care and self-advocacy amidst the trauma and isolation of living with chronic illness.

It's time-consuming. It's embarrassing.


My special guest is Jenna Swanson

Jenna Swanson is a loving mother o...

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Managing Chronic Illness as a Special Needs Mom with Sarah Young


Sarah Young's life seemed destined for struggle, from her childhood diagnosis of Crohn's disease to raising a neurodivergent child. But what's surprising is how she found the strength to persevere and thrive. Through her journey, she discovered the importance of self-care for special needs moms and the unique gifts of neurodivergent childre...

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Healing Together: The Benefits of Connecting with Others on the Invisible Disease Journey

Does this sound familiar? You're struggling with an invisible disease, feeling alone and isolated. You've been told to just tough it out or stay positive, but it's not helping. In fact, it's making you feel even more frustrated and misunderstood. The pain of being dismissed and unsupported can be overwhelming. But t...

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Julie Fry's Journey: Living with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia


Are you looking for a way to cultivate emotional wellbeing and positivity? Julie Fry is here to share her insight on how to promote joy and self-care through gratitude practices.

In this episode, you will be able to:

  • Master the complexities of chronic lymphocytic leukemia diagnosis and treatment for improved decision-making.
  • Achieve harmony b...
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Does this sound familiar? You're struggling with an invisible disease, feeling alone and isolated. You've been told to just tough it out or stay positive, but it's not helping. In fact, it's making you feel even more frustrated and misunderstood. The pain of being dismissed and unsupported can be overwhelming. But there's hope. Finding a supportive community can make all the difference in your health journe...

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Unlocking Emotional Healing with River Staines: A Chronic Illness Journey


River Staines was just 22 and facing an incurable chronic illness. With numerous healing modalities and a newfound gift for energy work, she was determined to not accept her fate. Against all odds, her remarkable strength and resilience allowed her to heal herself and find her true calling. What was this unexpected twist in River's story tha...

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Unraveling Guillain-Barre Syndrome with Holly Frances: A Mother's Journey


Paralyzed just weeks after giving birth to her first child, Holly Frances struggles to adjust to her new reality as she courageously battles Guillain-Barre Syndrome with the help of her inspiring support system and a conquering spirit.

In this episode, you will be able to:

  • Discover the intricacies and symptoms of Guillain-Barre Syndrome, a...
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Suzan Jackson is a freelance writer whose work focuses on topics related to health, family, travel, and media reviews and has appeared in many magazines, websites, and anthologies. She has had ME/CFS, an immune disorder, since 2002, and also has Lyme disease. Both of her sons also became ill with ME/CFS in 2004, at ages 6 and 10. Her younger son is now fully recovered, after 10 years of mild illness. Her elder son, who recently beg...

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Living with chronic illness can be hard, but finding support and understanding makes all the difference.

"It is one of those things that when I was first diagnosed, they were like, everyone knows someone with Ms, but I knew absolutely no one. I had no idea about the condition or that it was actually diagnosed quite young in people at all."

Heather Russell-Kay is a teacher and actor diagnosed with MS in 2...

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After Jenny Jones is wrongly dismissed as a "whiny child" with chronic abdominal pain, she discovers she has two rare diseases, undergoes multiple surgeries, and fights for the rights of children with rare diseases to receive the necessary health care.

"If you arm yourself with the information and you don't hesitate to ask questions, you don't hesitate to ask for treatments and communicate with you...

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February 21, 2023 28 mins

"Unlock your inner strength and experience the power of resilience with a chronic illness journey that is truly iconic."

"My health may be chronic, but this ass is iconic."- Ambre Minty

Ambre Minty is a mum and chronic illness warrior, patient leader, feeding tube advocate, and Oley ambassador. She has been diagnosed with dysautonomia, gastropresis, Ehlers Danlos, colonic inertia, and eosinophi...

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February 8, 2023 26 mins

After being diagnosed with an Invisible Disease, two moms battle the physical and emotional roller coaster of chronic illness while also advocating for others and striving to create a community of support.

Learn about Advocating for Invisible Disease through listening to two mothers living with chronic illness. This podcast discusses grieving physical losses, such as hair loss due to medications, and how to cope with it. T...

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December 27, 2022 25 mins

In this episode of My Invisible Disease, Jenny and Kassy are Bitter Bettys. With chronic illness and a short fuse, they desperately seek to strike a balance between protecting themselves, maintaining empathy and compassion, and avoiding petty complaints as they navigate the holidays and a mountain of obligations.
This episode is about Self-reflection on communication styles. Through listening to two moms sharing their struggles...

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Join us on our journey as we navigate the ups and downs of living with Invisible Disease and finding our balance with our partners and caregivers."

This episode was about Caregiving and support, and how I learned that it is important to provide grace to both yourself and your partner when managing a chronic illness. I also learned that it is important to communicate clearly with your partner about your needs, as well as to reme...

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December 16, 2022 21 mins

Do you know someone living with an Invisible Disease? How about someone who had to make the difficult decision to go public with their medical condition? Join us as we explore the difficult decision of going public with an Invisible Disease and the courage it takes to do so. Through our stories, we will uncover the emotional turmoil of facing an unpredictable future and the power of community in a time of need. Join us as we explor...

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December 16, 2022 63 mins

Kassy Draper, a working mother of two who was leading a busy real estate career until she started experiencing chronic illness symptoms. After many inconclusive tests, she was put on a 10-day cycle of Prednisone to help manage her symptoms. She soon noticed a drastic weight loss, and she was struggling to keep up with her work and home life. On her birthday, she spent the day on the couch, exhausted and eating chocolate. Despite he...

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December 16, 2022 51 mins

For Jenny, the effects of chronic illness have been part of her life since childhood - her grandfather died of complications with his liver and her mother was the first in their family to undergo a liver transplant. But it wasn't until Jenny was 15 that she was officially diagnosed with polycystic kidney and liver disease. The lack of education in the medical community and the lack of knowledge about the effects of invisible i...

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