In episode 48 of Our Invisible Life Podcast, Kendra and Laura sit down with mother/daughter duo Cheryl and Hope Brophy to talk about living with chronic illness and how advancements in medicine have impacted their quality of life.

Cheryl Brophy has been married to her husband Mike for over 25 years and has two grown children, Hope and Michael. She attended Monroe County Community College, earning an Associate of Science Degree and later attended Madonna University taking most of the core curriculum toward a Bachelor’s Degree in American Sign Language Studies. Cheryl worked in education many years as an instructional assistant and tutor. Mentoring others with special needs has always held a special place in Cheryl’s heart and resulted in many years volunteering for Special Olympic's and other community events. After she was diagnosed with MS and realized how many were unfamiliar with the disease, Cheryl hoped to help spread awareness and education as much as she can, using her own experience and research, making connections along the way with others who relate to her story.

Hope Brophy is a recent graduate at Eastern Michigan and is currently obtaining her Bachelor’s of Science in psychology, Hope lives with her boyfriend Brandon of over 2 years and her soul dog Ollie who’s 5. She was diagnosed in 2015 with Neurocardiogenic syncope which she has learned to live with every day. She loves seeing her friends & family, reading, and also gaming in her free time. Currently she works at Buffalo Wild Wings while trying to find a job in her field, and is grateful for the love & support during this journey of finding a career.

If you'd like to share your story and discuss living with chronic illness, reach out to us on Instagram or through our email.

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In Episode 47 of Our Invisible Life podcast, Laura and Kendra talk with Timothy Mann about some natural ways to improve our mental health.

Tim Mann is a Licensed Professional Counselor who has trained thousands of individuals in mental health, growth mindset, breathwork, cold-exposure, and heat-exposure. After defying the odds and perservering through a severe auto-accident, Tim became more determined than ever to become a Peak-Performance Coach, working with a variety of individuals on how to use low-cost and accessible resources to optimize their performance. Tim is a published research scientist, recently co-authoring a paper with Wayne State Universities Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience department.
Tim has a Master's degree in Counseling from the University of Detroit Mercy where he served as a Graduate Assistant for the Basketball Program, and a bachelor's degree in Outdoor Recreation & Leadership Management from Northern Michigan University.

Episode Resources:

Oxygen Advantage

Wim Hof Method

Train The Brain, LCC

If you'd like to share your story and discuss living with chronic illness, reach out to us on Instagram or through our email.

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Email: ourinvisiblelifepodcast@gmail.com

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As we wrap-up our 2nd Season of Our Invisible Life Podcast with episode 46, Kendra and Laura share their personal medical updates and discuss some insurance revelations that could help you!

Kendra is a band director, dog owner, musician and over-extended volunteer. She has suffered with chronic migraine since 2015. Laura is a mom of 3, math coach, and adventurer. She was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2022.

Episode Resources:

Migraine Clinical Studies Pipeline

Why Pharma Isn't Done Tackling Migraines

Emerging Class of Medications for Multiple Sclerosis

If you'd like to share your story and discuss living with chronic illness, reach out to us on Instagram or through our email.

Find us on Instagram: our_invisible_life_podcast

Email: ourinvisiblelifepodcast@gmail.com

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In episode 45 of Our Invisible Life Podcast, Laura and Kendra sit down with Christina Begles to talk the exhaustive struggles with diabetes, anxiety and chronic migraine. Chrissy is a 3rd grade teacher, graphic artist, storyteller, and in her spare time, she enjoys reading, video and puzzle games, singing, and arts and crafts. She is forever grateful for friends and family, and lives in Livonia, MI.

Episode Resources:

The Spoon Theory

"Worn" by Tenth Avenue North

If you'd like to share your story and discuss living with chronic illness, reach out to us on Instagram or through our email.

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Email: ourinvisiblelifepodcast@gmail.com

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In Episode 44 of Our Invisible Life Podcast, Kendra and Laura sit down with Brittany McLean to talk about all things speech therapy. Brittany McLean is a bilingual speech-language pathologist, specializing in multicultural speech and language development, motor speech disorders, natural language acquisition, and motor planning for use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Brittany’s mission is to provide accessible communication to the pediatric population and resources for their families. Brittany incorporates a holistic approach, following the PROMPT philosophy (Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Targets) philosophy. In her free time, Brittany enjoys exercising, cooking, and spending time with her friends and family. Brittany and her husband, Max, enjoy traveling, going to sporting events, cheering on the Ohio State Buckeyes, and outdoor activities such as hiking.

Episode Resources:

What is Speech Therapy?

Oakland Kids Rehabilitation

If you'd like to share your story and discuss living with chronic illness, reach out to us on Instagram or through our email.

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In episode 43 of Our Invisible Life podcast, Laura and Kendra sit down with Cassie Luna to discuss her lifelong journey with chronic illness. Although she's young Cassie has had a long journey to get where she is now! At her young age, Cassie has already been diagnosed with POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome), EDS (Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome), and Gastroparesis. Cassie is in her early 20's and has used mobility aids every day for the last 3 years. She likes to hang out with friends, create art, and hang out with her cat!

Episode Links:

POTS

EDS

Gastroparesis

Mobility Devices

If you'd like to share your story and discuss living with chronic illness, reach out to us on Instagram or through our email.

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Email: ourinvisiblelifepodcast@gmail.com

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In Episode 42 of Our Invisible Life podcast, Laura and Kendra sit down with Molly Evans to discuss her daughters' battles with chronic illness and how that drove her to open her own business to better serve pediatric patients with chronic illness. Molly is a nurse, business owner and mom. Molly's oldest daughter was diagnosed in her teens with Ehler-Danlos syndrome along with POTS and gastroparesis; her youngest was born with a rare genetic disease and is physically and developmentally delayed as well as dependent on a feeding tube. The experiences Molly had dealing with her children's health inspired her to open Oakland Kids Rehabilitation, a pediatric clinic offering play-based physical, occupational and speech therapies.

Episode Resources:

Oakland Kids Rehabilitation - http://oaklandkidsrehab.com/

Rare Diseases - https://rarediseases.org/

If you'd like to share your story and discuss living with chronic illness, reach out to us on Instagram or through our email.

Find us on Instagram: our_invisible_life_podcast

Email: ourinvisiblelifepodcast@gmail.com

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In episode 41 of Our Invisible Life Podcast, Kendra and Laura meet with Dr. Max Shear to discuss the challenges he faces living with Dyslexia and how he worked to prove to himself and others that he could be successful despite this disability.

Max is a husband and father of two young boys ages 8 and 3. Max has a PhD from George Mason University in Applied Developmental Psychology, with a concentration in Research Methods and Statistics. Professionally, he is a Senior User Experience (UX) Researcher for Plante Moran. When Max isn’t wrangling research participants or his children, he is enjoying all things nerdy: from board games, video games to comic books and science. Max is an advocate for the users and their needs for products and services, DEI, and Accessibility. Max’s interest in the unique needs of users stems from his own personal experiences growing up with Dyslexia and learning how to adapt the world around him.

Episode Information:

Malcolm Gladwell

Cleveland Clinic on Dyslexia

Low Self-Esteem

If you'd like to share your story and discuss living with chronic illness, reach out to us on Instagram or through our email.

Find us on Instagram: our_invisible_life_podcast

Email: ourinvisiblelifepodcast@gmail.com

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