Joy In The Journey

Caring for a newly diagnosed child going through a medical journey can be scary and overwhelming. Especially when finding resources meant to support you, like Child Life Specialists, requires extensive research and planning.  This is why I am so grateful to our guest today, Jenna Kmitch, for courageously sharing what her process looks like beside her daughter Sydney, who was diagnosed with neurobl...

When you first enter the medical world as a caregiver, everyone around you hits the ground running. The nurses and doctors know exactly how to get started, and yet, you might be left feeling overwhelmed and powerless.  This is what makes social workers so important: they support the family holistically, encourage communication, help bridge information gaps, and empower you to become an important m...

After losing someone close to us we are usually told about the five stages of grief and how each of them will show up. But grief often shows up differently for everyone, skipping and cycling through stages in unique ways. My guest today is Sara Ward, and she knows a thing or two about grieving. After unexpectedly losing her father to a heart problem as a teenager, her 9-month-old adopted son was d...

We've all experienced those days where it feels like we catch every red light on a busy commute and nothing seems to be going right. But what happens when we're intentional about stopping to look for the small glimmers of joy, even in those heavier days? Allow me to introduce you to today's guest to answer that question. Gina Prosch is a writer and teacher who has made it her mission to help child...

Juli Boit is no stranger to helping those in need. She's an author, family nurse practitioner, and international non-profit director of Living Room International , dedicated to providing palliative care services to adults and children in western Kenya.  After going through an adoption journey with her son Ryan, whose parents had recently passed, and consequently adopting his siblings, she found he...

Sarah Falk has received more than a few extremely scary cancer diagnoses in her life: the first one at only 17 years old (bone cancer) and the second at 40 years old (breast cancer). Naturally, she found herself asking, "Why Me"? But as you'll hear, a better question to ask yourself is, "What now?" Sarah is a mom to 4 boys, a mental health therapist, an author, and 4-time cancer survivor. She has...

As today's guest will tell you, "You become a NICU parent in the blink of an eye."  Katie Ross is the creator of Blooming Littles and she's doing incredible work in the NICU space as a certified neonatal occupational therapist. As a mom of a full-term NICU baby herself, she's made it her mission to inform and empower parents by teaching them about the little things they can do that make a differen...

How are parents meant to believe that the loss of a child is all part of God's plan? Grief is a difficult journey for everyone, but it can feel especially challenging when it's accompanied by a feeling of losing yourself or your faith. My guest today, Emily Ann Adams, had this exact experience after the passing of one of her twin boys, Aidan.  Faced with three little children under 5 to look after...

One of the only certainties about having children is uncertainty: we can't find out beforehand how a pregnancy or birth experience will go, or who our children will grow up and become. Add in a premature birth, an illness diagnosis, and a NICU stay to the mix, and it can lead to overwhelming worry and anxiety. My guest today, Meg Helgeson, is certainly no stranger to this. Her twin girls Ellie and...

When a parent learns that their child has been diagnosed with a serious illness or condition, it's difficult not to be consumed with worst case scenarios.  But as Bekah Bowman will tell you, you have two choices: either allow your past and future to steal joy from your present, or embrace joy in the present moment, no matter what it looks like.  And Bekah is no stranger to this concept: her two bo...

Even though symptoms and conditions are always unique, there is one thing most people who've recently been diagnosed with a difficult condition have in common: the search for hope and answers to many questions. Today's guest, Jonny Imerman, has made it his life mission to bridge that gap; through his non-profit, Imerman Angels, Jonny has connected thousands of cancer survivors with recently diagno...

During pregnancy, parents usually imagine what their child will be like and everything they'll get to do together. You get excited about all the traditional milestones and look forward to experiencing this new reality.  But for parents who receive difficult news after the birth of their child, such as an unexpected Down Syndrome diagnosis, this reality is shattered in a matter of seconds. Even the...

I'm so excited to get season 3 of the Joy in the Journey podcast underway and I wanted to share a sneak peek with all of you. If there's one thing that I've grown to appreciate after starting this podcast, it's the power of a shared story. And in season 3, I have an incredible array of inspring individuals lined up. So enjoy this sneak peek and stay tuned for a new episode next week! Don't forget...

If there's one thing that I've learned since starting this podcast, it's the power of sharing stories. And today's guest would wholeheartedly agree with that, as she's been helping women share their stories in powerful and meaningful ways for years. Jenette Jurczyk is the National Director of the She Said Project and a Professional Storytelling Coach. She's also the co-founder and President of the...

I am so excited to share this conversation with you today. Today's guest exudes positivity and inspiration, and I truly hope you'll enjoy hearing his message as much as I did. Kute Blackson is a transformational teacher, speaker, visionary guide, and national bestselling author of You Are the One and The Magic of Surrender. He also hosts the Soul Talk podcast and has dedicated his life to personal...

If your child is in the hospital, there may be times when your motherly instincts kick in because you know that something isn't right. And as you'll hear from today's guest, there's nothing wrong with speaking up and advocating for your child, even when the medical teams tell you everything is fine. Before Eunice Clay's son was born, all the tests were clear. Soon afterward, Jahari was having trou...

At the age of 16, Veronica Porter's son was in a tragic car accident that left him in a coma for three weeks. His brain injury resulted in permanent brain damage that has affected him and everyone around him in many ways. Still, his disability is not obvious or apparent to the naked eye.  Despite the injury, Veronica's son is a very high-functioning and capable young man whose symptoms only show u...

Raising a child with autism is a process that requires patience, resilience, and an information-seeking mindset. But as rewarding as the journey can be, an autism diagnosis can alter the family dynamic and impact each family member in many ways. My guest today, Dr. Taylor Day, is a licensed psychologist who specializes in supporting autistic children and their families with diagnostic evaluations,...

If raising a child takes a village, parents can use all the help they can get when navigating a difficult medical journey. But between medical teams, family, friends, and all the different groups of people that come together in order to provide the care needed, a lot of informational gaps can get left behind.  From splitting time between the hospital and your family at home to preparing for discha...

When Kendra Regas' son Andon was 5 years old, he had already been dealing with several allergies, including a peanut allergy. That in itself would be plenty for any parent to worry about. Shortly after having his tonsils removed, Andon started wetting the bed. Soon afterward, Kendra booked an appointment to meet with the doctor. After describing the symptoms, the doctor said, "I think I know what...

When Savannah Zirbel was only two and a half years old, she lost her left leg and arm in a terribly unfortunate accident. In the blink of an eye, Savannah and her family's world was turned upside down as they were left to learn how to navigate life with a disability as their new normal.  What they didn't know was how powerfully inspiring and transformative this journey would turn out to be: Savann...

I'm so excited to welcome Joy Harmon back to the podcast, as this will be the first time I've had a guest on the show for a second time! It feels even more appropriate when you consider that Joy had not one, but two NICU journeys with her daughters. And I'm very happy to say they are thriving right now. Joy is also a breast cancer survivor who underwent treatment at the beginning of COVID when eve...

There truly is nothing more moving than seeing parents who have experienced the loss of a child look for meaningful ways to celebrate their child's life. Some say grief is love with nowhere to go, and channeling it toward honoring a loved one can be a beautiful way to heal and find joy in the journey.  I invited Lacey Bracken to join me on this episode and share the story of her beautiful family....

As you can imagine, today's guest is a very special one. For anyone who has been following the podcast, the truth is I haven't had many guys on the show. But that doesn't mean it's because the male perspective is any less important. That's why I'm so happy to finally introduce you to my husband, Gary Freedlund. We've talked about doing an episode on the podcast together many times, but he wasn't q...

"Changing lives one baked good and one scoop at a time." One of the first milestones a new parent looks forward to is their child's first word. But when Jolene Boothe noticed that her sweet son, Darren, hadn't started talking by the time he was 18 months old, she began to worry. By the age of two, they were still waiting. And if that wasn't stressful enough, she was pregnant with her twin daughter...