Be-YOU-tiful Adaptive Warrior

The Year of the Fire Horse and the Power of Becoming   Welcome to Season Six of the Be-YOU-tiful Adaptive Warrior (BA Warrior) Podcast—a milestone that still takes my breath away. If you had told me years ago that I would be hosting a podcast, let alone entering its sixth season, I would have laughed. It was never a dream I set out to chase. And yet, here we are. Proof that life doesn’t alway...

Be A Warrior: Closing Season Five, Trusting What Comes Next   As I sit down to record this episode, it honestly feels surreal. This is the final episode of 2025 and the close of Season Five of Be-YOU-tiful Adaptive Warrior. Five years. 210 episodes in all! When I say that out loud, it stops me in my tracks a little. What started as a quiet nudge on my heart has grown into something that now f...

Knowing Your Limits: When to Hold and When to Push Onward   I’m recording this episode from a place that looks very different than my usual setup. We’re away on a family getaway that was supposed to be a snowy ski vacation, but when I look outside, all I see are brown mountains and sunshine. Not exactly the winter wonderland we imagined. Still, we’re here, together, enjoying the time, and as...

Finding Purpose and Joy In This Season     We’re deep into December, and the Christmas spirit is everywhere—homes decorated with lights, the smell of cookies, gatherings, endless lists of to-dos. This time of year is magical, but it’s also overwhelming. We often rush from task to task, trying to make everything perfect, and before we know it, Christmas comes and goes in a blur. Every yea...

  Helping Those in Need     December is finally here, and with it comes the beautiful chaos of the holiday season. In my house, it’s full-blown hysteria—parties, travel, gifts, deadlines, and the constant juggling act that December always brings. But this particular week holds special meaning because it’s Giving Tuesday, and today’s episode carries a message that sits deeply in my h...

A Thanksgiving Message For Anyone Struggling   Thanksgiving week always makes me pause, breathe, and step back into gratitude, but this year, that feeling hit me in a much deeper way. Maybe it was the timing, maybe it was the experience itself, or maybe it was because of everything that led me here—but this past week in Vegas reminded me exactly why I chose this life, and why I continue to pu...

Momentum Begins with One Step     As the holidays creep up—and let’s be honest, sprint toward us—I always feel that yearly tug in a million different directions. I tell myself, This is the year I’ll slow down. This is the year I’ll savor the moments. And every year, without fail, I’m suddenly overscheduled, overtired, and fully submerged in the holiday hustle. Maybe you feel that too: th...

Traveling The Yellow Brick Road of Amputee Life   In this episode, I want to talk about one of the biggest learning curves after limb loss — getting fitted for a prosthesis. Nobody really tells you how challenging this part can be. You think, “Okay, I’ll get my prosthetic leg or arm, strap it on, and get back to life.” But if only it were that simple, right? The truth is, it’s a process — one...

Enjoying Your Life RIGHT NOW   “Want to go for a drive?” This simple phrase sends my pups into a frenzy! Their excitement is overflowing and their  joy is tangible! This energy is what we should be living for each day, but when we are struggling we find ourselves consumed and can only see the problems, to the positives. I remember coming back home after losing my mom. I had spent...

Navigating Life When It Falls Off The Rails   Sometimes life takes a turn you never saw coming. One moment everything feels steady, predictable, maybe even comfortable — and then suddenly, the tracks shift, and you’re left wondering how to move forward. As an amputee, I’ve had my share of moments where life completely fell off the rails. Moments that tested not just my strength, but my heart....

Defining Success As An Amputee       What is success? Can any one person define success for the world? Of course not! As an amputee we need to remember that. Success id what you make of your life and where you’ll find contentment and happiness behind what you do and accomplish. For some of us it’s walking for the first time without assistance. For others it’s weari...

Let’s Get Real     You’ve been through a lot. You had an amputation, you’ve healed, you’ve gotten fitted for your first socket. Today you go in to put it all together and walk out the door and on with your life, right? Easy Peasy! Yes! It’s the most exciting, most freeing day in an amputee’s life, for most people, however it doesn’t end there, an...

Taking Action During “Construction”     We are all a work in progress. That’s life, right? We all have those moments where you feel you are working on something in your life. Your health, a career, or relationships, you name it. But what do you do in these moments? How do you continue to grow and better yourself during the construction? It all starts within you. We begi...

A Journey of a Thousand Miles Must Begin With a Single Step -Lao Tzu.   Traveling is exciting but can also be stressful. Packing the right clothing for the weather, the events, and what makes you feel amazing. You try to pack neatly and concisely so you can pack everything you want and need. As an amputee, things become a little more confusing and worrisome. What will you need? What MUST come...

Setting Goals & Thinking Positively to Live The Life of Your Dreams     Successful people know how to succeed and what it takes to succeed. So what is it? What do they know that you don’t? Everyone knows that hard work pays off and that practice makes permanence. But what separates you from someone who is doing the very thing you want to do, too? Now, of course there is DNA inv...

Healing Physically, Adapting Mentally and Emotionally   Amputation isn’t just the act of amputating a limb. It isn’t just surgery, heal, and walk. This is a process. It takes time, money, patience, and a whole lot of grit! Unfortunately, most patients that knowingly go into amputation surgery can’t comprehend the struggles to come. For those who didn’t choose or prep f...

Knowing Who and What To Ask About Amputation     Becoming an amputee is so surreal. Electing to have it done is a choice I never thought I would have to make. It brings about fears, anxieties, questions, and so much uncertainty. How do you know life will be better? What if I can’t wear a prosthesis? Will I walk again or will I be in a wheelchair the rest of my life? How long does i...

  This has been a weekend! Everything was set up perfectly. A family getaway for a long weekend, before our youngest goes back to college, and bringing the dogs to see the ocean for the first time. I couldn’t be happier! We got to Carlsbad, California Friday late afternoon and took our pups for a walk. Dinner came and we fed them as normal but around 9:00 pm my year and half old pup sta...

That is the Question Amputation is a difficult road, one that can change direction quickly, even after you heal. For many amputees the surgical side of their life isn’t over. Many of us end up needing a TMR surgery or even a revision, while others will have to amputate even higher! Going from a below knee to an above knee amputation is life changing because one amputation is completely different f...

Amputation is a tough road. If you make the decision to amputate or if your limb is taken from you by accident or disease it’s a bumpy ride, right from the get go. Most people assume that once you get through the surgical part and physically heal that you are back to life as usual. that couldn’t be farther from the truth. As an amputee with 6 1/2 years of experience I can tell you that...

Letting Go and Leaning In   I have been an amputee for 6 1/2 years, but before that I had a taekwondo injury that took me through 5 years, 10 surgeons and 10 surgeries, plus a blood clot to decide it was time to start living again and make the biggest decision of my life. Alone in the decision, I was not. I had an amazing support system with my husband, two boys and my family back home. I had...

We Need Each Other     We are creatures built to live in community. This gives us a safe place to celebrate in great times, gain support in the bad ones, and everything in between. Talking with people, sharing our journeys and stories, our ups and downs with others, plus listening to our friends and community during their moments is a beautiful symphony of give and take that allows us to...

The AMI Procedure and Magneto Micrometry   This week I was honored to have back on my podcast, Dr Hugh Herr. Hugh is a bilateral below knee amputee and a professor of Media Arts and Sciences at MIT. He directs the MIT Biomechatronics Group and Co-directs the K. Lisa Yang Center for Bionics. Time Magazine coined Hugh the ‘Leader of the Bionic Age’. He has also authored and co-autho...

Life after Revision Surgery for an Amputee     I must have been crazy, right? To CHOOSE to revise my amputation! To go from being uber active to starting over?!?! Golfing on Kauai   Having fun catching waves   At the beginning of this interview process, to be eligible for the AMI procedure, I was very interested in the idea of being a part of something so “cutting edge&#8...

Starting Over Isn’t Easy   Who would choose to take a harder road, isn’t life hard enough? And who would decide to start over after working hard to be high functioning? What would possess someone to put that sort of challenge in front of them? Last October I was approached by Dr. Carty’s office, in Boston, if I was interested in doing a study with them. I decided to learn mo...