Curveball: A podcast about possibility

He spent decades training for fights in the ring. But the biggest one? It showed up uninvited, with no gloves and no warning. Shane Swartz grew up in the boxing world — breaking records at 7, training under his dad, and going pro by the time most kids were still learning long division. But in his 40s, mid-sparring session with one of his fighters, he felt a lump on his neck. What followed wasn’t a...

She survived blood clots in her brain, a crumbling marriage, a depression so deep she couldn’t get out of bed – and came back as a full-blown joyful anarchist.  Now, Mama Kate’s here to help you torch the “shoulds” and light up your soul. Kate White – aka Mama Kate – has been through it. Fibromyalgia. Liver disease. Brain bleeds. A gastric bypass that almost ended her marriage. Retirement that nea...

She thought she’d swan dive into motherhood and belly-flop back into boss mode. But postpartum depression had other plans. Emily King had the dream life on paper – a thriving business, a new baby, a panini press (a true sign of adulthood). But what came next wasn’t the sweet maternity leave she pictured.  It was darkness. Full-on, heart-racing, can’t-sleep, can’t-eat postpartum anxiety and depress...

She checked all the boxes – dream job, dream guy, dream health – and still had a panic attack in her graduation cap. What her body told her next changed her whole damn life. Loren Cellentani looked like she had it all together. Art school grad. Landed a fashion industry job. Clean-eating her way to Instagram-worthy “wellness.”  But when she had a panic attack at her college graduation, everything...

The marriage unraveled. Her body gave out. Her big-deal career fell apart. And somehow… she got happier. Here's how Shawn Mahshie flipped her rock-bottom into a life of peace, purpose, and pretty unbelievable healing. Shawn Mahshie doesn’t just talk about transformation – she embodies it. After her health, marriage, and career all collapsed like a row of sad dominoes, she found herself sobbin...

She had the PhD, the healthcare leadership job, and the burnout badge of honor. Then COVID and E. coli said, “Sit down.” So she did – and stood up for her life. Before she became a burnout coach and psychology-whisperer to high achievers, Jesseca Tighe was a therapist-turned-healthcare exec just trying to keep it all together. She had the title, the inbox, and the never-ending calls at all hours. ...

She left her marriage, her children, and her entire identity as a cardiac nurse – because her body begged her to. It nearly broke her… until it didn’t. For decades, Jodi Anne Law was the picture of Western medicine: cardiac nurse, ICU shifts, adrenaline-fueled precision. But her own heart had other plans. After a breakdown left her sobbing through yoga classes and doubting everything she thought s...

She finally cracked the code on mindful eating – then life flipped the table. A terrifying diagnosis. A stress spiral. A breakthrough she never saw coming. Claire Ketchum had finally found food freedom after 20 years of yo-yo dieting. Mindful eating wasn’t just working – it felt like magic. Until her 9-year-old daughter was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, and suddenly food became math, medicine, a...

She was taking care of everyone – her parents, her child, her career, and someone with cancer. Then she realized she was disappearing. Rachel Collins was juggling a demanding HR career, raising a son, and helping care for her aging parents – when someone else in her life was suddenly diagnosed with stage 3 cancer.  With zero warning, she became the full-time caregiver for a full-time crisis. She h...

She left a penis off her sketch – and it cracked open a decades-long pattern of shame she didn’t even know she was carrying. When Michelle Dovey sat down to draw a statue of Apollo in Florence, she didn’t mean to leave something out. But there it was – a blank spot where the genitals should’ve been. This accidental omission turned into a revelation: her artistic gaze had been unconsciously edited...

He lost his marriage, his home, his business, and his health. He hit rock bottom – and called it the best year of his life. Dallas Collis didn’t just get a curveball – he got the whole pitching machine.  In one brutal year, he was diagnosed with cancer, hit a breaking point with alcoholism, and watched his marriage, family, and business fall apart. And somehow, he looks back on that year and says,...

She woke up in an upside-down car, miles from home, with a shattered pelvis – and still tried to project manage the rescue. Lillian Mumford was riding in an Uber, two states away from home, when a car crash turned her world literally upside down. One moment she was the new hire on a business trip – the next, she was lying on the roof of a totaled vehicle, unable to move. What followed was a year o...

He spent years saving his kids’ lives. Then he lost his son – and found his voice. Jason Tuttle was in the trenches of parenting in a way most of us can’t imagine. His two children were born with rare, complex medical needs – non-verbal, seizure-prone, and in need of constant care. Jason became their full-time caregiver, learning to read every cue, every silence, and navigating hospital stays with...

Her backup plan needed a backup plan. Then Tiffany got creative – and made $7,000 off Craigslist without leaving her house. Tiffany Archer was cruising through life with not one but two careers – flight attendant and real estate agent – until the pandemic took them both out in a matter of weeks. No flights. No listings. No paycheck. But instead of panicking, Tiffany did what all great curveball su...

She saw the pandemic coming before it had a name. Then she manifested a private jet in under two weeks. But the real plot twist? She’s here to help you do the same – no magic wand required. What do you do when life flings a flaming curveball at your head? If you’re Allison Al-Khemia, you turn it into something sparkly, meaningful, and maybe even airborne. Allison isn’t just a quantum manifestation...

She got fired from her “safe” job after 17 years. Then she hiked the Inca Trail, discovered ADHD, and became a financial coach. (Not in that order.) Sherry Andrews spent nearly two decades climbing the corporate ladder at a cheese packaging plant – no joke. She was loyal, reliable, and doing what she thought she was supposed to do. Then the company handed her a pink slip and a very abrupt identity...

She spent 15 years chasing a dream that almost killed her. Then came the burnout, the grief, the tango – and the decision to turn back. Dr. Zarya Rubin was supposed to be living her dream. She was on track to become a neurologist, deep into her fellowship at Columbia, doing the doctor thing after fifteen years of training. But the dream had started to feel like a beautifully wrapped trap – and the...

She was living the travel blogger dream – until the dream got old, COVID wiped her income, and Google finished the job. Taylor Lorenz had what most of us daydream about: a life of nonstop travel, a successful blog, and money rolling in while she crisscrossed the globe.  But behind the highlight reel? A serious case of burnout, loneliness, and a creeping sense that her dream life wasn’t dreamy anym...

She tried hustling her way to success – until a hurricane, an ICU stay, and a failing launch forced her to rethink everything. Laura Brandenburg was chasing every online business goal: bigger launches, bigger teams, bigger revenue.  But in 2018, life said, “Girl, sit down.” First came Hurricane Florence. Then, a mystery illness that landed Laura in the ICU – days after a business launch had floppe...

She tried to end her life at 13. Now she helps others find their way back from the dark – with a literal magic wand. When Alexis Skopos was 13, she made a decision to end her life. Instead, the universe threw her a messy, painful curveball – one that rewrote her story entirely.  She grew up, got her degree in counseling, and dove headfirst into community mental health – until burnout hit hard. Tha...

She lost her dad, canceled her first retreat, and nearly stayed stuck playing small – until she turned grief into her greatest leadership lesson. When Talmar Anderson sold out her first-ever retreat, she thought she was finally hitting her stride as a business owner.  But life had other plans.  Just two weeks before the event, Talmar’s dad passed away unexpectedly. The retreat? Canceled. The money...

She’s a work-from-home mom of five who homeschools, cooks from scratch – and still runs a business. Her secret? It’s not hustle. It’s strategy. Alyssa Wolff isn’t here to sell you another hustle story. She’s here to show you how to unbusy your life – even when it’s bursting at the seams.  A homeschooling mom of five (yes, five), Alyssa launched her business with a newborn in tow and never looked b...

When life left him flat on his back, Jonathan Marion discovered how to stop proving his worth — and start living it. Jonathan spent years collecting all the shiny gold stars — tenure, titles, academic success — until life came in swinging. In the span of months, Jonathan’s body broke down from spinal nerve damage, his most meaningful relationship ended, and his identity as a “human doing” complete...

She followed every rule her father gave her — until he told her she was nothing without him. Eloise Tomkins grew up doing exactly what was expected. She got the good grades, earned the safe degree, landed the secure job — all with her dad’s voice in her head telling her that women couldn’t manage money and needed men to provide. But then her dad had a stroke. And what followed cracked her entire i...

Alison Vidotto doesn’t just teach resilience — she embodies it. Over 30+ years running her own businesses (while raising six kids, mind you), she’s survived the kind of curveballs that knock most people flat: economic collapse, industry crashes, an office literally underwater. Her secret? Systems. Strategy. And a refusal to crumble. In this episode, Alison breaks down how to bounce back like a bos...