I Am Not My Pain with Melissa Adams

Continuing our throwback to S1E21 with warrior, Samantha Moss. Listen in as Sam shares more about how she finds acceptance and embraces her new life as a patient advocate, blogger, podcaster, and author, with her biggest passion being her global Facebook support group called, Medical Musings with Friends ; now 1,800 members strong. To learn more about Samantha Moss or her new book, you can visit h...

We are throwing back to S1E20 with warrior, Samantha Moss. Sam had a successful management career in financial services until 2014, when she had a severe bowel prolapse resulting in a permanent colostomy. Many diagnoses followed including a complex idiopathic Rare Bone Disease and rheumatoid arthritis. Sam constantly struggles with pathological broken bones and a future filled with unpredictabilit...

Continuing our conversation with warrior, Jenny Jones from S1E27. Jenny lives with two rare, chronic conditions called Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP) and Short Bowel Syndrome and more recently was diagnosed with Post-Concussion Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, and Esophageal Dysmotility. Due to FAP, she underwent a total colectomy at age nine. Complications resulted in six additional surgeries and an...

Let’s catch up with warrior, Jenny Jones from S1E27. Jenny lives with two rare, chronic conditions called Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP) and Short Bowel Syndrome and more recently was diagnosed with Post-Concussion Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, and Esophageal Dysmotility. Due to FAP, she underwent a total colectomy at age nine. Complications resulted in six additional surgeries and an eighth surge...

Finishing our conversation with warrior, Jenny McPherson. Jenny has lived with chronic migraine disease for over forty years. During that time, she has spent tens of thousands of dollars even with insurance to treat her disease including Botox, many different medications, treatments, and even migraine surgery. Jenny spends her days juggling life as a contracts professional working for an aerospace...

Continuing our conversation with warrior, Jenny McPherson. Jenny has lived with chronic migraine disease for over forty years. During that time, she has spent tens of thousands of dollars even with insurance to treat her disease including Botox, many different medications, treatments, and even migraine surgery. Jenny spends her days juggling life as a contracts professional working for an aerospac...

Meet warrior, Jenny McPherson. Jenny has lived with chronic migraine disease for over forty years. During that time, she has spent tens of thousands of dollars even with insurance to treat her disease including Botox, many different medications, treatments, and even migraine surgery. Jenny spends her days juggling life as a contracts professional working for an aerospace company and mother while m...

Finishing our conversation with warrior, Aunia Kahn. Aunia’s journey with illness started at birth. Her symptoms were overlooked until Aunia began her search for answers at nineteen. Twenty years passed but with determination, Aunia was eventually diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Type 3, Dysautonomia, Mast Cell Disease, POTS, PTSD, Craniocervical Instability, Hiatal Hernia, Dysphagia, Vocal Cord Dysfu...

Continuing our conversation with warrior, Aunia Kahn. Aunia’s journey with illness started at birth. Her symptoms were overlooked until Aunia began her search for answers at nineteen. Twenty years passed but with determination, Aunia was eventually diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Type 3, Dysautonomia, Mast Cell Disease, POTS, PTSD, Craniocervical Instability, Hiatal Hernia, Dysphagia, Vocal Cord Dysf...

Meet warrior, Aunia Kahn. Aunia’s journey with illness started at birth. Her symptoms were overlooked until Aunia began her search for answers at nineteen. Twenty years passed but with determination, Aunia was eventually diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Type 3, Dysautonomia, Mast Cell Disease, POTS, PTSD, Craniocervical Instability, Hiatal Hernia, Dysphagia, Vocal Cord Dysfunction, Neurodiversity, and...

Continuing our conversation with warrior, Tracy Marie. Tracy was born with a very rare, progressive life-long disease called Morquio Type A Syndrome. The syndrome causes cellular damage due to a missing enzyme. Even with all her health challenges and being misdiagnosed until 2017, Tracy forges ahead as a singer, songwriter, producer, and sound engineer who has recorded and produced numerous albums...

Meet warrior, Tracy Marie. Tracy was born with a very rare, progressive life-long disease called Morquio Type A Syndrome. The syndrome causes cellular damage due to a missing enzyme. Even with all her health challenges and being misdiagnosed until 2017, Tracy forges ahead as a singer, songwriter, producer, and sound engineer who has recorded and produced numerous albums and travelled around the co...

Continuing our conversation with warrior, Jewel Dukes. After experiencing unexplained, rapid weight gain, extreme fatigue, mini-strokes and various other symptoms in 2021, Jewel began the difficult journey to find her proper diagnosis of Cushing’s Disease. This rare condition required pituitary surgery and caused her to become adrenally insufficient. Two major adrenal crises, several ER visits, an...

Meet warrior, Jewel Dukes. After experiencing unexplained, rapid weight gain, extreme fatigue, mini-strokes and various other symptoms in 2021, Jewel began the difficult journey to find her proper diagnosis of Cushing’s Disease. This rare condition required pituitary surgery and caused her to become adrenally insufficient. Two major adrenal crises, several ER visits, and other health complications...

Meet warrior, Erin Paterson. Erin tested gene positive for Huntington’s Disease in her early thirties. After her life-changing diagnosis, Erin naturally began suffering from depression and also received the news she was infertile. Despite everything, she was determined to expand her family and to enjoy a meaningful life. Erin is now a proud mom, author, speaker, and international Huntington’s Dise...

Meet warrior, Erin Paterson. Erin tested gene positive for Huntington’s Disease in her early thirties. After her life-changing diagnosis, Erin naturally began suffering from depression and also received the news she was infertile. Despite everything, she was determined to expand her family and to enjoy a meaningful life. Erin is now a proud mom, author, speaker, andinternational Huntington’s Disea...

Meet warrior, Irene S. Roth. Irene is a full-time writer, blogger, online teacher, and writing mentor coach. Irene has managed chronic pain from osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, chronic migraine disease, and more for the past twenty-five years. Barely functioning due to the debilitating pain, Irene was determined to not let the pain from her osteoarthritis defeat her. She educated herself and impleme...

Meet warrior, Irene S. Roth. Irene is a full-time writer, blogger, online teacher, and writing mentor coach. Irene has managed chronic pain from osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, chronic migraine disease, and more for the past twenty-five years. Barely functioning due to the debilitating pain, Irene was determined to not let the pain from her osteoarthritis defeat her. She educated herself and impleme...

Meet warrior, Marc Hoberman. Marc is a certified life coach, creator and host of the talk show: Life Stories with Marc Hoberman, motivational speaker/trainer, bestselling author, and study skills expert. At 16, Marc began suffering from epilepsy and later in his life from type 2 diabetes. Marc understands the struggles chronic illness can bring, especially at a young age. Listen as Marc shares how...

Meet warrior, Larissa Martin. Larissa was born 26 weeks premature. She has Cerebral Palsy along with an intellectual disability and is an amputee requiring use of a wheelchair. Larissa is an activist, an advocate and an independent self-published author who has written Dear Anxiety: Letters from a Girl Who Cares and Stories from People who Suffer with Anxiety. She has been published and republishe...

Meet warrior, Alex. Alex is transgender identifying as trans-masculine and non-binary. From a young age, Alex endured many chronic illnesses and disabilities. He/They was later diagnosed with Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum, a rare brain disorder where there is a partial or complete absence of an area of the brain that connects the two cerebral hemispheres. Alex also manages Dandy-Walker Syndrome,...

Continuing our conversation with warrior, Lydia Joy Launderville. Lydia is a freelance writer specializing in health and lifestyle, a ghostwriter, a blogger, an advocate, and a full-time Reading Interventionist for elementary children. Diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, Migraine, Raynaud's syndrome, and a host of other conditions, Lydia entered the dating world while still discovering her diagnoses...

Meet warrior, Lydia Joy Launderville. Lydia is a freelance writer specializing in health and lifestyle, a ghostwriter, a blogger, an advocate, and a full-time Reading Interventionist for elementary children. Diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, Migraine, Raynaud's syndrome, and a host of other conditions, Lydia entered the dating world while still discovering her diagnoses and how to manage her variou...

Meet warrior, Cedric. Cedric was a US Navy Airman until he suffered a severe back injury on duty leaving him in a wheelchair. With time and hard work, Cedric learned to walk again, but the injury resulted in degenerative back disease. Cedric now manages chronic pain from bulging discs in his lower back which has gradually affected his thoracic spine and neck. From childhood to his time in the Navy...

Continuing our conversation with warrior, Carole Griffitts and her husband, FJ. Carole and FJ were happily married with two young sons when a severe, disabling back injury at work in 1978 began Carole’s 44-year journey with invisible disabilities. Carole was later diagnosed with post-polio syndrome in 1985, dystonia in 2005 and Sjogren’s syndrome in 2009. Her neuromuscular conditions interact with...