IC You

After working with IC warriors for a few years and living with IC herself, Callie has gained a lot of experience navigating people’s IC triggers and root causes. Elimination diets are a critical part of managing your IC, but is diet always a trigger? What about Hunner’s Lesions…how do these affect diet sensitivities? Callie talks through how diet and food fear can play a role in IC and why people...

The Vagina Rehab Doctor, Dr. Janelle Howell DPT, WCS joins Callie on the podcast this week. Callie and Dr. Howell talk about how the nervous system and the pelvic floor interact and cause pelvic floor dysfunction. Navigating a chronic illness diagnosis is challenging, so Callie and Dr. Howell talk about some of the current challenges. Callie shares some of her experiences with treatments for IC an...

IBS awareness month continues - this week, Katrina Cox, a Registered Dietitian specializing in IBS and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) joins Callie on the podcast. Katrina talks about her journey to being a dietitian, specializing in gastrointestinal conditions, and becoming an entrepreneur. Katrina then talks about SIBO and the similarities and differences between SIBO and IBS. Bloat...

Happy National IBS Awareness Month! In this episode Callie interviews Christine Olivo, a social media content creator who has been living with Irritable Bowel Syndrome since 2007. Struggling to manage the pain, anxiety, and loneliness that come with IBS, Christine created an Instagram account called MyIBSLife in June of 2019 as a way to cope through humor. Her page has now become a home and commun...

Getting any kind of illness can cause a flare in your interstitial cystitis symptoms. After recovering from illness herself, Callie talks about the impact of illness on your interstitial cystitis symptoms. Medications, illness symptoms, and changes in eating and drinking while you’re feeling bad can all affect your symptoms. Callie also talks about the importance of vitamin C and zinc to support y...

Callie takes a break from interviews this week and talks about common mistakes she sees that keep people from finding relief from interstitial cystitis. The list ranges both psychological aspects and mindset to supplement use to diet. Callie also shares her recommendations to get past these roadblocks and get closer to relief from IC! If you’re struggling to manage symptoms, tune in to see if ther...

This week, Callie is joined by one of her clients, Amy, to talk about her journey with interstitial cystitis and her experience working with Callie. Amy shares her journey to getting a diagnosis, her symptoms, and different therapies and treatments she has tried along the way. Callie and Amy also discuss the lack of education about the IC diet when you’re diagnosed and the impact of following the...

In this week’s episode, Callie talks through her journey with interstitial cystitis from treatments to weird habits she developed from having IC. As a lifelong IC Warrior, she has tried many of the available treatment options in the pursuit of relief. She talks through her experiences with the different treatments she tried, from medications to invasive procedures, and the positive and negative ef...

Week 2 of Endometriosis Awareness Month is here, and our guest today is Cindy Debrowska, MAN, RD, a dietitian that specializes in endometriosis. As someone who also experiences endometriosis, Cindy shares her story about endometriosis and how she came to specialize in nutrition for endometriosis. Callie and Cindy talk through what endometriosis is, new theories about endometriosis, and symptom man...

March is Endometriosis Awareness Month! Endometriosis is common in people with interstitial cystitis, and a hallmark of both conditions is chronic pelvic pain. This week, Callie is joined by Lux Perry (they/them), the CEO and co-founder of somedays, a company that created natural pain relief products specifically for pelvic pain and period pain. Lex shares their experience with endometriosis, the...

Other urinary conditions can be related to IC because the same molecules are involved. This week, Callie is joined by Melanie Betz, MS, RD, CSR, CSG, a kidney dietitian who specializes in kidney stones and is certified in renal nutrition! Callie and Melanie talk about Melanie’s career journey to specializing in kidney nutrition before diving into the topic of oxalates. Melanie discusses what oxala...

Last week, Callie talked with Dr. Theoharis Theoharides about mast cells and histamine and their roles in interstitial cystitis. This week, Callie and Dr. Theoharides continue the discussion with some tips on how to investigate your personal sensitivities. Dr. Theoharides also talks through the role of hormones, specifically estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone, in IC. Levels of these hormones...

Inflammation is a common health and wellness “buzzword” these days, but how is inflammation related to IC? In part 1 of a two-part interview, Callie talks with Dr. Theoharis Theoharides about mast cells, their role in inflammation, and what’s known about the connection between inflammation and IC. Dr. Theoharis Theoharides is a Yale-trained medical doctor and researcher that has been named the wor...

We’ve talked about UTIs off and on while talking about IC, but this week, Callie does a deep-dive into the topic of recurrent UTI’s with Lindsey Williams and Megan Henken, the founders of MyUTI. Megan and Lindsey are both veterans in the field of clinical diagnostics and founded MyUTI to increase access to diagnostic technology and educational resources for people who experience UTIs. Linsey, Mega...

Callie is flying solo in this episode, but she dives deep into a few different topics this week. Having just gone on a vacation, Callie discusses how traveling affected her IC symptoms. Drawing on her personal history and recent experiences with IC, Callie also shares some tips she has found useful to prevent flares while traveling, some products that work well for her symptoms, and how to figure...

Chronic illnesses never go away, so managing your chronic illness and pain to prevent burn-out is a key part of your journey with IC. This week Callie interviews Amanda Grabb, a chronic illness, pain, and trauma coach. They talk about Amanda’s journey to coaching, both of their experiences with chronic illness and navigating doctors, Amanda’s approach to one-on-one coaching, and how coaching can h...

IC can happen on its own, but many people have other pelvic conditions in addition to having IC. This week, Callie talks with Dr. Heather Jeffcoat about her journey to becoming a pelvic floor PT as well as the conditions of vulvodynia and vestibulodynia that may co-occur with IC. Dr. Jeffcoat is an orthopedic and pelvic floor physical therapist, owner of Femina PT, current president of Academy of...

D-mannose is frequently recommended to reduce the risk of UTIs, but what else is it good for? Can it help with IC? In this week’s episode, Callie talks with Rochelle Stern, founder and CEO of West Coast Mint and a wellness advocate. Rochelle took her experience with IC and chronic UTIs and created a bladder-health focused website to help others with similar experiences. Rochelle and Callie discuss...

Have you ever been told to see a pelvic floor physical therapist but you’re not sure how it could benefit you? This is the episode for you! Callie chats with Ingrid Harm-Ernandes, PT, WCS, about her work as a pelvic floor physical therapist. With decades of experience, Harm-Ernandes talks about what the pelvic floor is, the connection between the pelvic floor and IC symptoms, and how pelvic floor...

In episode 37, Callie talks with Spencer Bishins, JD, former attorney advisor at the Social Security Administration. For eleven years, Spencer worked in application reviewing and decisions. Now, he has translated his experiences as the SSA into a book, Social Security Disability Revealed where he walks readers through the application process and reveals advice for making the process easier. Callie...

In this week’s episode, Callie talks to podcast host Leanna Joan about her dating disasters after getting divorced in 2016. Leanna doesn’t suffer from interstitial cystitis but she does experience other women’s health conditions like bacterial vaginosis and yeast infections. She shares a crazy dating story she experienced and how that left her vulnerable and uneasy. Leanna also talks about how her...

In today’s episode Callie talks to registered dietitian Kate Morton about her experience with the many life altering side effects of birth control. Kate talks about how after stopping birth control she experienced hormonal acne, thinning hair, cramps so bad she couldn't go to work and intense mood swings. All of these things ultimately lead her to diving into tons of research, learning the science...

In today’s episode Callie talks to Desert Harvest CEO Heather Florio about how her family business was started and how she grew into the position she is in today. They start off discussing the diagnostic process and emerging research about IC subtypes. Later in the episode, they discuss the various products Desert Harvest has created to help the interstitial cystitis community including their Supe...

We're back! In the Season 2 premiere, Callie talks to her Support Dietitian, Beverly Leveque, about Beverly's experience coming into the interstitial cystitis community with no prior knowledge of IC. Callie and Beverly also discuss why most RD's have never even heard of IC as well as some helpful tips for navigating the holiday season with IC.  Work with Callie: The IC Collective - For the IC...

Have you ever been stuck on what food to bring to a social gathering? Or maybe you bring something you can't have & then feel left out when others are enjoying it? Or you don't want to inconvenience those around you so you eat before you leave home? If any of these scenarios is relatable to you, you're in luck! I’ve been hearing so many IC Warriors struggling to find IC-friendly recipes, or ju...