The SwagAbility Show -With Stephen Wagstaff

What happens when your body stops supporting the life you imagined? In this deeply honest episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen Wagstaff sits down with psychologist and chronic illness expert Dr. Jeff Bone, a man who spent decades helping others navigate chronic pain—before finding himself living through the very struggle he had spent his career treating. After becoming chronically ill himself,...

In this inspiring episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen Wagstaff sits down with former Silicon Valley CEO Nancy Deyo to explore an extraordinary journey of resilience. After years of success leading in the corporate world, Nancy's life changed forever following an injury while climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. What followed was nearly fifteen years of chronic pain, countless medical appointments, opi...

She Lost Her Son… Then God Met Her in the Grief On January 1, 2019, Lisa Espinoza's life changed forever when her youngest son, Chandler, suffered a traumatic brain injury and passed away. No parent ever expects to face that kind of loss. In this deeply moving episode of The SwagAbility Show, Lisa shares her journey through unimaginable grief, how faith sustained her when nothing made sense, and w...

Have you ever been surrounded by people and still felt invisible? In this powerful conversation, Stephen Wagstaff sits down with relationship expert, counselor, and disability advocate Cathy O'Connell to explore one of the deepest human needs we all share: the desire to be truly seen, known, and loved. Together they discuss disability, dating, vulnerability, belonging, authentic connection, identi...

What happens when your spouse is diagnosed with cancer, financial pressure is mounting, and it feels like everything you've worked for is slipping away? In this powerful episode of The SwagAbility Show, Dick King shares his remarkable story of faith, resilience, and perseverance through one of the most difficult seasons of his life. From infertility struggles and overwhelming financial challenges...

70% of Americans live with at least one chronic condition. But almost nobody talks about what chronic illness can do to a marriage, a family, or the emotional connection between two people trying to survive it together. In this deeply honest and emotionally important episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen sits down with psychotherapist and author Lisa Gray to discuss the hidden emotional toll ch...

Football has long focused on protecting the head. But what about the vulnerable area just below the helmet? In this episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen sits down with Brian Williams to discuss the TriAxis football safety invention — an innovation designed to help reduce devastating cervical neck injuries in football before lives are changed forever. CHAPTERS 00:00 – The hidden danger below th...

The Weight Of Being Unwanted What does it feel like to carry the belief that you were never meant to be chosen? In this deeply honest conversation, we unpack the silent weight so many people carry — rejection, identity, and the search for worth in a world that often overlooks pain. This episode isn’t just about being unwanted… it’s about what happens when you decide your story still matters anyway...

What if something as simple as playing a video game was taken away from you? For millions of people living with disabilities, that’s the reality. In this powerful episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen sits down with Zach Runyan from AbleGamers, an organization dedicated to making gaming accessible for everyone—regardless of physical limitations. After losing access to gaming himself, Stephen sh...

What if the thing you thought would break your life became the very thing that gave it meaning? In this episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen Wagstaff sits down with Patti Bevilacqua for a powerful conversation about mindset, resilience, identity, and purpose. Patti was a young athlete, valedictorian, and new physical education teacher when she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at just 22 y...

At one point, he was at the top of his game. Ranked, focused, and doing what he loved. And then… everything changed. In this conversation, Tim Malm shares the journey from life in the rodeo arena to a moment that forced him to confront something far bigger than competition. This isn’t just a story about sports. It’s about resilience. Identity. And what happens when life strips everything familiar...

For a lot of people, coffee isn’t just a drink—it’s a ritual. A routine. A daily necessity. So what happens when you walk away from it? In this conversation, Steve Frazier shares what led him to break that habit, what he discovered on the other side, and why something so normalized might not be as harmless as we think. This isn’t about extremes or quick fixes. It’s about awareness… and understandi...

What if the foundation of your health wasn’t as complicated as you’ve been told? In this conversation, Dr. Paul breaks down something most of us overlook—how the quality of the water we drink affects how our bodies function, recover, and heal. Not from a trend perspective…but from a physiological one. We talk about hydration at a deeper level—what’s actually happening inside the body, why so many...

What happens when real-world experience turns into something you can hold in your hand? In this episode, we hear the story behind the Nulu Knife — a product built not in theory, but through lived experience. FOLLOW PODCAST From military service to innovation, this conversation with Doug Kratz explores how discipline, problem-solving, and firsthand challenges led to the creation of something practi...

He had the opportunity. The future. The scholarship. And then… everything changed. In this episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen sits down with Hakeem to talk about what happens when life takes a turn you never saw coming. From athletic promise to unexpected setbacks, Hakeem shares how his journey didn’t end when things fell apart — it began. This is a story about losing direction… and finding...

She could have quit… but she didn’t. In this episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen sits down with Julie Barth to explore what it really means to keep going when life gets difficult. Julie shares her journey through adversity, the mindset that helped her push forward, and how resilience is built one decision at a time. This conversation is for anyone who has ever felt like giving up — and needed...

Have you ever noticed how people lower their voice when they say the word disability? As if it’s something fragile… something to fix… something to avoid. But what if disability isn’t a limitation at all? In this episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen sits down with Jenna Udenberg, founder of Above and Beyond With You, to challenge the way we think about disability, accessibility, and inclusion....

What does it take to go from playing guitar in a dive bar… to negotiating stadium naming rights inside the NFL? In this powerful episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen Wagstaff sits down with Megha Perik, Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer for the Jacksonville Jaguars. A Harvard-educated leader operating at the highest level of professional sports, Megha’s career is nothing short o...

What happens when your brain begins to fail you—and no one can explain why? In this episode of The SwagAbility Show, Stephen Wagstaff sits down with Rob Renee to explore the deeply personal journey of facing cognitive decline, neurological dysfunction, and the fear surrounding conditions like dementia. After experiencing severe brain health challenges, Rob refused to accept a future defined by dec...

Every year, more people are injured in their own homes than in car accidents. Not because they’re careless. Not because they’re clumsy. But because most homes were never designed with accessibility in mind. In this episode of The SwagAbility Show, host Stephen Wagstaff sits down with Greg Cantori, founder of Little Deeds, to talk about the hidden dangers inside everyday homes and what we can do to...

More than 50 million Americans live with chronic pain, and back pain remains the number one cause of disability worldwide. Even more alarming, one in four patients prescribed opioids for chronic pain struggles with addiction. Stephen Wagstaff sits down with Dr. Alex Halario, founder of Chiropractic Rehabilitation Source in Yonkers, New York, to discuss the growing epidemic of chronic pain and the...

One moment can change everything. At just 20 years old, Ken Kunken was a college football player at Cornell University with a bright future ahead of him. But during a game on October 31, 1970, a devastating spinal cord injury left him paralyzed from the neck down. Most people would have believed life as they knew it was over. Ken chose a different path. In this powerful conversation on The SwagAbi...

For some, rock bottom is a metaphor. For Andrew Drasen, it was a jail cell. After seven felonies, eight treatment programs, and a near-fatal overdose, Andrew’s life looked beyond repair. What followed wasn’t just sobriety — it was transformation. In this powerful conversation on The SwagAbility Show, Andrew shares the unfiltered truth about addiction, incarceration, identity, personal responsibili...

What if the ability to text, run a business, surf the internet—or even play Xbox—could be restored using nothing more than your breath? For individuals living with high-level spinal cord injuries, even the smallest daily tasks can become overwhelming barriers to independence. But today’s episode introduces a life-changing innovation that is redefining what autonomy looks like for people with limit...

Nicholas "Nick" Akosa wasn’t just placed on life support — he was placed on ECMO, one of the most advanced and invasive life support systems used when the body can no longer sustain life on its own. After being put into a medically induced coma due to an unknown illness, his future was uncertain. Today, he’s stepped into the ring as a champion amateur boxer — and is also working as a world-class s...