Tammy went on a journey to find her diagnosis: Primary Hyperparathyroidism. Countless doctors, tests, misdiagnoses, and so many pills it made her head spin. After all the turmoil, she found her diagnosis, got treatment, and is living a great life today running again.

Key Takeaways:

[2:01] Finding out I have high blood pressure again and again 

[3:53] The beginning of taking medication after medication 

[9:48] Low potassium, terrible migraines, and horrid edema

[12:40] Doing a mind/body program for high blood pressure

[18:56] Being diagnosed with colitis and ovarian abscess 

[20:11] Being told I have a tumor on my adrenal gland and little syndrome

[23:36] Getting the tumor removed: my life changed 

[29:11] Writing a book on my experiences 

[32:05] Entering a contest on a whim and winning! 

[35:47] Don’t stop advocating for your health

Resources:

• Misdiagnosed For Miles

• Millenium Running Club 

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Eleanor joins me again to discuss our new relative: how we found her and the mix of emotions surrounding it. Excited, nervous, and a lot of feelings over the memory of our brother Jeffery. Finding out our deceased brother had a child who will never get to know him is another twist in our lives. 

Key Takeaways:

[4:45] A woman reached out asking if we were related

[7:46] Feeling intimidated, excited, selfish, and seeing my assumptions debunked 

[9:26] Finding Jeffery’s child felt so important because he’s dead 

[10:48] Protecting the memory of Jeffrey and the news

[13:11] Finding out my dad wasn’t my dad was traumatic

[17:11] Niece’s family support and what her life was like growing up 

[18:12] The similarities between us and what we’ll give her as a person

[21:20] Jeffery’s traumatic brain injury

[23:51] Visiting Jeff in Happy Valley

[25:29] It takes a village to welcome someone new 

[28:36] Exploring new things and facing my fears 

Resources:

• Eleanor’s past episode 

• NPE Podcast 

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Kelsey is the amazing woman who supplied me donor milk when Jack was young. This concept didn’t exist when I was younger and I’m so glad this option does now. It’s a great opportunity to connect with other moms, get advice, and have support to breastfeed and not use formula if that’s what you choose. 

Key Takeaways:

[1:47] Nursing all my kids to older ages and using donor milk 

[11:55] I nurse in public and criticism I’ve received 

[15:11] Using donor milk and great groups that support breastfeeding 

[20:31] Just nursing one child now and the feelings that come with it 

[23:06] My favorite memory nursing and having painful mastitis 

[28:58] Funniest memory nursing and a memory Barb’s track team never forgot 

[32:06] Advocate for yourself and find a IBCLC Consultant 

[33:39] Nurses giving the wrong information on breastfeeding 

Resources:

• Human Milk for Human Babies 

• The New Hampshire Breastfeeding Support Group 

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As I give out MollyB awards and receive an award of my own, I reflect on what I’m doing in my life, how I’m working towards my goals, what my priorities are, and how I am adjusting to my life which is changing rapidly. 

Key Takeaways:

[1:09] Life still carries on even if Molly is dead 

[3:04] The story of Fanny Minot the person who I received the award in honor of 

[8:36] Matt Bonner: a famous basketball player who also received the award 

[9:43] Adversity in life, finding someone to blame, and looking at yourself 

[11:52] Not fixating on the result as a measure of success

[12:36] You have to work hard all the time, you can’t just wish for it

[13:48] Comparing yourself to others makes no sense 

[15:47] You are as sick as the secrets you keep and self sabotage 

[19:02] I want to go deeper into stories and not shy away from them 

[22:02] Having to adjust to my life changing 

Resources:

• Matt and I’s speeches 

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Jenn is a mortician who turned her life around. After dropping out of high school and working a low paying job that made caring for her children different she met her wonderful husband and got her GED. But when she got into her forties, she felt like she needed to do something for herself. So what did she do? Go to mortuary school, of course. 

Key Takeaways:

[2:05] Dropping out of high school, but then changing my life in my forties

[6:40] Getting diagnosed with ADHD and how that helped me succeed 

[9:15] How I got into mortuary school and what my classes are like

[14:46] People going to mortuary school because it’s “goth and cool”

[17:23] The job is about compassion and having a lot of people skills 

[20:33] My hardest classes, my internships, and the amazing story of how I got my job 

[24:57] What school didn’t prepare me for and the hardest part of my job 

[28:47] My favorite part is doing body removals because I get to know the person’s life

[34:05] What my schedule looks like and my advice for people wanting to do the job 

[36:18] Going to mortuary school is the best thing I ever did, even when I wanted to quit

[41:08] This job has been life changing to me 

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I’m tired of people telling me how to feel, how to grieve, when to grieve, and for how long. Many people project their emotions because they’re uncomfortable, but sometimes people just need to sit in grief and not have it minimized. 

Key Takeaways:

[0:44] Stop telling me how to grieve and projecting your emotions 

[2:27] The memory chair 

[11:51] Minimizing grief and the advice people give 

[19:11] Being part of a Heart Warriors group and realizing I do belong 

[20:56] Being understood in my grief and cleaning out the closet

[24:59] Think about what you’re saying to people 

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There has been drama in my town because the prom has been moved locations. This had me reminisce about my own prom, the things others remembered, the history of the prom in my town, and how it should be about bringing the community together. 

Key Takeaways:

[1:45] The drama with the prom

[3:27] What I remember about my prom 

[9:21] The prom moved to a few key locations, but it’s kept shifting 

[17:30] The history of the prom in my town 

[20:05] My message to the kids who prom got moved 

[23:32] What I think should happen with the future of the prom 

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Brenda has achondroplasia, a genetic condition which impacts her bones, but she doesn’t let it stop her from living an ordinary life. She talks about how it impacts her day to day, all the businesses she’s owned, and how she’s never know anything else so she doesn’t feel that different. 

Key Takeaways:

[0:43] Brenda’s condition and how it impacts the body 

[6:00] A controversial treatment 

[9:09] Brenda’s childhood 

[14:52] Chronic pain, the jobs she’s had, and how it impacts her day to day life 

[22:12] Being an older mom, having a normal life, and being kind

[26:44] I’m not disabled 

Resources:

• Little People of America

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When I met Marty in high school, I didn’t know it would lead to a decades long friendship, but here we are. We got together to discuss running at Boston College, the drama that came with it, what new sports Marty has discovered, and how our life has changed as we age. 

Key Takeaways:

[0:43] How I met Marty: be beating her in a race 

[4:18] A love hate relationship, what unified us, and how we went to college together  

[12:09] The trauma so many of us runners shared 

[19:27] Marti moved and started a company, but then got injured 

[23:28] Becoming a competitive cyclist and reconnecting on social media 

[29:48] Finding a home in Arizona and the biking community there 

[39:21] Contemplating old age and the stage of my life 

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My friend Tim, is an extraordinary person who advocated for himself to get a kidney transplant - from a pig. With the help from his wife Karen, he prepared himself for the transplant, recovered, and is now living a better quality life. Although it is only a gap until he can receive a human kidney, it has helped give him and others on dialysis hope. 

Key Takeaways:

[1:15] Tim’s kidney failure rapidly progressed

[4:18] Tim put himself in the program to get a pig’s kidney 

[8:02] He wanted to quit dialysis, his recovery process, and what’s changed

[13:26] The anti-rejection meds have their ups and downs 

[15:55] This transplant is just a bridge to a human kidney transplant 

[17:26] Karen, Tim’s wife’s, experience going through this 

[19:33] Having no social life and people not wanting to talk about death 

[21:17] Watching friends die, but finding hope and more time to live 

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