Chronically Living and how to make the most of it

This week my guest, Melanie Weller, shares with us how she as a physical therapist treats the vagus nerve to give her patients both physical and emotional pain relief. This episode contains an experiential segment, to help get you started on this journey.
In this episode we discuss:

• what the vagus nerve is 
• how the vagus nerve affects autoimmune disease and chronic pain
• storytelling to treat the vagus nerve
• physical exercises to treat the vagus nerve

Trigger Warning: mentions of suicidal ideation.

Guest Bio:
Melanie Weller is a Medical Visionary with a paradigm-shifting process to access genius, health, and flow in your body and business using the vagus nerve as a portal to health, growth, and success. Melanie brings over 25 years of experience to her leading-edge systems where she leverages vagus nerve principles for visionary development, performance enhancement, and fine-tuning genius. Melanie is a Physical Therapist, Board-Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist, Certified Athletic Trainer, and Certified Exercise Expert for Aging Adults, and co-authored a sleep course for continuing education credits for the American Physical Therapy Association.
Website: melanieweller.com
Instagram & Twitter: @embodyyourstar

Follow the show on Instagram @chronically.living_
Support the show on Patreon for bonus perks, including a portion of this interview only available to Patrons!

Externalizing language is a concept often used in narrative therapy, and is a way of creating distance between ourselves and our illness(es). There is a lot of research that supports how we think and talk about our illnesses affects our perceived ability to control them, and our overall quality of life and wellbeing.
In this episode we discuss:

• mental health and chronic illness
• what externalizing language is
• how language affects us
• how to use externalizing language

Tag me on Instagram @chronically.living_ with your thoughts and takeaways from this week's episode.
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Craniofacial pain includes TMJ disorders, migraines, headaches, neck pain, trigeminal neuralgia, and more and is quite common. TMJ disorders alone affect 5-12% of the population. But how can we treat them? This week, Dr. Dave Shirazi shares his expertise in this area, with a holistic approach to dentistry and craniofacial pain.
In this episode we talk about:

• the different craniofacial pain disorders
• traditional treatment methods
• holistic approaches to treatment
• using the observer self or meta position to look at our own pain

Support the show:

Guest Bio:
Dr. Shirazi graduated from Howard University College of Dentistry, in Washington D.C. in 2000 and earned a Masters degree in Oriental Medicine from SAMRA University in 2006 and is also a board licensed Acupuncturist.  He has completed over 2000 hours of continuing education in TMD and facial pain, craniomandibular orthopedics, and sleep disordered breathing.  He has also completed a hospital mini-residency in oriental medicine at the China Beijing International Acupuncture Training Centre which is the only organization the World Health Organization (WHO) has authorized to teach internationally on acupuncture and herbology, and another at Kyung Hee University and Medical Center, the top medical hospital and medical research school in Korea. In 2011 through 2016, he became a board licensed RPSGT, the first and so far only, dual degreed dentist and RPSGT.  He is the founder of the Bite, Breathe and Balance study group, dedicated to the multidisciplinary approach to treating craniofacial pain and sleep disorders. Dr. Shirazi is the director of state of the art private practices, The TMJ and Sleep Therapy Centre of Conejo Valley and Los Angeles, that is limited to the treatment of TMD, craniofacial pain, Sleep breathing disorders, and craniomandibular orthopedics.  His practice is part of the TMJ and Sleep Therapy Centre international family, one of over 60 Centres throughout the world, and is located in the beautiful hills of Thousand Oaks, Brentwood CA.  Personally, Dr. Shirazi enjoys hiking and camping in the state parks, traveling, and speaking.  He is married to the love of his life Kimberly Shirazi, and have welcomed their first born, Maximus. They live in the Santa Monica Mountains, where all are very close to nature.
http://www.sleepconejo.com/index/index.php
https://tmjtherapycentre.com/

Season 2 kicks off with my guest, performing artist, Sarah Luby, and our discussion about what it's like to have an invisible illness. Sarah has not one, but two invisible illnesses and yet that is not stopping her from living her dream, instead it inspired her to help others through the power of song. 
In this episode we discuss:

• what it's like to have an invisible illness
• why Sarah decided to advocate for the community through song
• what Sarah has found to be most helpful in dealing with her illnesses on a daily basis
• how Sarah looks to the future

Guest Bio:
An award-winning vocalist, Sarah Luby is known for her work in both theatre and film. She is a graduate of the Desautels Faculty of Music with a BMus in Vocal Performance. In May of 2021, Sarah completed RMTC’s Inaugural National Mentorship with David Connolly (Associate Artistic Director of Drayton Entertainment) with a focus on Disability Representation in the Arts. Sarah has appeared on stages such as RB Stage, WSO, MB Opera, and can be seen as Tracy Bennet on Lifetime’s “Let’s Meet Again on Christmas Eve” and Natalie Cross on CBC’s “Burden of Truth”. Sarah is an Ambassador for the Invisible Disabilities Association, bringing awareness, education and visibility to Invisible Disabilities. You can hear her debut single “INVISIBLE”, out now!
Follow Sarah on Instagram @sarah_luby14
Check out her website: www.sarahvluby.com
And don't forget to download Invisible.

Follow the show on Instagram @chronically.living_
Support the show on Patreon. Spoonie and Warrior Tier members will get an extended version of the song Invisible to listen to as well as additional commentary on the episode.

Sign up for the exclusive Instacart offer by following this link.

Original music by Nicole Skura.
Original artwork by Charity Williams.

This season is going to feel like a whole new show, but in a really good way.
On Chronically Living and how to make the most of it, we are:

• giving tangible takeaways to improve quality of life for Spoonies
• by looking at holistic approaches to go along with traditional medicine

Season starts June 28, 2021

In this re-release of episode 5, in this season break I'm calling Flash From the Past, Queenie Wu shares with us all the amazing things pelvic floor physio can do, and gives us ideas for what we can do at home to improve our pelvic floors and overall health, if we can't get to a physiotherapist right away.
In this episode we talk about:

• what pelvic floor physio is
• what conditions can benefit (hint: menstrual cramps, pregnancy, prostate cancer, endometriosis)
• at home tips for chronic health problems

Guest Bio:
Queenie is a pelvic health and orthopaedic physiotherapist who received her Master of Science in Physical Therapy from the University of Toronto after completing her undergraduate studies with honours and high distinction at the University of Toronto (in psychology and human biology). She is also a certified clinical hypnotist and holds a Status-Only Appointment (lecturer ranking) with the Department of Physical Therapy at the University of Toronto.

In addition to her clinical work, Queenie promotes mindful movement and living as a social media influencer (find @QueeniePhysio on Instagram, YouTube or any other platform) through educational posts and video content on physiotherapy, mind-body wellness, stress management and more. She serves as a speaker at wellness workshops, conferences and various university panels. She is also a lead facilitator for the Interfaculty Pain Curriculum at the University of Toronto, which is an integrated and interdisciplinary pain curriculum for all pre-licensure health science students.

More information about Queenie can be found on her website https://Queeniephysio.com/ and her Instagram/YouTube/Facebook/Twitter channels @QueeniePhysio. Her clinical practice is located in Cloud Rehab and Wellness in Toronto, Canada.

For the Amphy gift card head to www.amphy.com/gift/chronic
To sign up for Instacart head to instacart.oloiyb.net/chronicallyliving

In this Flash from the Past episode, a between seasons re-release of Episode 3, my friend Katie James shares her journey with psoriatic arthritis, and how she got to a place where she's living an amazing life, despite flare-ups from her illness. 
In this episode we talk about:

• Her diagnostic journey
• how it's affected her health and mental health
• what she's doing now to live an amazing life
• how determination, and a passion for creativity have helped her.

Follow Katie's artwork on Instagram @iamkatiejames

To sign up for Discover Somatics in 30 Days from Move Deeply Wellness (and get 20% off the course) visit www.movedeeply.com/discover and use the promo code: HEAL

New episodes of Chronically Living will return June 28.

My guest this week is Tania Clarke, the founder of Move Deeply Wellness, who is here to share with us the benefits that movement can have for everyone, including those of us with chronic illness. 
In this episode we talk about:

• clinical somatics
• Move Deeply Wellness
• different reflexes
• how movement can help you

Guest Bio:
Tania Clarke's personal journey through years of chronic shoulder pain brought her to restorative movement education. She is dedicated to helping her clients tune into their bodies and unravel their persistent tension and pain, through gentle, methodical movement.
Tania is a Level 2 Certified Somatic Exercise Instructor. She has trained as a yoga, fitness and Pilates instructor and is always experimenting with movement. She believes a diverse movement practice is one of the best routes to a long, happy life, and is here to help others find their own passion for movement.
Her online business, Move Deeply Wellness, is committed to creating restorative movement education accessible online, with accountability tools and regular inspiration to help students stick with their practice and make it a life-long habit.

Check out here website: Move Deeply Wellness
Follow her on Instagram @MoveDeeplyWellness
and on FaceBook: Move Deeply

We're diving a little deeper into the mind-body connection, how it helps with chronic illness and chronic pain, and what are some things we can do to improve all aspects of our health!
In this episode we talk about:

• what the mind-body connection is
• research into the brain and brain regions
• mind-body interventions for chronic pain and chronic illness
• treating all parts of yourself, not just your physical illness

Follow me on Instagram @janeversuspain, on Twitter @janevspain, on Facebook @janeversuspain.
My YouTube Channel: Kelsey L Harris Meditations
Blog: janeversupain.com

This week my guest is, Elisabeth,  the founder of Brain-Based Wellness. We talk about the importance of functional neurology when it comes to health, mental health and overall wellness.
In this episode we talk about:

• functional neurology
• what Brain-Based Wellness offers
• how this approach can help chronic illness warriors

Guest Bio:
Elisabeth Kristof is an expert in using applied neurology to move people out of pain, unwanted behavior and stress response. She is the founder of Brain-Based Wellness, a revolutionary online platform that trains the nervous system and body to resolve old patterns, improve performance and increase well-being. Elisabeth is a certified applied neurology practitioner who has been in the fitness and movement industry since 2007. She works with entrepreneurs, athletes, leaders and creatives to improve resilience, manage stress and regulate emotions through intentional, science-based brain training. Her research and work with hundreds of clients taught her that healing and change must occur in both the body and the mind, that each body, mind, and nervous system is unique, and most importantly, that with the right tools, we are all capable of healing.
Follow her on Instagram @elikristof
Check out: https://brainbased-wellness.com/