InvisiYouth Chat Sessions

By Gotham Production StudiosBusiness Education Self-Improvement How To Non-Profit

InvisiYouth Chat Sessions episodes

March 04, 2019Episode 16: InvisiYouth Chat Sessions with Paralympic medalist swimmer, ESPN Correspondent, author and motivational speaker, Victoria Arlen
Not every day you get to start off a video podcast asking your guest where they keep their four Paralympic medals, and how they named their memoir! But that got to be some of the many topics we chatted about with our special guest on this episode! Even better, this guest has been our Celebrity Ambassador for three years, and we are so thrilled to finally bring you this collaboration with the incredibly empowering Paralympic medalist swimmer, ESPN correspondent, author and motivational speaker, Victoria Arlen! This young woman is the embodiment of what InvisiYouth stands for: she’s fought through two rare medical conditions that left her in a vegetative state for four years “locked” inside her body and aware of her surroundings unable to communicate, she’s won four Paralympic medals, she’s discovered ways to soar with her health challenges and she’s built a platform and nonprofit that brings joy, support, love and laughter to hundreds of thousands of people. In this episode, Dominique and Victoria have so much fun chatting about how adaptive sports and fitness on any level can bring physical and mental wellness, get passionate discussing how the overused buzz-word “inspiration” can get annoying for older youth with chronic illness/disability, sift through some of Victoria’s best Instagram posts to learn the value of humor for both making others more comfortable with your health struggles but also to provide yourself with inner emotional support in the face of setbacks, dig deep into discussion on how important it is to discuss the pain and adversity of your illness/disability and not just project an upbeat façade for your community, give tips for a path of self-confidence when able-bodied people question your capability, and give so many health hacks to excelling at work, school, and hobbies when you have bad health days. Victoria totally slays this podcast as InvisiYouth’s Celebrity Ambassador, giving life advice for anyone living with chronic illness/disability on how to thrive and achieve anything you desire! This is a match made in philanthropy-heaven as two boss ladies unite in a chatty episode with so many laughs and motivation!
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1 hr 4 min
February 10, 2019Episode 15: InvisiYouth Chat Sessions with British YouTuber, National Champion Trampoliner and Quadruple Amputee, Isabelle Weall
What better way to start off Season Two of InvisiYouth Chat Sessions: A Video Podcast series than getting to chat away with a stellar and successful YouTuber who’s made a name for herself before she even turned 16! With new segments, a new visual set, and new episode format, the video podcast series is stepping it up a notch to make each episode jam-packed with lifestyle tricks, empowerment skills, and lots of laughs, so your life with any health struggle, chronic illness or disability is thrilling and fulfilling. And our first episode of the season is with a guest we’ve been fangirling over for a while, British YouTuber, National Champion trampoliner and Quadruple Amputee Isabelle Weall. At the age of 7, Izzy developed meningitis and as a result, needed to have both her arms and legs amputated. Now at 15, Izzy is a competitive trampolinist, won the 2017 Pride of Sport Young Achiever award, and runs a successful YouTube channel of over 120k subscribers! On this episode, Dominique and Izzy chat about her favorite YouTube videos, get life tips on how to boost your inner confidence and confidence to try new things--like adaptive sports, label a life playlist filled with scheduling tools, music soundtracks and disability sport opportunities, learn the history behind Izzy’s rise in YouTube, discuss how we have to continue using our platforms of all scales to remove the negative mentality behind chronic illness/disability stigmas in order to show the joys and fun of life with any health struggles, talk about the impact behind Izzy’s first TEDxTalk in America, and give tips on how to keep your power when others might stare with ‘curious eyes’ and how it’s okay for others to ask questions AND refuse to answer them. Izzy is fun, passionate, and a subtle activist, who’s hundreds of thousands of followers are learning about equality, disability capability and representation through her channel. And this episode has so much lighthearted energy and passion, you’ll be excited to see where each segment takes us from start to finish.
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1 hr 14 min
December 21, 201814: Legacy Tribute of the Wondrous Claire Wineland, with special guest, Claire’s mom and Executive Director of Claire’s Place Foundation, Melissa Yeager
"One September 2nd 2018, the world experienced the great loss of one of its most brilliant, generous and loving voices, Cystic Fibrosis activist, YouTuber, motivational speaker and founder of Claire’s Place Foundation, Claire Wineland. Over the years I launched InvisiYouth Charity, Claire and I got to know one another and begin building a friendship while working together. Claire even became one of InvisiYouth’s first Global Brand Leaders! We talked so much about what our charities could do together, what we could forge together that would empower young adults with all chronic illnesses and, as Claire would say, “thrive in life.” One of our first plans we worked on was to have Claire be a special guest on the first season of InvisiYouth Chat Sessions. But we didn’t get that chance. Losing Claire brought so many emotions to those around the world that adored her on all scales. It was an absolute fact that all of InvisiYouth and myself especially wanted to still have Claire be part of our series. I made a promise to Claire earlier this year that no matter where life took us, our friendship would continue and we’d still work together. So this episode is how we get creative to keep working with Claire. We’re going to go through some of what Claire and I were planning to discuss, and some of the topics that Claire brought the most passion to in her mission. This is a showcase of Claire’s wondrous legacy. AND I have the blessing and fortune to interview a woman who’s not only one of the people closest to Claire, but also now forever part of the InvisiYouth family and my own, the Executive Director of Claire’s Place Foundation and her greatest role of being a mom of two, Claire’s mom, Melissa Yeager. I am forever changed by having Claire in my life these past three years, and while I will forever miss her laughter, humor, warmth and empowerment. Claire’s impact will remain for hundreds of thousands of people around the world. Thank you, Claire, for truly motivating a generation to live a life they’re proud, to thrive with chronic illness/disability, and to always lead a life of love, humor and giving. This is the first of many creative collaborations in our future, Claire, and this episode is for you." ~Dominique Viel, founder of InvisiYouth Charity
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1 hr 21 min
December 12, 201813: So We’re Gonna Get Talking About Taboo Topics: with Body Positivity Activist, Burn Survivor and Motivational Speaker, Catrin Pugh
All over the media, we see actors and musicians talking about body confidence and clothing campaigns pushing body positivity…but what does that really mean if you don’t know how to become more body confident? Add onto that all the complications of being a young person with chronic illness and disability and life can get complicated. We are completely fangirling over our British guest on this InvisiYouth Chat Sessions episode because she has carved a place for herself as a stellar Body Positivity expert, it is burn survivor and motivational speaker, Catrin Pugh. Surviving an Alps coach crash five years ago which resulted in 96% burns on her body, Catrin has led a mission of celebrating scars and health challenges and bringing confidence to those who living with any physical difference. In this episode, Catrin and Dominique swipe right or left on some mainstream body positivity trends to see what’s a heck yes on Life’s Tinder, chat about the step-by-step ways anyone can challenge stigmas on health and beauty not only in their personal life but on a public activism scale, learn the story behind Catrin’s very first Instagram post with a medically-friendly selfie stick while in recovery in hospital, talk openly why an ideal world of no one reacting to physical difference should not be a focus—but rather how to respond to those that make negative comments or how to build your support safety net of family/friends when going out and trying new things, explain the rationale of why it’s okay to have unconfident days and let that feeling sit with an Adele record in the background for a short while, and create a playlist to a life of body positivity with Catrin’s must-have tools to balance health with work, musicians that lift you up or let you sit in sadness temporarily, and organize your schedule when it’s filled with schoolwork, social activities and medical necessities. This is an episode that you’ll want to take notes on from the very first minute! Catrin and Dominique bring the humor, the uplifting motivation, and the best lifestyle tips that will be able to start the steps of your body confidence journey TODAY!

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1 hr 16 min
December 05, 201812: So We’re Gonna Get Talking About Taboo Topics: with Guest, Multi-Award winner blogger, Cerebral Palsy activist, and Assistant Coordinator for CP Teens UK, Chloe Tear
Let’s face it, people tend to get into those awkward moments the second they notice you have a chronic illness or disability. Truly, it’s the metaphorical elephant in the room, and it feels taboo for most people without connections to illness/disability to talk about. This third themed-group of episodes is called “So We’re Gonna Get Talking About Taboo Topics” so we can tackle head-on all the major topics surrounding illness/disability that are often too uncomfortable for others. Our special guests from around the world have found a knack for tackling the taboo and making it mainstream. We’re so lucky our first guest is also a Global Brand Leader AND a multi-award winning blogger from Leeds, England, Chloe Tear. While being a university student, and always being an activist for others living with cerebral palsy like herself, Chloe has built a master activism style that’s all about normalizing chronic illness/disability as more than the sole identify for a person. In this episode, Chloe and Dominique break through the stigmas of interacting in the public as a young person with disability while also laying out top ways to regain control of your interactions by letting people know it’s okay to live with illness/disability, build a master toolkit to life as a young adult with health struggles that are filled with apps, tools and portable medical equipment that’ll make your daily life massively easier, examine how laughter isn’t just a motivator but also a key ingredient in advocating for yourself in public—by using Chloe’s sassy informative tweets as a guidebook—and get in deep on the ways you can keep the power living with health struggles whether you want to answer those ‘ignorantly uncomfortable’ questions about your health or you want to keep your silence to prove your confidence with your version of normality. This episode is PACKED with life tips and tricks to erasing the taboo of being a young adult with illness/disability, and making sure you are in control when those random strangers or friends stare too much or ask the occasional ‘dumb’ questions.

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1 hr 6 min
November 01, 201811: So You Got the Diagnosis…Now What: with Guest, Aspiring Accessories Designer and Disability Fashion Guru, Molly Kestenbaum
The truth of the matter is that finding a job when you have a chronic illness or disability can feel like it’s going to be a bit more challenging than for others. And let’s face it, we all have to pay the bills, so getting a job with a steady paycheck is a goal…but how do we find jobs that can adapt to our health struggles, work with colleagues that are healthy/able-bodied, and still rock our activism lives? That is all we talk about in this video podcast episode, and we are so lucky our guest is not only a Global Brand Leader for InvisiYouth, but she’s also an NYC native with mega fashion skills, Molly Kestenbaum. As an assistant jewelry designer for accessories company BaubleBar, while also looking to build her own sunglasses line, Molly uses her experience living with hearing impairments that’s resulted in her having a cochlear implant and hearing aids in order to make fashion accessible and inclusive. And Molly has gone through it all, internships, the job hunt, interviews and landing a position, so she’s ripe with information to pass along! In this episode, Molly and Dominique talk about the best talking tips when you’re asked about your illness/disability on an interview or with coworkers, the reason knowing LOTS of people get rejected on interviews can help you grow, how to find your voice in the workforce as someone with health struggles, discuss the stigmas young people with illness/disability face when looking for jobs and lay out ways to challenge those stigmas by showing your capability, fangirl over University of Oregon and Nike with our pop culture moment, advise you on the pros and cons of working with healthy/able-bodied people when your illness/disability is visible vs invisible, and highlight the guidebook essentials for getting that work-health balance, hustling for a cool resume, and finding job postings that are accessible, virtual and inclusive wherever you live. This episode is a MASTER CLASS in the motivation, true facts, tips and advice on how to find and land a job you want AND fits your needs!
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1 hr 20 min
October 19, 201810: So You Got the Diagnosis…Now What: with Guest, British Lifestyle, Fitness and Beauty Blogger, Ali Hemsley
When our nonprofit gets asked about what kinds of career paths they’d like to take, a major goal we hear is about turning those Instagram accounts and blogs into a financial income. Yes, we’re talking about professional Instgramers, YouTubers and Bloggers, the new dream career for many 21st century young adults. For those with illness/disability, blogging is a refuge and creative release to connect and learn from others, so we wanted to give out the best advice, tips and insider secrets on being a professional blogger. Our special guest is British lifestyle, fitness and beauty blogger, Ali Hemsley, has also brought awareness to invisible illness to her massive blogging community with her “What You See vs What You Don’t See” and showed beauty from the inside and out. In this episode, Ali and Dominique reveal the reasons media’s fascination with inspiration porn or Instagram-promoted health kicks are not always the best but mental health awareness jewelry should be sold everywhere, discuss the stigmas bloggers with illness/disability face and ways to break the pressures of “perfection” blogging that women tackle, establish the best life playlist for wannabe pro-bloggers with the top fashion and adaptive workout trends and tools/apps for photo editing, scheduling and blog posting, and give away some of the top secret blogger tips like talking to brand sponsors and collaborations to make that transition from a hobby to a career.

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1 hr 8 min
October 05, 20189: So You Got the Diagnosis…Now What: with Guest, British Actress and Disability Activist, Melissa Johns
After a bit of a hiatus while the InvisiYouth team wraps up building another NEW VIRTUAL PROGRAM, we got Dominique back in the studio for another episode in our career-finding guidebook theme. We know the drama arts is an interest for the illness/disability community, and many of the InvisiYouth family live with physical difference, so we wanted a guest expert that knows a thing or two about body positivity and fighting stigmas on disability. So…we got our Celebrity Ambassador, the stellar British actress and disability activist, Melissa Johns. She’s had TV roles like Imogen Pascoe on ITV’s British Soap, Coronation Street, to her current stage role of Emilia in OthelloMacbeth at London’s Lyric Hammersmith. Born without her right hand and forearm, Melissa has lots of perspectives on getting into the acting industry, being a drama teacher, and cofounding a drama workshops nonprofit, TripleC, which enhances lives of people with disabilities. In this episode, Melissa and Dominique chat all about the misconceptions of being an actor with illness/disability and how to “read a room” instead of judging first impressions, build a list of tools anyone can add like to-go snacks, workouts, and organizer diaries if you want to be a balanced working actor, examine the vital reasons accurate casting and frequent representation of illness and disability on TV/film will improve society’s openness, and give away the best advice on maintaining confidence as an actor when between jobs and working with a diverse group of people.
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1 hr 4 min
August 31, 20188: So You Got the Diagnosis…Now What: with Guest, CEO and Co-Founder of Mighty Well, Emily Levy
With our second episode in the career-finding guidebook of this themed-group, the focus goes right to entrepreneurship, and all of you young adults that want to build your own businesses. Because really…who could make a better understanding supervisor about balancing work and health struggles than you as the boss? And this episode gets to be fun for two reasons: our special guest is in-studio, AND like our founder, she’s a fellow #bosslady friend named Emily Levy. As the CEO of Mighty Well, a line of fashionably functional medical accessories, Emily as learned the ropes of building a company while also balancing her Neurological Lyme Disease, and she’s only 24 years old. In this episode, Dominique and Emily talk about the best health hacks of organizing that work and medical schedule—with lots of timer-reminders and color-coordination, the differences between going solo vs having co-founders when you are an owner with illness, how to chat up AND rock your spoonie boss status with those questioning how you can “do it all” with illness/disability, the powers behind inclusive representation in hiring anyone from employees to interns and volunteers that have all sorts of illnesses, and giving out tips on how to take your passions to motivate your work when you’re having back health days—whether that’s having a back-up plan of working from bed, or building days of rest into the company schedule. It’s a girl power episode with #InvisiYouth today, and it’s one that’s jam-packed with fun and facts till the very last second.
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45 min
August 13, 20187: So You Got the Diagnosis…Now What: with Guest, Actor, Author, and Philanthropist, Travis Flores (air date: Friday, August 10th)
We get asked all the time what are the best careers, the how to’s on choosing a university, picking a major, or choosing a job, because living with an illness/disability makes that selection unique to others. This second themed-group of episodes is called “So You Got that Diagnosis…Now What” and for the next six episodes, we’ll feature special guests that have built exceptional careers all while living with illness and disability. We’re so lucky our first guest is award-winning children’s book author, actor, philanthropist, and motivational speaker, Travis Flores. He uses his life experience as a cystic fibrosis warrior who’s also received two double lung transplants in his 27 years of life to advocate for inclusivity in the workforce, and diverse casting in Hollywood. In this episode, Travis and Dominique go through the hot headlines like Aerie clothing brand’s decision to hire disabled models in its new campaign, discuss the power of being selective and saying “No” with different job offers, knowing that to break the stigmas in acting, you’ve got to know that people with illnesses/disabilities have the strongest will and work ethic and should represent themselves on screen, and that a medically adult-ish guidebook to building up that resume has got to include volunteering and internships that are both virtual and creative, so it can adapt to your health. Plus…stay to the end of the episode where Travis exclusively announces new project that will make you feel the feels for a new ‘binge TV’ goal.
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1 hr 11 min

About InvisiYouth Chat Sessions

From the publisher's feed

Check in for a dose of stigma-break, humor-filling, empowerment building life hacks and motivation for all the “medically-adult-ish” young people. The InvisiYouth Chat Sessions, is part of…