Lessons We Didn't Learn in Med School

Well, we might have learned something about menopause but really, all that Beth and Kara can recall at this point is that it is the time when women stop having periods and some people have hot flashes. 

Well, there is so much more! 

We are delighted to have a menopause expert (and repeat guest! See episode 10) on the show. Dr. Susan Baumgaertel, MD. Dr. Baumgaertel is an internal medicine physician with over 30 years of experience. 

Yes, we will talk about hormones and should people take them or not, but Susan offers us much more. She guides us through understanding this transition in life that lasts for many years. There is a mourning that takes place in this time, but also wisdom to be gained. 

Women's health is often ignored, shrouded in mystery and can be incorrect. Join us as we offer information, lived experience and a community to talk about these issues. 

She has written the book The Menopause Menu which is available on Amazon. 

https://a.co/d/crfqwz2

Find out more about her here:

https://www.menopausemenu.com/about/susan-j-baumgaertel/

Have you ever felt invisible? Have you ever gone to the doctor with complaints of not feeling well only to be dismissed by them? Do you or a loved one have a diagnosed or suspected autoimmune disease? 

On this episode, we welcome our guest Melissa Marquis, M.S., R.N., a nurse turned patient who shares her journey of perseverance and advocacy. 

It took over twelve years for Melissa Marquis to receive medical diagnoses for the multiple complex symptoms plaguing her. She credits her clinical expertise with providing an unmatched understanding on navigating the health-care system to obtain necessary care over her fifteen-year history of living with progressive, chronic, and rare autoimmune diseases. 

In her book, Invisible: A Nurse-Turned-Patient's Resource to Living Well with Autoimmune Disease, Melissa provides her medical and nursing expertise by explaining some of the numerous autoimmune diseases and their symptoms, common testing (and what they mean), treatment options, as well as resources and practical tips to have a well-balanced and well-lived life while living with autoimmune disease.

Let's get to know our hosts a bit more. Dr. Kara Wada, MD is a board certified Allergy Immunologist. She also has Sjogren's disease. Did you know that Sjogren's affects about 1 in 100 people? Many of them are undiagnosed and suffer with chronic symptoms. 30-40% of the time, lab tests are normal. 

Listen here as Kara teaches us lessons as both a doctor and patient living with the disease. 

In this episode, we are joined by Susan J. Baumgaertel, MD. Dr. Baumgaertel is an internal medicine physician with over 30 years of experience. She is also a patient and has had rheumatoid arthritis for over 24 years. 

In her clinical practice, she often recognized that patients needed assistance with navigating the increasingly challenging medical arena. She stepped away from direct patient care in 2021 and founded MyMDadvocate.com in early 2022. Dr. Baumgaertel now serves as a physician consultant, healthcare navigator, personal coach and medical advocate.

As a patient and as a physician, she has a lesson to share with us. She tells us, “I help people navigate medical systems by speaking about ways to work effectively with their healthcare team and advocating for individualized care.”

Her three takeaway life lessons:

1. Making an autoimmune diagnosis is typically a marathon, not a sprint.

2. Autoimmune disease validation comes in many, often surprising, forms.

3. Diagnoses can morph over time, and the “moving target” scenario can be fatiguing.

We hope that when you listen to this podcast you will feel like you are not alone, you are validated in your symptoms, and you can take a breath and try to gain patience with the medical process of diagnosis. 

There is a rift between patients and the traditional healthcare system that we call medicine in the U.S. We feel it on both sides. Why? Well, we don't know but we DO know that we need to start talking about it. 

Listen here as we start brainstorming what is happening with this relationship. 

Do you have thoughts on it? We would love to hear them. Comment on this post on our instagram @beyondthediagnosispodcast

I wanted to make a podcast episode for my friends, family, anyone with Scleroderma, anyone who knows someone with ANY autoimmune disease really. 

Rather than talk about what Scleroderma IS, I wanted to talk about what it FEELS LIKE to live in my body. To humanize the experience. I do that not for sympathy, but for understanding. 

This is MY experience and these are MY thoughts. They won't be the same for everyone-- or really anyone since they are mine. Still, I hope they resonate with you and make you feel seen and heard and that there is a community here for you. 

Have you or someone you know been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease? What does that mean? How is it treated?

We often think about Rheumatoid Arthritis, Multiple Sclerosis and Lupus as autoimmune diseases. Yet, there are many other very common diseases that are in fact, autoimmune diseases. 

Celiac disease, Type 1 diabetes and Hashimoto's disease which is the number one cause of hypothyroid disease. 

What do they all have in common? A misbehaving immune system. Join us as we walk you though autoimmune disease 101. 

Where did the idea for Lessons We Didn't Learn in Medical School come from? We are dedicated We Can Do Hard Things listeners here. This podcast means so much to us. By listening to them, something inside us was sparked.

Listen here as Beth sends a "love podcast" (rather than love letter) to Glennon, Abby and Amanda and the We Can Do Hard Things pod and the podsquad. You all mean so much to us. We love you. Happy Valentines day.

Join us for this episode with my dear colleague and medical school friend Dr. Jessie Turnbull M.D., M.A. She is a Pediatric Critical Care Medicine Physician and also trained in Clinical Bioethics. She is the founder of Burning Bright MD, life coaching for women physicians.

Female physicians are the elite caregivers. As people who give, give, give are the most at risk for burnout. Hear how Jessie went from a burned out physician herself to becoming a person who coaches burned out physicians. Go from burned out to "burning bright" with us. 

I love that Jessie is a coach who has played the game a long time and has wisdom to share. What is a coach? Who needs one? How is coaching different from therapy or mentorship?

Bonus, if you are a trainee or have limited resources, Jessie offers FREE and also sliding scale coaching for you. 

Find out more about Jessie here:

https://www.burningbrightmd.com/about

Join us here as we talk about Kara's story of being diagnosed with Sjogren's syndrome. The struggle to get a diagnosis is real- even for doctors. She speaks about being the "interesting patient", believing yourself and advocating for your healthcare. 

Turning pain into purpose has been her mission for both herself, for her patients and now for you.