Major Pain

Lauren Du Pree is a performer, singer and filmmaker, who has been living through intensely painful, widespread eczema flareups for most of her life. Eczema is a skin condition which causes patches of skin to become inflamed, itchy, cracked and discolored. While eczema affects more than 10% of the population, doctors do not understand why people like Lauren are plagued by constant chronic flareups that prove resistant to treatment.

In this episode of the Major Pain podcast, Lauren opens up about her journey searching for ways to heal her skin, including her time using topical steroids and the resulting withdrawal. She also shares what it's like being a performer with a visible health condition in an image obsessed profession.

Find Lauren's website and blog at https://www.justdupree.com

Lauren Du Pree is a performer, singer and filmmaker, who has been living through intensely painful, widespread eczema flareups for most of her life. Eczema is a skin condition which causes patches of skin to become inflamed, itchy, cracked and discolored. While eczema affects more than 10% of the population, […]

Jesse Mercury has been experiencing bizarre health symptoms on and off for most of his life. His symptoms include cognitive impairment, inability to control his arms and legs, difficulty speaking, muscle spasms, extreme fatigue and chronic pain. Throughout his life these symptoms have become increasingly severe, to the point where he is unable to hold down a job or plan for the future. Diagnostic testing consistently revealed no abnormalities, and for many years he met with constant pushback from doctors who doubted that any of these symptoms were real. Now that this mystery illness has progressed to the point that doctors are finally acknowledging it's existence, they still cannot provide any diagnosis, treatment, or recommendations on how to move forward.

In this pilot episode of the Major Pain podcast, Jesse sits down with his partner Andi Alhadeff to discuss his journey searching for a diagnosis, including the many speculative diagnoses he has received such as mold poisoning, fibromyalgia, conversion disorder and lyme disease. They discuss how this illness has impacted their relationship, and the frustrations of working through a healthcare system that is ill-equipped to deal with difficult cases.

Jesse Mercury has been experiencing bizarre health symptoms on and off for most of his life. His symptoms include cognitive impairment, inability to control his arms and legs, difficulty speaking, muscle spasms, extreme fatigue and chronic pain. Throughout his life these symptoms have become increasingly severe, to the point where […]