Reimagining Life Podcast: from Pain to Purpose

Reimagining Life Podcast: from Pain to Purpose

By Reimagining Life PodcastHealth & Fitness
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Reimagining Life Podcast: from Pain to Purpose episodes

  • Ep. 13: Reimagining the World of Work: Empowering Changemakers with Dr. Kirk Adams

    In this episode, we welcome Dr. Kirk Adams, a visionary leader and advocate for disability inclusion. Dr. Adams shares his journey as a blind individual and highlights the importance of creating environments that accommodate diverse abilities.

    Emphasizing his upbringing and the crucial factors that led to his success, such as strong blindness skills, high expectations, and internal locus of control, Dr. Adams illustrated the transformative power of support, education, and access to tools for adaptation.

    His work in demonstrating the benefits of hiring individuals with disabilities and pioneering projects to empower blind individuals in cybersecurity showcases his commitment to creating meaningful career opportunities.

    Dr. Adams discusses the very low employment rates for people who are blind (35%) and talks about breaking glass ceilings, such as when he became the first blind head of American Foundation for the Blind. Most organizations developed to help blind people are headed by sighted people, which Dr. Adams seeks to change.

    Dr. Adams' unwavering dedication and calm yet resolute demeanor position him as a true changemaker, reshaping the narrative around disability and inspiring a more inclusive future.

    Join us to learn about Dr. Adams' incredible journey and how his leadership is redefining the landscape of opportunity for individuals of all abilities.

    For interviewee bio and full transcript click here

    48 min
  • Ep. 12: The Power of Perspective: Learning to Live as a Blind Adult

    Welcome to episode 12. In this episode, we have the privilege of speaking with Lois Strachan, who, despite facing incredible adversity, has become a beacon of strength, resilience, and empowerment. At the age of 21, Lois lost her sight and became  blind due to the side effects of diabetes, completely altering her life.

    Lois, shares her personal journey of adjusting to life as a blind individual. She is very open about the challenges she faced and the various hurdles she had to work through along the way.

    Through her story, Lois sheds light on the resilience that defined her journey. Lois offers valuable insights into how she embraced her blindness, discovered renewed purpose, and created a meaningful life filled with joy and fulfillment. Her experiences and lessons are both enlightening and uplifting, serving as an inspiration for anyone facing their own difficulties or working to understand the experiences of others living with disabilities.

    Join us as we delve into Lois’s  story, exploring her triumphs, successes, and the impact of her work as an advocate, coach, and best-selling author. Through her unwavering determination and positivity, Lois reminds us all that even in the face of adversity, the human spirit can shine brightly.

    Tune in to this episode and discover how Lois's perseverance and resilience transformed her life and how it might empower us to overcome our own challenges. Get ready to be inspired! 


    Click here for Interviewee bio, references, and full transcript


    31 min
  • Ep 11: Navigating life, work, and opportunity with a disability

    Welcome to Reimagining Life, episode 11!

    Today we welcome Felipe, advocate and reimaginer extraordinaire who shares his personal story of living

    with Spina Bifida and managing his goals and expectations. Felipe
    never shies away from a challenge. He embraces the opportunities he’s made for himself, all the while trying to balance personal needs related to his disability. In this episode we’ll learn about how Felipe grew up between two worlds: growing up in the beautiful, but largely inaccessible city of San Cristobal de Las Casas, in the state of Chiapas, Mexico, and needing to make frequent marathon trips to Mexico City and then to the USA for medical treatments as a youngster, while trying to make sense of his disability and the impact that had on him
    from early days. Extremely resilient and determined to serve as a
    role model and to improve opportunities for others with disabilities, Felipe’s story takes the listener on a journey that lets you into his world, including how he became a disability program manager who works to promote hiring, retention and promotion of others living with disabilities for the United States Department of Labor. Felipe is very well spoken and open about his story and invites us to learn how he and his family reimagined their lives on multiple levels.

    Click here for Interviewee bio, references, and full transcript


    Note: This episode was scheduled to release in late Oct, unfortunately that was not feasible due to unforeseen circumstances

    59 min
  • Ep. 10 Learning about service dogs (Resources for Reimaginers)

    Welcome to Reimagining Life, episode 10! Today we welcome Diane Bernier, Executive Director, and Cara L Gregg, Director of Outreach for Fidos for Freedom. Both Diane and Cara have been working with Fidos in some way for more than a decade.

    Fidos for Freedom is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to enhance the quality of life for people with chronic conditions or disabilities in the Washington Baltimore metropolitan community by providing specially trained Hearing Dogs, service dogs, combat related PTSD dogs and therapy dogs. Fidos also educates the public about individuals with disabilities, about the benefits of assistance dogs and therapy dogs, and the work that these specially trained dogs do for individuals with disabilities,
    children with reading difficulties and patients in health care facilities.
    In this episode, we learn about how specially trained service dogs can help individuals challenges, what goes into training a service dog, and what it’s like to get a service dog. Diane and Cara share with us their professional and personal experiences living with service dogs and working at Fidos, and how it is truly a community effort.

    Read interviewee bios and transcript here.


    46 min
  • Episode 9: Navigating disability, discrimination and working towards disability justice

    Welcome to Reimagining Life, episode 9! Today we welcome Keidra

    Chaney, a writer, digital strategist and accessibility advocate from
    Chicago, IL.

    As a passionate leader in non-profit and social justice work, Keidra shares her personal story of her diagnosis and learning to live with Keratoconus. She speaks about how she’s had to reimagine her life

    in so many ways, including learning to use a host of accessibility
    tools to be able to continue her work and passions. Keidra shares
    with us her infectious energy and dedication working for social
    justice, disability rights, equal rights, reproductive rights, and
    more.

    51 min
  • Episode 8: How our bodies process medications and learning how to deal with insurance companies

    Welcome to Reimagining Life, Episode 8! In this episode we welcome Dr. Chelsea Liebowitz, a Pharmacist who spent years searching for answers to her own medical challenges. In her quest for answers, she experienced medical gaslighting, medical professionals who didn't believe her, and a lot of pain.

    Dr. Liebowitz discusses how our bodies process medication, the difference between medical dependency vs addiction, and how to safely taper off medications. She also shares advice about how to most effectively deal with insurance companies, the checks and balances of the medical system, and alternative ways to get access to costly medications.

    For guest bio and transcript, click below
    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pVnxAXElRwpHMTwwZkeVCtdGBbrPrdoI/view?usp=drive_link

    45 min
  • Episode 7: Parenting with Chronic Pain and Disability; Reimagining Motherhood

    Welcome to Reimagining Life, episode 7! Today we welcome Lauren Rose, a mother, with multiple chronic illnesses and mental health challenges, to talk about how she makes motherhood work for her. In an effort to share information and help others, Lauren started a podcast about a year ago called “It Hurts to Mom” which focuses on parenting with disabilities, including the physical, mental and emotional aspects.
    In this episode, Lauren shares her four most important lessons she’s
    learned in her own journey raising her daughter, how she’s able to
    modify activities for her needs, and the importance of a healthy
    mindset. Lauren also shares some of her favorite interviews from her
    podcast, and what she’s learned in the process of doing the
    podcast. Lauren’s honesty and openness to talk about any and all
    challenges are great examples of the importance of good
    communication.

    References, Bio and Ep Transcript

    27 min
  • Episode 6: How can acupuncture help reimaginers or people living with chronic illness and/or disability?

    Welcome to Reimagining Life, episode 6! Today we welcome Dr. Devorah Walder, an acupuncturist with years of experience treating chronic conditions. In this episode, Dr. Walder explains how acupuncture can help people living with chronic illness and disability. Acupuncture is unique and treatment plans vary for each person. At its core, acupuncture can help with inflammation, calming the nervous system, and mental and body relaxation. Dr. Walder shares important tips for how to maximize benefits from acupuncture sessions. This episode helps us learn about the importance of frequency of treatment, finding an acupuncturist in your local area, and holistically what acupuncturists offer their patients, in addition to the traditional needles. To get in touch with Dr. Walder, see her contact info in the attached transcript.

    Full speaker bio and contact info & Episode 6 Transcript:

    Click Here for bio and transcript

    28 min
  • Episode 5: The power of creativity and finding or becoming an advocate

    Welcome to Reimagining Life, episode 5! In this episode we discuss how creativity can help people living with chronic pain, as well as the importance of finding or becoming your own advocate. Our guest, Jenni, is a Reimaginer-turned-professional-Reimaginer who has helped many people along her journey. She started a blog (before social media) to help others struggling with pain, and eventually became a lobbyist working to change an unjust law. This episode explores a) how creativity can engage all the senses, b) how people living with chronic illness and/or disability can become their own advocates or find someone to help, and c) what a difference one person can make by getting involved and using their voice to speak their truth.
    For Jenni Grover's bio, links to references cited in this episode, and episode transcript, please click here: https://tinyurl.com/55xfb877

    46 min
  • Episode 4: Impact on relationships and family dynamics

    Welcome to Reimagining Life Podcast, episode 4. In this episode we learn about Steph’s reimagining story and how her life changed dramatically. As a teacher and young mother of two, Steph unexpectedly had to reimagine her life, having to learn to walk and use her legs starting from zero following a surgery that took away her control of her lower body. This episode focuses on the path she took to regain that control, how her family adapted to such a huge change, what the impacts were on family dynamics and relationships with her children, in addition to the valuable lessons she’s learned from her experiences.


    Click here for transcript: https://rb.gy/jdck5


    Connect with us!

    Linktree: linktr.ee/reimagininglifepodcast

    41 min

About Reimagining Life Podcast: from Pain to Purpose

From the publisher's feed

A podcast about resilience and perseverance, sharing untold stories of hope and rebuilding while dealing with major life interruption. This podcast is made by and for people in the process of changing…