Tenay Benes sits down with Amelia K. Wullenschneider, financial professional and living benefits advocate at Basel Financial Group, to hear her decades-long healing journey rooted in adult child of alcoholic syndrome. Amelia's chronic, medically unexplained symptoms — excruciating UTI pain, gut dysfunction, and anxiety — began in childhood and were repeatedly dismissed by specialists who said nothing was wrong. What followed was a self-directed integrative recovery spanning nutrition, acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, somatic therapy, parts work, and daily nature immersion — none of it prescribed by a conventional provider. Tenay and Amelia unpack the science behind why adult children of alcoholics present with complex physical symptoms, including the ACEs study, epigenetics, nervous system dysregulation, and chronic cortisol elevation. The episode closes dreaming about a redesigned health ecosystem where trauma-informed care and holistic modalities are normalized and accessible to all.

Connect with Amelia Wullenschneider: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelia-k-wullenschneider-74b59333/

DONATIONS: To support our cause or pay it forward to support our next podcast, donate $10 here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm3cvflvfiE14UdbmaR200

RESOURCES:

1. KEYNOTE SPEECHES: Tenay is offering two dynamic keynote speeches:

• 'Winning The War On Complex Illness' helps health, wellness, and human services organizations ask the right questions to optimize their teams' cohesion and clients' health outcomes.
• 'Heal or Die' geared to empower complex illness sufferers with the mindset and lessons Tenay used to go from bedridden to thriving in family and business.

  GO TO: tenaybenes.com/speaker to learn more or book Tenay for your next event.

1. CONSULTING: Consulting Services to help health, wellness, and human services organizations, corporations, and practices optimize their systems to improve client and team outcomes without spending a ton of money or rebuilding from scratch.

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to learn more and submit your request for proposals.

2. HEALTH-TECH LAUNCH: The Care We Need is new platform designed to streamline the matching and intake process for clients and providers alike. Think "Thumbtack for Healthcare"

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to sign up for our newsletter, be the first to know about user testing opportunities, product launch, patient and provider signups, and investment opportunities. 
   CONTACT:
   https://benescompanies.com/links/

   DISCLAIMERS: We receive a small kickback if you use these links to purchase these products. The opinions expressed by guests on this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host or of Benes Companies and does not constitute personalized health advice. To obtain personalized health advice, consult a professional directly.

Dr. Don Railsback, optometrist and CEO of Vision Care Direct, joins Brett Benes to expose how vision benefit middlemen are eroding the doctor-patient relationships that determine whether care actually works. He reveals why the comprehensive eye exam is one of the highest-return medical procedures available — capable of detecting cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and pre-cancerous tumors before any other symptom presents. Dr. Railsback breaks down how Vision Care Direct, a doctor-owned alternative to traditional vision insurance, is restoring provider autonomy and the margin to deliver genuine patient-first care. The conversation covers the Independent Physician Association model, ergonomics, AI in clinical practice, and practical steps for providers ready to move beyond the insurance model. If you are a health professional constrained by insurance mandates or a patient who deserves better, this episode will change how you see what is possible.

Contact Dr Railsback on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/don-c-railsback-o-d-a441011a/

DONATIONS: To support our cause or pay it forward to support our next podcast, donate $10 here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm3cvflvfiE14UdbmaR200

RESOURCES:

1. KEYNOTE SPEECHES: Tenay is offering two dynamic keynote speeches:

• 'Winning The War On Complex Illness' helps health, wellness, and human services organizations ask the right questions to optimize their teams' cohesion and clients' health outcomes.
• 'Heal or Die' geared to empower complex illness sufferers with the mindset and lessons Tenay used to go from bedridden to thriving in family and business.

  GO TO: tenaybenes.com/speaker to learn more or book Tenay for your next event.

1. CONSULTING: Consulting Services to help health, wellness, and human services organizations, corporations, and practices optimize their systems to improve client and team outcomes without spending a ton of money or rebuilding from scratch.

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to learn more and submit your request for proposals.

2. HEALTH-TECH LAUNCH: The Care We Need is new platform designed to streamline the matching and intake process for clients and providers alike. Think "Thumbtack for Healthcare"

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to sign up for our newsletter, be the first to know about user testing opportunities, product launch, patient and provider signups, and investment opportunities. 
   CONTACT:
   https://benescompanies.com/links/

   DISCLAIMERS: We receive a small kickback if you use these links to purchase these products. The opinions expressed by guests on this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host or of Benes Companies and does not constitute personalized health advice. To obtain personalized health advice, consult a professional directly.

In this episode, Brett Benes sits down with Dr. Anil Bajnath — Founding President of the American Board of Precision Medicine and CEO of the Institute for Human Optimization — to expose the growing gap between what modern diagnostic science can do and what the current insurance system allows. Dr. Bajnath breaks down why standard labs are missing the root causes of complex illness, including environmental toxins, biotoxin exposure, and persistent infectious agents like Lyme, Babesia, and EBV. He introduces the concept of a comprehensive biological audit — drawing from blood, urine, saliva, stool, genomics, and microbiome data — to reverse engineer chronic illness from the molecular level up. The conversation covers P4 medicine, AI integration in clinical practice, HIPAA-compliant tools, and practical steps for providers ready to shift toward a precision and longevity medicine model. If you are a health professional treating complex illness or a patient who has been told your labs are normal, this episode will change how you think about diagnosis and healing.

DONATIONS: To support our cause or pay it forward to support our next podcast, donate $10 here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm3cvflvfiE14UdbmaR200

RESOURCES:

1. KEYNOTE SPEECHES: Tenay is offering two dynamic keynote speeches:

• 'Winning The War On Complex Illness' helps health, wellness, and human services organizations ask the right questions to optimize their teams' cohesion and clients' health outcomes.
• 'Heal or Die' geared to empower complex illness sufferers with the mindset and lessons Tenay used to go from bedridden to thriving in family and business.

  GO TO: tenaybenes.com/speaker to learn more or book Tenay for your next event.

1. CONSULTING: Consulting Services to help health, wellness, and human services organizations, corporations, and practices optimize their systems to improve client and team outcomes without spending a ton of money or rebuilding from scratch.

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to learn more and submit your request for proposals.

2. HEALTH-TECH LAUNCH: The Care We Need is new platform designed to streamline the matching and intake process for clients and providers alike. Think "Thumbtack for Healthcare"

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to sign up for our newsletter, be the first to know about user testing opportunities, product launch, patient and provider signups, and investment opportunities. 
   CONTACT:
   https://benescompanies.com/links/

   DISCLAIMERS: We receive a small kickback if you use these links to purchase these products. The opinions expressed by guests on this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host or of Benes Companies and does not constitute personalized health advice. To obtain personalized health advice, consult a professional directly.

Breathwork in Bed: Tim discusses the power of breathwork and its ability to override chemical responses in the body, leading to relaxation and connection with oneself and others. He also emphasizes the importance of restoring power to plug back into the body and the wondrousness of how we've been made.

Takeaways

• Breathwork as a chemical override
• Restoring power to plug back into the body

Tim's program saved 40 veteran lives within 12 months — proof that when you fix the soil, everything else grows.

🎁 Tim is gifting listeners 28 days of FREE access to Breathwork in Bed — search "Breathwork in Bed" on any app store or visit: https://breathworkinbed.com.au/

📩 Connect with Tim on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bettersleepbetterworld/

DONATIONS: To support our cause or pay it forward to support our next podcast, donate $10 here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm3cvflvfiE14UdbmaR200

RESOURCES:

1. KEYNOTE SPEECHES: Tenay is offering two dynamic keynote speeches:

• 'Winning The War On Complex Illness' helps health, wellness, and human services organizations ask the right questions to optimize their teams' cohesion and clients' health outcomes.
• 'Heal or Die' geared to empower complex illness sufferers with the mindset and lessons Tenay used to go from bedridden to thriving in family and business.

  GO TO: tenaybenes.com/speaker to learn more or book Tenay for your next event.

1. CONSULTING: Consulting Services to help health, wellness, and human services organizations, corporations, and practices optimize their systems to improve client and team outcomes without spending a ton of money or rebuilding from scratch.

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to learn more and submit your request for proposals.

2. HEALTH-TECH LAUNCH: The Care We Need is new platform designed to streamline the matching and intake process for clients and providers alike. Think "Thumbtack for Healthcare"

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to sign up for our newsletter, be the first to know about user testing opportunities, product launch, patient and provider signups, and investment opportunities. 
   CONTACT:
   https://benescompanies.com/links/

   DISCLAIMERS: We receive a small kickback if you use these links to purchase these products. The opinions expressed by guests on this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host or of Benes Companies and does not constitute personalized health advice. To obtain personalized health advice, consult a professional directly.

Former Australian Special Forces Commando Tim Thomas learned to weaponize sleep in Afghanistan — and spent years afterward losing his own battle with pills, alcohol, and burnout before breathwork changed everything. Now the founder of Breathwork in Bed works with veterans, complex illness patients, and health professionals to help regulate the nervous system and improve sleep through simple, repeatable breathwork practices built into the two five-minute windows that determine your entire day. His approach gives health, wellness, and human service professionals a low-friction, evidence-aligned intervention that helps clients move out of fight-or-flight and into a state where they can actually receive care, build connection, and begin to heal. Tim's program saved 40 veteran lives from suicide within 12 months — proof that when you fix the soil, everything else grows.

🎁 Tim is gifting listeners 28 days of FREE access to Breathwork in Bed — search "Breathwork in Bed" on any app store or visit: https://breathworkinbed.com.au/

📩 Connect with Tim on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bettersleepbetterworld/

DONATIONS: To support our cause or pay it forward to support our next podcast, donate $10 here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm3cvflvfiE14UdbmaR200

RESOURCES:

1. KEYNOTE SPEECHES: Tenay is offering two dynamic keynote speeches:

• 'Winning The War On Complex Illness' helps health, wellness, and human services organizations ask the right questions to optimize their teams' cohesion and clients' health outcomes.
• 'Heal or Die' geared to empower complex illness sufferers with the mindset and lessons Tenay used to go from bedridden to thriving in family and business.

  GO TO: tenaybenes.com/speaker to learn more or book Tenay for your next event.

1. CONSULTING: Consulting Services to help health, wellness, and human services organizations, corporations, and practices optimize their systems to improve client and team outcomes without spending a ton of money or rebuilding from scratch.

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to learn more and submit your request for proposals.

2. HEALTH-TECH LAUNCH: The Care We Need is new platform designed to streamline the matching and intake process for clients and providers alike. Think "Thumbtack for Healthcare"

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to sign up for our newsletter, be the first to know about user testing opportunities, product launch, patient and provider signups, and investment opportunities. 
   CONTACT:
   https://benescompanies.com/links/

   DISCLAIMERS: We receive a small kickback if you use these links to purchase these products. The opinions expressed by guests on this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host or of Benes Companies and does not constitute personalized health advice. To obtain personalized health advice, consult a professional directly.

Dr. Demetria Bolden, health systems researcher at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, breaks down why U.S. healthcare is losing public trust — and why it's not the fault of clinicians or patients. From cardiovascular disparities to the 8-minute visit, she traces how historically inherited systems create outcomes nobody intended, and what it actually takes to rebuild trust from the ground up.

Key Takeaways

• The healthcare system wasn't designed to fail patients — it evolved that way, and understanding how matters more than assigning blame
• Clinicians are measured on metrics that make genuine patient care structurally difficult
• Trust isn't lost in a single interaction — it's eroded by systems patients navigate long before they reach a doctor
• Rebuilding trust requires curiosity first — asking why, not just fixing what's visible
• Real change requires more than healthcare — policy, city planning, education and infrastructure all play a role

  Contact Dr. Bolden on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/demetriamcneal/

  DONATIONS: To support our cause or pay it forward to support our next podcast, donate $10 here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm3cvflvfiE14UdbmaR200

  RESOURCES:

  1. KEYNOTE SPEECHES: Tenay is offering two dynamic keynote speeches:
  • 'Winning The War On Complex Illness' helps health, wellness, and human services organizations ask the right questions to optimize their teams' cohesion and clients' health outcomes.
  • 'Heal or Die' geared to empower complex illness sufferers with the mindset and lessons Tenay used to go from bedridden to thriving in family and business.

    GO TO: tenaybenes.com/speaker to learn more or book Tenay for your next event.

  1. CONSULTING: Consulting Services to help health, wellness, and human services organizations, corporations, and practices optimize their systems to improve client and team outcomes without spending a ton of money or rebuilding from scratch.

     GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to learn more and submit your request for proposals.

  2. HEALTH-TECH LAUNCH: The Care We Need is new platform designed to streamline the matching and intake process for clients and providers alike. Think "Thumbtack for Healthcare"

     GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to sign up for our newsletter, be the first to know about user testing opportunities, product launch, patient and provider signups, and investment opportunities. 
     CONTACT:
     https://benescompanies.com/links/

     DISCLAIMERS: We receive a small kickback if you use these links to purchase these products. The opinions expressed by guests on this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host or of Benes Companies and does not constitute personalized health advice. To obtain personalized health advice, consult a professional directly.

Most health orgs fire the wrong people when change stalls. The real problem stays. The good people leave. The change fails — and nobody knows why.

Tenay Benes breaks down the Pyramid of Resistance, a change management framework she developed while serving in Baghdad and has since applied to health, wellness, and human services organizations. Not all resistance is the same. Treating it like it is will sink your change effort.

3 types of resistors. 3 very different responses: — Bottom 60%, "This Is Hard" — These are your frontline workers on autopilot. Make the change easier than the status quo and they'll follow. — Middle 30%, "You're Doing It Wrong" — These are experienced professionals with real concerns. Bring them to the table. Listen. Adjust. — Top 10%, "This Threatens Me" — High competence, low character. They benefit from the old system's vulnerabilities and they will never change. Let them go.

The hardest truth in change management: the most confident, capable-looking person in your organization is often the one who needs to go first.

RESOURCES:

1. KEYNOTE SPEECHES: Tenay is offering two dynamic keynote speeches:

• 'Winning The War On Complex Illness' geared to help health, wellness, and human services organizations ask the right questions to optimize their teams' cohesion and clients' health outcomes.
• 'Heal or Die' geared to empower complex illness sufferers with the mindset and lessons Tenay used to go from bedridden to thriving in family and business.

  GO TO: tenaybenes.com/speaker to learn more or book Tenay for your next event.

1. CONSULTING: Consulting Services to help health, wellness, and human services organizations, corporations, and practices optimize their systems to improve client and team outcomes without spending a ton of money or rebuilding from scratch.

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to learn more and submit your request for proposals.

2. HEALTH-TECH LAUNCH: The Care We Need is new platform designed to streamline the matching and intake process for clients and providers alike. Think "Thumbtack for Healthcare"

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to sign up for our newsletter, be the first to know about user testing opportunities, product launch, patient and provider signups, and investment opportunities. 

3. BOOKS: We offer several health and wellness education books, including "Heal or Die" by Tenay Benes, for sale on our Amazon storefront here: [https://amzn.to/4bH7vHH]
   CONTACT:
   https://benescompanies.com/links/

   DISCLAIMERS: We receive a small kickback if you use these links to purchase these products.

What if aging isn't inevitable — it's just underfunded? Dr. Bill Andrews has spent over 40 years finding the biological mechanism behind aging and developing a path to reverse it. In this episode, he breaks down the science of telomeres — the cellular "ride tickets" that control how many times our cells can divide — and explains why nearly every major disease, from cancer and heart disease to AIDS and dementia, connects back to their length.

This isn't theoretical. Dr. Andrews led the team that discovered telomerase, the enzyme that re-lengthens telomeres. Reversal of aging has already been demonstrated in human cells and tissue. The science works. What's missing is funding.

For health and human services professionals treating complex illness, this reframes everything: inflammation, immune failure, and cellular degeneration all trace to the same root mechanism.

In this episode: the Hayflick Limit, telomerase discovery, PTSD and telomere length, what patients can do now, why biotech funding is broken, the Best Choice Medicine march on Washington, and how close we actually are to longevity escape velocity.

Resources and People Mentioned:

People: Dr. Bill Andrews (Sierra Sciences) · Elizabeth Parrish (BioViva Sciences) · Dr. Ronald DePinho (Harvard/MD Anderson) · Dr. Amy Doneen, DNP (cardiovascular prevention, Spokane WA) · Dr. Jason Williams (cancer) · Dr. Shelley Jordan (dementia) · Dr. Terry Grossman · Aubrey de Grey · Dr. Elissa Epel · Leonard Hayflick · Zachary Brooks (UGenome)

Organizations: · BioViva Sciences · Touchstone Essentials (thegoodinside.com) · Cell Science Services (ALCAT test) · Synapfile (SYNAP) · Timeline · UGenome

Products:

Telovitil · GlucoControl · Pure Body/Pure Body Extra · Fulvic · NattoKlear · Urolithin A · Nicotinamide Riboside · N-Acetylcysteine · EGCG · Alpha Lipoic Acid · ALCAT Test

Media: Documentary — The Immortalists · Paper — Best Choice Medicine (Andrews & Parrish) · Book — Fantastic Voyage: Live Long Enough to Live Forever (Kurzweil & Grossman) · Book — The Telomere Effect (Blackburn & Epel) · Diane Sawyer telomere reversal report

DONATIONS: To support our cause or pay it forward to support our next podcast, donate $10 here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm3cvflvfiE14UdbmaR200

RESOURCES:

1. KEYNOTE SPEECHES:
   • Win The War On Complex Illness - for health, wellness, and human service organizations.
   • Heal or Die - for complex illness sufferers.
2. CONSULTING for health, wellness, and human service organizations.
3. HEALTH-TECH LAUNCH for health, wellness, and human service organizations and their complex illness clients.

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to sign up for our newsletter, be the first to know about user testing opportunities, product launch, patient and provider signups, and investment opportunities. 
   CONTACT:
   https://benescompanies.com/links/

   DISCLAIMERS: This episode contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you purchase through them at no additional cost to you. The opinions expressed by guests on this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host or of Benes Companies and does not constitute personalized health advice. To obtain personalized health advice, consult a professional directly.

What if your client’s environment is quietly undoing your care plan? In this episode, Christopher Zdenek reframes ergonomics as a clinical lever—not just comfort. He shows how physical environments shape physiology, behavior, and recovery, especially in complex illness.This conversation is for health, wellness, and human services professionals who see limited progress despite strong interventions. It offers a practical lens on how environment, nervous system, trauma history, and development interact—and why treating them separately stalls outcomes.

What you’ll learn:

• Why ergonomics, when aligned with anatomy and nervous system function, becomes a whole-person intervention
• How trauma shows up in posture, regulation, cognition, and behavior—and what that means for treatment sequencing
• A simple 3-stage model to better interpret client patterns and readiness

Contact Chris at ([email protected]) or learn more at:
www.wheredowegofromhere.tv

www.thebetternewworldorder.com

ENTER CODE "BENESCOMPANIES" at https://www.somaergo.com/ upon checkout to receive a discount on your ergonomic chair!

DONATIONS: To support our cause or pay it forward to support our next podcast, donate $10 here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm3cvflvfiE14UdbmaR200

RESOURCES:

1. KEYNOTE SPEECHES: Tenay is offering two dynamic keynote speeches:

• 'Winning The War On Complex Illness' helps health, wellness, and human services organizations ask the right questions to optimize their teams' cohesion and clients' health outcomes.
• 'Heal or Die' geared to empower complex illness sufferers with the mindset and lessons Tenay used to go from bedridden to thriving in family and business.

  GO TO: tenaybenes.com/speaker to learn more or book Tenay for your next event.

1. CONSULTING: Consulting Services to help health, wellness, and human services organizations, corporations, and practices optimize their systems to improve client and team outcomes without spending a ton of money or rebuilding from scratch.

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to learn more and submit your request for proposals.

2. HEALTH-TECH LAUNCH: The Care We Need is new platform designed to streamline the matching and intake process for clients and providers alike. Think "Thumbtack for Healthcare"

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to sign up for our newsletter, be the first to know about user testing opportunities, product launch, patient and provider signups, and investment opportunities. 
   CONTACT:
   https://benescompanies.com/links/

   DISCLAIMERS: We receive a small kickback if you use these links to purchase these products. The opinions expressed by guests on this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host or of Benes Companies and does not constitute personalized health advice. To obtain personalized health advice, consult a professional directly.

Jim and Jacquie Vegh, from Family Life Blended, discuss the complexities of making blended families work. They explore themes such as grief, loss, and practical strategies for building cohesive family units, emphasizing the importance of prioritizing marriage and effective co-parenting. The conversation also touches on the gradual process of relationship-building and the impact on children, while offering resources like the Weekend to Remember and Smart Step Family programs.

DONATIONS: To support our cause or pay it forward to support our next podcast, donate $10 here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm3cvflvfiE14UdbmaR200

RESOURCES:

1. KEYNOTE SPEECHES: Tenay is offering two dynamic keynote speeches:

• 'Winning The War On Complex Illness' geared to help health, wellness, and human services organizations ask the right questions to optimize their teams' cohesion and clients' health outcomes.
• 'Heal or Die' geared to empower complex illness sufferers with the mindset and lessons Tenay used to go from bedridden to thriving in family and business.

  GO TO: tenaybenes.com/speaker to learn more or book Tenay for your next event.

1. CONSULTING: Consulting Services to help health, wellness, and human services organizations, corporations, and practices optimize their systems to improve client and team outcomes without spending a ton of money or rebuilding from scratch.

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to learn more and submit your request for proposals.

2. HEALTH-TECH LAUNCH: The Care We Need is new platform designed to streamline the matching and intake process for clients and providers alike. Think "Thumbtack for Healthcare"

   GO TO: BenesCompanies.com to sign up for our newsletter, be the first to know about user testing opportunities, product launch, patient and provider signups, and investment opportunities. 

   1. BOOKS: We offer several health and wellness education books, including "Heal or Die" by Tenay Benes, for sale on our Amazon storefront here: [https://amzn.to/4bH7vHH]

   CONTACT:
   Tenay Benes on LinkedIn or at: [email protected]

   Brett Benes on LinkedIn or at: [email protected]

   DISCLAIMERS: We receive a small kickback if you use these links to purchase these products. The opinions expressed by guests on this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host or of Benes Companies and does not constitute personalized health advice. To obtain personalized health advice, consult a professional directly.