Thriving Survivor

Kerri is a thriving survivor of grief due to the loss of her husband Kevin in 2017. Kevin was a 34-year-old boilermaker who died during a tragic workplace incident. Kerri is the mother of two young sons, as well as a nurse at a children's hospital, where she has become an avid workplace safety advocate. She also practices thriving through keeping fit and then helping others on their fitness journey, and leads a project called Kindness For Kevin.

Julie is a thriving survivor of various childhood traumas, including highly inappropriate sexual behavior from an older brother, and the stress of living with an older sister afflicted with schizophrenia. Julie credits a close group of friends, constant physical activity, and years of talk therapy (among other things) for helping her  move to the very positive mindset she finds herself with today.

For 20 years Tom was a member of Delta Force, America’s most elite fighting unit. He and his wife Jen discuss the Post Traumatic Stress he suffered from his experiences fighting desperately for his life, rescuing hostages, killing and capturing terrorist leaders, seeing his friends maimed and killed around him. We also discuss Jen's key role in Tom's journey from survivor to thriver, and their combined efforts to help other military personnel and their families deal with Post Traumatic Stress.

Leanne is a thriving survivor of miscarriage and stillbirth. In 2015, she gave birth to her and her husband’s first child. Leanne went into labor 23 weeks early. Unfortunately, her baby did not survive. Learn about where Leanne is in her healing process today and how she got there.

This episode is centered on domestic violence. Paul is an ongoing survivor of grief due to the loss of his 21-year old daughter, Karissa, who, in 2012, was violently murdered at the hands of her then on-and-off-again boyfriend. Join us a and Paul and learn the ways he has decided to move forward each day in his daughter’s memory.

According to BreastCancer.org, invasive breast cancer will affect about 1 in 8 women in the US, and over 42,000 women are expected to die of breast cancer in 2020. Only lung cancer has a higher death rate than breast cancer for women. With those sobering statistics in mind, on this episode of Thriving Survivor, we chat with Anita, who has survived and thrived for 17 years since receiving her breast cancer diagnosis.

Each day, people of color experience acts of racism on institutional, corporate, and individual levels. In this podcast episode, we sit down with doctors Paul and Jessica Spradley, a married black couple who have made it their life’s work to research, educate, and empower individuals to understand the inequities that still exist in our society and to embrace diversity and inclusion throughout our daily lives, both in and out of the workplace. The two share their stories of surviving and thriving in an America where racism still very much exists.

In 2017, 2.1 million people in America had an opioid problem and a staggering 11.4 million people had misused opioids in the previous year. But once you are using such a highly addictive substance, can you ever find yourself again? On this episode of Thriving Survivor, we’ll be talking with Sara, a recovering opioid addict, who tells us her story of addiction, finding recovery, and thriving.

The true prevalence of childhood sexual abuse is unknown because so many victims are unable to report their abuse. In this episode, we will hear from Imani; she will share her story, along with the ways grown victims of childhood abuse can heal and thrive through opening up about about their trauma.

Kelly and Brad briefly discuss the inspiration for and aspirations of the Thriving Survivor Podcast.