In episodes 155 and 157, we talked about the symptoms of Friedreich's ataxia (FA) and how they affect us, especially the mental and emotional aspect of dealing with the challenges. We both experienced some relief in the following ew weeks - merely because we got that stuff off our chest.  Why is that? Listen as we discuss.

Patrick James Lynch is CEO of Bloodstream Media and creator of award winning documentaries, TV Shows, podcasts, and other media that entertains and educates about rare disease.  He is a big presence in the Hemophilia community but has a certain resistance to becoming "Mr. Hemophilia".  We really enjoyed the conversation and we hope you do too! 

Some of Patrick's work:

Blood Stream Media

Stop the Bleeding Web Series

Bombardier Blood documentary

My Beautiful Stutter documentary

Today we feature episode 87 - Superheroes from our friend Effie Parks at the Once Upon a Gene Podcast.   This episode features a  few different people and stories about the superheroes in their lives.

Check out our interview with Effie in an earlier episode: Episode 129.

It is understood that mental health is of huge importance in life, and it can be amplified in the rare disease community.  And then add society's pull on the situation - Men are seemingly expected to be stoic and strong no matter what. You've got a recipe for a particularly difficult situation.  That's what David Ross is addressing with his men's group focused on Men's Mental Health in Rare disease.  Listen to find out more.

Money is a factor in nearly all situations in life - especially when you factor in rare disease or another medical issue.  In this episode the Dudes talk about how money and planning for the future factors into different aspects of their lives - including the age old question "can money buy you love?"