Profound Awesomeness

"It's time to get your affairs in order," was not what 31 year old Casey Head wanted or expected to hear from her doctor.  She had just been diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, known as a children's cancer.  Four months into treatment Casey suffered a stroke and went into a short coma.  Temporarily paralyzed on her left side, Casey would have to dedicate hours of rehab work while she went through chemo....

A nurse entered the hospital room to get John Carey's body ready for the morgue.  In the hospital for days with kidney disease, he was presumed dead but in fact John was very much alive.  As the nurse approached him, he moved his eyes causing her to jump across the room.  Later that afternoon he walked out of the hospital and drove himself home.  This is only one of many incredible events that define John's life to date. ...

Jose Pereira (Jose Angel Pereira Ruimwyck) knows what it's like to be wrongfully detained in a foreign country.  In November 2017 Jose, the then CEO of Houston-based CITGO oil company, was summoned to Caracas with members of his leadership team for what appeared to be a normal budgetary meeting.  Upon arrival they quickly found out they were  to be arrested by the government for charges of treason, espionage, embezzlement and ...

Driving with his cousin on a remote winding mountain road in August 2022, Stefan Venne lost control of his 1984 Volkswagon Rabbit and crashed into a tree.  Far from help and outside of cell phone reception, Stefan was trapped and out of it while his cousin left him to seek help.  The nearest town had a population of 81 people.  With great fortune, his cousin found someone - a nurse - who could help.  Eventually he and his cousin we...

Can you imagine what it would be like to be clinically dead and return to life once?  How about twenty times?  Meet Fred Rutman.  He has clinically died twenty times as a result of a condition called sudden onset full heart block.  It  started back in 2009, when he was home grading papers.   Now he is a veteran of dying and coming back.  Hear his story of repeated survival and how it has affected his life.  You can follow Fred here...

James Gardner isn't afraid to take on a challenge.  Dealt paralysis at a young age and a brain tumor later in life, James did not allow them to  affect his grit and determination.   He's traveled the world, he worked as a journalist and he now coaches others.  James even trained for the London Marathon before he had to stop due to the brain tumor.  He now sprints instead.  You can follow James on Instagram and get in touc...

A phone call saved his life.  Drowning in anxiety and depression, Chuck Thuss almost did the unthinkable.  Driving down the road he accelerated his truck with the intention of slamming into a guardrail and ending his life.  Yet a higher power had other ideas for him and a woman who would play a major role in his recovery entered his life through phone call on the side of the road.  Hear how Chuck overcame his demons and saved his l...

Addiction is an insidious, undiscriminating disease and Eliza Schecter knows all about it.  Her addiction started at the end of middle school and the beginning of high school.  She didn't feel right in her own skin and began to self-soothe and numb herself with alcohol before  moving to drugs.  She then used prescription drugs, getting hooked on Percocet, before using drugs such as Molly or shooting heroin.  To track Eliza&apo...

One night in San Francisco Lizzie Azzolino sat on a bench at a park nearby her home, looked up at the stars and felt herself completely surrender for the first time in her life.  After searching for answers to her mystery illness, she had just been diagnosed with early-stage multiple myeloma.  She told herself this was a time for trust.  She needed to trust that her body wanted to be healthy, and to get on board.  From this point o...

Writer, speaker and creative Frank Jackson lost both his parents at a relatively young age.  His mother died of pancreatic cancer while his father died from HLH, and at age 23 Frank became an orphan.  Frank now finds his meaning, and his ability to be in the moment, through writing and he strives to live up to the moniker Mr. Positive.  To learn more about  Frank and his book the Pearl Effect and other writing projects, visit his w...

Trevor Jones has an incredible capacity to beat traumatic brain injuries ("TBIs").  He has survived not one but two TBIs.  The first happened when has was thirteen years old and he later suffered another one later in life.  Each time, he fought back and at one point was even in a position to try out for the San Diego Padres.  Hear his story and his thoughts about how to recover.  If you would like to know more, you can re...

Andrea Blindt has lived through several dark periods in her life.  From a difficult relationship with her mother as a child to one day losing her twins, Andrea found ways to prevail by leaning on  love.  That's how she found herself and denied the dark periods in her life to take control.  And now she has found a way to truly love herself.  To learn more about Andrea, please feel free to visit her website.  WARNING: This episo...

Amputee Chris Prange-Morgan talks about her family, her catastrophic fall at the climbing gym and her decision to remove her right leg below the knee.  Hear how she worked her way back from her injury both physically and psychologically and offers support to those in the disability community.  Her story has been featured on The Today Show and you can get in touch with her at her website.   Stay tuned for her book coming out in Apri...

Born with hereditary peripheral neuropathy, also known as Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, Dave Oferal had an awakening.  With his early years defined by bullying, theft, alcohol abuse, arrests, and other devious behaviors, Dave woke up one day not feeling good about himself and determined to rid himself of bad habits.  So he decided to bury his head in studying psychology - he has been doing so ever since - and has developed a new app...

Steve Lovelace has a huge heart and a strong mental fortitude.  On top of that he can also claim that he is the second known paratriathlete in history.  Before accomplishing that feat, he had to survive a death-defying accident and temporary paralysis to eventually making a remarkable recovery.  What happened to him is miraculous.  To find out more about Steve please visit Instagram, Youtube, triathlete.com and USA Triathlon Founda...