December 27, 2024 • 35 mins
Amanda Dixon's journey is nothing short of inspiring as she takes us through her transition from tax professional to marketing expert after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Amanda faced the initial signs of MS with a nerve pain twinge in her shoulder, which led to her diagnosis in 2020, a pivotal moment that transformed her life. Her unwavering commitment to self-advocacy and listening to her body serves as a beacon of strength and empowerment, especially for women navigating healthcare systems. Amanda's story is a powerful reminder of the resilience needed to set boundaries and prioritize self-care while living with a chronic condition.
Navigating the medical maze to secure her MS diagnosis, Amanda recounts the challenges of numerous tests and consultations before finding a specialist who confirmed her condition. Her proactive approach led her to choose Okravis, a chemotherapy drug that has effectively halted her disease progression. Amanda shares how adjusting her work life to a part-time, remote setup has provided her with the balance she needed, highlighting the significance of supportive relationships and a positive mindset on this journey. Her experience underscores the importance of advocating for oneself, particularly in the face of dismissive healthcare professionals, and embracing each day with awareness and acceptance.
Guest Bio:
Amanda Dixon began her career as a tax professional, preparing all types of returns, from 1040s to 990s. In 2020, amidst the global pandemic, her life changed when she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. After taking the time to get used to her new life with her disease, she began working from home. In 2023, she earned her Enrolled Agent designation, but began to feel an interest in the marketing function at her firm. Seeing an opportunity, she made the switch that same year to a marketing role. She now uses her previous experience and knowledge to break down the complex world of accounting to effectively communicate what her firm’s clients need to know. Today, she advocates for the disabled community and encourages others to advocate for themselves to ensure they get the best possible medical care they can. Amanda considers herself an open book, and is always happy to answer questions about her MS, her diagnosis process, the symptoms she experiences, and how others can better understand and help those in the disabled community. When she’s not at work, you can find Amanda playing Dungeons and Dragons with her friends, dressing up her 12 foot skeleton, watching a spooky movie, and spending time with her husband Adam and their adorable pets.
Connect with Amanda:
LinkedIn
Connect with Theresa and Ivana:
Theresa, True Strategy Consultants: tsc-consultants.com
LinkedIn @treeconti, Insta @tscconsultants
Ivana, Courageous Being: courageousbeing.com
LinkedIn @ivipol, Insta @courbeing
SITP team, Step Into The Pivot: stepintothepivot.com
LinkedIn @step-into-the-pivot, YouTube @StepIntoThePivot
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hi everybody and welcome to this week's episode
of Step Into the Pivot.
We are so happy to have a newfriend on with us today, amanda
Dixon.
So Amanda is clearly like anumbers geek like I.
Am beginning her career as atax professional.
You know, is an enrolled agent,which is awesome, and now
(00:22):
there's a lot of stuff inmarketing.
But we're going to talk to hertoday about a much more major
pivot she's had in her life inthe past couple of years.
So, amanda, thank you so muchfor being here with us today.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
I am so thrilled to be here with you, ladies, and
I'm really looking forward tothis conversation Awesome.
Speaker 3 (00:42):
Yes, welcome, amanda.
Thank you for being here withus.
I want to share a very shortstory about how we met and what
I noticed, and then I'll ask youto tell us more.
So we were together at anindustry event and then
afterwards we went out fordinner with a smaller group of
friends some new friends, someolder friends, lovely, engaging
(01:06):
conversation, and we were justto contextualize it in a
restaurant.
The meal took quite a long time.
This was after a very long dayand everything was effervescent
and positive, beautifulconversations, but it was even,
you know, even though it wasreally pleasant, I was noticing
(01:26):
that I was getting tired and bythe time we were all done with
our meal and we're heading backto the hotel, several of us were
chatting about potentiallystaying on to talk more, whether
we were going to, you know,keep hanging out at the hotel or
do something else.
Now I'm noticing that my body'salready sending me signals that
(01:48):
, like Evie, go to bed.
But I am kind of bulldozingover that because I'm like, no,
no, no, I'm here.
This is so special.
When will I see, you know,these people again bulldozing,
bulldozing you meanwhile,closing you meanwhile.
(02:11):
So, like power move, say goodnight everybody.
I am turning in.
This was really nice and I'm notentertaining any possibilities.
You didn't say it like that,but I'm not entertaining any
possibility of now staying outfurther.
I'm gonna go rest and you saidsomething really cool.
It was like I'm going to gocheck in with my husband and I
(02:32):
noticed something different inhow you did it than what I would
typically hear at events likethis.
There was a certain certaintyto what you were saying about.
This is what's really good forme and I.
It's a non-negotiable and I,like you all, and I'm leaving
now and I was like I am reallycurious about that and then you
know, the next day I did end upfinding out more about what was
behind that.
You know firmness and certainty.
(02:55):
So tell us about your pivot,your major pivot in your life,
and maybe explain to ourlisteners and our viewers what
was going on for you when yousaid I'm not hanging out.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
Yeah, absolutely so.
It's funny that you mentionedwanting to bulldoze past those
initial signals and do more, andI really related to that
pre-diagnosis.
So I'm going to share with youall about my multiple sclerosis
diagnosis story and feel free tostop me at any point, ask any
(03:27):
questions.
I am an open book and I lovetalking about this.
Not because it's a good thing,certainly not but it's a
wonderful opportunity to educateable-bodied people, but also
especially women, because I feelvery strongly that had I not
advocated for myself as a womanwith my health care, then I
(03:47):
might not be in the position Iam today.
So back in 2020, this was March, april 2020, I'm sure we can
all place ourselves back thereat that period of time and I
said, well, let me engage insome self-care.
And my wonderful, fabulousin-laws had gifted me a
(04:09):
subscription to a Peloton appand they had different workouts
and things.
So I did some yoga in my livingroom and after I was like, okay
, that was a good workout, Ifeel good.
But the next day, unfortunately,I had a twinge in my left
shoulder and I said, well, Iprobably did something wrong.
You know, I'm not anexperienced yoga practitioner.
(04:31):
We all make mistakes.
It could have been anything,but what I noticed was, over the
course of the next week, ittraveled, this nerve pain, this
twinge, all down the left sideof my body and that's where I
went.
Okay, that's not normal and,funnily enough, when I checked
into the doctor, I made anappointment that same week.
(04:53):
The nurse that I talked to whenshe asked why are you here?
I explained that reasoning andshe said, oh yeah, nerve stuff
is bad.
You should definitely be here.
And I was like, well, good,that's the goal to figure out
what's going on.
(05:13):
So I saw not my regular primarycare physician.
He was unavailable.
So I saw another PA and shesaid, well, yeah, that sounds
weird, let's order an MRI and gofrom there just to see what's
going on.
And so I had the MRI done Ibelieve that May of 2020, and it
did show some activity.
(05:34):
So whenever you get any sort ofmedical testing done and you get
those initial notes back fromthe technician, I recommend
don't read them before yourdoctor can explain them for you,
because I was looking upterminology.
I had no business looking upand I didn't know what it meant,
but I saw the phrase multiplesclerosis and I got scared, but
(05:56):
went, well, we don't know whatthis is.
And I, funnily enough, waswatching Dead to Me, which is a
show that was on Netflixstarring Linda Cardellini and
Christina Applegate, andChristina Applegate, a few years
later, has also been diagnosedwith MS.
So I think that that's andoctor.
You know no good bedside manner.
(06:18):
Because she essentially justcalled me on the phone, didn't
check how I was doing, didn'tcheck if anyone else was with me
, and she just sort of said,yeah, it's probably MS, sorry,
(06:38):
um, we are going to schedule aneurologist visit, but that's
going to be in October.
Going to schedule a neurologistvisit, but that's going to be
in October.
And obviously I broke down justsobbing, terrified, because I
didn't know what this meant.
I, you know, had heard thedisease name before because
Selma Blair had been diagnosedand was going through that
(06:59):
process a few years ago, and Isaw her interview and saw, oh my
gosh, that's so hard to gothrough.
And here I am, a few years later, going through this thing with
this disease that I had no ideawhat it was and started Googling
things.
Again, don't recommend doingthat because you're going to
scare yourself.
And so I was just in a reallybad state, called my husband
(07:23):
crying and he thankfully camehome.
We cried together and took theevening to be upset and the next
few days, of course, to beupset, because this was
life-changing news that I gotand I, through the reading I did
about multiple sclerosis, I sawthat it was a progressive
(07:45):
disease, especially if untreated.
And I was doing the math in myhead and I went okay, october is
months away.
I don't know what this diseasehas been doing in the background
since I was a child, justbecause of little things that I
(08:07):
would experience that I thoughtwere normal for everybody, which
I have subsequently learned arenot.
So I, upon learning that thatthis was a progressive disease,
I said absolutely not, I'm notwaiting until October.
That does not work for me, I'mnot going to put my body on the
back burner.
So I looked up I'm in Louisiana, in Baton Rouge, and I actually
(08:32):
had family in Houma, louisiana,which is more further towards
the Gulf, and in a nearby towncalled Raceland, there was a
neurologist who had anappointment fairly soon
thereafter and I booked anappointment with her.
I told my husband.
I said look, let's take aFriday off of work, we can go
(08:54):
visit my grandmother, we canmake a whole weekend of it, and
let's do this because I reallydon't want to put this on the
back burner.
So I drove down there with himand he let me go into the
appointment and I told her aboutthe symptoms I was experiencing
the nerve pain, the tingling,numbness, various things that
(09:18):
are going on and she saidsweetie.
Now, I know that it may be inevery situation.
We don't call each othersweetie, but I'm in the South
and she called me sweetie.
Now, I know that it may be inevery situation.
We don't call each othersweetie, but I'm in the South
and she called me sweetie.
And she said sweetie, you'regoing to be okay, it's going to
be all right.
This does not need to defineyour life, and If you were going
(09:44):
to end up in a wheelchair, youwould probably already be having
mobility issues right now.
So hearing that and hearing hersay this is probably what it is
, but it's going to be okay, wasso helpful.
(10:10):
Ton of blood tests and othertests, more MRIs and things like
that, just because,unfortunately, ms is a
elimination disease.
It's something where you haveto rule everything else out
before you can definitively sayyes, it's this.
And there is a specificcriteria called the McDonald
criteria where if you have acertain amount of lesions and
things like that, if itsatisfies that criteria, a
(10:31):
doctor can go okay, it'sdefinitely this.
I unfortunately didn't satisfythe criteria at that point.
So a different neurologist thatI saw ordered a spinal tap for
that June, which is another partof the diagnosis process, which
is not abnormal.
But a third neurologistactually that I was recommended
(10:53):
to from my regular primary carephysician, who he had worked
with her during COVID the peakof COVID anyhow and he said she
actually specializes in MS,she's not just a neurologist,
she is an MS neurologist.
And he gave me thatrecommendation.
So I actually drove down to NewOrleans with my husband the day
(11:16):
before that spinal tap wasscheduled to be performed and
she looked at my blood tests,looked at all of my MRIs.
I had an MRI on my brain,cervical spine, which is this
neck area, and then my thoracicspine as well, and based on the
lesion activity she said youabsolutely satisfy the McDonald
(11:40):
criteria and I said so, I don'tneed a spinal tap.
And she said no, you don't.
And I said great and called andcanceled it immediately because
you know I was nervous aboutdoing that.
So it was very relieving tohave someone tell me
definitively this is what it'sgoing to be and this is what
(12:02):
we're going to do from here onout.
And we discussed treatments andI chose one that I felt was
going to be the best for me.
The medicine that I'm on iscalled Okravis.
I just go to the hospital onceevery six months.
The fabulous nurses there hookme up.
It's actually a chemotherapydrug, which I learned from my
(12:24):
fabulous grandmother, who's alsoa nurse.
I thought chemo was just forcancer, but she explained that
it's the type of treatment.
It's not necessarily just forcancer.
So I thought, oh okay, sothat's why I'm in that room with
everybody else.
But the treatment has beenabsolutely phenomenal.
(12:45):
It is honestly a pretty easyday.
I go there usually with myhusband, but my mom has come
with me before as well, and theyhave big, comfy chairs and you
can adjust the lighting in yourindividual area and we just sit
and eat snacks and watch moviesfor the whole day.
And then I go home and,thankfully, as a result of
(13:10):
continuing to be on thistreatment, I've had no new
lesions, no disease progressionever since, and that is just the
best news that I could haveever hoped for, and it has
really made all the difference.
So just to give a timeline, Istarted experiencing symptoms
(13:32):
and then, within two months, wasformally diagnosed and was able
to get on a treatment.
And I've since learned throughthere's a fabulous online
community of fellow MS sufferersfabulous online community of
fellow MS sufferers and I'velearned from them that
oftentimes, especially for women, they're very, very frequently
(13:56):
dismissed and just are told well, you're tired, maybe you're a
new mom, oh, that's normal,because you're just tired,
because you're balancing allsorts of things going on.
And it was so disheartening tohear that that's normal.
Oftentimes it can take yearsfor a diagnosis and I don't know
(14:21):
where I'd be symptomprogression wise if I had not
stuck up for myself and said no,I'm not going to wait till
October, I want to get treatmentas soon as I possibly can and
thankfully you know it's coveredthrough insurance and, like I
said, it's a pretty easy day.
So my life has absolutely beenaffected on a day-to-day basis.
(14:45):
You this I was working in theoffice full-time and now,
through talking to my employerand making some adjustments, I'm
part-time and mostly work fromhome.
But that has made all thedifference and whereas before I
would say I was always pushingpast those biological signals.
Now I listen to themdefinitively and that reminds me
(15:09):
of that story that youbeautifully recounted, ivana,
because you know, I don'tunfortunately have the option
really anymore of ignoring thosesignals.
So that instance was me tellingyou guys, hey, it really was a
wonderful dinner, I am having afabulous time, but my body's
(15:32):
telling me I'm done and I amready to go lie down and check
in with my husband on the phoneand tell him about this fabulous
day.
So it's not that I'm not havinga wonderful time.
If anything, I would love tostay and do more, but I have
learned to be okay with thecapacity that I have.
(15:52):
If I'm at 40% one day and Igive 40%, that's me giving a
hundred percent and that's okay.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
Okay, Just wow.
Like I'm just going to startwith wow, because I did not know
your whole story and often Ilike to be surprised.
I've said that before.
So many great things there,Amanda.
I love number one that youcompletely advocate for yourself
.
I think that's so important.
I don't think we do that enoughin any aspect of our life I
mean there's all aspects of ourlife when we need to advocate
(16:24):
for ourself.
I also love this story, thestory about sweetie, like you
need to have, especially inthose types of situations.
You need to have somebody thatsays you're going to be okay,
you will do that.
So, even though, like, Itotally get what you're saying
(16:44):
like we don't normally say that,but it, it probably just pushed
you that little bit more to belike hey, okay, she says I'm
going to be okay.
She sees this, I'm going to beokay, right, like it gives you
that that framework, that thatmindset that, okay, I can do
this, I'm going to be good, it'sall good.
(17:04):
Um, I just, I just loveeverything about that.
We just kind of let you go andtell your story, but I think it
was an amazing one.
We have more questions for you,but can?
you before we do that, you havea very specific background that
we talked about before we cameon the podcast, and it is orange
which is one of my favoritecolors, but there is something
(17:25):
very significant about it.
Can you just talk reallybriefly about that?
Speaker 2 (17:28):
Yes.
So before my MS diagnosis Ireally didn't have a great
relationship with the colororange.
It's not something that's superflattering on me to wear.
You know we all have our colorseasons and I was like meh
orange.
But now I have fully embracedit because it is the color for
MS.
You know all sorts of diseaseshave different color signifiers.
(17:52):
So I learned that about MS andat first, I'll be honest, I was
a little disappointed.
I went man orange.
Really I like green Green's myfavorite color, but I have
really learned to love it.
It's such a bright, vibrantcolor.
It's a color of life.
You know, every time I see abutterfly outside that's orange,
(18:16):
I'm like that's the universetelling me that I'm part of it
and I'm going to be here and I'mgoing to be okay.
So that was my reasoning forpicking an orange background
today was that I wanted torepresent my color.
That corresponds to my story.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
Absolutely love that.
Speaker 3 (18:51):
I know you have more to add to what I said and
support, and I feel like you didsuch a, you know, brave and
beautiful job of giving us acouple of examples of how
important it is to be kind andattuned when you're delivering
news to someone about somethingbig and you know we can joke
about the words that you know,the sweetie, the sweetie
(19:17):
provider used right, but it'sreally what you were describing.
Her energy was exactly likethis butterfly that you were
saying like look, I'm here totell you.
You know, life is in you, youare life, you know.
So like, yeah, I know I'msounding, you know, spiritual
and metaphysical right now, butthere was this, like you know,
there was love in there, whereasthe other person is giving you
(19:39):
really important informationthat you have to know.
So she is doing you a favor bytelling you what's going on.
Favor, I mean this is right, butI mean she used to.
It's, it's in your favor toknow.
Let me rephrase it's in yourfavor to know what's going on.
You want to hear the results,but not like that, yeah, not
(20:00):
like that.
You know cause.
Then we're entering the wholemental health and wellness
journey and the um, you know,thank you for giving us that,
that attunement, and I'm sorryyou walked through the
experience that was less thankind, and it's good to hear that
you have been also supported byfolks who are more in present.
Speaker 2 (20:14):
So Absolutely, I should mention.
So, after getting the news, Itook a leave from work for about
three weeks and was not in agood state at that time, of
course and I found a nursepsychiatrist at that same
(20:35):
hospital and she said I thinkwhat I'm trying to communicate
with, saying sweetie, and thingslike that, is that these women
took the time to really, youknow, from a place of an older
generation talking to a youngergeneration, make sure that I
felt comforted and loved in thatsituation and I'm on a Zoom
(20:58):
call with her telehealth as well.
Just saw bawling my eyes outand she said look, take this
time to be sad.
This is normal, this is okay.
Mourn the life that you thoughtyou were going to have, because,
of course, everybody has theseexpectations that where they're
going to go, what their life isgoing to look like and yours
(21:19):
certainly isn't what youimagined for yourself.
But do not fall into thiscompletely and do not let this
define you, because she said shehad seen people that just
absolutely sank into it and letthe sorrow overtake them.
And that's exactly what I'vedone was, you know, I took that
three weeks to take the time offand, you know, through
(21:42):
counseling and therapy work andalso just personal spiritual
work.
I'm in a much better place thanI was whenever I first got that
phone call.
Speaker 1 (21:52):
Yeah, and that's that's so important that you
really did that right.
We have to have the time togrieve per se right About that.
But you have to also have thehope that, okay, you may never
cure this disease, but you aretreating it, you are living a
good life, you are doing allthose things right, like life is
(22:15):
not over because of thisdiagnosis, exactly Like for a
lot of us and and I thinksometimes we we get in that spot
and and you know, we all haveour ups and downs and I'm sure
there's still days where youhave, you know, the downs and
think, why did this happen to me?
But you know, most of your daysare probably on the positive
side and you're embracing thatand I love that.
(22:37):
Talk just a little bit abouthow this diagnosis helped you
with your personal growth, yourmental state, your emotional
health.
Like you talked about it alittle bit, but let's just put
it like kind of in a, in alittle package for everybody.
Speaker 2 (22:54):
Yeah.
So to put my journey in thataspect in a little shadow box,
if I could, I would say beforethis I really did not realize
how much I was running myselfragged.
If I'm going to be honest, thefinancial services industry can
be one that demands a lot of you, and it demanded a lot of hours
(23:18):
and a lot of you know doing toomuch and working very hard, and
there's nothing wrong withworking hard.
But I think that I was over mypersonal capacity and I didn't
even know it and I just kind ofwent well, that's what you do,
that's what you do.
You work hard at your job andthat's it.
(23:39):
And I didn't really realizethat there was another way to be
.
I didn't realize that I wasenough as I am, and it's
completely fine and normal tocommunicate your capacity to the
people around you.
Before this so before this Iwas working during tax season.
(23:59):
I started out as a taxaccountant, working crazy
overtime At previous jobs.
This employer is a lot betterand more mindful about our time,
but it was still overtime andpardon the pun, but it's taxing.
It really is doing that type ofwork and I wasn't making time
(24:19):
for myself.
And now I have to make time formyself, and that's what I
choose to do.
And mentioning bad days there'scertainly bad days all the time
I just to touch on some of thethe symptoms I experienced.
It can be anything.
(24:41):
Ms is actually called asnowflake disease and it's not
because we're too sensitive orsomething like that.
It's because each of us hasdifferent symptoms, because,
based on where your lesions are,that affects the different
symptoms you have, and you couldhave lesions anywhere on your
brain and spine.
So I have certain days where Iexperience debilitating fatigue,
(25:06):
muscle spasms, nerve pain,brain fog here and there, and on
those days it's really hard towant to get out of bed and
experience life, and sometimes Ireally can't get out of bed,
and so those times are hard.
But I've learned to go.
(25:27):
Okay, amanda, you can be sadabout this for a little while,
but don't let it affect yourwhole day.
So I've learned that we choosehow we respond to things.
We choose how we cope andinstead of choosing to go, well,
(25:52):
when I'm staying in bed I'mjust going to go and feel sorry
for myself.
I certainly do feel sorrysometimes, but I don't let that
overtake me.
So I do what I can to make surethat I'm taking care of me.
I like to imagine my innerchild sometimes and that I'm
(26:14):
doing these things to take careof her so I might put on a
favorite movie.
I will gather my pets I have adog and two cats and hug them
and maybe eat something that myinner child would enjoy.
And I've learned that justthrough taking care of myself I
am much more likely to be ableto show up better for other
(26:37):
people and keep my cup full.
Speaker 3 (26:42):
Yeah, so beautiful.
I wanted to say this part aboutbeing a child.
That in some ways, is it true.
Is it fair to say that you'vehad to learn how to be on the
inside?
You know kind to yourself likethe kind providers were.
So both you know, hey, sweetie,it's going to be on the inside.
You know kind to yourself likethe kind providers were.
So both you know, hey, sweetie,it's going to be okay.
(27:02):
Hey, like the other one, ifwe're sad right now, let's let
that happen.
Also.
Let's not, you know, sink intothe despair of it.
What do you need?
Like I can just hear you sortof like checking in with
yourself, you know, based on thetime that we spent together,
you know, a couple of months ago, like what do you need?
What do you need?
And catching when you'rewanting to maybe be harsh with
(27:24):
yourself, like, yep, this iswhat it is, wait until October.
Like no, no, waiting untilOctober.
You know, is it fair to say?
That's kind of how it goes onthe inside of it, that you have
these choices right?
Speaker 2 (27:45):
You can be unkind to yourself and rough or approach
yourself with gentlenessAbsolutely One of the counselors
that I talked to.
He taught me about positiveself-talk and how our brains I
think I might've said this atthe conference where we all met
but our brains are designed tokeep us alive, not to keep us
happy.
So every day I am activelychoosing to speak to myself in
(28:06):
ways that are going to encouragehappiness.
You know, it's very easy to getdiscouraged.
Actually, earlier this week Ihad a time where I thought that
I was okay cleaning out thiscloset at work and by the time I
got home I realized I had letmyself get too hot and was
unfortunately experiencing somesymptoms at that time and I was
(28:30):
very frustrated and was a littledown on myself.
And then I caught it and I went.
You know what?
No, it's okay.
You don't have to be perfect atknowing your disease all the
time.
You know, trying to monitoryour own body and its own
signals, it's a Herculean tasksometimes.
(28:52):
So I'm learning to, instead ofgo well, you shouldn't have done
X, y and Z, go okay, thathappened, that's in the past.
What are we going to do to takecare of ourselves now?
Speaker 3 (29:06):
Beautiful If you were to summarize this, because
you're really answering ourfinal question how was all of
this, this massive pivot thatyou've been hit by and then
moving through and living with,how has this been a step forward
?
You started answering it.
Could you summarize it for usas we start to say goodbye?
Speaker 2 (29:27):
Absolutely so.
I think I might have alluded tothis a bit earlier, but this is
certainly something that no onewants and I don't wish this upon
anybody.
But I really think that thisdiagnosis and this disability
journey has been a blessing indisguise, because before I don't
(29:49):
know that, I would have knownto take the time for myself and
watch out for myself and to carefor myself.
So now that I'm doing that, I'mfinding it so much easier to
show up in a positive capacityfor other people, but also for
myself, and to be kind to myself, Whereas before I would say it
(30:11):
was very easy to engage in thenegative self-talk that I think
all of us do.
And now that I've had the timeto learn how helpful it can be
to care for myself, it's madeall the difference in the world.
You know I constantly read upon this disease and diagnosis
(30:33):
and one of the things I learnedwas that if you speak to
yourself negatively, your bodycan sort of over time go, oh
okay, that's what's going tohappen, and not look towards the
ways of helping you feel better.
And learning that I took thetime to actually take care of
(30:58):
myself, speak positively tomyself, and I find that I've
noticed a big change over thesepast few years.
In the beginning I was notnearly as kind to myself as I am
now.
So the thing that I wouldsummarize and what I would want
everyone to know is to be kindto themselves, because each of
(31:22):
us is dealing with so much andwe don't know just by looking at
each other.
You know.
Oftentimes people tell me like,oh, but you look good, you look
great and I'm like I do,certainly, but you might not
know symptoms that I'mexperiencing and trying to still
push through at that time.
(31:43):
And it's also taught me to bemore empathetic to other people,
because I know if this is whatI'm going through, who knows
what other people could be goingthrough on any given time,
whether it be something personalor physical or mental.
So I am just actively trying tobe so much more kind and
(32:06):
gracious to everyone around meeven you know people that walk
past me at the store becauseI've really encompassed this
idea in my head that we are alljust humans just trying.
We're all just trying and Ithink all of us trying.
That's what matters.
Speaker 1 (32:26):
I love that so much and I say it all the time, and
you said it is that we neverknow what others are going
through Right and so, havingthat empathy, having for
ourselves, even right, when wehave something going on, we have
to give ourselves the time toheal.
So we are so thankful that youshared your story with us, that
(32:47):
you were so open about it andtalking about it and and you
know you're going to get peoplewho are going to come to you now
and say, hey, I know, maybe Iwas just diagnosed, can you give
me some stuff?
And that is the best thing,right?
You being an advocate for it,you sharing your story, you, um,
living with it and and havingthis positive attitude, I think
(33:09):
are so absolutely amazing,amanda.
So thank you, thank you Even.
I'll let you kind of close, butthank you for being here with
us today.
I really enjoyed hearing yourentire story and and you know
we're going to have you backbecause I think there's way more
we can talk- about.
Yes.
Speaker 3 (33:27):
Thank you so much.
It's going to be a really, youknow, an honor to re-listen to
our conversation.
You had so many shares thatwere just, you know, gems of
wisdom and we appreciate youdeeply.
Thank you for educating us.
Thank you for bringing yourbeautiful smile and your
presence here and being somotivating and inspiring.
I really appreciate youpresence here and being so
motivating and inspiring.
(33:48):
I really appreciate you.
Speaker 2 (33:50):
Thank you both so much.
This was absolutely just thebest time and I would love to
come back and, you know, sharemore.
Like you said, there's so muchto talk about, so I'm really
appreciative of the opportunitytoday Awesome.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
Thank you to all our listeners for being with us this
week.
We really do appreciate it andremember if you have a pivot
step into it.
Hi everybody and welcome to this week's episode
of Step Into the Pivot.
We are so happy to have a newfriend on with us today, amanda
Dixon.
So Amanda is clearly like anumbers geek like I.
Am beginning her career as atax professional.
You know, is an enrolled agent,which is awesome, and now
(00:22):
there's a lot of stuff inmarketing.
But we're going to talk to hertoday about a much more major
pivot she's had in her life inthe past couple of years.
So, amanda, thank you so muchfor being here with us today.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
I am so thrilled to be here with you, ladies, and
I'm really looking forward tothis conversation Awesome.
Speaker 3 (00:42):
Yes, welcome, amanda.
Thank you for being here withus.
I want to share a very shortstory about how we met and what
I noticed, and then I'll ask youto tell us more.
So we were together at anindustry event and then
afterwards we went out fordinner with a smaller group of
friends some new friends, someolder friends, lovely, engaging
(01:06):
conversation, and we were justto contextualize it in a
restaurant.
The meal took quite a long time.
This was after a very long dayand everything was effervescent
and positive, beautifulconversations, but it was even,
you know, even though it wasreally pleasant, I was noticing
(01:26):
that I was getting tired and bythe time we were all done with
our meal and we're heading backto the hotel, several of us were
chatting about potentiallystaying on to talk more, whether
we were going to, you know,keep hanging out at the hotel or
do something else.
Now I'm noticing that my body'salready sending me signals that
(01:48):
, like Evie, go to bed.
But I am kind of bulldozingover that because I'm like, no,
no, no, I'm here.
This is so special.
When will I see, you know,these people again bulldozing,
bulldozing you meanwhile,closing you meanwhile.
(02:11):
So, like power move, say goodnight everybody.
I am turning in.
This was really nice and I'm notentertaining any possibilities.
You didn't say it like that,but I'm not entertaining any
possibility of now staying outfurther.
I'm gonna go rest and you saidsomething really cool.
It was like I'm going to gocheck in with my husband and I
(02:32):
noticed something different inhow you did it than what I would
typically hear at events likethis.
There was a certain certaintyto what you were saying about.
This is what's really good forme and I.
It's a non-negotiable and I,like you all, and I'm leaving
now and I was like I am reallycurious about that and then you
know, the next day I did end upfinding out more about what was
behind that.
You know firmness and certainty.
(02:55):
So tell us about your pivot,your major pivot in your life,
and maybe explain to ourlisteners and our viewers what
was going on for you when yousaid I'm not hanging out.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
Yeah, absolutely so.
It's funny that you mentionedwanting to bulldoze past those
initial signals and do more, andI really related to that
pre-diagnosis.
So I'm going to share with youall about my multiple sclerosis
diagnosis story and feel free tostop me at any point, ask any
(03:27):
questions.
I am an open book and I lovetalking about this.
Not because it's a good thing,certainly not but it's a
wonderful opportunity to educateable-bodied people, but also
especially women, because I feelvery strongly that had I not
advocated for myself as a womanwith my health care, then I
(03:47):
might not be in the position Iam today.
So back in 2020, this was March, april 2020, I'm sure we can
all place ourselves back thereat that period of time and I
said, well, let me engage insome self-care.
And my wonderful, fabulousin-laws had gifted me a
(04:09):
subscription to a Peloton appand they had different workouts
and things.
So I did some yoga in my livingroom and after I was like, okay
, that was a good workout, Ifeel good.
But the next day, unfortunately,I had a twinge in my left
shoulder and I said, well, Iprobably did something wrong.
You know, I'm not anexperienced yoga practitioner.
(04:31):
We all make mistakes.
It could have been anything,but what I noticed was, over the
course of the next week, ittraveled, this nerve pain, this
twinge, all down the left sideof my body and that's where I
went.
Okay, that's not normal and,funnily enough, when I checked
into the doctor, I made anappointment that same week.
(04:53):
The nurse that I talked to whenshe asked why are you here?
I explained that reasoning andshe said, oh yeah, nerve stuff
is bad.
You should definitely be here.
And I was like, well, good,that's the goal to figure out
what's going on.
(05:13):
So I saw not my regular primarycare physician.
He was unavailable.
So I saw another PA and shesaid, well, yeah, that sounds
weird, let's order an MRI and gofrom there just to see what's
going on.
And so I had the MRI done Ibelieve that May of 2020, and it
did show some activity.
(05:34):
So whenever you get any sort ofmedical testing done and you get
those initial notes back fromthe technician, I recommend
don't read them before yourdoctor can explain them for you,
because I was looking upterminology.
I had no business looking upand I didn't know what it meant,
but I saw the phrase multiplesclerosis and I got scared, but
(05:56):
went, well, we don't know whatthis is.
And I, funnily enough, waswatching Dead to Me, which is a
show that was on Netflixstarring Linda Cardellini and
Christina Applegate, andChristina Applegate, a few years
later, has also been diagnosedwith MS.
So I think that that's andoctor.
You know no good bedside manner.
(06:18):
Because she essentially justcalled me on the phone, didn't
check how I was doing, didn'tcheck if anyone else was with me
, and she just sort of said,yeah, it's probably MS, sorry,
(06:38):
um, we are going to schedule aneurologist visit, but that's
going to be in October.
Going to schedule a neurologistvisit, but that's going to be
in October.
And obviously I broke down justsobbing, terrified, because I
didn't know what this meant.
I, you know, had heard thedisease name before because
Selma Blair had been diagnosedand was going through that
(06:59):
process a few years ago, and Isaw her interview and saw, oh my
gosh, that's so hard to gothrough.
And here I am, a few years later, going through this thing with
this disease that I had no ideawhat it was and started Googling
things.
Again, don't recommend doingthat because you're going to
scare yourself.
And so I was just in a reallybad state, called my husband
(07:23):
crying and he thankfully camehome.
We cried together and took theevening to be upset and the next
few days, of course, to beupset, because this was
life-changing news that I gotand I, through the reading I did
about multiple sclerosis, I sawthat it was a progressive
(07:45):
disease, especially if untreated.
And I was doing the math in myhead and I went okay, october is
months away.
I don't know what this diseasehas been doing in the background
since I was a child, justbecause of little things that I
(08:07):
would experience that I thoughtwere normal for everybody, which
I have subsequently learned arenot.
So I, upon learning that thatthis was a progressive disease,
I said absolutely not, I'm notwaiting until October.
That does not work for me, I'mnot going to put my body on the
back burner.
So I looked up I'm in Louisiana, in Baton Rouge, and I actually
(08:32):
had family in Houma, louisiana,which is more further towards
the Gulf, and in a nearby towncalled Raceland, there was a
neurologist who had anappointment fairly soon
thereafter and I booked anappointment with her.
I told my husband.
I said look, let's take aFriday off of work, we can go
(08:54):
visit my grandmother, we canmake a whole weekend of it, and
let's do this because I reallydon't want to put this on the
back burner.
So I drove down there with himand he let me go into the
appointment and I told her aboutthe symptoms I was experiencing
the nerve pain, the tingling,numbness, various things that
(09:18):
are going on and she saidsweetie.
Now, I know that it may be inevery situation.
We don't call each othersweetie, but I'm in the South
and she called me sweetie.
Now, I know that it may be inevery situation.
We don't call each othersweetie, but I'm in the South
and she called me sweetie.
And she said sweetie, you'regoing to be okay, it's going to
be all right.
This does not need to defineyour life, and If you were going
(09:44):
to end up in a wheelchair, youwould probably already be having
mobility issues right now.
So hearing that and hearing hersay this is probably what it is
, but it's going to be okay, wasso helpful.
(10:10):
Ton of blood tests and othertests, more MRIs and things like
that, just because,unfortunately, ms is a
elimination disease.
It's something where you haveto rule everything else out
before you can definitively sayyes, it's this.
And there is a specificcriteria called the McDonald
criteria where if you have acertain amount of lesions and
things like that, if itsatisfies that criteria, a
(10:31):
doctor can go okay, it'sdefinitely this.
I unfortunately didn't satisfythe criteria at that point.
So a different neurologist thatI saw ordered a spinal tap for
that June, which is another partof the diagnosis process, which
is not abnormal.
But a third neurologistactually that I was recommended
(10:53):
to from my regular primary carephysician, who he had worked
with her during COVID the peakof COVID anyhow and he said she
actually specializes in MS,she's not just a neurologist,
she is an MS neurologist.
And he gave me thatrecommendation.
So I actually drove down to NewOrleans with my husband the day
(11:16):
before that spinal tap wasscheduled to be performed and
she looked at my blood tests,looked at all of my MRIs.
I had an MRI on my brain,cervical spine, which is this
neck area, and then my thoracicspine as well, and based on the
lesion activity she said youabsolutely satisfy the McDonald
(11:40):
criteria and I said so, I don'tneed a spinal tap.
And she said no, you don't.
And I said great and called andcanceled it immediately because
you know I was nervous aboutdoing that.
So it was very relieving tohave someone tell me
definitively this is what it'sgoing to be and this is what
(12:02):
we're going to do from here onout.
And we discussed treatments andI chose one that I felt was
going to be the best for me.
The medicine that I'm on iscalled Okravis.
I just go to the hospital onceevery six months.
The fabulous nurses there hookme up.
It's actually a chemotherapydrug, which I learned from my
(12:24):
fabulous grandmother, who's alsoa nurse.
I thought chemo was just forcancer, but she explained that
it's the type of treatment.
It's not necessarily just forcancer.
So I thought, oh okay, sothat's why I'm in that room with
everybody else.
But the treatment has beenabsolutely phenomenal.
(12:45):
It is honestly a pretty easyday.
I go there usually with myhusband, but my mom has come
with me before as well, and theyhave big, comfy chairs and you
can adjust the lighting in yourindividual area and we just sit
and eat snacks and watch moviesfor the whole day.
And then I go home and,thankfully, as a result of
(13:10):
continuing to be on thistreatment, I've had no new
lesions, no disease progressionever since, and that is just the
best news that I could haveever hoped for, and it has
really made all the difference.
So just to give a timeline, Istarted experiencing symptoms
(13:32):
and then, within two months, wasformally diagnosed and was able
to get on a treatment.
And I've since learned throughthere's a fabulous online
community of fellow MS sufferersfabulous online community of
fellow MS sufferers and I'velearned from them that
oftentimes, especially for women, they're very, very frequently
(13:56):
dismissed and just are told well, you're tired, maybe you're a
new mom, oh, that's normal,because you're just tired,
because you're balancing allsorts of things going on.
And it was so disheartening tohear that that's normal.
Oftentimes it can take yearsfor a diagnosis and I don't know
(14:21):
where I'd be symptomprogression wise if I had not
stuck up for myself and said no,I'm not going to wait till
October, I want to get treatmentas soon as I possibly can and
thankfully you know it's coveredthrough insurance and, like I
said, it's a pretty easy day.
So my life has absolutely beenaffected on a day-to-day basis.
(14:45):
You this I was working in theoffice full-time and now,
through talking to my employerand making some adjustments, I'm
part-time and mostly work fromhome.
But that has made all thedifference and whereas before I
would say I was always pushingpast those biological signals.
Now I listen to themdefinitively and that reminds me
(15:09):
of that story that youbeautifully recounted, ivana,
because you know, I don'tunfortunately have the option
really anymore of ignoring thosesignals.
So that instance was me tellingyou guys, hey, it really was a
wonderful dinner, I am having afabulous time, but my body's
(15:32):
telling me I'm done and I amready to go lie down and check
in with my husband on the phoneand tell him about this fabulous
day.
So it's not that I'm not havinga wonderful time.
If anything, I would love tostay and do more, but I have
learned to be okay with thecapacity that I have.
(15:52):
If I'm at 40% one day and Igive 40%, that's me giving a
hundred percent and that's okay.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
Okay, Just wow.
Like I'm just going to startwith wow, because I did not know
your whole story and often Ilike to be surprised.
I've said that before.
So many great things there,Amanda.
I love number one that youcompletely advocate for yourself
.
I think that's so important.
I don't think we do that enoughin any aspect of our life I
mean there's all aspects of ourlife when we need to advocate
(16:24):
for ourself.
I also love this story, thestory about sweetie, like you
need to have, especially inthose types of situations.
You need to have somebody thatsays you're going to be okay,
you will do that.
So, even though, like, Itotally get what you're saying
(16:44):
like we don't normally say that,but it, it probably just pushed
you that little bit more to belike hey, okay, she says I'm
going to be okay.
She sees this, I'm going to beokay, right, like it gives you
that that framework, that thatmindset that, okay, I can do
this, I'm going to be good, it'sall good.
(17:04):
Um, I just, I just loveeverything about that.
We just kind of let you go andtell your story, but I think it
was an amazing one.
We have more questions for you,but can?
you before we do that, you havea very specific background that
we talked about before we cameon the podcast, and it is orange
which is one of my favoritecolors, but there is something
(17:25):
very significant about it.
Can you just talk reallybriefly about that?
Speaker 2 (17:28):
Yes.
So before my MS diagnosis Ireally didn't have a great
relationship with the colororange.
It's not something that's superflattering on me to wear.
You know we all have our colorseasons and I was like meh
orange.
But now I have fully embracedit because it is the color for
MS.
You know all sorts of diseaseshave different color signifiers.
(17:52):
So I learned that about MS andat first, I'll be honest, I was
a little disappointed.
I went man orange.
Really I like green Green's myfavorite color, but I have
really learned to love it.
It's such a bright, vibrantcolor.
It's a color of life.
You know, every time I see abutterfly outside that's orange,
(18:16):
I'm like that's the universetelling me that I'm part of it
and I'm going to be here and I'mgoing to be okay.
So that was my reasoning forpicking an orange background
today was that I wanted torepresent my color.
That corresponds to my story.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
Absolutely love that.
Speaker 3 (18:51):
I know you have more to add to what I said and
support, and I feel like you didsuch a, you know, brave and
beautiful job of giving us acouple of examples of how
important it is to be kind andattuned when you're delivering
news to someone about somethingbig and you know we can joke
about the words that you know,the sweetie, the sweetie
(19:17):
provider used right, but it'sreally what you were describing.
Her energy was exactly likethis butterfly that you were
saying like look, I'm here totell you.
You know, life is in you, youare life, you know.
So like, yeah, I know I'msounding, you know, spiritual
and metaphysical right now, butthere was this, like you know,
there was love in there, whereasthe other person is giving you
(19:39):
really important informationthat you have to know.
So she is doing you a favor bytelling you what's going on.
Favor, I mean this is right, butI mean she used to.
It's, it's in your favor toknow.
Let me rephrase it's in yourfavor to know what's going on.
You want to hear the results,but not like that, yeah, not
(20:00):
like that.
You know cause.
Then we're entering the wholemental health and wellness
journey and the um, you know,thank you for giving us that,
that attunement, and I'm sorryyou walked through the
experience that was less thankind, and it's good to hear that
you have been also supported byfolks who are more in present.
Speaker 2 (20:14):
So Absolutely, I should mention.
So, after getting the news, Itook a leave from work for about
three weeks and was not in agood state at that time, of
course and I found a nursepsychiatrist at that same
(20:35):
hospital and she said I thinkwhat I'm trying to communicate
with, saying sweetie, and thingslike that, is that these women
took the time to really, youknow, from a place of an older
generation talking to a youngergeneration, make sure that I
felt comforted and loved in thatsituation and I'm on a Zoom
(20:58):
call with her telehealth as well.
Just saw bawling my eyes outand she said look, take this
time to be sad.
This is normal, this is okay.
Mourn the life that you thoughtyou were going to have, because,
of course, everybody has theseexpectations that where they're
going to go, what their life isgoing to look like and yours
(21:19):
certainly isn't what youimagined for yourself.
But do not fall into thiscompletely and do not let this
define you, because she said shehad seen people that just
absolutely sank into it and letthe sorrow overtake them.
And that's exactly what I'vedone was, you know, I took that
three weeks to take the time offand, you know, through
(21:42):
counseling and therapy work andalso just personal spiritual
work.
I'm in a much better place thanI was whenever I first got that
phone call.
Speaker 1 (21:52):
Yeah, and that's that's so important that you
really did that right.
We have to have the time togrieve per se right About that.
But you have to also have thehope that, okay, you may never
cure this disease, but you aretreating it, you are living a
good life, you are doing allthose things right, like life is
(22:15):
not over because of thisdiagnosis, exactly Like for a
lot of us and and I thinksometimes we we get in that spot
and and you know, we all haveour ups and downs and I'm sure
there's still days where youhave, you know, the downs and
think, why did this happen to me?
But you know, most of your daysare probably on the positive
side and you're embracing thatand I love that.
(22:37):
Talk just a little bit abouthow this diagnosis helped you
with your personal growth, yourmental state, your emotional
health.
Like you talked about it alittle bit, but let's just put
it like kind of in a, in alittle package for everybody.
Speaker 2 (22:54):
Yeah.
So to put my journey in thataspect in a little shadow box,
if I could, I would say beforethis I really did not realize
how much I was running myselfragged.
If I'm going to be honest, thefinancial services industry can
be one that demands a lot of you, and it demanded a lot of hours
(23:18):
and a lot of you know doing toomuch and working very hard, and
there's nothing wrong withworking hard.
But I think that I was over mypersonal capacity and I didn't
even know it and I just kind ofwent well, that's what you do,
that's what you do.
You work hard at your job andthat's it.
(23:39):
And I didn't really realizethat there was another way to be
.
I didn't realize that I wasenough as I am, and it's
completely fine and normal tocommunicate your capacity to the
people around you.
Before this so before this Iwas working during tax season.
(23:59):
I started out as a taxaccountant, working crazy
overtime At previous jobs.
This employer is a lot betterand more mindful about our time,
but it was still overtime andpardon the pun, but it's taxing.
It really is doing that type ofwork and I wasn't making time
(24:19):
for myself.
And now I have to make time formyself, and that's what I
choose to do.
And mentioning bad days there'scertainly bad days all the time
I just to touch on some of thethe symptoms I experienced.
It can be anything.
(24:41):
Ms is actually called asnowflake disease and it's not
because we're too sensitive orsomething like that.
It's because each of us hasdifferent symptoms, because,
based on where your lesions are,that affects the different
symptoms you have, and you couldhave lesions anywhere on your
brain and spine.
So I have certain days where Iexperience debilitating fatigue,
(25:06):
muscle spasms, nerve pain,brain fog here and there, and on
those days it's really hard towant to get out of bed and
experience life, and sometimes Ireally can't get out of bed,
and so those times are hard.
But I've learned to go.
(25:27):
Okay, amanda, you can be sadabout this for a little while,
but don't let it affect yourwhole day.
So I've learned that we choosehow we respond to things.
We choose how we cope andinstead of choosing to go, well,
(25:52):
when I'm staying in bed I'mjust going to go and feel sorry
for myself.
I certainly do feel sorrysometimes, but I don't let that
overtake me.
So I do what I can to make surethat I'm taking care of me.
I like to imagine my innerchild sometimes and that I'm
(26:14):
doing these things to take careof her so I might put on a
favorite movie.
I will gather my pets I have adog and two cats and hug them
and maybe eat something that myinner child would enjoy.
And I've learned that justthrough taking care of myself I
am much more likely to be ableto show up better for other
(26:37):
people and keep my cup full.
Speaker 3 (26:42):
Yeah, so beautiful.
I wanted to say this part aboutbeing a child.
That in some ways, is it true.
Is it fair to say that you'vehad to learn how to be on the
inside?
You know kind to yourself likethe kind providers were.
So both you know, hey, sweetie,it's going to be on the inside.
You know kind to yourself likethe kind providers were.
So both you know, hey, sweetie,it's going to be okay.
(27:02):
Hey, like the other one, ifwe're sad right now, let's let
that happen.
Also.
Let's not, you know, sink intothe despair of it.
What do you need?
Like I can just hear you sortof like checking in with
yourself, you know, based on thetime that we spent together,
you know, a couple of months ago, like what do you need?
What do you need?
And catching when you'rewanting to maybe be harsh with
(27:24):
yourself, like, yep, this iswhat it is, wait until October.
Like no, no, waiting untilOctober.
You know, is it fair to say?
That's kind of how it goes onthe inside of it, that you have
these choices right?
Speaker 2 (27:45):
You can be unkind to yourself and rough or approach
yourself with gentlenessAbsolutely One of the counselors
that I talked to.
He taught me about positiveself-talk and how our brains I
think I might've said this atthe conference where we all met
but our brains are designed tokeep us alive, not to keep us
happy.
So every day I am activelychoosing to speak to myself in
(28:06):
ways that are going to encouragehappiness.
You know, it's very easy to getdiscouraged.
Actually, earlier this week Ihad a time where I thought that
I was okay cleaning out thiscloset at work and by the time I
got home I realized I had letmyself get too hot and was
unfortunately experiencing somesymptoms at that time and I was
(28:30):
very frustrated and was a littledown on myself.
And then I caught it and I went.
You know what?
No, it's okay.
You don't have to be perfect atknowing your disease all the
time.
You know, trying to monitoryour own body and its own
signals, it's a Herculean tasksometimes.
(28:52):
So I'm learning to, instead ofgo well, you shouldn't have done
X, y and Z, go okay, thathappened, that's in the past.
What are we going to do to takecare of ourselves now?
Speaker 3 (29:06):
Beautiful If you were to summarize this, because
you're really answering ourfinal question how was all of
this, this massive pivot thatyou've been hit by and then
moving through and living with,how has this been a step forward
?
You started answering it.
Could you summarize it for usas we start to say goodbye?
Speaker 2 (29:27):
Absolutely so.
I think I might have alluded tothis a bit earlier, but this is
certainly something that no onewants and I don't wish this upon
anybody.
But I really think that thisdiagnosis and this disability
journey has been a blessing indisguise, because before I don't
(29:49):
know that, I would have knownto take the time for myself and
watch out for myself and to carefor myself.
So now that I'm doing that, I'mfinding it so much easier to
show up in a positive capacityfor other people, but also for
myself, and to be kind to myself, Whereas before I would say it
(30:11):
was very easy to engage in thenegative self-talk that I think
all of us do.
And now that I've had the timeto learn how helpful it can be
to care for myself, it's madeall the difference in the world.
You know I constantly read upon this disease and diagnosis
(30:33):
and one of the things I learnedwas that if you speak to
yourself negatively, your bodycan sort of over time go, oh
okay, that's what's going tohappen, and not look towards the
ways of helping you feel better.
And learning that I took thetime to actually take care of
(30:58):
myself, speak positively tomyself, and I find that I've
noticed a big change over thesepast few years.
In the beginning I was notnearly as kind to myself as I am
now.
So the thing that I wouldsummarize and what I would want
everyone to know is to be kindto themselves, because each of
(31:22):
us is dealing with so much andwe don't know just by looking at
each other.
You know.
Oftentimes people tell me like,oh, but you look good, you look
great and I'm like I do,certainly, but you might not
know symptoms that I'mexperiencing and trying to still
push through at that time.
(31:43):
And it's also taught me to bemore empathetic to other people,
because I know if this is whatI'm going through, who knows
what other people could be goingthrough on any given time,
whether it be something personalor physical or mental.
So I am just actively trying tobe so much more kind and
(32:06):
gracious to everyone around meeven you know people that walk
past me at the store becauseI've really encompassed this
idea in my head that we are alljust humans just trying.
We're all just trying and Ithink all of us trying.
That's what matters.
Speaker 1 (32:26):
I love that so much and I say it all the time, and
you said it is that we neverknow what others are going
through Right and so, havingthat empathy, having for
ourselves, even right, when wehave something going on, we have
to give ourselves the time toheal.
So we are so thankful that youshared your story with us, that
(32:47):
you were so open about it andtalking about it and and you
know you're going to get peoplewho are going to come to you now
and say, hey, I know, maybe Iwas just diagnosed, can you give
me some stuff?
And that is the best thing,right?
You being an advocate for it,you sharing your story, you, um,
living with it and and havingthis positive attitude, I think
(33:09):
are so absolutely amazing,amanda.
So thank you, thank you Even.
I'll let you kind of close, butthank you for being here with
us today.
I really enjoyed hearing yourentire story and and you know
we're going to have you backbecause I think there's way more
we can talk- about.
Yes.
Speaker 3 (33:27):
Thank you so much.
It's going to be a really, youknow, an honor to re-listen to
our conversation.
You had so many shares thatwere just, you know, gems of
wisdom and we appreciate youdeeply.
Thank you for educating us.
Thank you for bringing yourbeautiful smile and your
presence here and being somotivating and inspiring.
I really appreciate youpresence here and being so
motivating and inspiring.
(33:48):
I really appreciate you.
Speaker 2 (33:50):
Thank you both so much.
This was absolutely just thebest time and I would love to
come back and, you know, sharemore.
Like you said, there's so muchto talk about, so I'm really
appreciative of the opportunitytoday Awesome.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
Thank you to all our listeners for being with us this
week.
We really do appreciate it andremember if you have a pivot
step into it.
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