047 - Eliza Charley on Claiming Your Worth Outside of Productivity and Life with ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome The Steph Sanzaro Podcast

Welcome to The Steph Sanzaro Podcast and our first episode of 2022 with Eliza Charley.

To all new listeners, welcome. Thank you for being here. To all returning listeners, thank you for your love and patience as I have battled my own up and down health. Your kindness is so, so appreciated. This podcast began in 2019 and it is incredible to see how much it has grown since. I am very excited to be back this year in 2022, bringing you incredible new guests and episodes. We’ve got some amazing guests lined up in the coming months, so make sure that you are still subscribed so you can stay up to date and aware of when all eps drop.

Our first guest of the year is the wonderful Eliza Charley. Eliza is an Australian actor, writer and filmmaker with an alter-ego career as a business strategist and marketing consultant, but today we will be discussing the disease Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME), which is commonly known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. This was a particularly meaning conversation for me, being someone who also manages CFS. If you have a curiousity about ME/CFS, are looking for tips on how to support an ME/CFS patient, or are wondering if you yourself might have ME/CFS, this episode with Eliza will help bring a lot of things to light for you.

We begin todays episode by taking a little look into Eliza's current every-day life and through a quick 'montage' of her 2020 and 2021. Todays episode is all about bringing awareness to ME/CFS, so expect to hear Eliza's personal experience with symptoms, her journey through recovery, remission and relapse, and how she has managed and cared for her body during this time.

Eliza has experienced ME/CFS since 2009 after a viral infection saw her health take a turn for the worst. This episode is her journey and heart, bared for all to see. ME/CFS is a confusing and unclear diagnosis and leads to many sufferers feeling alone and isolated, that’s why Eliza has become a determined advocate for those with ME/CFS and why conversations like this are so important.

This episode centres around:

·  Being worthy, even as an ill person

·  How Eliza experiences ME/CFS in her body

·  Why it’s always best to not ‘assume’

·  How to live with uncertainty and a loss of identity

·  Why a ME/CFS diagnosis can be confusing

·  Platforms like Instagram as a resource for connection and information

·  ME/CFS and comorbidities

·  Eliza’s tips and tricks for management

·  The spectrum of remission and relapse

·  What is post exertional malaise?

·  Treatments, promises and ‘cures’

·  How to support people with ME/CFS

·  Brain fog and its dangers

·  Dealing with expectations and a life you never expected

·  Why you need to focus on what you ‘can’ do

·  Holding hope for ourselves and others

If you would like to reach out to Eliza Charley or find out more about her work and life, you can connect with her on instagram, twitter or through her website.

Socials - Instagram and Twitter

@elizacharley

www.elizacharley.com

Socials - Hope Heroes Collective - Instagram

@HopeHeroesCollective

Patient-led reflections on chronic disease

Thank you for being back with us in 2022. Get ready for an incredible year of episodes ahead!
If you feel so inclined after todays episode, please feel free to leave a 5 star rating and subscribe for future episodes. 

Happy listening,

Steph xx

@stephsanzaro

www.stephsanzaro.com