From Chronic Pain to Passion Anna Holtzman

Welcome back, dear listeners. On this episode, I sat down for a chat with Andrew. Andrew is someone I met through Instagram — it’s funny that how that happens. Once you start sharing your own story, it’s like you become a lighthouse and when other people who see the light you’re shining resonate with your story or with the work you’re doing, they will seek you out. And if you relate to their story too, you can wind up months later feeling like you know this person just from exchanging messages about a common experience that you share. And that was the case with Andrew. He first reached out to me when he was quite a bit earlier along in his journey, struggling with pelvic pain that was diagnosed as pudendal neuralgia, often known as cyclist syndrome, which was fitting in his case, because Andrew is an avid cyclist. So, you can imagine how much this type of pain interfered not only with his life in general, but also more specifically with cycling, an activity that he’s passionate about. So, when Andrew reached a stage in his process where he’s now sharing his recovery story with others to give them hope and direction, I really wanted to get him on this podcast to share his experience with you! And without further introduction, here is our conversation.

 

You can find Andrew at:

https://www.instagram.com/andrewmbcyclist/

 

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email:
anna@annaholtzman.com

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com


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Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/from-chronic-pain-to-pass/support

Welcome back, dear listeners. On this episode, I had the pleasure of meeting up with Harry Macansh, a speaker and wellness coach who recovered from Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) after initially being told that this condition was incurable. He now helps others to recover as well. 

 

Over more than half a decade, Harry has spent upwards of a quarter of a million dollars in the US & Australia acquiring an arsenal of knowledge and modalities that he now affordably delivers to others, both from stage through 1-to-1 coaching.

 

When Harry reached out to me, I immediately jumped at the
chance to connect and chat, because it just so happens that I was preparing to speak onstage about my own chronic pain recovery for the first time, and I’m fascinated by the connection between recovery and the pull to break through that nearly universal human fear of public speaking to share our stories out loud. Harry and I had a brain tingling conversation about this and I’m excited to share it with you. Here we go.

 

You can find Harry at:

https://www.instagram.com/harrymacansh/

 

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email:
anna@annaholtzman.com

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠


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Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/from-chronic-pain-to-pass/support

Welcome back, dear listeners. It was so fun to record this chat with someone who’s both a good friend and a colleague. May Flam is a leadership coach with nearly 10 years of experience helping busy professionals who are parents to curb their resentment and burnout at work and at home. She is based in Hoboken, New Jersey.

 

During our conversation, we talked about May’s chronic pain recovery story and how that journey relates to the work she does as a coach, specifically in helping people learn the principals of a method called Fair Play, which shows parents and couples how to co-create a more equitable distribution of household work, so that they can free up space in their brain to let go, un-scrunch their shoulders and cut their nervous systems some much needed slack. I have personally benefited from May’s wisdom in this area, and we talked about that too! So if you wanna pick up some truly useful tips and get a peek into both of our personal home lives, take a load off and join us!



 

You can find May at:

 

Website: mayflam.com

Free Domestic Strengths Quiz: https://mayflam.lpages.co/domestic-strengths-quiz/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mayflam/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayflam/

TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@mayflamthecoach

 

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email: anna@annaholtzman.com

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠


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Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/from-chronic-pain-to-pass/support

Welcome back, dear listeners, before we get into today’s episode, I wanted to invite you to a live online workshop that I’m hosting called Journaling for Chronic Pain Relief. Journaling was a hugely important tool in my recovery, and I’m going to teach you how to release emotions, tension and pain from your body through writing in a way that’s gentle and safe and won’t overwhelm your nervous system. I hope that you’ll join me, I would love to see and meet you there. The workshop will take place online on Thursday May 2nd at 12pm Eastern (and yes, there will be a replay, but it’s only available to you if you register. And you can do that by going to: ⁠www.annaholtzman.com/WritingWorkshop

 

And now, I’m bringing you an epic episode today. I got to
have a brain-tingling conversation with Michael Galinsky. Michael describes himself as an artist based in North Carolina who works as a father, dog walker, filmmaker, photographer, writer, musician and human.

 

He’s also a co-creator of the 2016 film All The Rage: Saved by Sarno, which documents the work of Doctor John Sarno, a pioneer of mind-body medicine working both within and against the tide of the mainstream western medical system. The film also documents Michael’s experience of recovering from chronic pain as Sarno’s patient.

 

In our conversation, Michael and I talked about everything
from his personal recovery story to the process of making the film to the sociology of chronic pain and how it maps onto historical and political movements. We talked about intergenerational healing and activism. Basically, our conversation bubbled into so many different areas, because the mind-body experience is not at all limited to our physical sensations.



If you choose to enter the journey with us — which
I hope you do — then buckle up and come along.


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Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/from-chronic-pain-to-pass/support

Welcome back, dear listeners, before we get into today’s episode I wanted to invite you to a live online workshop that I’m hosting called Journaling for Chronic Pain Relief. Journaling was a hugely important tool in my recovery, and I’m going to teach you how to release emotions, tension and pain from your body through writing in a way that’s gentle and safe and won’t overwhelm your nervous system. I hope that you’ll join me, I would love to see and meet you there. The workshop will take place online on Thursday May 2nd at 12pm Eastern (and yes, there will be a replay, but it’s only available to you if you register. And you
can do that by going to: www.annaholtzman.com/WritingWorkshop

And now, I have a really special episode for you today and you’ll be interested to hear it if you have any teenagers in your life who struggle with chronic symptoms, or if you experienced chronic symptoms in the teenage years yourself.

My guest today is Dr. Jin Lee, PsyD, MSCP, BCB, a licensed pediatric psychologist with a deep specialization in chronic pain and functional neurological disorder in children and adolescents. With extensive training, including a Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) and Master’s degree (MA) in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University and a Postdoctoral Master of Science (MS) in Clinical Psychopharmacology from Fairleigh Dickinson University, Dr. Lee has honed her expertise to become a leading expert in the field. Her passion for pediatric psychology and dedication to improving the lives of young patients are evident through her clinical practice, teaching, and research endeavors.

As a founder of her private practice based in Colorado, Your Pediatric Psychologist, Dr. Lee delivers direct clinical care to pediatric patients and collaborates closely with medical teams, school personnel, and community providers to ensure comprehensive care coordination and treatment. Moreover, as the founder of Teen FND Academy, Dr. Lee provides an innovative online psycho-education program and coaching support to adolescents and their families, focusing on resolving chronic pain and functional neurological disorders. Through evidence-based intervention approaches and compassionate care, she empowers teens and their parents to overcome challenges related to chronic pain and FND and achieve better outcomes.

Dr. Lee’s impact in the field extends beyond her clinical practice through her work as an educator, clinical supervisor and policy advocate in her field.

I was so thrilled to have this conversation with Dr. Lee, so without any further intro, I’ll invite you to listen in.

 

You can find Dr. Lee at:

Website: https://www.yourpediatricpsychologist.com/

Group program: https://www.teenfndacademy.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TeenFND

 

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email: anna@annaholtzman.com

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠


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Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/from-chronic-pain-to-pass/support

In this episode, I tell three raw, personal stories about how the body can react to fear with a wide range of surprising symptoms — and how we can help our body feel safe again so that symptoms can subside.



Story #1: How a gut renovation triggered a gut reaction.

Story #2: How a bus driver's kindness was all the medicine I needed.

Story #3: An allergic reaction to my own anger, and how I moved through it.



I hope these stories help you normalize the ways that your body responds to everyday stress, and soothe your body back into regulation.



With love,

Anna



You can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com


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Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/from-chronic-pain-to-pass/support