Chronically Able

Chronically Able

5.0 (4)
Self-Improvement
Updated Weekly

Chronically Capable is the podcast for anyone living with chronic illness, disability, or invisible battles who’s tired of being dismissed. Host Elisa Michelle shares raw stories, practical self-advocacy tools, and honest conversations with guests who get it — because they’re living it too. If you’re ready to feel seen, heard, and fiercely capable — even on your hardest days — you’re in the right place.

19h ago

E16: Letting Go of Who You Thought You’d Be

What happens when the person you keep trying to become… is a version of yourself that no longer exists? In this episode of Chronically Able, we’re talking about the grief that can come with chronic illness, disability, and changing capacity, from “but I used to be able to…” to waiting to live your life until you’re “better.” We unpack identity, invisible grief, adaptation, and why doing things differently isn’t giving up. Maybe moving forward isn’t about getting back to who you were. Maybe it’s about making room for who you are now.
Aug 14

EP 15:Disabled & Ambitious: Why Do I Feel Like I Have Something to Prove?

What happens when you’re ambitious, driven, and disabled, and you’ve spent your life trying to prove what you’re capable of? In this episode of Chronically Able, we unpack the complicated relationship between disability, ambition, hustle culture, and the pressure to prove people wrong. From doctors placing limitations on our futures to feeling guilty for resting or needing accommodations, we ask: Am I chasing my dreams, or am I still trying to prove that I can? Because being disabled doesn’t mean dreaming smaller. Maybe it means finally defining success for ourselves.
Jul 31

EP 14: Disability Pride Month: Rights, Resilience & the Future We’re Building

Disability Pride Month is more than a celebration, it is a reminder of the rights disabled people fought for, the barriers that still exist, and the future we are responsible for building. In this episode of Chronically Able, Elisa explores the disability rights movement, the activists who helped shape history, and the laws designed to protect disabled people in employment, education, housing, healthcare, travel, and public life. We break down real-life situations, surprising “Did You Know?” facts, the hidden financial cost of disability, invisible disabilities, subminimum wages, benefit limits, inaccessible healthcare, and what is truly at stake right now. This episode is educational for disabled and nondisabled listeners alike, and ends with a practical access audit to help turn awareness into action. Disability is part of the human experience. Accessibility is not a favor. And progress requires all of us. 🎧 Listen, reflect, share, and ask yourself: Are we building a world that merely accommodates disabled people after exclusion—or one that expects us from the beginning?
Jun 19

E13: Life Happened. I'm Still Here.

After a short break from the podcast, I'm back with a personal check-in episode to reconnect with the Chronically Able community. In this episode, I share where I've been, what life has looked like lately while navigating chronic illness, graduate school, career transitions, and the realities of balancing it all as a one-person team. We talk about the pressure to always be productive, the guilt that can come with slowing down, and what I've been learning about worth, identity, and showing up imperfectly. I also introduce a new segment, Chronically Capable Moment, where we celebrate the victories, big and small, that often go unseen. Whether you've been here since the beginning or are joining for the first time, this episode is a reminder that progress isn't always linear, rest is productive, and you don't have to start over, you can simply start again. I'd love to hear from you: ✨ What's your Chronically Capable Moment this week?✨ What topics would you like to hear on future episodes? Connect with me on social media or send me a message to continue the conversation.
May 22

E12: The trauma of fighting to be believed

What happens when your body is screaming for help… but nobody believes you? In this deeply raw episode of Chronically Able, Rylee opens up about growing up feeling dismissed, being told her symptoms were “all in her head,” and navigating the emotional trauma of medical gaslighting while living with invisible illness. After COVID worsened her condition, everyday life became a battle from losing independence to constantly having to prove her pain in a world that often misunderstands chronic illness. This conversation explores survival, grief, resilience, and the exhausting reality of being “able” while silently paying the price afterward. If you’ve ever felt unseen, unheard, or exhausted from fighting to be believed… this episode is for you 🤍
May 7

E:11 Gaslit for Years, 60+ Surgeries, Raising Two Chronically Ill Kids

In this episode of Chronically Able, Elisa sits down with Tori—a mom living with multiple complex chronic illnesses who has undergone over 60 surgeries while also raising two children with disabilities and chronic illnesses of their own. From being dismissed by doctors for years, labeled “lazy,” and constantly gaslit about her symptoms… to finally receiving life-changing diagnoses including Cystic Fibrosis, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, Tori shares what it’s really like living in a body that people refused to understand. But this conversation goes beyond diagnoses. Together, Elisa and Tori discuss: medical gaslightinparenting medically complex childrenfighting schools and healthcare systems for accommodationschronic pain and disabilityaccessibility and travel fearsrelationships while chronically illand the difference between toxic positivity and “realistic hope"This episode is raw, emotional, validating, and deeply important for anyone navigating chronic illness, disability, caregiving, or the fight to be believed. 🧡 Because hope doesn’t have to look perfect to still exist.
Mar 6

E:10 The World Doesn’t Slow Down for Chronic Illness

This week’s episode of Chronically Able is a little different. Sometimes when you live with chronic illness, your body changes the plan. Deadlines, expectations, and schedules don’t always align with the realities of autoimmune disease, fatigue, or flare-ups. In this short episode, I talk honestly about what it means to live in a world that keeps moving while your body asks you to slow down. I also want to thank everyone who has submitted the Chronically Able guest form. Your stories matter deeply to this community. If you haven’t heard from me yet, please know I see you and truly appreciate your patience as I work through each submission. Rare doesn’t mean invisible. And adapting doesn’t mean giving up.
Feb 27

E:9 Rare, But Not Invisible | Living with Myasthenia Gravis, Lupus & Sjögren’s

It’s Rare Disease Awareness Month, and most people don’t even know it. In this deeply personal episode of Chronically Able, Elisa records from a flare, laying in the dark, and shares what living with multiple rare autoimmune diseases actually looks like. She goes beyond just naming her diagnoses and explains what they do: •What Myasthenia Gravis is and how it affects muscle communication •How Systemic Lupus Erythematosus creates systemic inflammation and unpredictable flares •Why Sjögren’s Syndrome is more than “dry eyes” and how it impacts dental health and finances With clear percentages and real-life examples, Elisa sheds light on how rare these conditions truly are, and what it means to live in a statistically small, often misunderstood space. This episode also covers: • What autoimmune flares feel like • Why rare disease diagnosis can take years • How to advocate for testing and referrals • The invisible financial burden of chronic illness • Why visibility and education start with us If you’re living with a rare disease, still searching for answers, or supporting someone who is — this conversation is for you. Rare doesn’t mean dramatic. Rare doesn’t mean invisible. And if you want to share your rare disease story on Chronically Able, the guest interest form is linked in the show notes. You are not alone. You are seen. You are Chronically Able.

Trailer

E:1 Becoming Chronically Able: An introduction

My name is Elisa I am a disability advocate, nonprofit leader, marketing strategist, and MBA candidate living with multiple chronic illnesses since childhood. Through lived experience and professional expertise, my goal is to create a space for conversations that are empowering, validating, and unapologetically real. Chronically Able is a podcast and platform exploring life, identity, work, relationships, ambition, and healing through the lived experience of disability and chronic illness. We will talk about access, ableism, self-advocacy, joy, grief, ambition, and what it really means to build a life on your own terms. This is my raw, unedited, intro, if I kept overthinking, Chronically Able wouldn't exist! Thanks for supporting! Follow us @ChronicallyAble on TikTok & @ChronicallyAble_ on IG. Website Loading....

5

out of 5

4 Ratings

Chronically Capable is the podcast for anyone living with chronic illness, disability, or invisible battles who’s tired of being dismissed. Host Elisa Michelle shares raw stories, practical self-advocacy tools, and honest conversations with guests who get it — because they’re living it too. If you’re ready to feel seen, heard, and fiercely capable — even on your hardest days — you’re in the right place.

Creator

Chronically Able
Years Active

2025 - 2026
Episodes

16
Rating

Explicit
Copyright

© Chronically Able
Show Website

Chronically Able