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This episode features Amy Rivera, who shares her remarkable journey with primary lymphedema – a rare disease she was born with that caused her right leg to grow 200% larger than her left. Amy recounts her decades-long struggle without a proper diagnosis, the pivotal moment when she finally discovered what she had in 2013, and how she transformed her pain into purpose by creating multiple businesses and a non-profit to serve the lymphedema community globally.
This episode is ideal for listeners facing health challenges, entrepreneurs looking to build purpose-driven businesses, and healthcare professionals wanting to better understand lymphedema from a patient perspective. Listeners will learn about lymphedema’s physical and emotional impacts, the importance of self-advocacy in healthcare, and how to transform personal struggles into meaningful work. The insights Amy shares about resilience, business-building, and creating community around a medical condition can inspire anyone to find purpose in their pain and take actionable steps toward both personal healing and helping others.
00:00 – 00:47 Introduction
00:47 – 04:27 Amy’s Early Life and Diagnosis
04:27 – 07:05 The Journey to Diagnosis
07:05 – 10:20 Getting an Official Diagnosis
10:20 – 13:17 Emotional Response to Diagnosis
13:17 – 16:47 Finding Purpose in Pain
16:47 – 19:47 Understanding Lymphedema
19:47 – 23:55 Managing Lymphedema
23:55 – 26:28 Building a Support System
26:28 – 30:19 The Business Journey
30:19 – 35:15 Entrepreneurial Challenges
35:15 – 39:04 Self-Care as an Entrepreneur
39:04 – 42:08 Amy’s Business Ecosystem
42:08 – 46:56 Compression Innovations
46:56 – 52:33 Educational Programs
52:33 – 58:56 The Importance of Advocacy
58:56 – 01:03:39 The Ongoing Journey
01:03:39 – 01:07:35 Growth Through Vulnerability
01:07:35 – 01:10:50 Closing Thoughts
Content Notice
This podcast and all She Lift Project content represents the opinions of Cynthia Kirkpatrick and her guests. The content here is for informational purposes only, and should not be taken as professional advice – financial, legal, medical, or otherwise.
Views and opinions expressed in the podcast and across all She Lift Project media channels are our own and do not represent that of our places of work. While we make every effort to ensure that the information we are sharing is accurate, we welcome any comments, suggestions, or correction of errors.
“I got to a point in Frank’s office where I realized there was kind of a ceiling. People that I had come in after me, I was training, were now moving up. And my ego got to the best of me. This is the dream job. Like, what happens after Frank Gehry? What could possibly be next after that?”
We’re catalysts for better conversation. And we know at Filament that the teams that we work with are not looking for the right answer, because there’s no such thing as the right answer. There is the next best answer to the questions that we’re asking.
“Research actually shows when there’s this lack of trust in a relationship, this lack of connection, the same part of our brain that processes physical pain gets activated when there’s an emotional pain. Right? And so if I’m feeling rejected or I’m feeling like I’m not part of the team or I’m not valued in any way, that part of our brain activates and says, like, pain. And so if you think about it in that way, think about the number of people who are walking around your office every day in pain.”
“Women in their 40s start to disappear from photographs because they think that they’re not young enough, thin enough, pretty enough. But the truth is that when you are in your 40s, you are leading a company, you’ve had children, you have a family, you’re doing things in your community. This is when you should be photographed.”
“You have to be cautious and mindful of the board of directors you invite into your head. And we as women especially listen terribly to that board of directors. And if you have one bad seat on there, one bad teacher, one bad classmate, one whatever from your history that you are listening to, it can really sabotage you.”
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