エピソード

  • Before I Walk Into Surgery

    Before I Walk Into Surgery
    2026/08/03

    Sometimes, before a major life event, you simply want to pause and say thank you.

    As you’re listening to this episode, tomorrow is my surgery.

    I don’t know exactly what my recovery will look like or when I’ll be able to return to writing, recording, and sharing updates, but before that chapter begins, I wanted to leave one final message.

    This episode is a heartfelt letter to my family, my friends, and every listener who has walked beside me throughout this journey.

    Thank you for every message.

    Every prayer.

    Every encouraging word.

    Every act of kindness.

    Every moment you’ve reminded me that I wasn’t walking through this alone.

    This isn’t goodbye.

    It’s simply a short pause while I focus on healing.

    And when I’m able…

    I’ll be back.



    Get full access to Radiant Rise | Michelle Baldwin at radiantrisemystory.substack.com/subscribe
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    13 分
  • Waiting for Answers in the Operating Room

    Waiting for Answers in the Operating Room
    2026/08/03

    What happens in the days before a major surgery?

    In this deeply personal episode of Radiant Rise, Michelle shares an honest look at the emotional and physical reality of preparing for surgery while living with chronic illness.

    From iron infusions, low blood pressure, exhaustion, and hospitalizations to preparing her home, caring for Luna, navigating financial stress, and facing the unknown of what surgeons may find in the operating room, this episode captures the part of the journey that many people never see.

    This isn’t an episode about having answers.

    It’s about learning to live in the waiting.

    Whether you’re facing surgery, living with chronic illness, supporting someone you love, or simply walking through an uncertain season of life, I hope this conversation reminds you that you don’t have to carry it alone.



    Get full access to Radiant Rise | Michelle Baldwin at radiantrisemystory.substack.com/subscribe
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    11 分
  • Waiting for Answers in the Operating Room

    Waiting for Answers in the Operating Room
    2026/08/02

    What happens in the days before a major surgery?

    In this deeply personal episode of Radiant Rise, Michelle shares an honest look at the emotional and physical reality of preparing for surgery while living with chronic illness.

    From iron infusions, low blood pressure, exhaustion, and hospitalizations to preparing her home, caring for Luna, navigating financial stress, and facing the unknown of what surgeons may find in the operating room, this episode captures the part of the journey that many people never see.

    This isn’t an episode about having answers.

    It’s about learning to live in the waiting.

    Whether you’re facing surgery, living with chronic illness, supporting someone you love, or simply walking through an uncertain season of life, I hope this conversation reminds you that you don’t have to carry it alone.



    Get full access to Radiant Rise | Michelle Baldwin at radiantrisemystory.substack.com/subscribe
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    10 分
  • Waiting for Answers in the Operating Room

    Waiting for Answers in the Operating Room
    2026/08/02

    What happens in the days before a major surgery?

    In this deeply personal episode of Radiant Rise, Michelle shares an honest look at the emotional and physical reality of preparing for surgery while living with chronic illness.

    From iron infusions, low blood pressure, exhaustion, and hospitalizations to preparing her home, caring for Luna, navigating financial stress, and facing the unknown of what surgeons may find in the operating room, this episode captures the part of the journey that many people never see.

    This isn’t an episode about having answers.

    It’s about learning to live in the waiting.

    Whether you’re facing surgery, living with chronic illness, supporting someone you love, or simply walking through an uncertain season of life, I hope this conversation reminds you that you don’t have to carry it alone.



    Get full access to Radiant Rise | Michelle Baldwin at radiantrisemystory.substack.com/subscribe
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    37 分
  • Small Steps & Beautiful Moments

    Small Steps & Beautiful Moments
    2026/07/27

    Life isn’t only about the big milestones.

    Sometimes the most meaningful moments are the quiet ones we almost miss.

    In this episode of the Radiant Rise Podcast, Michelle shares why slowing down has helped her appreciate life’s simple blessings—from enjoying a warm cup of coffee to finding comfort in the people and moments that make a house feel like home.

    If you’ve been rushing through life, constantly chasing the next goal, this episode is a gentle reminder to pause, breathe, and embrace the beauty already surrounding you.

    Because the ordinary moments often become the most extraordinary memories.



    Get full access to Radiant Rise | Michelle Baldwin at radiantrisemystory.substack.com/subscribe
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    5 分
  • Rest Is Part Of Healing

    Rest Is Part Of Healing
    2026/07/26

    As Michelle prepares for major surgery, she shares an honest conversation about exhaustion, chronic illness, and learning to listen to her body. If you’ve ever felt guilty for resting or struggled with the uncertainty of a medical journey, this episode is a reminder that rest is not weakness—it’s part of healing. Join the Radiant Rise community for encouragement, hope, and real conversations about invisible illness, mental health, resilience, and finding light through life’s hardest seasons.



    Get full access to Radiant Rise | Michelle Baldwin at radiantrisemystory.substack.com/subscribe
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    5 分
  • Fibromyalgia Is More Than “Just Being Tired”

    Fibromyalgia Is More Than “Just Being Tired”
    2026/07/20

    Fibromyalgia is often reduced to tiredness or general aches, but its effects can reach nearly every part of daily life. In this deeply personal episode, Michelle Baldwin shares what widespread pain, overwhelming fatigue, fibro fog, disrupted sleep, sensory overload, unpredictable flares, medication challenges, and limited energy truly feel like—and explains spoon theory in a way everyone can understand.

    Radiant Rise | Michelle Baldwin is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.



    Get full access to Radiant Rise | Michelle Baldwin at radiantrisemystory.substack.com/subscribe
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    26 分
  • Endometriosis Is More Than A Painful Period

    Endometriosis Is More Than A Painful Period
    2026/07/19
    Hello, friend.Welcome back to Radiant Rise.Today, I want to go deeper into something that has affected nearly every part of my life.My health.My body.My work.My relationships.My emotional well-being.And the way I imagine my future.Today, we are talking about endometriosis.Not the simplified version.Not the version where someone says, “Oh, so you have painful periods.”I want to talk about what it can actually feel like to live with this disease.Because endometriosis is so much more than a painful period.And for many of us, the pain does not disappear when the bleeding stops.In my case, I no longer even have a uterus.I had a hysterectomy.And yet endometriosis is still part of my life.That fact alone is something I wish more people understood.Before I continue, I want to remind everyone that I am speaking from my own experience. Endometriosis can look different from one person to another, and this is not medical advice.This is my story.For me, endometriosis has meant years of pelvic pain.Lower-back pain.Abdominal pain.Pain that can move, change, intensify, and sometimes become difficult to describe.It has meant gastrointestinal symptoms.It has meant pain that can affect my ability to sit comfortably, work, sleep, eat, use the bathroom, or focus on anything else.It has meant appointments.Scans.Emergency-room visits.Hospital stays.Procedures.Surgeries.Medications.And long stretches of uncertainty.It has also meant constantly asking myself:Is this symptom coming from endometriosis?Is it coming from my digestive system?Is it coming from adhesions?Is it coming from chronic pain and central sensitization?Is something new happening?Or is this another part of a disease that has already affected so much of my body?Living with overlapping medical conditions can make it extremely difficult to separate one source of pain from another.Sometimes there is no simple answer.Sometimes several things may be happening at once.And that uncertainty can become exhausting all by itself.In 2021, I had surgery where endometriosis was found and removed.The procedure included treatment of pelvic endometriosis and adhesions, along with additional work involving areas around my reproductive organs and pelvic anatomy.For a while, I hoped surgery would be the turning point.You enter surgery hoping that once the visible disease is removed, you will finally be able to move forward.But endometriosis does not always give you a clean ending.In February 2023, I had another major surgery.I underwent a hysterectomy, along with additional treatment for endometriosis and an ovarian cyst.My uterus was removed, but my ovaries were retained.That distinction matters.A hysterectomy can stop uterine bleeding because the uterus is gone, but it does not automatically remove every endometriosis lesion or prevent every future symptom.For me, the pain did not simply disappear.The surgery changed my body.It changed certain symptoms.But it did not erase the disease from my story.And that was emotionally difficult to accept.One of the things people often assume is that a hysterectomy cures endometriosis.I wish it were that simple.When people hear that I had a hysterectomy, they sometimes assume the problem should be over.But I continue experiencing chronic pelvic pain.I continue having abdominal and lower-back pain.I continue needing specialists.I continue facing the possibility of more surgery.That can feel incredibly isolating.Because once people believe you have already received the “big solution,” they may struggle to understand why you are still sick.You may even begin questioning yourself.Why am I still hurting?Why did the surgery not fix everything?Why am I back in another doctor’s office?Why does my body still feel like it is fighting me?But a body is not a machine where one part is removed and every connected problem automatically disappears.Endometriosis can involve tissue outside the uterus.It can be connected to inflammation, scar tissue, adhesions, nerve sensitivity, and changes throughout the pelvis.And every person’s disease is different.For me, removing my uterus did not mean removing every source of pain.One of the most frightening parts of my current journey is the possibility that endometriosis may be affecting areas near my bowel or deeper structures within my pelvis.I have experienced severe gastrointestinal symptoms.Urgent diarrhea.Abdominal cramping.Bleeding.Pelvic pressure.Pain during bowel movements.Pain that can feel like several systems inside my body are reacting at once.I also have other diagnosed gastrointestinal conditions, so I cannot say that every digestive symptom is caused by endometriosis.That is part of what makes this so complicated.But my endometriosis specialist has taken the possibility of deeper or bowel-related disease seriously enough to continue evaluating and planning my care.And honestly, that brings both relief and fear.Relief because someone is considering the full picture.Fear because of what ...
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    20 分