What if the hardest chapter of your life ended up changing what abundance means to you?

Tara Akins spent more than two decades caring for others as a nurse practitioner, helping patients navigate some of the most challenging moments of their lives. But at age 39, her world changed dramatically when unexplained back pain led to a shocking diagnosis of multiple myeloma. Overnight, Tara went from being the caregiver to becoming the patient, forcing her to confront fear, uncertainty, and a complete redefinition of who she was beyond her profession.

In this powerful conversation, Tara shares her journey through cancer treatment, radiation, chemotherapy, a bone marrow transplant, and the emotional challenge of losing the identity she had built around caring for others. Along the way, she discovered the importance of relationships, boundaries, self-worth, and accepting support from others. This episode is a reminder that abundance isn't fixed. It evolves with our experiences, and sometimes life's most difficult seasons teach us the deepest lessons about what truly matters.

Connect with Tara Akins:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/tara-akins-b0073671/

tmakins@health.ucsd.edu

Connect with Amy Sylvis:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/amysylvis/

Contact Us:

https://www.sylviscapital.com

https://www.sylviscapital.com/webinar

info@sylviscapital.com

00:00 – Getting to Know Tara Akins

03:22 – Finding Purpose in Transplant Medicine

06:16 – Why Healthcare Was Always Tara's Calling

08:36 – Tara's Definition of Abundance

10:21 – The Diagnosis That Turned Her Life Upside Down

18:25 – From Caregiver to Patient

24:31 – Losing Her Identity Beyond the Job

32:55 – Redefining Worth, Boundaries, and Relationships

37:07 – Returning to Work After Cancer

42:49 – The Lessons Adversity Taught Her About Abundance