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This week, Kami shares her journey as a medical mom to her son Landry, a 28-week micropreemie born after a pregnancy complicated by preeclampsia. Landry has severe BPD and is trach, vent, and G-tube dependent. But none of that defines who he is—he’s been a fighter since day one, and his mom and dad have been right beside him every step of the way.

Kami opens up about the chaos of those early NICU days, including transferring hospitals when Landry was just 3 days old, the devastation of reintubation, and sitting through palliative care discussions. She also shares about the moment she decided to move forward with tough medical decisions:

“It was devastating to have to reintubate him. I saw a part of my kid I’d never seen before with the CPAP mask. I got to hold him and love on him. So when his doctor asked if I had ever thought about him getting a trach, I said, ‘Let’s do it. I’m ready to hold him.’”

Her love for Landry shines through in every part of this conversation. She reminds me so much of so many of our past co-hosts—all of us parents with one shared goal: getting our kids better.

We talk about what it was like to move her son from Florida to Ohio to receive specialized care, and the stress of advocating for your child when everything feels urgent and you’re desperate for answers. We also reflect on the beauty of holding our preemies for the first time, the emotions that come with making high-stakes medical decisions, and how difficult it can be to advocate for your child when they need you the most.

Kami is an honest, tough, and loving mom. And she’s a reminder of how resilient medical moms are—and how far we’ll go to give our kids a fighting chance.

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This episode is all about bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) — not from a medical textbook, but from two moms who’ve been living it for over two years. Tori and I share how we’ve come to understand our sons’ diagnoses of severe BPD: what it is, how it shows up, what treatments our kids have needed, and what we’ve learned from being in the trenches of the ICU for almost 2 years.

We explain things in the way they were explained to us, in layman’s terms. From symptoms and types of mechanical ventilation, to why we both hate blood gases and what we’d advocate for or against, this episode is for parents trying to wrap their heads around this complex diagnosis.

Just because your child receives a BPD diagnosis doesn’t mean they’ll end up trached and vented — there is a wide range of severity, and every child’s path looks different. What we do want to share is hope: our boys both had severe BPD, and we’re so grateful they’ve made it through hospitalization. The good news? These kids can grow out of this disease with time, lung development, and the right support.

We also talk about the importance of individualized care, how to advocate for your child, when to consider transferring hospitals for higher-level care, and what we learned from being at a specialized BPD unit. This isn’t the medical deep-dive — we hope to bring you that in the future — but it is a real and practical conversation from two moms who’ve walked this path.

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When your child is hospitalized—especially far from home—everything changes. Whether your stay is just a few days or nearly 700, you need more than a bed. You need care, consistency, and people who understand what you’re going through. That’s exactly what Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Ohio provides.

In this episode, I sit down with Kate, Chief Program Officer, and Abby, House Manager, at the largest Ronald McDonald House in the world, located right across the street from Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.

There are 265 Ronald McDonald Houses in the U.S. and over 385 worldwide. These homes are typically located next to children’s hospitals and exist to keep families close to the care their children need. RMHC of Central Ohio offers much more than housing: meals, laundry, therapy dogs, sibling spaces, art rooms, community events, and even salon services—entire systems of support for both short- and long-term stays.

All of this care is made possible entirely through donations and volunteers. The Columbus community has built something remarkable—and people like Kate and Abby are carrying out a powerful mission every single day.

We talk about what families can expect during a stay, how RMHC helps relieve the mental and financial stress of having a hospitalized child, and the deep impact this support has on caregivers. We also highlight the heart behind the work—why the smallest milestones matter and how celebrating families is part of the healing, too.

This episode is about what it looks like to witness a positive, compassionate charity in action—even in the hardest moments.

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This week, I’m joined by Nicole from The Daily Vent Podcast! We talk hurricane prep, hospital life, in-home nursing, and why we started sharing our stories online. This is a laid back conversation about so many things.

Our sons have similar diagnoses—BPD and Tracheomalacia—so we discuss what life looks like post-discharge and the ups and downs of parenting trach babies.

Nicole, a “trach-fluencer,” shares how social media became her lifeline—and now, she’s doing the same for others. It’s an honest, lighthearted, and supportive conversation you won’t want to miss. 💞

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/traumamamaspodcast?igsh=YW1pbXpvbDdlenZh&utm_source=qr

The Daily Vent Podcast:

https://open.spotify.com/show/7wsaIIM3lgZsiDXsp39lJf?si=O4NMIQnnQFS8NOQqqlL0VQ

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Wow!! Episode 10! I had just met Leslie for the first time doing this episode. She is just so easy to talk to and get to know. After discovering our podcast through Tori, Leslie reached out, excited about the community we’re building—a community she wished was there during her own uncertain and difficult times with her son, Nick, back in 1995.

Leslie tells what it was like to have nick unexpectedly, miles away from her home, at 28 weeks. Unknowingly, she contracted listeriosis while pregnant, which led to preterm labor and a very sick baby. She shares her birth story like it happened yesterday and talks about the day Nick was diagnosed with cerebral palsy, a couple years later. taking us through the many medical challenges they’ve faced—and overcome.

Even though I haven’t gotten the opportunity to meet nick myself, I can tell he has an infectious spirit by what Leslie tells. Leslie celebrates Nick’s unstoppable spirit. from his school accomplishments to joining a men’s choir, even though he doesn’t talk. Reflecting on her evolving perspective as a parent, she says,

“Before you have kids you see someone with a disability and think oh my gosh I hope that never happens to me and then you have a child with medical complications with the fresh perspective of my gosh look how many things actually ended up going right for him to be here or you think about how many ways things aren’t as bad as what they could’ve been.”

Leslie’s story reminds us that even in the toughest moments, there’s room for hope, humor, triumphs and getting creative with your child in a wheelchair. Like many of our episodes Leslie will have you laughing, crying and inspired..equal parts healing and real talk about life as a Trauma Mama.

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When Ariana learned at 20 weeks pregnant that her son Hudson had severe kidney issues, her world changed. With one kidney non-functional and the other working at only 10%, Ariana faced a challenging journey of managing Hudson’s care — including peritoneal dialysis at home — before her husband Grant became Hudson’s kidney donor.

In this episode, Ariana shares her experience navigating hospital frustrations, unexpected emergencies, and the emotions of going through a transplant with your little baby. This episode is both a great story and an informative guide for families facing similar challenges.

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Kim shares her experience of having periviable preemie twins at just 22 weeks. She tells the story of her daughters: Amelia, who was stillborn, and Quinn, who was a fighter from the start, letting out a scream at birth, something almost unheard of at that gestational age.

In this episode, we discuss the realities of NICU life, bagging, codes, ventilation and things that might sound shocking if you’ve never lived it. But for us, this was life. Talking about it is the easy part.

Trauma Mamas exists to give an honest look at what it’s like to care for a child in a critical care setting. It’s not always pretty. It can be traumatic, isolating, and devastating. But Kim’s story is also one of hope.

As a former school counselor turned life coach, Kim has found a way to turn her pain into purpose. Through Kind Minds Coaching and Kind Minds Kids, she helps others heal, reframe their mindset, and rebuild after trauma.

She also receives undeniable signs from her girls, signs so perfectly timed they are impossible to dismiss. The number 10/10 keeps appearing in her life, a message from Quinn and Amelia that feels like more than just coincidence.

Kim shares her story with deep vulnerability and grace. She’s been where no parent should ever have to go, and yet, she continues forward, helping others, honoring her daughters, and proving that love never truly leaves us.

Listen now to hear her story and find out why 10/10 means so much.