How Rick Olderman’s Chronic Pain Journey Informed His Physical Therapy Career

Rick Olderman is a sports and orthopedic physical therapist with over 25 years experience. He is the author of Solving the Pain Puzzle: Cases from 25 Years as a Physical Therapist as well as the Fixing You® series of books to help people with chronic pain or recurring injuries. He Read more…

Overcoming a Parasite and C. Diff Infection: Kimberly Shares Her Story

Kimberly’s harrowing experiences with gastrointestinal issues go back about 10 years. At first she would have random bouts of diarrhea, but be fine for months in between. She didn’t seek medical care until about 7 years later when these issues had become so severe they were interfering in daily life. Read more…

Help Us Solve Jeff’s Medical Mystery

Jeff lives with a medical mystery that has stumped doctors in multiple specialties. He experiences episodes that strike about once a week, and leave him almost catatonic. He will become hypersensitive to his environment, unable to communicate, and struggle to perform basic functions. Strangely, the only consistent way to end Read more…

Living with Parkinson’s Disease

In 2015 Karen noticed that her right arm was not swinging as normal when she walked. She was sent to a neurologist who quickly diagnosed her with Parkinson’s disease (PD), a neurodegenerative disorder that affects the body in a wide variety of ways. Symptoms can include tremors, slowed movement, muscle Read more…

Tyler Roope on Living with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA)

Tyler Roope is a 25 year old TikTok star, who blends comedy and education while advocating on behalf of the disability community. He lives with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) type 2, which severely limits his voluntary muscle movement. Tyler is considered a strong type 2 since he is able to Read more…

LGBTQ Healthcare: What Are the Unique Medical Needs of This Community?

Troy is a nurse practitioner at a LGBTQ healthcare clinic in Seattle, Washington. He refers to it as gay providers taking care of the gay community, allowing a rare opportunity for himself and his colleagues to make meaningful differences in the lives of their patients. Many individuals across the spectrum Read more…

Living with Myotonia Congenita

Myotonia congenita is a genetic disorder that Amelia recently discovered she has been living with her whole life. The disease is characterized by an inability to quickly relax muscles after contraction, which can cause muscle imbalance, rapid fatigue, chronic pain, and difficulty with daily movement like climbing stairs or standing Read more…

The Infuriating Contradictions of Undiagnosed Illness

Courtney refers to herself as a hot potato patient, being passed from specialist to specialist in search of a diagnosis to her mystery illness, but none of these providers have been willing to keep digging until an answer is found. She used to be an avid globe trotter while working Read more…

Season 3 Premiere! Catching Up With Previous Guests

This week we kick off the third season of Major Pain by catching up with previous guests! First we’ll check in with Andrew, who originally appeared in December 2021 to discuss mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI). He has been slowly improving since then, feeling as if a new self is Read more…

Season 2 Finale with Andi and Jesse!

Andi and Jesse wrap up season 2 of Major Pain by sharing their health updates and reflecting on the past year of the show. Jesse discusses his potential diagnoses of mast cell activation syndrome and small fiber neuropathy, while Andi tells us about her vocal surgery recovery.