Gaining Tools and Hope for Undiagnosed Dizziness with Myofascial Release: Sam's Story | Healing Heroines

We're back with another Healing Heroine conversation,  this time with Sam, a longtime client of Hero and Myofascial Release Therapist Karen. For over 15 years, Sam suffered from severe undiagnosed dizziness with symptoms comparable to vertigo. After experiencing imbalance, nausea, and fatigue daily, Sam desperately sought answers from countless physicians and specialists, but to no avail. Eventually, Sam learned to live with the constant dizziness just to make it through each day. 

It wasn't until she met Hero Karen and experienced the healing effects of MFR that Sam started to regain control over this debilitating and recurring health issue. 

Sam explains how learning the tools to reduce intense symptoms was the start of her healing journey. This episode is for anyone who’s felt stuck living with chronic symptoms and is ready to explore a body-first path toward steadiness. 

What You Will Learn

• [00:07:30] What living with constant dizziness can feel like and why it impacts daily life so profoundly
• [00:08:30] Why traditional medical approaches (neurology, rheumatology, ENT exams) often fall short in addressing chronic dizziness
• [00:14:41] How belief in the body’s ability to heal can be an essential part of recovery
• [00:17:30] The importance of recognizing what your body was once capable of to inspire hope during healing
• [00:19:30] How to notice small improvements and everyday signs that a treatment is working
• [00:24:30] How myofascial release identifies restrictions in the body that may be contributing to chronic symptoms
• [00:32:11] Why subtle, consistent bodywork can create lasting change and act as a long-term investment in your health
• [00:39:30] How gaining self-care tools empowers you to take ownership of your healing journey

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Chandler Stroud

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Mixing and editing provided by Next Day Podcast.

Transcript

[00:00:00] Chandler Stroud: Hey guys, it's Chandler and welcome to The Healing Heroes. 

[00:00:04] Karen Remele: I promise you.

[00:00:08] Chandler Stroud: I'm Chandler Stroud, an executive wife and busy mom of two who after years of living with anxiety. Health struggles and an unshakeable feeling like I should be happier, made a profound discovery that changed everything. Join me on a journey where unexpected paths lead to [00:00:30] healing and more happiness. On this show, we will explore unconventional ways to unlock more joy in your own life with the help of my very own healers.

And trusted advisors, the Healing Heroes.

Hey everyone, and welcome back to the show. I am your host, Chandler Stroud, and today we are featuring another Healing Heroine episode, which is a format where I [00:01:00] will interview one of my heroes, my very own heroes, Karen Remley, but will do so alongside a female client of hers. Who she's helped heal and move through hardship.

Today's episode features an incredible woman who, despite battling severe and crippling, undiagnosed dizziness for over nine years. Has dedicated her life to helping others in need. Around the clock, you'll hear from her [00:01:30] all the ways she tried to heal before finally meeting Karen and discovering the power of myofascial release, a practice that she says saved her life and has been keeping her in a healthy state.

Even in the midst of a physically and emotionally demanding job. Let me tell you a little bit more about Sam before we begin. Sam Pickard is the Residential Division director at Ben Haven in Connecticut, where she has dedicated nearly 30 years [00:02:00] to overseeing nine. 24 hour residential programs for people with severe autism.

Sam developed severe undiagnosed dizziness that left her unable to work for nine months after years of partial recovery. Through holistic approaches, she began working with MFR therapist, Karen Remley in 2018. Karen's care and self-care techniques that she instilled in Sam. Have been life changing in managing her symptoms and [00:02:30] restoring her quality of life.

You'll also hear from our very own hero and MFR expert, Karen, who has supported Sam through her journey. You all know Karen and her work by now, but for new listeners out there, she's who I turn to for MFR. Which is essentially a practice that works on the body's connective tissue or fascia to relieve tensions, improve mobility, reduce pain, and release stored emotions in our physical [00:03:00] tissue.

It's about restoring ease of movement by releasing restrictions in the fascia, as I always do. Let me quickly share a bit more about Karen. For those who haven't tuned into our previous episodes together. Karen's journey began as a modern jazz dancer and instructor until a terrible motorcycle accident changed her life forever.

She now helps others live pain-free existences, while also educating on the benefits of MFR. [00:03:30] She's both a licensed physical therapist assistant and licensed. Massage therapist. Ultimately though, she became a student and expert instructor of the John F. Barnes MFR therapy, which she's now practiced for over 25 years.

Today we're gonna see Karen's work come to life in a very real and powerful way. Thanks to Sam's willingness to share and help those listeners who may also be struggling with physical pain. Welcome, ladies. I'm so happy that you are both [00:04:00] here with us today, and I cannot thank you enough for your time and willingness to share your expertise and stories with our listeners.

[00:04:06] Sam: Hi there. Thanks for having us. 

[00:04:09] Karen Remele: Hi, Chandler. It's good to be back and it's good to be back with Sam. 

[00:04:15] Chandler Stroud: So great to see you again, Karen, and I love that you invited Sam here today, Sam, it's so fun to have you. And to show that we like to have fun here. I'm gonna start with just a fun light warmup question for both of you.

Before we get into the deep stuff, what's one small thing that brought [00:04:30] you joy this week? 

[00:04:31] Sam: Go ahead, Sam. My email got hacked at work and it went a really. Bad email went out to thousands of people. And it was really strange because everyone in my work network are people who have, you know, professional you know, filters and IT companies, they just sort of ignored it.

But all of. The people on the outside, people that I hadn't talked to in a long time who thought it might be suspicious, I got lots and lots of [00:05:00] texts. So an old friend of mine who I really, really love saw the email reached out to me. She lives in town and she said, you know what? We need to get together.

And so we've been hiking together every Tuesday. So my unfortunate email situation led me to reconnect with an old friend. And we've been going for like 90 minute hikes on Tuesdays, and we just Tuesday we had a. Great hike together. And just the, something about walking next to somebody on a trail really is a very healing experience.

You can share a [00:05:30] lot of stuff when you're doing that. So it's really been just a highlight for me. 

[00:05:33] Chandler Stroud: That's an amazing story. I totally agree. And I'm so sorry for the email. Snap. Woo. That's just frustrating and just like, ugh, mercury is. I think left retrograde, but I always think PHE calls it retro shade.

Yeah. We still have kind of a lingering experience for the few days after, so Yeah. You know, I guess that stuff is to be expected. Karen, what about you? 

[00:05:56] Karen Remele: So I don't really ever get to spend too much time with my older [00:06:00] son and he, he miraculously had time off from work and I got to spend like a whole day with him, which was just so much fun and just that brought me great joy.

And I'm also have confirmed plans with my younger son and my two grandsons. She'd go and do something really fun this weekend. So there's my happy place there. 

[00:06:18] Chandler Stroud: That's amazing. Oh, I love all the family time coming up. That's great. That's great. I'm really happy for you. Alright, well thank you for sharing that little glimpse into your week ladies.

I really [00:06:30] appreciate it. And now I would love to just. Pivot and start with you. Sam, if you don't mind, before we get into the specifics of the MFR work, can I ask for you to walk us through your story in your own words to the extent that you're comfortable sharing with us? 

[00:06:46] Sam: Sure. So August 8th, 2009, I was out supporting.

I was in, still in direct support at the time working with adults with autism, and I was out in the community with them. I had just run five miles on the treadmill and [00:07:00] we had driven down the street to get some lunch and went to let them out of the car and walk across the street to a nice little lunch shop, and I was hit with.

Just dizziness that debilitated me. From that moment on, I ended up in the ed and from that moment on for over nine months, I lived with severe dizziness that I, I couldn't work, I couldn't drive. I was basically crawling around. It was [00:07:30] headaches as well. Nausea, but the overwhelming feeling was that my head was floating in a bucket of water 24 hours a day.

I would wake up if I was sleeping. If I managed to sleep, I would wake up the same feeling. I went back to work, sort of just powering through. Not nobody could figure out what was wrong with me, and within nine months I started back part-time and then figured out like most people do, how to. Adapt to the pain, [00:08:00] the uncomfortable feeling of being dizzy all the time and went back to work, but was really perplexed by.

Why nobody could figure out what was wrong with me. I searched high, searched low, was in hospitalized in that first nine month period of time. And to kind of jump ahead, I did do every possible rheumatologist, neurologist, three different ENT workups, every possible thing you could imagine, medications of all types, [00:08:30] every kind of thing possible until I finally realize I need to.

Take a different route here and started. I did go to, you know, a naturopathic doctor and a chiropractor who practiced more holistic practices and that kind of helped me, and I kind of stayed there for about nine years until I met Karen 

[00:08:55] Chandler Stroud: and then it all changed from there. It sounds like. Before we get [00:09:00] there, can you take us back to the version of yourself before you began this healing work with Karen?

What was going on in your world back then, your mind? How did you feel? I mean, I think that head in a bucket of water is such a great analogy to try and bring it to life For listeners, I know you've also, while it has not been diagnosed as vertigo, I know you often call it vertigos. So that people understand a little bit more what you're going through, but it truly is undiagnosed dizziness.

And I'm just [00:09:30] wondering like, what was it like in your mind, in your life at that time when you felt so lost and not having any answers? 

[00:09:39] Sam: Boy, I was working really, really hard at kind of trying to not keep asking that awful question. Why me that a lot of times when things like this happen, we feel like, what did I do to cause this?

What did I do to deserve this? What would my life be if I wasn't dizzy every day? What other things could I be [00:10:00] doing in my life that I can't because I fight it so much all day long that my days would be shorter, honestly. Because I would go to work and maybe get a run in, because running actually at that time was something that would help me.

Something about being in motion helped the dizziness not feel as bad, and then I would crash, and my days were pretty short because I was exhausted from the constant trying to keep correcting. It affected my [00:10:30] eyesight severely, and no glasses or anything would help it. So it was a constant battle just to try to.

C straight, so I was sad a lot, honestly, you know, I did not engage in social things the way that I do now, or that I did pre previous, you know, to becoming dizzy. So I, I was withdrawn. I, I didn't do the things that I can do now. 

[00:10:58] Chandler Stroud: What can you do now? [00:11:00] 

[00:11:00] Sam: Everything, as long as I, I keep up with my self care and keep going to see Karen.

Yeah. You know, I'm very active. I can do all the cases I wanna do, I can concentrate. There's something about the. Feeling dizzy like that all the time, that it's really hard to think you can't, you know, read a book or do major projects because you're just so distracted by the way that you feel. I joined a pain management therapy group back in the day because I didn't know what else to [00:11:30] do before I met Karen and the way they described their physical pain.

Was very similar to the way that I described my 'cause. I'm not sure that I would say what I have is necessarily painful, just unbearably, uncomfortable and, and incredibly distracting you. You can't sit and listen to music and not be thinking about, I wish this would go away. 

[00:11:54] Chandler Stroud: I gotta tell you that sounds painful to me.

I mean, living with that constant [00:12:00] discomfort and distraction, just when you're trying to seize a few minutes of peace, is like your own has got to be your own personal hell. Honestly, I can't. It's awful. That's awful. 

[00:12:12] Sam: There were times when, you know, I would make those ridiculous statements, like I would give my right arm to not have this feeling it was so severe.

Again, I would, I would. Literally be crawling at times. [00:12:30] I would give everything I had to, you know, be responsible human being like do my job and take care of my house and stuff, but, and my family, whoever I could. There was nothing left for me after doing those basic things, it, it would, I would just feel depleted all of the time.

Constantly. I can only imagine like, what were you, what are you willing to give to feel better? And I would ask myself that a [00:13:00] lot and I did, it was painful to sit in front of doctors and not really get the answer so, so much of the time. 

[00:13:09] Chandler Stroud: Yeah, I would imagine that would be incredibly frustrating. I. Well share.

I mean, the only I'm drawing on, I, I had vertigo back in December for all of six hours and I could not get out of bed. I truly could not get my body to the bathroom to use. I mean, I was army crawling on one side and. [00:13:30] I was terrified of that feeling. And I remember thinking like, this is the actual scariest, worst thing, what is happening right now.

And luckily I got to a doctor and they prescribed a pill, emotion, sickness pill, and I was able to move around again the next day. But I cannot imagine having that feeling of like. Just fear and hopelessness for as long as you probably felt that way, managing this dizziness. I [00:14:00] mean, it was really awful. So I just, I'm really impressed that you came through it, but that also you.

Didn't give up in trying to find something to some way to resolve it. Right. And I, I do wanna get into the MFR in a second. My last question on this topic though is, was there a single moment that you can remember when you decided to make a change and shift your approach? Like was it hitting the end of your rope?

Was it something someone [00:14:30] said to you? I mean, obviously there must have been some impetus to. Have you pick up the phone and call Karen. Maybe it was earlier than that, but would love to hear from you what that moment felt like if there was one. 

[00:14:41] Sam: Well, I don't wanna sound too like. You know, spiritual or poofy about this Impossible on this show.

But and Karen and I had these conversations often is that I think there's something always that's always been inside me that has known [00:15:00] that the western medicine world isn't for me. I think that something about medications and. The kinds of clinical interventions that we use commonly in our country.

The way that I grew up, my family and some of the, the way that, and I, I feel like the people around me, I mean, I work in a field where we heavily rely on the medical profession, so I am not, I am not criticizing it. I just, something [00:15:30] inside of me said. Those things aren't going to work for me. And that's why I think they didn't work for me and it was about me instead of allowing everyone else.

'cause you know, you're in an an acute situation like that, people are really ready to tell you what you should do. And it's go to this kind of doctor and go to that kind of doctor and take this and do this. And there was something inside of me that was really s screaming. Your body has the ability. [00:16:00] To fix this, I knew that I could fix this.

There was something about me that knew that all along. And it wasn't until that moment, of course, somebody had referred me to Karen and we can talk about that. But until that moment when I had that conversation, my first conversation with her, in which she affirmed what I already knew, she, she confirmed that.

I had what it take took would take to, to [00:16:30] fix what was wrong with me. So she's just the conduit. 

[00:16:34] Chandler Stroud: I love that. And that is, that is so, that's so Karen in all that she does. And I love hearing stories of how she's helped patients really feel empowered to heal themselves. So I love that that's the experience you had with her as well.

What was different? About working with Karen, maybe what surprised you about MFR or maybe even her approach to healing. I'd love to hear about those first impressions. 

[00:16:59] Sam: Well, I [00:17:00] have to tell you, when I started with Karen, the only thing I mentioned before that was actually making me feel okay. The only place that I felt like the dizziness would go away is.

I, I live across the street from a state park and I was running between four and six miles a day. Not like I never took a day off. I was just running like a mad woman because it made me feel better, right? Mm-hmm. And in that first conversation with Karen, I just couldn't wait. She, [00:17:30] she was saying, yeah, yeah, she's listening to my story and, okay.

And, and I said, you know what? I just gotta get this out. I said, if you ask me to stop running, I'm not gonna do that. 'cause I figured. She didn't want me to like stress my body in that way. And she goes, oh no, I want you to keep running. So, so what I loved about my conversation with her was that I knew that she would help me find what I needed to do for myself.

Something that she said about just keep doing what you're [00:18:00] doing. Stay, stay healthy, stay strong. I, I understand. She is the, the most, the embracing person that I have ever known. She's like, ready to meet you exactly where you are. It doesn't, there's no judgment. I said, I think I'm gonna pass out. And she goes, that's okay.

I'll catch you. Oh my God, I'll catch you. And it's just so powerful. My life is not perfect, right? Like I still struggle with this, [00:18:30] that, and the other thing. But there's so much of the time with this illness that I spent spinning my wheels, frantic, trying to find the answer and. She helped me understand right from that first conversation I had the answer, I know what to do.

It. My body has. That's the hu. The human body knows how to heal itself and she's just very good at pointing out all the ways that we can tap into that. 

[00:18:57] Chandler Stroud: Yes, yes, she is. I totally [00:19:00] agree. Was there a moment in a session with her that clicked for you and felt like a real turning point? It sounds like that first one was a little touch and go 'cause it was the first MFR experience you had.

But like, you know, after that or even during that session, I'll defer to you. Like, was there a moment that you were like, oh my gosh, I'm getting better. Definitely 

[00:19:20] Sam: didn't happen on the table. If you go into Karen's room and you get treated, you will feel like a million bucks. But for me, that was never a.

A [00:19:30] tell of if this was working, it was when I could stay up past nine o'clock and sitting on the, you know, couch with my husband having a conversation and not be, you know, falling asleep because I'm so darn exhausted from, you know fighting this all day long. It was doing normal things that all a sudden was, were like.

Oh, I'm not watching this show or this concert like. [00:20:00] Cross-eyed. It was the everyday things that happened to me that I suddenly realized, oh, this is, this is working. And it happened extremely fast for me. So I didn't have, I've heard about people crying on her table or screaming out and something like that.

She loves those stories. That did not happen, like old folklore that did not happen to me. Like the sessions are peaceful and wonderful, but it was. It happened very, very quickly and she knows this, like within a couple of treatments. I really [00:20:30] was not cured, but so like remarkably better. And of course I think the self-care really does matter.

I'm not always perfectly disciplined as she knows at doing all that. Oh, Sam, what are you doing to, to do your stuff at home? You know? But it was very fast for me, so, and that's why I don't, I don't stop and I'll recommend it to everybody because it, it works. It's worked so tremendously well for me.

It's 

[00:20:56] Chandler Stroud: seven years. Seven years. [00:21:00] All with Karen? 

[00:21:00] Sam: Yes. All with Karen. How often are you seeing her typically? I, I, I try to go every week to 10 days. 

[00:21:08] Chandler Stroud: Okay. 

[00:21:09] Sam: Yep. 

[00:21:09] Chandler Stroud: That makes sense just to manage symptoms and make sure you're doing all the things. All our heroes love giving homework sometimes, and Karen asks me too, and I'm like, yeah, I've been doing that.

I'm so bad with that little red ball. Oh yeah. 

[00:21:25] Sam: I get to day nine and my body starts thinking like I start [00:21:30] thinking about being on the table and I, I know I need to go back, so, 

[00:21:34] Chandler Stroud: oh, I love that, that your body signals to you when it's time. Oh yeah, it does. That's great. That's really cool. Karen, what did you notice about Sam early on that struck you or that you really wanted to focus on with her?

[00:21:48] Karen Remele: So, I, I'm gonna separate the question into two phases here. Okay. The things that first struck me about Sam was her frustration with all of the [00:22:00] processes that she attempted to get help from, and. Was just left kind of short or without an answer or nothing. There was no conclusion for her. She was just left with, here, take this pill, or Here, try this.

And those things were just, it fell short of helping her and I understood that from my own experience. So. For me, that carries value with what I do when I, when I meet with my patients. And thank you, [00:22:30] Sam, for, for feeling the, the non-judgment, because I don't care who you are or why you come to me, there's no judgment held.

You're here for a reason. You're asking, you're seeking for help. And I will do the best I can. And if I can't do something for you, I'm gonna tell you where else you might try to go. But the part, the, the other part of this too is. Her willingness. So my focus, I, I saw that willingness that she had. She was just so, she wanted so bad to be [00:23:00] well, and I, again, I knew what that felt like just from my own pain and, and time of being in that situation.

So there's, I think there's an underlying compassion that makes. That a little bit unique for, for myself and the person that you are treating is there seeking your help, and I'm just here to assist you like. I am that conduit. I am not going to say any [00:23:30] promise to you that anything is going to change because it's all up to your own willingness.

And I knew if I told Sam, you have to stand on your head for three minutes every frigging morning, every day, I don't care. She would've done it. And that's how I felt when I was in my worst of my condition, if any. Professional or person that had any idea of what I was going through told me to do, that's what I would've done.

So I think I, I saw in her just that potential of [00:24:00] being vulnerable and looking for someone to trust. And she can correct me if I'm wrong on that, but I, I don't focus in on, oh my God, you know, your head is crooked or there's, it's much deeper than that. And the interesting thing for me was. Sam can confirm or deny not, it wasn't maybe three sessions in, yes, she was there for all of this stuff happening.

Her [00:24:30] head, her neck, the tension in her upper body, something kept drawing me to her diaphragm, her breath, her breath. There was something not. Jiving about the way she was breathing. And when I started to work on her diaphragm, her respiratory diaphragm, she was like, why did you go there? And then the tears came and she says, I just feel like that's, that's part of the epicenter.

Like no one has, no one has looked there or touched [00:25:00] there or even talked about that. And I didn't have an answer for her except that that's where I felt her body needed me to go. Because when you do the work that I do with the Myofascially, work with people's bodies, you can get a sense of where things are sometimes originating or where there's a connection to something else.

And I think that's when Sam started to have a lot of shift in in her recovery because [00:25:30] okay, now there was a place in her body beside her head that. Was giving her relief, and then we, we just, you take it layer by layer by layer. 

[00:25:45] Chandler Stroud: Yeah. 

[00:25:45] Karen Remele: Were there emotional components? Of course there are. Were there spiritual components where things get broken?

Yes, and our healing journey, I, I just had a text conversation with a, a past patient who has [00:26:00] contacted me. Our healing journey doesn't end. It keeps going. Like once we get well, we wanna stay well. So we do things to continue to stay well. And that can mean any number of things for any different person, but for some people it's coming on a, on a, on a basis when they know I need, I need that boost again.

I, I need something, some someone else's hands that. Exchange of energy [00:26:30] to help me stay on track or to remind me I need it for myself, just to remind me that I work and do very physical work all day long. I need someone to pay attention to my body too, and remind me what Karen needs to do for herself. 

[00:26:47] Chandler Stroud: I mean, amen to that.

I still see all my heroes on a regular basis and I've made so much progress, but I mean, I'm seeing one of them at three o'clock today, so I'm very excited. 

[00:26:55] Sam: Yeah, 

[00:26:56] Chandler Stroud: no, it's important. What you're saying is really important. We all always [00:27:00] say healing is a lifelong journey, and you, I like to describe it as like the more you do, it's to this next level of pain-free, not pain-free, I would say, but shattering this glass ceiling to the next level of.

Health and happiness and you just kind of keep going and breaking that next ceiling every level, the more you do. And it's such an adventure. It really is addicting after a while in the best way possible. 

[00:27:26] Karen Remele: Yeah, for sure. And I have learned this from, from the very [00:27:30] beginning of my, my healing journey, stepping into it as practitioner to assist other people.

There was, there's something John Barnes would say to us is, if you're gonna walk into the room and know what you're gonna do to that patient, then you don't know what you're doing. And that's why every single time I see you, Chandler, you, Sam, I do my quick assessment. I ask you certain questions. I watch how you're moving.

I [00:28:00] observe a lot of things, so, and I listen to what you're saying because I listen to what's underneath. What you're saying, because oftentimes what my clues are is in what you're really not saying. Yeah, 

[00:28:17] Chandler Stroud: I believe that. I heard that. Well, 

[00:28:20] Karen Remele: so this is why I love the fact that my work is a whole body approach.

It's not, if I just looked and worked on Sam's head, she [00:28:30] would've not gotten any better. I can tell you that. That's absolutely right. 

[00:28:33] Sam: Yeah. 

[00:28:34] Karen Remele: Because that's all that had been done for her. And when she first said to me, I will not give up running, I knew right then and there, no, you, you shouldn't. No one should tell you to.

Because she knew that that was the thing that was helping her and I'm not gonna take that away. Absolutely. 

[00:28:51] Chandler Stroud: Yeah. 

[00:28:51] Karen Remele: Nope. That was an important thing for her to keep because it was the one thing that she had that was helping [00:29:00] her to feel well at that time. 

[00:29:01] Chandler Stroud: Yeah. Yeah. No, it's great that you recognize that, Karen.

I think it's so important and it is all about listening to yourself and everyone heals differently, and for Sam, it was clearly those runs, those daily runs, so I'm really glad that. You felt kind of the conviction, Sam, to say, I'm not giving this up, and Karen, that you recognized that she wouldn't, nor should she because it was helping her so much.

So I love that story and I think it really brings to life your work, Karen, and how you think about the whole person. [00:29:30] We've obviously asked a lot of questions. Well, I have of each of you, Karen, do you have any questions for Sam? Having heard her story and I don't know, there's gotta be some things you're curious about.

[00:29:40] Karen Remele: I had, yeah, 'cause I had to write this down because I knew that we were supposed to do this, but what did you 

[00:29:46] Chandler Stroud: I give my own assignments. 

[00:29:47] Karen Remele: Right. I guess my question for Sam would be, do you feel that everything we have done has covered all the bases?

[00:29:58] Sam: Well, there's still a lot of me to [00:30:00] fix. That's an interesting question and I, I, I've recently thought about that and I've listened to your podcast, Chandler, and in some of the conversations about menopause and that has. Hit me pretty hard, and one of the things I love about Karen is she really focuses on timing.

Like, she'll say things like, okay, I know that's important, but this isn't the time. Like, be where you're at right now and take care of what's. What's needed [00:30:30] right now and when it's the right time, we'll, we'll get there. And Karen knows my personal life a lot about my personal life to spend an hour on the table with somebody.

They, they hear all about you. But she knows a lot about, and I was finishing, I was about to finish a major project that took a couple years for me to do, and I'm kind of still on the, okay, that's done. Break from that, but I think I'm ready [00:31:00] to tackle Karen to answer your question, this menopausal nonsense, and I believe that.

You and I can work on this together and get me to a place where I'm feeling, I feel great a lot of the time, but I'd like to feel better. I'd like to be that a little bit back to that picture of health. Yeah. I, I think that that's what, that's what we need to do next. Figure out how to, how to deal like, 'cause I do deal with the hot.

You know, the, the, the, the, the [00:31:30] sweats and the, and the extra pounds and all that. And I feel like some of that could be a little daunting and some of the things that you've already helped me with. I, I do believe that those symptoms are not as bad as they would be if I hadn't been seeing you in general.

But I'd like to take a deeper dive into that. 

[00:31:49] Karen Remele: Yeah, for sure. And, there are times when, yeah, we have to put certain things on pause so that we can get through the, the things that are right in front of us. Was there anything that I said or [00:32:00] did that you found surprising or memorable? Because there's been so many things.

Hmm. Does anything stand out for you? 

[00:32:11] Sam: I think one of the most surprising things about this work. And this is a message for people listening is it's subtle and I've sent people to see you and they're like, oh, okay. I like your word willingness [00:32:30] because you have to be willing to allow your body to receive the work and.

It's for me, maybe for others it, it was, but this was not earth shattering in terms of what's happening on that table. It's like an investment. You go, you do the work on the table, you do your self care, and there's, there's a huge payoff. That's the earth shattering part. The work itself is pretty subtle, and that really [00:33:00] surprised me.

I have told Karen this, I've told you this before, when I was recommended to see her by like a friend of a friend or a family friend or something, I forget what it was, and I called Karen. I did not know anything about myofascial release. I did not look it up, and I promised myself that I wouldn't until I figured out if it was working or not.

And that's exactly what I did. I didn't even, I didn't Google it. I just came and I said I was ready [00:33:30] to trust, as we talked about earlier. So I just trusted her, so I didn't even know what it was. She talked to me about the Taffy thing, and I'm sure you've talked about that before, but I, I, okay. Sure. And I just trusted and I let myself feel, I let myself heal.

So, yeah, it was pretty surprising how, how subtle it was. And I, you know what's funny is I was kind of a person who would get massages and stuff in the past, and I never do that anymore. 'cause this feels way better to me. Mm-hmm. Than doing [00:34:00] that. When I get off the table, I'm. I'm a new woman, and so it's so 

[00:34:04] Chandler Stroud: true.

It's so relaxing. I totally agree. 

[00:34:08] Karen Remele: That's awesome. Thank you for that, Sam. And I know it, and I have said this in probably every other podcast that we've recorded. If you don't trust the practitioner you're working with, it's going to change how you come through your process. It's really important, and I tell anyone.

If [00:34:30] you need to see someone different, then you see someone different, but find someone you're comfortable with because when you start working in a person's tissue, emotions do come up, things come up that you really need a person you trust to just let it spill. Mm-hmm. And that's another part of the release, is the emotional releases that happen when the physical parts of you start to heal and get well.

[00:34:56] Chandler Stroud: Sam, is there one truth or mantra that's [00:35:00] carried you through some of your hardest days? 

[00:35:02] Sam: I have to constantly remind myself of self care, forgiveness, compassion for the self, because in the end, when, at the end of the day you know, you know what's right for you and sometimes we, we get lost. So it's that my ability to be able to turn all the voices that are in my life.

Down and really have the ability to listen to myself, because I say to myself all the time, you [00:35:30] know what's right. I know what's right for me. I know what makes me feel good. We all do, but we get, we get so lost and caught up in trying to serve. You know, I'm a leader. I, that's what I do for a living, and I am a servant leader, and I get.

Sometimes caught up in all of the things that I'm doing to make everyone else in my life feel better and feel happy. I have to keep reminding myself that this, I'm no good unless I am. [00:36:00] My cup is filled. You know, I have to be the best version of myself in order to keep doing that, which does make me happy.

I love serving, I love what I do but I can't do it if. I'm only part of me. 

[00:36:16] Chandler Stroud: Yeah. No, well said. What would you, on that note, what would you say to someone who, right now, if there's a listener who feels stuck, broken, or frustrated with their own journey to [00:36:30] live pain-free, do you have a message for that person today?

[00:36:34] Sam: I think Karen was touching on it before, and I, I've said this really odd thing over the years of seeing Karen and trying to describe it. 'cause people kind of start to cock their head and go, Hmm, you're trying to describe what myofascial release is and they've never heard of it. Right. A lot of people have never heard of it.

So I'll end up saying, you know what, in the end you have to really open your heart and your [00:37:00] mind to, to. Be willing to hold what will work for you. I will never criticize somebody for taking a medication or getting a kind of treatment or therapy if it's working for them. So much of the time though, you hear things like, yeah, I've been going to physical therapy, but I'm not really getting better, you know?

Or maybe it's a little bit worse, or I've been taking this medication but it's causing all this other problems, or something like that. [00:37:30] Think you really have to figure out what works for you. Listen to your body. If it doesn't feel right, if you're not getting better, then it's probably not the right thing for you, and it's time to pick something different.

You really have to keep trying to explore what works for you. And I've said this really goofy thing for me. I'm not sure it would've mattered if I, Karen sat me in the room and made me stare at a purple wall. If it [00:38:00] worked, I was willing to do it because it, it worked for me. So I think try something different.

Don't be complacent and accept that you have to live in pain or in discomfort. I think you use the word earlier, Chandler terror. It, it, you don't have to be terrified anymore. There, there's something that will be out there that will be able to help you find. Path to healing. 

[00:38:29] Chandler Stroud: I love that [00:38:30] message.

Thank you for sharing that with our listeners. Sam, do you still have hard days? How often does the dizziness come back? 

[00:38:38] Sam: I do have hard days. It comes back. I sometimes know what causes that and I engage in my self-care a lot. Mm-hmm. Big fan of all the things that Karen has taught me to do at home yesterday, and I actually sew just.

I went to, I actually had a. Medical test. I had a little bit [00:39:00] of a heart flutter a few weeks ago, and so they did an echocardiogram on me. And if you've ever gotten one of those, you have to lay in a position with your arm above your head and on your side. And it did something to kind of throw me off.

It, it. Tweaked my neck or gave me aggravated something where there was some inflammation that I spent the rest of yesterday, pretty dizzy. And when I got home, I got on my foam roller and did my exercises did my self care. [00:39:30] So I do have hard days. It is not been per perfect fix. I'm. Like cured perfectly forever, but I know what to do, which is if you have the tools to feel better, that so empowering, then you, it changes the game.

If you feel helpless, like you don't know what to do, it's depressing, frustrating, terrifying. If you know, okay, yeah, I'm dizzy. I was dizzy yesterday. I drove away [00:40:00] and all I could think of is, boy, I can't wait to get home and get on that foam roller and, and fix it. And that's a miracle in my opinion. I can, I'm in control.

That's what it is. I'm in control of this. 

[00:40:14] Chandler Stroud: You just so beautifully articulated the entire purpose of this show and why we all do what we do. We are not trying to make listeners reliant on these heroes or on any other kind of healer locally. That's right. It is entirely to provide them with the [00:40:30] education and resources to choose for them.

What authentically feels right in their own journey. And to empower them to take back their healing. Yes. So that they don't feel lost or like they aren't in control. And I just love, love, love that you said that. So thank you for sharing that sentiment here today. Yes. It really hits home. It really does.

[00:40:52] Sam: Thank you for 

[00:40:52] Chandler Stroud: giving me the opportunity to, no, this is, honestly, this has been. Great [00:41:00] both of you. Thank you so much for your time, for your honesty, for your vulnerability, for sharing your expertise and your stories. Like I just, I'm so grateful to both of you and I really hope. Just speaking to our listeners, I really hope that if you are experiencing the kind of pain that Sam once did, that you found comfort in knowing that you are not alone and that there are ways that you can approach this that may [00:41:30] feel right to you if you're willing to keep going and not give up on yourself.

So thank you for just. Being here and providing that kind of inspiration and hope today. Sam, 

[00:41:43] Sam: thank you. Yes, thank you very much. 

[00:41:46] Chandler Stroud: And Karen, to you always, thank you for all you do. Sam and I, I know I speak for both of us. We are so grateful and. Funny being on the show and helping to educate others as well as myself.

Like I just thank you for your [00:42:00] time. 

[00:42:00] Karen Remele: Yeah. Oh, you're welcome. It's my pleasure because this is, this is what I'm meant to do. So 

[00:42:06] Chandler Stroud: it is Karen. Oh it is. So your calling, I feel it in my bones and my fascia.

[00:42:15] Sam: Thank you for what you do, handler. Yes. What'd you say? I said thank you for what you do. Yes. 

[00:42:20] Chandler Stroud: Well, thank you Sam. I, you know, you guys make it fun. You really do. I love empowering women to take back control of their health and happiness and. [00:42:30] This was just a really great addition to that toolkit for our listeners out there.

So thank you and thank you to all of our listeners for tuning in. If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to follow the show and share it with friends. You can also visit healing Heroes podcast.com for more resources to meet our heroes and share your ideas for future episodes. Thanks for listening, everyone, and remember, be [00:43:00] curious, be courageous, and be kind to yourself.

You've got this.