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Business With Chronic Illness: Women Entrepreneurs Navigating Burnout & Autoimmune Conditions

Advertise on podcast: Business With Chronic Illness: Women Entrepreneurs Navigating Burnout & Autoimmune Conditions

Rating
★★★★★
5
from
50 reviews
This podcast has
246 episodes
Language
English
Date created
2018/08/21
Latest episode
2026/10/08
Average duration
49 min.
Release period
19 days

Description

Building a business as a woman entrepreneur with chronic illness comes with realities that most business advice never addresses — burnout, unpredictable energy, and the need to put health first while still wanting meaningful growth. Business With Chronic Illness is a globally ranked podcast featuring honest conversations with chronic illness entrepreneurs, founders, and CEOs navigating business growth while living with chronic illness and autoimmune conditions. Through real stories and practical insight, the show explores how people build businesses that are sustainable, simple, and aligned with their health, not at the expense of it. Each episode centers on conversations rooted in real experience, covering: - Health-First Business Growth: growing at a pace that honors your body - Burnout & Capacity: navigating energy, flare-ups, and rest without guilt - Simple & Sustainable Business: stripping away unnecessary complexity - Success Stories: real people redefining what success looks like with chronic illness This podcast is for entrepreneurs and founders who are: - Living with chronic illness or autoimmune disease - Burned out from hustle culture or one-size-fits-all business advice - Building, growing, or reimagining a business that must work with real life - Looking for stories and strategies that feel honest, grounding, and possible Expect thoughtful, grounded conversations, not hype. This is a space for nuance in strategies and execution, for reflection and learning through real stories, not for pressure or performative success. About the Host Hosted by Nikita Williams, a globally ranked podcast host, award-winning business coach, and speaker who has built a six-figure business while navigating endometriosis, Hashimoto's, fibromyalgia, and chronic pain. Nikita brings lived experience, deep listening, and a health-first perspective to conversations that are often missing from the business world. The show has featured respected founders and thought leaders such as Jasmine Star, Danielle Bayard Jackson, Nitika Chopra, Courtney Elmer, Natasha Samuel, and Kinsey Soderberg, alongside entrepreneurs navigating business with chronic illness in real time. This podcast doesn't offer one-size-fits-all strategies or hustle narratives. Instead, it creates space for lived experience and multiple ways of defining success when the priority is to put your health first now, not later. - Listen & Connect: Follow Business With Chronic Illness to hear new conversations each month, and join the extended community through reflections and discussions connected to the show, at Built to Breathe on Substack.

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5 Marketing Assets That Keep Working When You Can’t
2026/10/08
What happens to your business when you don’t have the capacity to keep showing up online? If your marketing depends entirely on social media, algorithms, or constantly creating something new, your business can become harder to sustain when life changes. In this episode of Business with Chronic Illness, Nikita Williams breaks down five marketing assets that can help your business stay visible, nurture relationships, and continue creating sales even when your capacity changes. You’ll learn why your email list, website, offers, long-form content, and client testimonials are more than marketing tools—they’re business assets you can build on, reuse, and strengthen over time. We’ll also talk about what AI changes, what it doesn’t, and why owning more of your marketing foundation matters even more as platforms and technology continue to evolve. If you want a simpler, more sustainable marketing strategy that doesn’t require you to be online all the time, this episode will help you identify what to build first. In this episode, we talk about:The difference between building on rented platforms and building assets you ownWhy social media should be a distribution channel—not your entire marketing foundationWhy an email list is still one of the most valuable assets in your businessThe changing role of your website in the age of AI and searchWhy every business needs a clear offer people can actually understand and buyHow podcasts, blogs, YouTube, and other long-form content can become reusable business assetsWhy testimonials and client results should be treated as part of your marketing systemHow long-form content can support SEO, AI-powered discovery, email marketing, and salesWhy AI still needs your experience, perspective, discernment, and point of viewHow to decide which marketing asset to build first when your capacity is limited The 5 Marketing Assets1. Your Email List Your email list gives you a direct way to communicate with people who have already expressed interest in your work. Instead of relying completely on an algorithm to decide whether someone sees your content, you have a way to continue nurturing that relationship, sharing your ideas, and making offers. 2. Your Website Your website gives your business a central place where people can understand who you help, what you offer, and what they should do next. As search continues to evolve alongside AI-powered discovery, having clear, useful information about your business online becomes even more important. 3. A Clear Offer People need to know what you actually help them do. Your offer becomes an asset when it clearly communicates who it is for, what problem it solves, how you help, and how someone can take the next step. 4. Long-Form Content A podcast, blog, YouTube channel, or other long-form content gives you space to demonstrate your expertise and create content you can continue using over time. One strong piece of long-form content can support your website, emails, social media, sales conversations, and future content. 5. Testimonials and Proof Your clients’ experiences show that your work delivers results. Collecting testimonials, feedback, case studies, and client wins gives potential clients what they often need before deciding: proof. A quick marketing asset auditAsk yourself: If social media disappeared tomorrow, could people still find me? Can you reach your audience without depending on an algorithm? Does your website clearly explain what you do? Do you have a way to follow up with leads and past clients? Can people easily find testimonials or evidence of your work? Do you have long-form content that continues representing your expertise when you aren’t actively creating? You do not need to build everything at once. If your capacity is limited, start with the asset that creates the biggest gap in your business right now. Build the foundation first. Then let the assets you create begin working together. Because sustainable marketing isn’t about being everywhere. It’s about building the right things so your business doesn’t require more of you every time you want it to grow. Resources Mentioned in This Episode:Million Dollar Email by Kirsten Roldan - If email marketing feels awkward, overly salesy, or hard to stay consistent with, Kirsten’s work can help you learn how to write emails that build trust, nurture your audience, and support sales. I’ve personally found her approach helpful for thinking differently about email as a relationship-building and revenue-generating asset. Lovable Lovable is an AI-powered website and app-building platform I’ve been using as I develop and update parts of my own online business ecosystem. It can be especially useful if you want a faster way to build or test a website, landing page, or digital tool without starting from scratch. Affiliate Disclosure: Some of the links shared in these show notes are affiliate links. That means I may earn a commission if you choose to purchase or sign up through my link, at no additional cost to you. I only share tools, resources, and people I genuinely use, recommend, or believe may help you build a simpler, more sustainable business. Share Your QA's or Thoughts and Join our Free Community Channel Here! Subscribe HERE to join the Create Your Abundant Path Email Series. Learn how to build a business that keeps working long after you've closed your laptop. In this free email series, you'll discover how to create business assets, simplify your marketing, and build a sustainable business that fits your life, not the other way around. Leave us a Review and share this episode with a friend.
Is Your Marketing Growing Your Business or Just Giving You More Work?
2026/09/23
If your marketing only works when you are actively showing up, posting, creating, and being visible, then every time your capacity changes, your marketing will slow down too. That is the reality for most women building businesses while living with chronic illness, navigating burnout, or simply trying to create space for the rest of their lives. And the answer is not to do more. The answer is to build a marketing system that keeps working even when you need to step back. In this episode, I am answering one question that will completely shift how you think about your podcast, your social media, and your entire marketing strategy: Is your podcast actually growing your business, or is it just giving you more content to make? And if you do not have a podcast yet, this question still applies to whatever platform you are using right now because the principle is the same. Are you building an asset that works for you, or are you feeding a system that demands you show up every single day? In this episode, I cover: Why most podcast growth advice is designed for people trying to grow a show, not a business, and why that distinction matters.The business problem my podcast was designed to solve and how that shaped every decision I made about content, format, and strategy.The difference between hiring your podcast to grow your audience and hiring it to grow your business, and why conflating the two will burn you out.What actually matters when your podcast exists to serve your business: not just downloads, but inquiries, referrals, conversions, and whether people understand what you actually help them do.Why long-form content works better for deep thinkers, deep feelers, and people whose work requires nuance, context, and trust, especially in a world where AI can spit out quick fixes.How to use your podcast as a leverage tool, not another platform that demands you perform every day, and what that looks like in practice.The real metrics you should be tracking if your podcast is a business asset: email list growth, DMs, sales calls, referrals, and whether your funnel is actually moving. This episode is for you if: You are using social media as your primary marketing platform, and you are exhausted by the constant demand to show up, pivot when the algorithm changes, and perform in two-minute increments.You have a podcast, but you are not sure if it is actually helping your business grow, or if it is just another content treadmill.You are a deep thinker or a service provider who works with complex problems, and you feel out of integrity trying to package your expertise into seven-second hacks.You live with chronic illness, changing capacity, or caregiving responsibilities, and you need a marketing system that works even when you cannot be visible.You are tired of podcast growth advice designed for people building a show as the business, not for people who already have a business and need the podcast to serve it. Share Your QA's or Thoughts and Join our Free Community Channel Here! Subscribe HERE to join the Create Your Abundant Path Email Series. Learn how to build a business that keeps working long after you've closed your laptop. In this free email series, you'll discover how to create business assets, simplify your marketing, and build a sustainable business that fits your life, not the other way around. Leave us a Review and share this episode with a friend.
Why "Just Show Up" Is Business Advice Your Nervous System Can't Follow | Anna Holtzman
2026/09/09
You've heard it a hundred times. Post more. Get on video. Just show up. Nobody tells you what happens in your body when showing up feels physically unsafe, not just uncomfortable. Anna Holtzman spent five years helping people with chronic pain while hiding her own migraines. She thought that's what it meant to be professional. By the end of every day? Headache. The concealment itself was feeding the migraine pattern. In this episode, Anna and I talk about the mask we wear to look professional, what it costs us, and what becomes possible when we stop performing. Anna Holtzman is a therapist, coach, and founder of a practice built around helping people work with their nervous systems, not against them. She teaches visibility from a nervous system lens and specializes in supporting people navigating chronic symptoms, career reinvention, and the emotional experience of running a business. She got into this work through her own experience with chronic migraine and discovering that the tension of concealment was part of the pattern. In this episode, we cover: Why the tension of concealment drains your energy and feeds chronic symptomsHow masking your vulnerability cuts you off from creativity and authentic expressionWhy performing the inhuman professional makes it harder to market your businessWhat happens to your nervous system when you're twisting yourself into a pretzel to look regulatedWhy people don't trust the mask but do trust the moment when you say I see a therapist tooHow business is just a type of relationship and relationships require being humanWhat becomes possible when you stop performing professionalism and let yourself be a full human being in your work This episode is for you if: You feel drained by the end of the day even when your workload wasn't that heavyYou sit down to create content and think I don't know what to sayYou're hiding symptoms or struggles because you think that's what it means to be professionalYou wonder if being more visible would drain you or trigger a flare-upYou're tired of performing a version of yourself that doesn't feel true 🎧 Want to learn more about today’s guest? Visit our show, Business With Chronic Illness, for guest details, key takeaways, and extra links mentioned in this episode. 🌿 If you’re navigating entrepreneurship and chronic illness, or simply craving a more sustainable way to grow your business without sacrificing your health, energy, or self-care priorities. Join our community designed for women entrepreneurs, creatives, and women with chronic illness who want sustainable growth and burnout support while keeping life and wellness first. Join Our Free Community, The Gathering Room of The Rooted & Profitable Collective. ⭐ Enjoyed this conversation? Leave a review and share it with another CEO woman or creative entrepreneur growing a health-first, sustainable business. 📱 Stay connected: Follow me on Instagram.
Rebuilding Your Capacity After Caregiving Burnout and Business Loss | Erika Coleman
2026/08/26
What if the way you measure success is actually what's burning you out? Erika Coleman thought she had it figured out. Give your best, maybe a little more, and things work out. It worked for years, until it didn't. In 2022, her mom was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. And for the next 14 months, she watched her business sales and her mom's health drop in tandem. She gave more and more and more, following every rule, checking every box. But the results didn't go up. They went down. Her mom passed away. Two months later, she had to close her business. And then her body finally shut down. She was too tired to smile at her daughter's drawing. That's when she knew something had to change. Erika Coleman is a high-performance researcher, speaker, and founder of the Even Achieving method. After earning her master's degree from Harvard studying stress, well-being, and performance, she discovered what most of us get wrong about pacing. It's not about slowing down. It's not about protecting your energy. Pacing is an athletic endeavor. It's how you win your race without killing yourself in the process. In this episode, we cover: Why giving your all doesn't mean you're giving your best, and how to tell the differenceThe hidden cost of using effort to prove you care (and what to measure instead)How grief and business demand collide, and why pushing harder makes both worseWhat happens when your body finally shuts down after months of overrideThe small moments that matter most when you're chasing big, Instagram-worthy memoriesHow to pace yourself like an athlete, not a martyrWhy high performance requires rest, not more hustle This episode is for you if: You've been giving everything you have and the results still aren't what you expectedYou're carrying grief, caregiving, or health challenges while trying to keep your business afloatYou use busyness to prove you care, and you're burnout and exhaustedYou've hit a point where your body won't let you push anymoreYou want to learn how to give your best without giving your all Connect with Erika Coleman: https://www.erikacolemanspeaks.com 🎧 Want to learn more about today’s guest? Visit our show, Business With Chronic Illness, for guest details, key takeaways, and extra links mentioned in this episode. 🌿 If you’re navigating entrepreneurship and chronic illness, or simply craving a more sustainable way to grow your business without sacrificing your health, energy, or self-care priorities. Join our community designed for women entrepreneurs, creatives, and women with chronic illness who want sustainable growth and burnout support while keeping life and wellness first. Join Our Free Community, The Gathering Room . ⭐ Enjoyed this conversation? Leave a review and share it with another CEO woman or creative entrepreneur growing a health-first, sustainable business. 📱 Stay connected: Follow me on Instagram.
Rebuilding Your Business After Burnout Without Starting Over With Fibromyalgia | Dr. Alicia Newsome
2026/08/12
Learn how to rebuild your business after burnout and create a more sustainable path to growth. Dr. Alicia Newsome shares her transformative journey navigating the challenges of Fibromyalgia while running a business. After pushing through a demanding schedule, including live webinars and sales calls, while seven months pregnant and battling COVID, she realized the unsustainable nature of her approach. In this episode, she opens up about the true cost of relentless hustle and how a fibromyalgia diagnosis prompted her to rebuild her business model for sustainability. Trusting her team became a crucial health strategy, allowing her to prioritize her well-being. If you're juggling burnout, autoimmune conditions, or chronic illness in your entrepreneurial journey, Alicia's insights will inspire you to embrace a more balanced and compassionate approach to business, one that honors your health and peace. In this episode, we cover: What burnout actually looks like beyond physical exhaustion — the mental looping, the disconnection, the collapse of clarityWhy Dr. Alicia stopped doing sales calls entirely and how she rebuilt her intake process to be asynchronousWhat it cost her to mimic someone else's success and what it took to reconnect to what was true for herThe difference between rest that restores and rest that's just survivalHow she built a business that's more profitable than ever without being tied to her deskWhat it means to hire coaches whose lives you actually want to mimicWhy the standard online business model assumes unlimited capacity — and what to do when you don't have it This episode is for you if: You've been told you just need to push through, hire better, or fix your mindset — but the real problem is the model itselfYour business requires you to be on all the time to make money, and you're exhaustedYou've followed all the right advice and still ended up burnt outYou're rebuilding after burnout and don't know how to do it differently this timeYou're pregnant, postpartum, or navigating a health challenge while running a business 🎧 Want to learn more about today’s guest? Visit our show, Business With Chronic Illness, for guest details, key takeaways, and extra links mentioned in this episode. 🌿 If you’re navigating entrepreneurship and chronic illness, or simply craving a more sustainable way to grow your business without sacrificing your health, energy, or self-care priorities. Join our community designed for women entrepreneurs, creatives, and women with chronic illness who want sustainable growth and burnout support while keeping life and wellness first. Join Our Free Community, The Gathering Room of The Rooted & Profitable Collective. ⭐ Enjoyed this conversation? Leave a review and share it with another CEO woman or creative entrepreneur growing a health-first, sustainable business. 📱 Stay connected: Follow me on Instagram.
Why Motherhood Makes You Better at Business (Not Worse): Lessons on Burnout, Capacity & Building a Sustainable Life | Priya Rednam Waldo
2026/07/29
The business advice you're following probably wasn't written for someone whose capacity changes with the seasons of motherhood. It wasn't written for someone navigating pregnancy, postpartum, chronic health challenges, or school pickup while trying to grow a business they love. In this conversation, licensed perinatal therapist, keynote speaker, CEO, and mother of four Priya Rednam Waldo shares why motherhood doesn't make you less capable—it can actually make you a stronger leader and business owner when you stop measuring success by constant productivity. Drawing from her own experience with military service, chronic health challenges, traumatic birth experiences, postpartum mental health, and building a thriving private practice, Priya shares what it really looks like to create a business that honors your values, your family, and your changing capacity. Whether you're raising children, navigating chronic illness, recovering from burnout, or simply trying to build a business that fits your real life, this episode offers a refreshing perspective on success that doesn't require sacrificing yourself to achieve it. In this episode, we discuss: Why motherhood can make you a better business owner—not a less capable oneHow chronic illness, burnout, and changing capacity reshape the way we workBuilding a business that supports your life instead of competing with itLetting go of perfectionism and redefining success on your own termsCreating a sustainable business model that doesn't require you to be available 24/7Why building a support village is essential for both motherhood and entrepreneurshipProtecting your energy, honoring your values, and making decisions without guiltHow to lead with intention instead of constantly pushing through exhaustion This episode is for you if: You're building a business while raising children and wondering if it's possible to do both well.You're navigating pregnancy, postpartum, or the changing seasons of motherhood.You live with chronic illness, burnout, or fluctuating energy and need a more sustainable way to work.You're tired of business advice built around unlimited capacity and constant hustle.You want to build a successful business without sacrificing your health, your family, or yourself. 🎧 Want to learn more about today’s guest? Connect with Priya Rednam Waldo Website: https://priyarednamwaldo.com/ Instagram @priyarednamwaldo Visit our show, Business With Chronic Illness, for guest details, key takeaways, and extra links mentioned in this episode. 🌿 If you’re navigating entrepreneurship and chronic illness, or simply craving a more sustainable way to grow your business without sacrificing your health, energy, or self-care priorities. Join our community designed for women entrepreneurs, creatives, and women with chronic illness who want sustainable growth and burnout support while keeping life and wellness first. Join Our Free Community, The Gathering Room of The Rooted & Profitable Collective. ⭐ Enjoyed this conversation? Leave a review and share it with another CEO woman or creative entrepreneur growing a health-first, sustainable business. 📱 Stay connected: Follow me on Instagram.
How She Built a full-Time Income with 5-10 Hours a Week (No Ads, One Platform) | Tracy Beavers
2026/07/15
You don't need to be on every platform to build a profitable business. You need one platform, a plan, and a list you actually own. Tracy Beavers is a business and sales coach who built her entire coaching business while working corporate full-time, raising teenagers who played every sport with a ball, and honoring a promise to her husband that she wouldn't touch their retirement until she had proof of concept. She had 5 to 10 hours a week. That's it. So she built a system that worked without her needing to be online 24/7. In this episode, we cover: Why visibility without strategy is just noise and noise doesn't pay the billsThe Minimal Viable Option: the least amount of content you need to grow your list and make moneyHow Tracy turned one weekly Facebook Live into a full-time income in 18 monthsWhy your email list is the only asset you actually own and what happened when Tracy got locked out of Facebook DMs during a launchHow to choose one platform and build a sustainable marketing system around your actual capacityWhat to do when you're too tired to show up but you promised yourself you wouldWhy stepping down gradually from corporate allowed her income to grow instead of drop This episode is for you if: You've been told you need to be on every platform to grow and you're exhausted tryingYou're building a business with limited time, limited energy, or unpredictable capacityYou're creating content that gets engagement but not sales and you don't know whyYou're scared that if you slow down or disappear for a week your business will collapseYou want to know how to turn visibility into actual revenue without burning out or running ads 🎧 Want to learn more about today’s guest? Connect with Tracy Beavers at tracybeavers.com Visit our show, Business With Chronic Illness, for guest details, key takeaways, and extra links mentioned in this episode. 🌿 If you’re navigating entrepreneurship and chronic illness, or simply craving a more sustainable way to grow your business without sacrificing your health, energy, or self-care priorities. Join our community designed for women entrepreneurs, creatives, and women with chronic illness who want sustainable growth and burnout support while keeping life and wellness first. Join Our Free Community, The Gathering Room of The Rooted & Profitable Collective. ⭐ Enjoyed this conversation? Leave a review and share it with another CEO woman or creative entrepreneur growing a health-first, sustainable business. 📱 Stay connected: Follow me on Instagram.
How to Adapt Your Business Model When You're Living With Chronic Illness | Laura Reeves
2026/07/01
If you've ever rebuilt your business from nothing after a diagnosis, a flare, or a crash you didn't see coming, you already know that "just push through" stops working at some point. The harder question is what you do instead. In this episode, Laura Reeves shares how she answered that question for herself, twice. After Crohn's disease cost her nearly every client she had in 1997, she built a 30-year career as a professional dog handler, one designed around her body instead of around what her industry expected. And when she knew that career couldn't last forever either, she didn't wait for a crisis to force the next move. She planned it. What you'll take from this conversation isn't really about dog shows. It's about what it looks like to build and rebuild a business that can actually hold the life you're living, instead of the one you wish you had the capacity for. In this episode, you'll learn: How to think about rebuilding a client base from scratch after a diagnosis takes everything you hadA real-world framework for capping your workload to protect your health, without capping your income to zeroWhy planning your business's next chapter years in advance beats waiting for your body to make the decision for youHow to tell the difference between the stress that's actually triggering your flares and the stress you've just learned to live withWhat it looks like to move from "acceptance" to "giving up", and how to tell which side of that line you're actually on This episode is for you if: You've had to rebuild your business after a diagnosis or a major flare, and you're tired of pretending that wasn't a big dealYou're scared that slowing down will make everything you've built collapseYou're managing chronic illness while caregiving for family members, and you're stretched in directions nobody talks aboutYou feel stuck in a business model that requires you to be "on" every single day, with no version of you that gets to restYou want to plan for a transition before your body forces the decision, but you don't know where to start 🎧 Want to learn more about today’s guest? Connect with Laura Reeves https://puredogtalk.com/ Visit our show, Business With Chronic Illness, for guest details, key takeaways, and extra links mentioned in this episode. 🌿 If you’re navigating entrepreneurship and chronic illness, or simply craving a more sustainable way to grow your business without sacrificing your health, energy, or self-care priorities. Join our community designed for women entrepreneurs, creatives, and women with chronic illness who want sustainable growth and burnout support while keeping life and wellness first. Join Our Free Community, The Gathering Room of The Rooted & Profitable Collective. ⭐ Enjoyed this conversation? Leave a review and share it with another CEO woman or creative entrepreneur growing a health-first, sustainable business. 📱 Stay connected: Follow me on Instagram. Mentioned in this episode: Laura Reeves Intro
How to Build a Business Around Your Capacity (Not Market Demands) | Gwendolyn Young
2026/06/17
What does it look like to build a business that works with your chronic illness instead of against it? This conversation with Gwendolyn Young will challenge everything you think you know about business design and capacity. Gwendolyn Young is the founder of Your Virtual Admin Expert, a multi-six figure agency that provides administrative solutions for business owners. After 15 years of advising corporate executives, she made the bold decision to leave and start her own company so she could manage her lupus diagnosis while still doing meaningful work. Her approach to building around capacity rather than market demands has created both sustainability and significant profit. In this episode, we cover: How cultural expectations as women of color make it harder to acknowledge capacity limits in businessWhy building your business around your needs isn't selfish — it's strategicThe specific systems Gwendolyn put in place to protect her energy while scaling her agencyHow to transition from being the doer to being the CEO without losing your sense of identityWhat it really means to set non-negotiable boundaries with clientsWhy chronic illness can actually be a teacher in learning to design better business systemsThe mindset work required to trust your team and delegate effectively This episode is for you if: You're trying to build or scale a business while managing chronic illnessYou feel like standard business advice doesn't account for your realityYou're the doer in your business and struggle to delegate or step backYou want to create more sustainable systems that don't require your constant presenceYou're a woman of color navigating the intersection of health challenges and entrepreneurship 🎧 Want to learn more about today’s guest? Connect with Gwendolyn Young Website: yourvirtualadminexpert.com Instagram: @yourvirtualadminexpert Visit our show, Business With Chronic Illness, for guest details, key takeaways, and extra links mentioned in this episode. 🌿 If you’re navigating entrepreneurship and chronic illness, or simply craving a more sustainable way to grow your business without sacrificing your health, energy, or self-care priorities. Join our community designed for women entrepreneurs, creatives, and women with chronic illness who want sustainable growth and burnout support while keeping life and wellness first. Join Our Free Community, The Gathering Room of The Rooted & Profitable Collective. ⭐ Enjoyed this conversation? Leave a review and share it with another CEO woman or creative entrepreneur growing a health-first, sustainable business. 📱 Stay connected: Follow me on Instagram.
Why Decluttering Your Space Heals Your Business Decisions | Alison Kero
2026/06/03
Your energy crashing during business conversations is not random. It is your body giving you crucial information about who and what belongs in your life. When you're managing chronic illness while building a business, learning to trust these signals can be the difference between sustainable growth and complete burnout. Alison Kero is a professional organizer who has spent over two decades helping people create calm, clarity, and balance in their lives. After being diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease in 2014, she had to completely rebuild her approach to work and life, ultimately discovering that organizing isn't just about physical spaces, it's about decluttering the guilt, shame, and emotional baggage that keeps us stuck in cycles that harm our health. In this episode, you will learn: How Alison's energy tanking during business calls became her decision-making systemWhy she kept guilt-inducing items for decades and what happened when she let them goThe daily systems that help her show up for herself without burning outHow decluttering physical space helps you recognize emotional patternsWhy decision fatigue is especially dangerous when you're managing chronic illnessThe connection between boundaries and physical healthSimple systems that make life easier instead of harder This episode is for you if: Your business falls apart every time your health doesYou ignore your body's signals because you think that's what success requiresYou're tired of trying to fit your capacity into business models designed for unlimited energyYou want to understand how organization can be a tool for healingYou're ready to build systems that protect your energy instead of drain it 🎧 Want to learn more about today’s guest? Connect with Alison Kero Website: https://www.fromcluttertoconfidence.com Visit our show, Business With Chronic Illness, for guest details, key takeaways, and extra links mentioned in this episode. 🌿 If you’re navigating entrepreneurship and chronic illness, or simply craving a more sustainable way to grow your business without sacrificing your health, energy, or self-care priorities. Join our community designed for women entrepreneurs, creatives, and women with chronic illness who want sustainable growth and burnout support while keeping life and wellness first. Join Our Free Community, The Gathering Room of The Rooted & Profitable Collective. ⭐ Enjoyed this conversation? Leave a review and share it with another CEO woman or creative entrepreneur growing a health-first, sustainable business. 📱 Stay connected: Follow me on Instagram.
How Your Caregiving Experience IS Business Training (Stop Undervaluing It) | Julie Cole
2026/05/13
What would it look like to build a multi-million dollar business while raising six kids, advocating full-time for a child with autism, and navigating everything that nobody put in the business plan? That's exactly what Julie Cole did, and she didn't do it by following the standard playbook. Julie is the co-founder of Mabel's Labels, a brand she started almost 23 years ago with her sister and two college friends when her eldest son was diagnosed with autism at three years old. She left a career in law, started making labels in a basement at 2am, and built something real, not because the timing was perfect, but because she figured out what her actual capacity was and built around that. In this conversation, Julie and Nikita get into the conversation most business advice skips entirely: what actually has to shift when you're a mom, a caregiver, and an entrepreneur all at the same time, and why the skills you're already using at home are more valuable than you think. In This Episode, You'll Learn:Why capacity is the first conversation, not the last: before strategy, before offers, before anything else, you need to know what you can actually carry and Julie's story shows exactly what happens when you get honest about that firstHow the skills you're already using as a caregiver translate directly into business: advocacy, research, negotiation, flexibility under pressure — these aren't soft skills, they're the exact skills that build something sustainableWhy entrepreneurship gets romanticized and what the real version looks like: Julie is direct about what those early years actually looked like, and it's not TED talks and wine nightsHow building a values-led company culture protects both your business and your life: From results-only work environments to neurodivergent hiring, Julie built a company that worked for real humans living real livesWhat the "care gap" actually means for women entrepreneurs: Whether or not you have kids, the invisible load is real, and building a business that pretends otherwise is building on a weak foundationWhy visibility creates credibility, which creates loyalty: Showing up — even when life is heavy, even when the pace feels impossible — is not about hustle, it's about trust ⭐ Enjoyed this conversation? Leave a review and share it with another mom who's building something — she needs to hear this one. Leave us a Review and share this episode with a friend. Share Your QA's or Thoughts Products We Love + Special Guest Gifts → Want to support the show and treat yourself? We’ve created a quick-access list of products I personally use and love, exclusive savings from podcast guests, and other gems that can help you live well and do business with chronic illness. Explore our faves + savings here! Join our Community Channel Here.
You're Not Late: Building Your Dream Business at 51 with Rheumatoid Arthritis | Janet Diaz
2026/04/29
Though burnout is often described as being beyond tired, and in a clinical definition, is a state of emotional, mental, and often physical exhaustion brought on by prolonged or repeated stress. Janet Diaz shares a perspective and practical insights for chronic illness management while building your dream business that completely reframes how we understand burnout, especially when you're managing autoimmune conditions while building a business. Janet is the co-founder of Soulcraft Journeys, creating transformational retreat experiences. She has also navigated decades in corporate roles while managing rheumatoid arthritis, ultimately discovering that her biggest challenges led her to exactly where she was meant to be. What you will learn: Why burnout is really about disconnection, not exhaustionHow to recognize when you're wearing a mask to hide your health strugglesWhy your original plan falling apart might be redirecting you to your purposeHow chronic illness progression can actually clarify your prioritiesThe power of slowing down to reconnect with your inner wisdomHow to transition from survival mode to building something meaningfulWhy adaptation and resilience are entrepreneurial superpowers This episode is for you if: You feel disconnected from your business purposeYou're pushing through chronic illness while maintaining a professional facadeYour original life plan got completely derailed by health challengesYou're in survival mode as the primary breadwinner with chronic illnessYou're ready to build something that aligns with your authentic self 🎧 Want to learn more about today’s guest? Connect with Janet Diaz: Website: https://soulcraft-journeys.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soulcraft_journeys Visit CraftedToThrive.com for guest details, key takeaways, and extra links mentioned in this episode. 🌿 If you’re navigating entrepreneurship and chronic illness, or simply craving a more sustainable way to grow your business without sacrificing your health, energy, or self-care priorities, explore Chronically You & Profitable (CYAP). CYAP is my capacity-first business system designed for women entrepreneurs, creatives, and women with chronic illness who want sustainable growth and burnout support while keeping life and wellness first. It helps you use your voice and story to build a business with systems and strategies that run smoothly, so your work supports your life, not the other way around. ⭐ Enjoyed this conversation? Leave a review and share it with another CEO woman or creative entrepreneur growing a health-first, sustainable business. 📱 Stay connected: Follow me on Instagram.
The Quiet Transitions Nobody Talks About in Business
2026/04/17
What happens when you disappear from your own podcast without explanation? In this vulnerable return episode, I'm sharing the real story behind my unannounced break and what it taught me about the transitions we don't talk about in business. I'm Nikita Williams, your host, and after running Business with Chronic Illness for years, I found myself in a quiet transition that didn't come with announcements or pretty bows. Sometimes something inside you changes before the outside world even knows it's happening. In this episode, we explore: - The quiet changes happening in your business that deserve space and time - How your body constantly gives you feedback about what your business needs - Why persistence doesn't always look like showing up - The difference between obligation-based consistency and aligned sustainability - How to protect what you're building when your capacity changes - Permission to move through transitions privately before sharing them publicly This episode is for you if: - You've felt something shifting in your business but can't name what it is - You're tired of forcing consistency when your capacity has changed - You've ever needed to step away from something without a perfect explanation - You're navigating health changes that affect your business operations - You want permission to honor your transitions even when they're messy Things mentioned in this episode: Join us for our First BWCI Insider Group Live Call Here's the Blog Series on Transitions from: Andrea Nakayama, Functional Nutrition Specialist Join our Built to Breathe community on Substack for more real-time conversations. Subscribe to the Chronically Profitable email series for business strategies that work with your reality, not against it. ✨ Thank you for listening. Here's how to connect with Nikita, your host: → Grab your Free Curated Podcast for Business Growth Playlist → Grab Your Free 5-Day Private Podcast Series to Help You Make Sales with Ease with Long-Form Content and Nervous-System-Friendly Marketing Strategies for Women with Chronic Illness & Burnt-Out Entrepreneurs. ⭐ Loved this episode? Leave a review and share it with a friend who’s ready to grow their business without burnout or sacrificing their well-being. 📱 Stay connected: Follow me on Instagram.
Why Short-Form Content Is Burning You Out (And What to Do Instead) | Isabella Sanchez Castañeda
2026/02/06
You've been posting daily. You're showing up in stories. You're creating reels that disappear into the void. And yet—it's taking more and more content just to be seen, let alone convert followers into paying clients. If you're exhausted by social media and wondering why it's getting harder to turn all that effort into actual business growth, you're not alone. The game has changed in 2026. In this episode (originally recorded during Super Bowl weekend 2024 and more relevant than ever), I sit down with Isabella Sanchez Castañeda—podcast strategist and host of the top 5% podcast On East Media, Inc.—to talk about why short-form content is no longer king, and why long-form content like podcasting is the strategy that will save your sanity and grow your business. Isabella breaks down exactly what's happening with "short-form fatigue," why our nervous systems are craving something deeper, and how to make the shift to long-form content that actually converts—without burning yourself out in the process. What You'll Walk Away With: Why in 2026, business owners must shift from short form to long form content strategies to thrive.How Social media fatigue is real; many users are abandoning platforms like TikTok for deeper connections in podcasts.The key to successful long-form content lies in intention, intimacy, and low interruptions; it builds trust and engagement.Creating long-form content is not only essential for conversion but also for maintaining mental health as entrepreneurs. Leave us a Review and share this episode with a friend. 🎧 Want to learn more about today’s guest? Visit CraftedToThrive.com for guest details, key takeaways, and extra links mentioned in this episode. Share Your QA's or Thoughts Join The 5-Day Audio Series - Rooted Sales Products We Love + Special Guest Gifts → Want to support the show and treat yourself? We’ve created a quick-access list of products I personally use and love, exclusive savings from podcast guests, and other gems that can help you live well and do business with chronic illness. Explore our faves + savings here! Join our Community Channel on Substack, our Built to Breathe Community Subscribe HERE to Chronically Profitable, A free, exclusive email series that shows you how to sell with self-trust, create content that converts, and use long-form strategies, especially podcasting, to attract dream clients consistently, even during the ups and downs of business and life. You'll learn how to build a rhythm that helps you sell even while you rest.
How Women Entrepreneurs Can Hold Grief and Growth at the Same Time | Amanda Guin
2026/01/23
Not everyone started this year with "new year, new you" energy. If you're a woman entrepreneur navigating grief—from a loss, a diagnosis, a relationship, or a version of yourself you had to let go—you're probably wondering: can I grieve this AND still show up for my business? Can I hold both grief and growth while building a sustainable business? In this replay of one of 2025's most downloaded episodes, I sit down with Amanda Guin, an emotional intelligence coach, traumatology expert, and widow who lost her infant daughter to a congenital heart condition, navigated endometriosis and infertility, and became a solo parent after her husband's suicide. We talk about why "coping" keeps women entrepreneurs stuck, what it means to explore healing instead, and how to hold the duality of grief and growth while creating a business that adapts to your capacity. Inside this episode, you'll learn: Why coping feels stagnant and what exploring your emotions looks like insteadHow to hold duality: grieving AND showing up, struggling AND growing, loss AND joyAmanda's APPLI framework for acknowledging where you are and choosing your next stepThe difference between "big T" and "little T" trauma and why your body doesn't rank your painHow to build a sustainable business rooted in empathy and emotional awareness while processing griefWhy there's no blueprint for grief—just your own process of healing to trust This episode is for you if you're: A woman entrepreneur is currently grieving while trying to run your business. You're feeling stuck in "coping mode" instead of actually healing and moving forward. You find yourself ranking your trauma or grief and not giving yourself permission to feel it fully. Or you're navigating loss, burnout, or a major life transition while managing chronic illness. Connect with Amanda Guin: At growwithpurposecoach.com Follow Business With Chronic Illness for weekly conversations on entrepreneurship, burnout recovery, and building a business with autoimmune conditions and chronic illness. Leave us a Review and share this episode with a friend. Share Your QA's or Thoughts Join The 5-Day Audio Series - Rooted Sales Products We Love + Special Guest Gifts → Want to support the show and treat yourself? We’ve created a quick-access list of products I personally use and love, exclusive savings from podcast guests, and other gems that can help you live well and do business with chronic illness. Explore our faves + savings here! Join our Community Channel on Substack, our Built to Breathe Community Subscribe HERE to Chronically Profitable, A free, exclusive email series that shows you how to sell with self-trust, create content that converts, and use long-form strategies, especially podcasting, to attract dream clients consistently, even during the ups and downs of business and life. You'll learn how to build a rhythm that helps you sell even while you rest.

Podcast reviews

Read Business With Chronic Illness: Women Entrepreneurs Navigating Burnout & Autoimmune Conditions podcast reviews


5 out of 5
50 reviews
★★★★★
Even-Achieving-Erika 2026/08/26
Nikita Knows
You cannot find a better advocate for those with Chronic Illness than Nikita. She brings real-world experience, compassion, and experts to help those ...
★★★★★
Coincidence denier 2025/12/15
Necessary and brave
Nikita Williams is opening up vital conversations about running or building a business while managing chronic illness. As someone who has been dealing...
★★★★★
Blogilatesfreak 2025/08/05
A must for Entrepreneurs!!
This podcast is truly a blessing and has become a staple in my weekly routine. Nikita goes above and beyond in every episode, offering not just encour...
★★★★★
Siennnnnnaaaaaaaaaaa 2024/12/06
So much value
As someone who doesn’t have chronic illness but has an entrepreneurial spirit and lack of boundaries at times, this podcast is everything. I feel empo...
★★★★★
Shaylee King 2023/08/30
LOVE this podcast!
Crafted to thrive is one of my favorite podcasts. Every episode I’ve listen to so far is relatable, encouraging, and interesting. I love that it focus...
★★★★★
Reyna Bee 2023/08/30
Just what I needed!
Nikita never disappoints! She’s so REAL and down to earth which makes it so easy to connect with her and her podcasts! It’s truly an inspiration for h...
★★★★★
famhed 2023/08/30
Oh yea - this is the sauce
Of course I am biased because I am her husband - BUT… BUT…. I know she practices what she preaches and I see in her daily life and it makes a differen...
★★★★★
AAColl 2023/08/28
Very encouraging and informative!
I am impressed with the empathy and encouragement you hear in Nikita’s voice. Not only does she speak from experience but she helps you feel motivatio...
★★★★★
Courtney @ PodLaunch 2023/08/25
Finally someone who GETS IT!
A breath of fresh air for entrepreneurs with chronic illness! If you’re juggling building a business while managing a chronic illness, this is THE sho...
★★★★★
Your fairy goodmother 2023/08/25
My current binge worthy show
I may be late to the party but this show is certainly worth checking out from episode 1. So many amazing nuggets for entrepreneurs!!
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