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Dear Body, I’m listening

Dear Body, I’m listening

Auteur(s): Donna Piper
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 Dear Body, I'm Listening is the podcast for women living with chronic pain, mysterious symptoms, and invisible illness. Hosted by movement therapist, Pilates instructor, and chronic illness navigator Donna Piper, this show is a sanctuary for those who’ve tried everything, felt dismissed, and are still searching for answers. If you've ever felt like your body is speaking a language no one else understands—you’re not crazy, and you’re not alone. In this space, nothing is off the table. We talk openly about swelling, fatigue, brain fog, body shame, and more. We go beyond diagnosis to explore what may be worth investigating—and more importantly, how to reconnect with yourself in the process. Through somatic spirituality, movement, and truth-telling, Donna offers support, insight, and hope. Because healing isn’t linear, and neither are we.
Épisodes
  • So Flexible It Hurts: Living with Hypermobility & EDS

    So Flexible It Hurts: Living with Hypermobility & EDS
    Jun 29 2025
    "If you call yourself lazy or out of shape, you really are not. You're an Olympic-level competitor, because your body is doing so much more than everyone else." —Donna Piper Modern medicine often misses this critical truth: flexibility can be a disability. Hypermobility forces your body to burn energy just to maintain basic stability. For Donna Piper, 'flexibility' wasn't a gift—it was a hidden disability that stole her energy and fueled chronic pain. As a movement therapist, Donna believed her hypermobile joints were an advantage, until they triggered fatigue so severe she couldn't drive without bracing herself. In this episode, Donna reveals how Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) forces muscles to work overtime just to hold joints in place, why this drains energy "like running a marathon while holding a Jenga tower," and the surprising link between "bendy" joints and conditions like POTS, MCAS, and lipedema. Join in and learn how to do the side-lying breath reset technique that calms hypermobile joints without overstretching. Connect with Donna: Website: https://www.donnapiper.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donnapiper Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lipedema_donna Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedonnapiper YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thedonnapiper Episode Highlights: 02:47 Living with Hypermobility and EDS 04:15 Connective Tissue Disorders and Their Impact 08:46 Hypermobility and Energy Management 12:34 Side-Lying Breath Reset Technique 15:10 The Importance of Community and Self-Advocacy in Managing Chronic Illness Resources: 🤔Got a question for me? Every month, I do a listener coaching episode—and I’d love to hear from you! Send your questions, stories, or flare-up confessions to donna@donnapiper.com, and you just might hear your answer on the show. 🔗Links EDS: https://www.ehlers-danlos.com/what-is-eds/ EDS/MCAS: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9022617/ Hypermobility: https://www.ehlers-danlos.com/what-is-hsd/ Dr. Melissa Koehl, PT Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.melissakoehl.pt/?hl=en Website: https://www.chimera-health.com/ X: Your 'double-jointed' party trick? For EDS patients, it's actually their muscles working overtime 24/7. Learn why hypermobility = chronic fatigue in this week’s episode! #DearBodyImListeningPodcast #Hypermobility #EhlersDanlosSyndrome #EDS #ChronicIllness #SpoonieLife #InvisibleIllness #HSD #POTS #MCAS #Lipedema Quotes: 02:51 "What they didn't see, and what I didn't realize, was that flexibility comes with pain and fatigue. The way my body could overwork itself just to hold it together." —Donna Piper 03:43 "I didn't realize that gripping wasn't supposed to be there. I realized that it was creating a lot of symptomology, and I just didn't know how to take care of myself." —Donna Piper 04:53 "Now I understand how much effort it takes to go on a car ride, or just hold myself up from the inside." —Donna Piper 05:01 "The wild part is EDS, HSD, lipedema, POTS, MCAS— they're all connected, and not everyone knows that." —Donna Piper 07:01 "Everything is highly, highly, highly individualized." —Donna Piper 10:46 "All of that extra work that I'm doing to substitute what my body needs for stability takes a lot of energy." —Donna Piper 12:24 "If you call yourself lazy or out of shape, you really are not. You're an Olympic-level competitor, because your body is doing so much more than everyone else." —Donna Piper Meet Your Host: Donna Piper is a Relationship Coach, Trauma Expert, and Akashic Records Healer dedicated to empowering successful single women to transform their love lives and attract fulfilling partnerships without sacrificing their professional ambitions. With a holistic approach blending therapeutic coaching, trauma-informed techniques, and Akashic Records wisdom, she guides clients to release limiting beliefs, heal emotional blocks, and cultivate unshakable self-trust. Her work focuses on aligning mind, body, and spirit to create lasting change—helping clients refine communication, deepen self-worth, and build the foundation for healthy, loving relationships. Donna’s sessions are a safe haven for those ready to break cycles, embrace vulnerability, and design a love life that harmonizes with their thriving careers. For women committed to both personal and professional fulfillment, she offers tailored strategies to unlock their full potential and step into the relationship of their dreams.
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    17 min
  • Chronic Fatigue… Huh, Is That Even Real?

    Chronic Fatigue… Huh, Is That Even Real?
    Jun 28 2025
    “Rest is medicine, and I even wear a monitor now to track how much energy I'm truly using. Even if I think I'm taking it easy, it shows me that I might be expending too much energy, and I'm able to take rest breaks purposely so I don't feel guilty about resting." —Donna Piper They called it burnout. They called it depression. They were wrong. Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME), also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), isn't psychological—it's neurological. This invisible illness poisons your nervous system while leaving lab tests 'normal,' making it medicine's greatest blind spot. When world-renowned specialist Dr. Perrin examined Donna, he found something shocking: her lymphatic system was flowing backward, flooding her brain with toxins. Discover how this structural dysfunction creates the "crash days" of ME/CFS, why "pushing through" makes ME/CFS worse, the 5 physical signs of ME/CFS most doctors ignore, the 'feet up the wall' technique, the test that reveals if your nervous system is in overdrive, and the wearable device that exposes hidden energy expenditure (even during "rest"). Connect with Donna: Website: https://www.donnapiper.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donnapiper Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lipedema_donna Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedonnapiper YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thedonnapiper Episode Highlights: 01:48 Introduction to ME/CFS 06:22 The Perrin Technique and Why It Matters 08:52 Chronic Fatigue— Beyond Psychological 14:29 Feel Good Flow Time Resources: 🔗Links Dr. Raymond Perrin: https://theperrintechnique.com/ The Perrin Technique: How to diagnose and treat CFS/ME and fibromyalgia via the lymphatic drainage of the brain, 2nd Ed: https://a.co/d/3fXHbZD The Concise Perrin Technique: A Handbook for Patients: https://a.co/d/6yM60D7 Through the Looking Glass: Diagnosing and treating long COVID using the Perrin Technique: https://a.co/d/fpglYdD X: Fatigue isn't 'in your head'—it's in your LYMPH. Tune in as Donna shares the structural cause of ME/CFS plus the 4 foods that worsened Donna’s fatigue (and the weird swap that helped). #DearBodyImListeningPodcast #MECFS #ChronicFatigue #BrainFog #LymphaticHealth #MedicalGaslighting #SpoonieLife Quotes: 01:45 "If you're running on 30% and pretending you're running on 100%, you are not alone here." —Donna Piper 08:52 "Chronic fatigue syndrome isn't psychological. It's structural. So it's not just that you think you're tired, it's actually a physiological thing happening that's not working right." —Donna Piper 09:07 "Blocked or sluggish lymphatic drainage in the brain and the spine causes toxic buildup. This overload stimulates the sympathetic nervous system— your fight or flight mode— which keeps you stuck in the survival and that causes those deep, mysterious crashes." —Donna Piper 11:11 "Rest is a huge part of what is prescription. Do half of what you think you can because the more you push yourself, it takes longer for your body to detox." —Donna Piper 14:07 "Rest is medicine, and I even wear a monitor now to track how much energy I'm truly using. Even if I think I'm taking it easy, it shows me that I might be expending too much energy, and I'm able to take rest breaks purposely so I don't feel guilty about resting." —Donna Piper Meet Your Host: Donna Piper is a Relationship Coach, Trauma Expert, and Akashic Records Healer dedicated to empowering successful single women to transform their love lives and attract fulfilling partnerships without sacrificing their professional ambitions. With a holistic approach blending therapeutic coaching, trauma-informed techniques, and Akashic Records wisdom, she guides clients to release limiting beliefs, heal emotional blocks, and cultivate unshakable self-trust. Her work focuses on aligning mind, body, and spirit to create lasting change, helping clients refine communication, deepen self-worth, and build the foundation for healthy, loving relationships. Donna’s sessions are a safe haven for those ready to break cycles, embrace vulnerability, and design a love life that harmonizes with their thriving careers. For women committed to both personal and professional fulfillment, she offers tailored strategies to unlock their full potential and step into the relationship of their dreams.
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    18 min
  • What Is MCAS and Why Do I Look 6 Months Pregnant by Lunch?

    What Is MCAS and Why Do I Look 6 Months Pregnant by Lunch?
    Jun 27 2025
    "If you've ever been told it's all in your head, well, your body is not lying and neither are you." —Donna Piper What if your 'healthy' diet was secretly poisoning you? For decades, Donna ate kale, bone broth, and fermented foods—only to discover these 'superfoods' were flooding her body with histamines and leaving her bloated like a balloon by noon. In this episode, Donna pulls back the curtain on Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS)—the invisible illness that turned her immune system against everyday foods. She reveals how doctors misdiagnosed her chronic bloating as "just stress" for 15 years, why high-histamine "health foods" worsened her symptoms, and the shocking link between MCAS, lipedema, and chronic fatigue. Join in to discover the 3 most surprising high-histamine foods (you’re probably eating them daily) and how Donna finally silenced her body’s false alarm system. Connect with Donna: Website: https://www.donnapiper.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donnapiper Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lipedema_donna Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedonnapiper YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thedonnapiper Episode Highlights: 01:55 What is MCAS? 07:28 Symptoms and Triggers of MCAS 14:59 Diagnosis and Treatment 16:01 The Link Between MCAS and Other Conditions 19:36 Practical Tips and Resources for Managing MCAS Resources: 🔗Links SIGHI: https://www.histaminintoleranz.ch/downloads/SIGHI-Leaflet_HistamineEliminationDiet.pdf Leslyn Keith: https://www.leslynkeith.com/lipedema.html Dr. Emily Iker: https://lymphedemacenter.com/ Histamine Intolerance Food List: https://a.co/d/irix6O3 X: Ever feel “fine” on the outside but exhausted inside? Discover the truth about MCAS, bloating, and invisible illness as Donna offers practical tips for daily relief and self-advocacy. #DearBodyImListeningPodcast #MCAS #HealthTips #SelfAdvocacy #Bloating #Histamines #ChronicSymptoms Quotes: 00:56 "If you've ever been told it's all in your head, well, your body is not lying and neither are you." —Donna Piper 05:58 "I had definitely no idea that my mast cells were such a part of the immune system, and they were in full revolt." —Donna Piper 07:56 "Not everyone behaves the same way and reacts the same way. You have to trial and error, so I think it's exhausting." —Donna Piper 12:30 "MCAS can make you feel like you're allergic to everything." —Donna Piper 13:34 "The more your food stays out... the more histamines it has." —Donna Piper 16:47 "MCAS is not linear, and unfortunately, it doesn't come with a clear food plan." —Donna Piper 18:27 "I had put my stock in some doctors saying this is what you need to do to feel better, and I kept on feeling worse, and I never got the right diagnosis. So I'm more agitated and irritated that doctors aren't trained to look for this, and that could have saved me, like, 10s of 1000s of dollars and 10s of years of this pain." —Donna Piper 18:56 "It is not fun to have days where you don't feel like doing anything. It does take a toll, even though it's a gradual toll typically, but how you start to live your life is a lot different." —Donna Piper 19:27 "It's hard to explain to someone really what you're going through, unless they either understand you because they've gone through it, or they're a medical provider that has more knowledge about it and sees patients with it." —Donna Piper Meet Your Host: Donna Piper is a Relationship Coach, Trauma Expert, and Akashic Records Healer dedicated to empowering successful single women to transform their love lives and attract fulfilling partnerships without sacrificing their professional ambitions. With a holistic approach blending therapeutic coaching, trauma-informed techniques, and Akashic Records wisdom, she guides clients to release limiting beliefs, heal emotional blocks, and cultivate unshakable self-trust. Her work focuses on aligning mind, body, and spirit to create lasting change—helping clients refine communication, deepen self-worth, and build the foundation for healthy, loving relationships. Donna’s sessions are a safe haven for those ready to break cycles, embrace vulnerability, and design a love life that harmonizes with their thriving careers. For women committed to both personal and professional fulfillment, she offers tailored strategies to unlock their full potential and step into the relationship of their dreams.
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    24 min

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