Episode Details

Here's something I keep seeing in my office that almost nobody has language for. Your body and your nervous system run on completely different timelines. Your labs can be clear. Your divorce can be final. Your treatment can be done. And your nervous system can still be living inside the chapter you just survived, because nothing about getting through a hard thing actually tells your body it is safe to stop bracing. In this episode, I sit down with Amy Kurtz, the patient advocate who spent close to two decades trying to figure out why her body kept shutting down on her. Amy is a Hachette author whose new book But You Look Fine launches the day after this episode airs, and she coined a phrase for the exact experience I just described. She calls it Medical Trauma Brain. Her message has been endorsed by Mark Hyman, her own physician, and by David Perlmutter, Kris Carr, and Sharon Salzberg. After 36 doctors and a late-stage neurological Lyme diagnosis at 35, she didn't just heal physically. She figured out the part nobody warned her about. The part that comes after. In This Episode The exact phrase Amy's husband said in their kitchen that finally named what she could not name herself Why the gap between "you should be fine now" and "I do not feel fine" is not a personal failing Why this pattern is not just for chronic illness, it shows up after divorce, postpartum, fertility, caregiving, and any long hard chapter The five non-negotiables Amy now uses to decide whether a doctor is worth her time Why women carry this harder than men, both clinically and culturally What active movement actually does for an overstimulated nervous system (it is more than you think) The one tool Amy would give a woman tonight who is recognizing herself for the first time How to stay connected to the people you love when you are the person who is not okay This episode is for anyone who has technically gotten through something hard and quietly cannot understand why she still does not feel like herself. The illness that finally has a diagnosis. The divorce that is actually final. The postpartum body that healed on paper. The job she finally left. The caregiver who buried the person she was caring for and woke up the next morning still bracing. If you have been told you should be fine by now, and you are not, this conversation is going to give you language for what is actually happening in your body and a way forward that respects the timeline. Episode Breakdown: 00:02:04 The Gap Between Sick and Well Nobody Warned You About 00:05:10 36 Doctors and One Diagnosis: Amy's Story 00:13:25 What Is Medical Trauma Brain? 00:14:54 Why Your Body Still Doesn't Feel Safe (Even Though You're Fine) 00:21:05 How to Advocate for Yourself in a System That Won't 00:45:03 How to Regulate Your Nervous System After Trauma or Illness 00:51:01 The Wider Lens: Why This Isn't Just About Illness 00:56:00 The One Tool I'd Give a Woman Tonight Resources: Read the full article on this conversation, including everything we mentioned and where to find Amy's work Wondering what is keeping you stuck? Take our free What's Holding You Back quiz Ready to talk to someone about what you are carrying? Book a free consultation If a friend has been telling you she is fine and you can tell she is not, send her this episode. She will be glad you did. XO, Dr. Lisa Marie Bobby Growing Self Special thanks to this month’s sponsors of the podcast: Upwork — When you need specialized talent fast, Upwork gives you access to vetted professionals across 125+ categories, from marketing to web development to operations support. No long recruiting cycles. No guesswork. Just the right person, when you need them. Check it out at upwork.com — posting a job is free. Shopify — The all-in-one platform for building and growing your online business. Visit shopify.com/lhs to explore their tools and access exclusive listener discounts. OSEA — Amazing,