Kait Redefines Balance: Living with Miserable Malalignment Syndrome
I made it my mission to do at least one meaningful activity every single day. Even though it might look different than before, finding those meaningful activities has brought me so much joy and helped me feel more like myself again.
Kait
Kait - Bio
Kait, an occupational therapist from Monterey, California, lives with Miserable Malalignment Syndrome (MMS) and Ulnar Impaction Syndrome, likely linked to Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS). These conditions have led to chronic pain and mobility challenges, requiring numerous surgeries, including femoral and tibial osteotomies, labral reconstruction, and upcoming procedures on her arms.
Despite these challenges, Kait continues to pursue her passions, including running, hiking, playing soccer and tennis, learning languages, writing poetry, and traveling. She is currently writing a memoir about her physical and emotional journey.
Kait’s career as an occupational therapist has taken on new meaning as she uses her expertise to navigate her own health challenges. Her experiences have fueled her desire to raise awareness, advocate for those living with rare conditions, and inspire others to persevere in the face of adversity.
Contact Links and Previous Podcast/Blogs:
Instagram: @alignedk8
Miles4Hips: https://miles4hips.org/kaitlyns-story
Major Pain podcast: https://majorpainpodcast.com/kaits-journey-with-miserable-malalignment-syndrome/
SpoonFull of Strength Podcast Links: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spoonfull-of-strength-a-podcast-for-people-with-chronic-illness/id1745009202, https://open.spotify.com/show/5QXPFjaSEHNvUHc9sVMYpC, https://youtube.com/@spoonfullofstrength?si=izQlxKzhrttoDgFh
Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research article: What I Wish My Surgeon Knew: https://journals.lww.com/clinorthop/fulltext/2024/09000/what_i_wish_my_surgeon_knew__i_am_more_than_a_hip.7.aspx
Summary
What does it take to keep going when your health impacts everything, from work to hobbies to simply getting through the day? Kait shares her journey with Miserable Malalignment Syndrome, a rare condition that’s led to years of chronic pain, countless surgeries, and tough conversations with doctors who didn’t always listen.
We talk about how she found ways to adapt her life, the mental toll of giving up the things she loves, and the determination it took to advocate for herself and finally get a diagnosis. Kait’s story is honest and relatable—she shares how she’s learned to find meaning in small daily activities, show herself compassion, and push back against stigma by telling her story.
If you’ve ever struggled with something invisible or want to better understand what it’s like, this conversation will leave you with a lot to think about and maybe even inspire you to share your own story.
Takeaways
Self-Advocacy is Essential: Clearly communicating how your condition impacts daily life helps doctors take you seriously.
Finding Meaning Amid Challenges: Engaging in meaningful activities, even in new ways, sustains joy and mental well-being.
Balance is Fluid: Perfect balance doesn’t exist—adjust priorities and energy as circumstances change.
Self-Compassion Matters: Give yourself grace when things don’t go as planned. Flexibility is key.
Adaptation is Power: Adapting activities or exploring new passions keeps your sense of identity alive.
Living by Your Values: Aligning daily life with your values creates true fulfillment.
Track Your Energy and Activities: Understanding what drains or restores your energy helps you plan your day and prioritize what truly matters.
Miserable Malalignment Syndrome (MMS)
Miserable Malalignment Syndrome (MMS) is a condition where the femurs (thigh bones) rotate inward while the tibias (shin bones) rotate outward. This misalignment causes significant instability, pain, and wear on the joints, especially the knees, hips, and ankles. People with MMS often experience chronic discomfort, mobility challenges, and difficulty with daily activities.
Workplace and School Accommodations:
Flexible Work Hours: To allow time for medical appointments and recovery after surgeries or flare-ups.
Ergonomic Workstations: Adjustable desks, supportive chairs, and footrests to reduce strain on joints.
Modified Duties: Physical tasks that are less demanding on the legs or the ability to delegate strenuous activities.
Remote Work Options: To limit commuting challenges for individuals with mobility issues.
Frequent Breaks: Short breaks to stretch, rest, or manage discomfort throughout the workday.
Access to Elevators: For easier navigation of multi-story buildings.
Extended Deadlines: To accommodate time lost during medical treatments or recovery periods.
Accessible Desks and Seating: Comfortable seating options and desks that support proper posture.
Reduced Physical Education Requirements: Allowing alternative activities that suit the student’s physical capabilities.
Parking or Drop-Off Permits: Closer parking or drop-off areas to minimize walking distances.
Resources:
Arthritis Foundation: arthritis.org – Support, education, and advocacy for people living with arthritis.
Rheumatoid Arthritis Support Network: rheumatoidarthritis.org – Information, resources, and a community for RA patients.
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS): niams.nih.gov – Research and information on rheumatoid arthritis and related conditions.
Workplace and School Accommodations:
Flexible Schedules: Allow flexible start times or remote work options to accommodate fatigue.
Rest Breaks: Provide additional breaks throughout the day to manage low energy levels.
Workload Adjustments: Minimize heavy physical tasks or back-to-back activities to help manage energy.
Quiet Environment: Create quiet workspaces to help with brain fog and concentration challenges.
Temperature Control: Ensure access to a warmer workspace or seating area to counter cold sensitivity.
Miserable Malalignment Syndrome Resources:
Miserable Malalignment Syndrome Support Group – Online community for sharing experiences, specialist recommendations, and support.
Job Accommodation Network (JAN) – Free guidance on workplace accommodations for individuals with disabilities.
DO-IT Program – Resources and strategies for disability accommodations in educational settings.
The Mighty – Stories, advice, and support from a community of individuals living with chronic conditions.
PainScale – Tools for tracking symptoms and daily activities to help with medical advocacy and treatment planning.
Ehlers-Danlos Society – Comprehensive resources for managing EDS and related conditions like hypermobility and joint instability.
American Physical Therapy Association – Information on physical therapy practices and finding specialists for chronic pain and mobility challenges.
Transcript
Tim Reitsma (00:00)
You might be able to relate to this. What happens when your health makes everyday tasks feel utterly impossible? How do you find balance when it feels like everything is out of alignment, literally and figuratively? Hey, Tim here, and welcome back to the Invisible Condition Podcast, where we focus on advocacy and the realities of living with invisible conditions. Together, we will end the stigma.
of invisible conditions by empowering voices and today's voice is brought to us by Kate. Kate lives with miserable malalignment syndrome, a condition that severely impacts her daily life physically, mentally and emotionally. From her favorite activities like running to her work as an occupational therapist and even everyday tasks like driving or shopping, everything was disrupted. But through determination and self-advocacy,
Kate not only fought for a diagnosis, but also discovered the concept of occupational balance. The ability to manage time and energy across all areas of life in a meaningful way. Her story offers practical insights on advocating for yourself, navigating health appointments, and finding joy again when your life feels unbalanced. Have a listen.
Tim Reitsma (01:23)
Kate, this is just another classic invisible condition episode where I should have hit record probably 10 minutes ago because we've already had a great conversation. So we're gonna repeat a lot of that for our listeners. Just, you know, kind of give our listeners a little hook there to stay around. But thanks for joining me today. I really appreciate you coming on.
Kait (01:43)
Thank you for having me. I'm super excited.
Tim Reitsma (01:46)
Yeah, we connected on Instagram and you shared your journey and your story. Share with the audience just a bit about who you are. What do you do? What do you live with? And what has made you want to speak out on a different podcast other than my show, but other shows as well.
Kait (02:06)
Definitely. So I am a runner, actually a rehabbing runner. I have been going through multiple surgeries, but my ultimate goal is to get back to running. I love soccer and tennis and hiking, anything really active. I am an occupational therapist as well. I have been working specifically in the schools for the last seven years, but I do have some experience working in the hospital.
too and also experience being an OT for myself.
Tim Reitsma (02:42)
Wow. So experience not just in the workplace or in a school setting, but for yourself. So tell us a little bit about the condition you live with.
Kait (02:52)
I have something called miserable malalignment syndrome, and that is actually the name. And it's a very accurate description of how I feel. But I have had pain in my legs since I was a kid, but it was just normal to me. Like I didn't know that like people didn't have pain in their legs. And I thought like, because I was so active, like maybe it was just, you know, just from running or playing soccer, but
It wasn't until I was about 23 when my hip pain became really bad. And so I went to see an orthopedic surgeon and I was diagnosed with hip impingements and labral tears. So I ended up having surgery to fix those impingements. So essentially like what they did was shave the head of my femur so it fits better in my hip socket. And they stitched up some of
the tears in the cartilage, that's your labrum. And I thought that was going to be the end of my journey after those surgeries. But I continued to have pain. And it wasn't until I was about 27 when I felt like I could barely walk anymore. Like I had kind of like this permanent limp and it would not go away. And I decided that I really needed to
focus on finding the answer as to why this was still happening. it took multiple opinions from multiple surgeons. A lot of the surgeons were like, nothing's really wrong, because they were only looking at my hip joint and not my entire leg. And I finally found a surgeon who looked at the angles of my legs. And he determined that my femurs, which is like the
the your thigh bone and then my tibias were abnormally rotated and that was what was causing a lot of my pain.
Tim Reitsma (04:57)
Wow, okay, so that sounds like an incredible diagnosis journey and having a surgery thinking it's going to be fine, right? You just move on with your life. You're gonna continue playing soccer, continue running, doing all the sports and the activities that you like and diagnosed with a condition that starts with the word miserable. And so how did you wrap your head around that? Just even that language is challenging.
Kait (04:58)
you
Yeah.
I mean, at first I thought it was a joke. I kind of wanted to laugh, but then I was like, no, this is how I've been feeling. And almost like a bit of relief hearing that that was the name because it validated how I had been feeling for so long.
Tim Reitsma (05:44)
That's such a theme with guests I've had on the show is that advocacy journey just to get a diagnosis, multiple doctors. I'm curious what fueled that to not want to just throw up your hands and say, I guess this is as good as it gets. This is what I have to live with.
Kait (06:07)
I mean, I think so like in between, like, so I had three surgeries initially before I got diagnosed with miserable malalignment. And I think like in between each of those surgeries, I like started running again, because that was my like ultimate passion. Like I couldn't imagine a life without that. So like, I really think that like my desire to run again and engage in my favorite leisure activity
was always greater than like the pain that I was feeling or the frustration of going through surgery.
Tim Reitsma (06:41)
So that ability to run just, you know, not just, it was therapeutic for you. It wasn't just an activity, it was that therapy. And you've had numerous surgeries now. And I understand that, well, today we're recording this, you're gotta go for another surgery.
Kait (07:00)
going for it yet. I will be going for my 10th surgery in about three months.
Tim Reitsma (07:06)
Okay. And how we talked offline about, you know, when you go for a procedure numerous times, often we, we, and I'm generalizing, but there's some stigma attached to that from, from others, unintentional of, well you've, you've gone through this before. It should be a breeze. Or, you know, for me specifically, I live with Crohn's disease. I go for colonoscopies way too often. And I often,
have people who joke about that and it's still mentally exhausting and hard and frustrating. How has this journey been for you?
Kait (07:48)
I agree, it's been really hard and scary. Like I think people, know, like with my situation of multiple surgeries, I think people think like, and same with what you've been going through, it seems routine at this point. Like it's just another surgery, like, but it's not. Like every time I'm told like it's time to schedule your next surgery, it only like, it only gets harder for me.
Tim Reitsma (08:16)
Mm-hmm.
Kait (08:16)
I think too, because it's, you know, it's been a lot of like, like working towards recovering after the last surgery. And then as soon as I start to feel a little bit like myself again, like I'm getting those favorite activities back, I'm going in for another surgery. And so that like constant like, you know, like push and pull of, know, like starting to do my favorite things and then like disappearing again is really hard. And I think
Like that's affected my mental health, absolutely.
Tim Reitsma (08:51)
Well, and that kind of leads to the theme of what we were talking about for this episode and the direction we want to take this show. And we're talking about occupational balance or just balance in general, as well as that, not just if you live with something apparent or non-apparent, there is almost, dare I say, balance in our minds, that mental struggle. You know, I asked the question, does balance even exist? And we'll get into that after, but you know, when
You said you start getting back into things, you're back in your routines and now you have to prep mentally for that next surgery. What is your process in that vein of occupational balance? Or maybe we should just actually define occupational balance and then get into that process.
Kait (09:42)
Sure, so occupational balance is being able to balance your various activities in your day-to-day life and also the responsibilities that you have too. So this can include like work and social life and your favorite leisure activities, social participation, even just like your daily activities like going to the grocery store or you getting dressed or any kind of like self-care tasks.
those are all like your occupations. And so it's about finding the balance of time and energy too, which I think is very important for, you know, people with chronic conditions is being able to like balance that energy because you don't, you know, want to burn through your energy and then end up miserable later or something like that. Like, so finding that, that balance. And I also think it's like really like it's easy to get wrapped up.
And some of the things that people with chronic conditions go through, like, I mean, balancing our medical appointments and, you know, maybe spending a little extra time at work or like paying medical bills, like all of that can be draining physically and emotionally too. So, you know, working on like creating a balance so we can find like a more fulfilled and meaningful life rather than like only using our energy towards our conditions.
Tim Reitsma (10:51)
Mm-hmm.
So many questions just in how do we figure out that balance? Before we get there, I'm just curious, what has worked for you? What has, you know, do you have a big schedule on your fridge and say, this is where I need to insert energy. And then when we have these almost spikes in activities that will take our mental energy, like prepping for a surgery or going for a procedure or a hard medical appointment that you need to advocate for yourself.
Kait (11:09)
you
I mean, this is what's worked for me and I don't think it does not work for everybody, but I am pretty much like a planner, maybe a little bit obsessive of like how I schedule things. But for me, it helps to see things kind of like laid out on a calendar. Like, I know that this medical appointment is going to zap my physical and emotional energy. So I'm not going to plan any other like hard things in my day.
But then also like on days where like, feel like it's, you my schedule is a little bit more open, maybe taking more time to do like my favorite activities, you know, spending a day that's like, I really focused on doing the things that I like really love to do and using my energy that way. I also like, I think a big, a big thing for me, I like before, I kind of like hit a bottom at one point where
after one of my surgeries, my life completely turned upside down and I wasn't finding meaning in anything that I was doing in my day. And it actually wasn't until I went to therapy and this was kind of brought up to me that I wasn't really trying in life and I wasn't doing anything that was meaningful.
Yeah, so it wasn't until I started to recognize that I wasn't doing anything meaningful. I made it my mission to at least do one meaningful activity every single day. And so during my recoveries, my recoveries have been very lengthy. Essentially, my bones have to be broken and realigned. And so that's quite the process. And I have a lot of downtime after those surgeries.
I have started to like find things to do every single day that like I actually enjoy doing, even though it might like look a little bit different than what I've been doing before. So like, for example, like I might like decide to learn something new. Like I started taking up learning a new language or like reading new things and writing. Like I started writing a memoir and writing poetry, like things that I would have never done before.
And now that I have the time to do that, I'm finding those more meaningful activities and I actually really enjoy doing it. So I think that's a huge thing for me. Every morning when I wake up, it's like, okay, what is a meaningful activity that I can do for myself today?
Tim Reitsma (14:13)
I'm almost a little lost for words because I think that's as profound in its simplest form where waking up and reflecting on what brings you joy, what meaningful thing can you get done today in the next hour, in the next week and realigning our thoughts around that.
I wanna thank you for being vulnerable and for sharing. Being at a low is something I'm very, very familiar with. And I can't imagine just your therapist is telling you this and how you then use that to fuel what you're doing now. It takes a lot of self-reflection and even self-advocacy for yourself.
Kait (15:10)
Right, right. And I honestly think like if she didn't, if she wasn't honest with me about that, I don't know like if I, you know, would have come to this myself, even though I'm an occupational therapist and like my job is to help people, you know, with their everyday meaningful activities. Like sometimes when it's yourself, like that gets a little bit lost. And I'm really thankful that she brought that to my attention. And that I, you know, now I have.
like the knowledge to like, and the drive, like I don't, think I lost the drive to, you know, to do those things, but now I do. the first like two hours of my morning are almost always spent like doing things that I like.
Tim Reitsma (15:55)
That's amazing. I love that. I was actually thinking this morning, the morning we were recording this, that I need to go to bed earlier so I can get up earlier. And so I could have quiet time. My kids call it Tim time. so I've got two small kids at home and it gets loud and busy at my house starting around 6.30, 6.45. And having that quiet time, that self-reflection time, time by yourself, the time to...
Kait (16:08)
Yeah.
Tim Reitsma (16:24)
battle out what's going in your mind. I'm a huge advocate for that. know, some people journal, some people write, some people like myself, I now I record little, I call them journal entries. I record whatever comes to my stream of consciousness just to get it out. I think that is a good foundation for how to find that balance because our days can be overrun and
become overwhelmed very quickly. So when we go back to that thought of occupational balance and it's defined as all those activities within your day.
What, somebody who's listening to this and really struggling with finding that balance or that overwhelm of life, what would you say to someone?
Kait (17:21)
I think a really good place to start is kind of taking inventory of like what you're doing in your day, first of all, and kind of like see like where you're spending most of your time and your energy. And then also like where you want to be spending your time and energy because there's all things that like, there's things that we all need to do, right, certain responsibilities. But then there's also things that like, like
what you want to do and making sure that you can kind of balance that as well. So I actually remember in occupational therapy school, one of the very first things that we learned was about occupational balance. And we were told to draw a circle on a piece of paper and then split it into, I think it was like eight parts. one was like social and leisure and work.
in education and all those sorts of things and then we kind of had to like fill in like where we spend most of our time and I remember mine was totally out of like I felt like I barely spent any time you know with social or sleep things like that that are you know they are really important and I just wasn't really you know focusing my energy on that but kind of taking a similar approach and like thinking about like what is what it is that you do in your day
I'm kind of like charting it out and like seeing how how you can balance it. I for me, I like I like the visual and I like I said, like I like to use my planner to my calendar and just kind of seeing like even just like writing it out out helps me see like where I'm spending my time. But yeah, just kind of having an honest conversation about like with yourself about what where you're spending your time and your energy and where you want to go from there.
Tim Reitsma (19:18)
That's amazing. I'm going to find some inspiration to create a resource for folks who are listening because I I can vision this circle. I do some leadership and career coaching on the side and we work on some using something very similar just to draw out, know, what's giving you energy and what's not giving you energy. And kind of in the same way, you know, when you think of your day to day, even maybe you're in the workplace or maybe you're, maybe you're not, maybe if you're working through your
your health journey, you what activities are giving you energy and which activities are draining your energy. And if all of your activities are draining your energy, how are you recharging? What is that recharge? I finding that is incredibly important because you need that data. You need that to go into your medical appointments because you know, one of the ways that we were chatting about
when it comes to advocacy is being able to go into your doctor and with your data and explain things to them. How do you do this? Like what has worked for you and served you?
Kait (20:30)
Well, I mean, like relating it back to my diagnosis journey, like a lot of the surgeons that I consulted with didn't really like take me seriously. Like I had been told that like I wanted my legs straight and just so I could like look better. And that was far from, I would not voluntarily go in to have my legs broken just to look like I had straight legs. Like that was not the reason that I was there.
But once I started explaining to the doctors of how it was affecting my daily activities, like so for example, I am having a really hard time getting dressed in the morning because of the pain in my legs. Or I can't step into the shower in the tub anymore because of the pain that I'm experiencing in my hips.
Like once I was very clear about how it was affecting my daily occupations, I felt like I was taken more seriously, honestly.
Tim Reitsma (21:40)
I like that because it's tangible, right? It's something that when we go to our doctor's office and actually coming in with some data about how, how this is impacting, you know, that is so incredibly powerful. And I had a doctor on the show and you know, she had said, and I've quoted her, misquoted her I'm sure a few times now, but she, around the gist of it is, you know, when you come to my,
When you come to your appointment, don't tell me you're doing fine because you're here because you're not doing fine. And even if you're having a good day today, don't tell me that you're having a good day because I'm going to base that all our conversation around that. Bring in that data. How is this impacting you? How is this affecting your life? What is, what is happening? If somebody I know was telling me that they live with a condition and it's affecting now their ability to drive.
And because it's affecting their ability to drive, they're not able to get to appointments. They're not able to see family members. They're not able to go to other appointments. And they had to advocate and bring that anecdotal data in to now get scheduled for a surgery that's upcoming. But before that, this person was told, you're too young for this surgery. And you know,
Similar, I think, to what you're saying. you just want straight legs to look better. No, this is impacting my quality of life.
Kait (23:18)
something that just popped into my mind is how I have been told on numerous occasions to just not run again, but I don't want to take that for an answer because like it really affects me mentally. Like that was my greatest coping mechanism. And so even if something like seems like it's, you know, as simple as, just don't, you don't have to run again. Like just don't do it. And you can still like live your life.
I mean, still advocating for finding answers. And if it's something that you really, in my case, I was willing to have these surgeries so I can run again. I mean, it was affecting all my other occupations. Don't get me wrong. It was affecting my work and the way I did all of my activities because of the pain. But sometimes people will be quick to say, well, it's because you're a runner. Kind of blame it on that.
I think being honest too with your doctors of how it is affecting you mentally, it's okay to say that, but the pain is affecting you because you're not able to do your favorite activities anymore.
Tim Reitsma (24:32)
It's easy for someone to say, just stop that activity or find a new activity, find a new hobby. I used to mountain bike and the day I sold my mountain bike, I cried. I did. It was a hobby that I loved. I wasn't good at it. I fell off a lot. I probably shouldn't do it because I was destined to hurt myself, but it's something that I just found immense peace doing.
And when I was at my lowest low, I just knew that I had to take a pause and a multi-year pause. I bought a different bike, it serves me well, I still miss the mountains, but having to give that up in that moment is hard. And I think that also touches on, you know, we think of balance, it touches on that...
that mental health aspect that often is unseen. Again, when you have something apparent or non-apparent and that often gets missed when we even talk about our conditions in the workplace or in the school system. What is out of balance and what has that had or what, how has that impacted your mental health?
Kait (25:54)
definitely think yeah like having those like honest conversations like with other people too like sharing your experience and like what you're going through like that will help people kind of have a different understanding you know about like how it does affect not only like your you know physically but your mental health as well.
Tim Reitsma (26:15)
Yeah, and I think it ties right into that idea of, and that topic of occupational balance, because, you know, I can't get this image of the circle out of my mind now. I'm going to spend, I'm going to spend some time researching one. And for those who are listening, I'm going to commit to creating something on the website. So stay tuned for that. but when you think about this, and I just think of how to hand that into even to your manager in the workplace, right? You know, it's, Hey, I got to go for another surgery. you should be used to this. It's like, well, no, this is how I'm feeling right now.
Kait (26:24)
That's it.
Tim Reitsma (26:45)
This is physically sure, but mentally this is how I'm feeling.
Kait (26:52)
This is where I'm at in the moment.
Tim Reitsma (26:54)
this is where I'm at in the moment. Couldn't have said it any better. you know, that big question, does balance exist? I think that's, that's a hard one.
Kait (27:07)
It is. mean, honestly, I think it's a lifelong journey. Like, are we ever going to find the perfect balance? Probably not.
Tim Reitsma (27:16)
Yeah. And if somebody's trying to sell you a book that, yeah, things change. Yeah. And if somebody's trying to sell you a book that says it, it does. don't know.
Kait (27:21)
Like.
Right, and the thing is, especially people with chronic conditions, our symptoms change by the minute, by the hour. It's going to be a constant readjustment of how we're doing things.
Tim Reitsma (27:40)
Yeah, I think what's popping in my mind right now is I think balance will exist when we're living our values. So balance exists when we're living our values. And often what I have found is we, and again, this is a big general sweeping statement, don't necessarily know how to identify our core values. But when we identify our values,
Kait (27:52)
beautiful.
Tim Reitsma (28:09)
and we're living in those values and making decisions based out of those values. That's how we can achieve and strive for what balance looks like in my life, which is going to be very different than your life.
Kait (28:22)
Right, right. And that's the other good point is it's like everybody's so like individual, you know, that it's not going to be the same, you know, the same sort of balance. Like everybody, yeah, has their own favorite activities or has their own like needs and own values.
Tim Reitsma (28:43)
So I'm going to shift the conversation a little bit because you're getting ready for your next surgery. You're a runner. What? I'm not a runner. I don't understand running. I've tried running. I think I'm pretty in shape. I'll hike a mountain. No problem. Well, there's problems for sure, but I'll go hiking. Somebody who's not a runner, when you're out there on the trail or on the street, what goes through your mind? What are you feeling?
Kait (28:52)
Yes.
Mm-hmm.
Honestly, I feel the most myself. If that makes sense. I can't even like describe like how things just change for me. Like I feel like I'm at like my happiest. Like I have the most joy when I'm running. I feel like when I'm running, I'm running towards, you know, a goal kind of thing. I'm very like goal driven.
Tim Reitsma (29:39)
Mm-hmm.
Kait (29:43)
I feel at peace when I'm out in nature. I love running on the trails specifically. It just feels like home and there's no other way to explain that for me. I have been running since I was 11 years old, running seriously since I was 11.
That's been my coping mechanism for everything that I faced in life I mean up until like these surgeries when I obviously couldn't I couldn't turn to that anymore. I I mean that was what That was just what I did anytime. I had a problem or a bad day or whatever. It's up put on your running shoes and go, you know Yeah
Tim Reitsma (30:31)
I love that. It's for those who are listening, Kate's face just lit up when she was talking about running. I love that. That's, there's.
Kait (30:37)
My mind just went to the trails like I don't know if you can see myself
Tim Reitsma (30:44)
I'm now so distracted. I love that. And, you know, that's your mission to get back there. And, you know, maybe somebody is listening to this and is struggling maybe to find that balance or maybe they've had to give something up and maybe temporarily or maybe permanently. I'm curious when, what thoughts would you like to share with someone who might be feeling that?
Kait (31:15)
What you just said about, you know, feeling like you've had to give something up either permanently or temporarily, I think there's also ways that you can kind of like adjust your favorite activity. I mean, that's like a big thing that occupational therapists do too is, okay, like how can we get you to engage in your favorite activity? But like in my like personal experience and what I'm going through, so like one of the ways like
that I've been kind of getting back into that imagining that I'm running again sort of thing. What I like to do is get on a bike, like a stationary bike. I can do that after a certain amount of time with my recoveries. I'll get on the bike and I will pretend like I'm running again. So, I mean, yes, I'm not actually running again, but I can kind of visualize it myself on the trails.
And sometimes, I mean, I might look a little ridiculous, but I'll even kind of like move my arms like I'm running and just pretend like that I'm there. And like that for me has has helped me. You know, just like adapting the way I I'm doing things. I mean, that could be, you know, whatever your favorite occupation is, you know, even if you can't do it, like maybe you can like modify something in some way.
Tim Reitsma (32:30)
Mm-hmm.
Kait (32:42)
or visualize yourself, you know, like doing that, that, you know, it might be helpful.
Tim Reitsma (32:48)
Yeah, even getting on that exercise bike, I'm looking over at mine, which is staring at me now, like, come on Tim, it's time to get off, go for a ride. Maybe even putting on or setting up an image in your space to kind of get you in that visual space. also, I'm here in Canada and there's a nonprofit society called the Neil Squire Society.
and they specialize in assistive technology. So maybe your life has changed. Maybe you're not able to do those activities or use certain parts of your body in the way that you used to. And I'm confident and I'm gonna do again, do some research. It'll be in the show notes in the US as well and in other countries where there's organizations that support you and are here to support you to find that balance.
whatever that balance looks like for you, whether it's running, hiking, cycling, cooking, playing video games, whatever that balance is, it's so important not just to advocate for yourself and your appointments, but advocate for yourself for yourself, if that makes sense.
Kait (34:01)
Advocate for your occupations too.
Tim Reitsma (34:04)
Yeah, yeah, that's, that's great. So a lot of great resources, I think are going to come out of this episode. And Kate, I know that people are going to be interested to, to track you down, just to learn about what you've done for your balance, for how you prepare for your surgeries and how you not just bring your advocacy to the world through social media, but also into your work as occupational therapists, where can people find you?
Kait (34:35)
I mostly just use Instagram. I'm at Aligned K and then the number 8.
Tim Reitsma (34:44)
Okay, Aligned K8. Don't worry, it's gonna be linked into the show notes as well. And, you know, I asked this to all the people that come on is, you know, invisible condition, there's an incredible amount of stigma that surrounds invisible conditions. The reason why I started this project was the bold vision to end the stigma. When you think of how do we end the stigma, what comes to mind?
Kait (34:46)
one case.
you
I think by sharing our stories and our experiences with other people, we're encouraging more of a supportive environment and an environment that everybody feels valued. So I think as much as you possibly can feel comfortable with sharing your story and being honest about how you are feeling physically and mentally, like we discussed, because
I mean, especially with invisible illnesses, it's people don't always like understand because they can't see it, you know? So as much as we can, you know, continue to have these honest conversations with each other about it, I think, I think that would be very, very helpful.
Tim Reitsma (36:06)
I completely agree. Telling stories and it doesn't, you know, don't, I don't, you know, for, for folks who are listening, you might just want to tell your story to a friend. Start there. Maybe you want to tell it to yourself in your mirror. Maybe you want to write it down. Maybe you want to start a social media account. That's amazing. know, any way to, to end the stigma, we have to tell our stories, whether it's to one person or a hundred people. And also,
Kait (36:17)
Right? Right.
All
Tim Reitsma (36:36)
You know, this is just the foundation for your own advocacy. And it also ties in, I think, with what you were saying is how does this impact your life? Not just saying, I'm tired today. It's I'm tired and now I'm not able to do X, Y or Z. That has a profound impact when we can actually add the impact to that statement. So Kate.
I appreciate you that you reached out and I'm grateful that we connected and any last thoughts before we wrap up?
Kait (37:13)
Shoot. Okay, wait, the one thing, this is probably a marker. The one thing that I thought of is like, I don't know if we said, like showing compassion towards ourselves. Like if you can't do something in a day, like I think that's a really big point.
Tim Reitsma (37:23)
No, we didn't touch that.
Yeah, sure. Why don't we end on that one? Yeah.
Kait (37:32)
Can you ask the question again?
Tim Reitsma (37:35)
Yeah, so Kate, as we wrap up, I'm just wondering if you have any last thoughts to share with the audience.
Kait (37:43)
I think one very important thing, like through all of this, is to make sure that we're showing compassion towards ourselves. And if we can't, you if we feel like we cannot engage in an occupation that we really wanted to get done that day, that we give ourselves the grace to, you know, to not do that and to rest if we need to, or, you know, to switch things up, you know, be...
be sort of flexible in the way that we're thinking and not be so hard on ourselves if we can't get that done in a day.
Tim Reitsma (38:22)
That's great practice that self-compassion, which as you know and have shared, it often is hard, especially when we've received news and that we might've expected or might not have, but self-compassion, it's a great place to end. For those who are listening, maybe you've got questions about how, how do I...
How do I do this? How do I advocate for myself? How do I find balance? How do I identify my values? How do I find and figure out what compassion looks like to me? Reach out, reach out to myself, to Kate. And if I know if I don't know the answers, I'll connect you with somebody who can help you. Please, if you feel inclined, share this episode with your friends, your family, with those who might need to hear it. And what helps us in this show,
get into more and more people's ears and eyes is to like and subscribe on your platform, whether it's Spotify or Apple or YouTube. Please do so. With that, just, I hope everyone has an amazing day and I look forward to sharing more stories with you soon. Take care.
