Ketones and Coffee Podcast with Lorenz

Episode 167: Kathy Mou ON The Journey from Misdiagnosis to Motherhood Amidst Endometriosis

March 05, 2024 Lorenz Manaig Season 1 Episode 167
Episode 167: Kathy Mou ON The Journey from Misdiagnosis to Motherhood Amidst Endometriosis
Ketones and Coffee Podcast with Lorenz
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Ketones and Coffee Podcast with Lorenz
Episode 167: Kathy Mou ON The Journey from Misdiagnosis to Motherhood Amidst Endometriosis
Mar 05, 2024 Season 1 Episode 167
Lorenz Manaig

In this podcast episode, the host interviews Kathy Mao, a health and life coach, who shares her inspiring journey as a woman who fought endometriosis and infertility. Kathy discusses her struggles with endometriosis, the misinformation surrounding this disease, her experience with treatment options, and how she ultimately found her path to becoming a mother. 


She emphasizes the importance of individual empowerment and self-education when dealing with such health challenges. Kathy also goes on to speak about her path to becoming a life coach and her aim to inspire and empower other women who might be going through similar challenges. The podcast highlights Kathy's mantra of fostering harmony between mind, body, and soul to navigate life's challenges.


00:00 Introduction and Guest Presentation

00:05 Kathy's Journey to Motherhood and Battle with Endometriosis

02:22 The Role of Awareness in Overcoming Personal Challenges

02:54 Kathy's Personal Experience with Infertility

03:37 The Impact of Victim Mindset and the Power of Awareness

05:12 The Importance of Self-Care and Emotional Honesty

05:38 The Struggle of Accepting Personal Struggles

06:50 Understanding Endometriosis and Its Symptoms

08:44 The Challenges of Diagnosing Endometriosis

10:37 The Emotional Impact of Endometriosis

11:39 The Importance of Self-Advocacy in Health

21:49 The Link Between Endometriosis and Infertility

30:34 The Role of Holistic Coaching in Kathy's Journey

33:14 Conclusion: The Power of Self-Love and Empowerment


Connect with Kathy You
https://www.kathymou.com


~~~~~~
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Show Notes Transcript

In this podcast episode, the host interviews Kathy Mao, a health and life coach, who shares her inspiring journey as a woman who fought endometriosis and infertility. Kathy discusses her struggles with endometriosis, the misinformation surrounding this disease, her experience with treatment options, and how she ultimately found her path to becoming a mother. 


She emphasizes the importance of individual empowerment and self-education when dealing with such health challenges. Kathy also goes on to speak about her path to becoming a life coach and her aim to inspire and empower other women who might be going through similar challenges. The podcast highlights Kathy's mantra of fostering harmony between mind, body, and soul to navigate life's challenges.


00:00 Introduction and Guest Presentation

00:05 Kathy's Journey to Motherhood and Battle with Endometriosis

02:22 The Role of Awareness in Overcoming Personal Challenges

02:54 Kathy's Personal Experience with Infertility

03:37 The Impact of Victim Mindset and the Power of Awareness

05:12 The Importance of Self-Care and Emotional Honesty

05:38 The Struggle of Accepting Personal Struggles

06:50 Understanding Endometriosis and Its Symptoms

08:44 The Challenges of Diagnosing Endometriosis

10:37 The Emotional Impact of Endometriosis

11:39 The Importance of Self-Advocacy in Health

21:49 The Link Between Endometriosis and Infertility

30:34 The Role of Holistic Coaching in Kathy's Journey

33:14 Conclusion: The Power of Self-Love and Empowerment


Connect with Kathy You
https://www.kathymou.com


~~~~~~
Estrella by Audiorezout is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
~~~~~~

Save yourself that trip to the market — Instacart delivers groceries in as fast as 1 hour! They connect you with Personal Shoppers in your area to shop and deliver groceries from your favorite stores.



Instacart - Groceries delivered in as little as 1 hour. 
Free delivery on your first order over $35.

Go to ketocoachlorenz.com and use the contact form to get your Free Consultation!

Support the Show.

Hey guys, we got a heartfelt episode for you today. This was with Kathy mal. What I love. But this episode is Kathy shares her struggles with endometriosis and the misinformation surrounding this disease. We discuss her path to becoming a life coach and her aim to inspire and empower other women who might be going through similar challenges. It was an episode that has a lot to offer. Kathy is a life coach and she fosters harmony between mind, body, and soul to navigate life's challenges. Very setting stuff guys, and without further ado, here's my interview with Kathy Mau.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

I'm so excited for this guy's got an incredible guest today. We have caddy, caddy. Mal is on the show today. Kathy is an entrepreneur, a certified health and life coach, but also a proud new mom to be a, to a beautiful baby girl. Although her journey to motherhood was met by many challenges. She never falter as she battled with endometriosis, a condition she now courageously shares to raise awareness, to empower women around the world. Kathy also dedicates her time to helping women. facing adversity in various aspects of her lives, health, wealth, and relationships. And she believes in fostering harmony between the mind, body, and soul to build resilience and strength in navigating life's challenges. She also hosts her own podcast, Ignite Your Power, the Cathy Mao podcast, where she delves into topics of personal growth, holistic healing, and finding inner strength. Cathy Mao, welcome to the Ketone Sekawi podcast.

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Hi, wow, what an amazing intro. Thank you for that. Yes. So I am Kathy and thank you again for having me that is so amazing and yes, I want to share my journey and I feel like being open and honest about my journey is how I Kind of healed and learned how to grow From all the adversity that I had to overcome. So thank you for letting me be on this platform and being here today with you

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

I love that energy. And also I love, love your story. I mean, it takes pain and suffering and a lot of awareness to finally say, Hey, I'm not going to let this thing get in my way and defeat me. And it just, your story just screams that. And not many people like you that you know. We come across in this life, right? But we have, you know, we have you today here to share your story. So, the guests that come on the show, Kathy, all had revelations about health and they all come from pain and suffering and the driving force of someone to make a change is when the pain becomes so unbearable, right? So I see others You know, we see others, you know, suffering and they might not be okay with it, but little, but we see little to no action is done from those people. And we're here to change that, help change that, right? You're a life coach. And I want to ask you this, how much do you think is being hyper aware of that suffering and pain? That jolts someone into action. How much is that? yeah,

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

I think that's so important. That's such a great question because right Where do you really want to start and you have to it takes awareness? Honestly, the first thing is being aware of your state. Like how much do you want to change? So me being during that time I was going through infertility. So this is how my journey began was When I was trying to conceive with my husband and we were trying to have a kid, you know being in my 30s already and wanted to start a family right away and everybody around me and my friends and family all like had a really easy time with making a child. Like both my sisters tried once and then had a kid. So was, you know, my mom, et cetera, everybody around me. And so I was the only one who was going through the infertility journey. And I felt very alone. But, you know, when you're in this state, you don't notice. So you're kind of stuck in this victim mindset where, you know, you feel like everything's against you because you're not trying to help do like to help yourself overcome any of these things, right? You're just trapped in this Mindset where, you know, everything's against you and so this is where depression comes in and this is where your anxiety keeps building and building, right? Because you're having this victim mindset narrative in your mind playing every single day. So, you know, it's so toxic. So, being aware. And what my sister told me at the time, I'm a twin, and finally, like, two years into this, like, toxicity, she was like, Kathy, are you sure you're doing everything in your own power to really, like, overcome infertility? Like, are you You know, doing the best for your body or what are you doing to change this instead of like crying all day? And you know, I was so hurt at the time. I was like, wow, really you're gonna say this to me But that's something that I needed to hear and once I noticed that I reflected and I was like, yeah, what am I doing? Like I'm crying every day. I'm taking pregnancy tests every month only to get a failed you know pregnancy test and going through the rabbit hole of depression anxiety and was unhealthy. And so I noticed I was drinking a lot during that time because I was trying to mask my depression and I know a lot of us use, you know, drugs and alcohol to mask our emotions and being aware of that, right? It's kind of scary. It's kind of scary to admit that. But we live in a world where we try to mask our feelings and emotions and we don't talk about it. So through me going and realizing that and then me trying to go online and sharing my story, this is where I started Finding healing and talking about my journey. And then I started meeting women going through the same thing, which finally led me into finding out that it was endometriosis that was causing my infertility, but like everything started relating once I was aware.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

Yeah. You know, I love that you saw it that way. You know, it takes a lot of courage for someone to accept what they're going through. I mean, it took me a lot to say I was depressed, right? I, I, I was at some, at that point that, you know, I didn't wanna say I'm depressed, but, you know, if I didn't say it, if I didn't accept it. This will be I don't think I would ever have, you know, changed if anything. Right. So for me, that's powerful. I mean, just the power of words. And I love that you, you took that, constructive criticism from your, from your sister and, and took action. Right. Imagine if you didn't take it that way and you just took it the wrong way, right? It could have went both ways. So, I love that perspective. I mean, you're right. It's all about awareness, right? At the end of the day, for some people you see their suffering, but they may not be okay with it, like we said. But there's little to no action is done. Right. But for you, you took action. You, you, you rose up and, and now you're helping women you know, do the same. You talk about the diagnosis for endometriosis, you know, many individuals lack understanding of that disease and even those affected often. You know, receive conflicting information about it. I want to dig deeper on that. Let's, let's explore like what's the typical symptoms you experience or any individual that experienced that discuss any treatment options too as well available for people. But how do we diagnose ourselves? Because you, you have that intuition. I know you, you didn't have a proper diagnosis the first time, I believe. Right. Then you had that intuition to, you know, look for a solution because you knew in your, in your, in, in inside of you, you knew that there was something wrong, right?

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Yeah. Yeah. Thanks for asking such a great question because this is like so many women with endometriosis suffer with this. So first of all, one in 10 women have this condition or people assigned, you know, women at birth. So, you know, gender binary, whatever. Right, so a lot of people are affected by this disease, and the first symptoms that people can feel, and this is kind of individualistic where everybody's symptoms are different, but most likely you're going to have this excruciating pain more so in like your stomach area you know, and you're just in this pain where it feels like it's inflamed, literally, literally. It's so painful that you're on the floor throwing up, crying, and you're just waiting for this feeling to go away. And this is what we call an endoflare, where your body is just inflamed inside from the endometrial cells that grow, like the lesions that grow in your body. You can't see it, and it's so small and minute that sometimes it's microscopic, so that's why it's hard for people with endometriosis to get diagnosed, because this disease is Or chronic illness is very very common, but a lot of specialists in the medical system don't know how to look for it. So When you have a chronic illness like this, you have to do your own research You have to be your own advocate you just become a different person because the healthcare system is just not as informed because it's labeled as a woman's issue like Okay, you have painful periods. That's what they associate with But these painful periods is due to because like you're literally on the floor Like in pain because it's like inflamed in your body So you can't just say it's just a period pain if that makes sense. So a lot of women Can't have this. I think that's the main thing that can tell you that you have endometriosis and then a lot of people Also have periods that are long and you flow a lot like a lot And so that's not normal too. So that could be another sign Another thing is blood clots. You can have huge blood clots. That's another sign. So But a lot of women are different and so This is why, this is why endometriosis is so crazy. It's more considered as like a chronic illness of like, like it's compared to as a Cancer. So, you know, like cancer grows everywhere. So the endometriosis, Endometrial cells can grow all over the body. So it's just You can find it, like, for me, they didn't know it was in my diaphragm, but I do have some in my diaphragm that was not taken out through laparoscopy surgery at the time, because I never gave consent, but, you know, like, you can find it in all the organs in your body, too, so it can cause a lot of pain and damage inside your body, which is really sad.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

So it's like a collection of symptoms. You're saying if there's one symptom that, that you would say that, you definitely have endometriosis. What's that one symptom? Do you

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Yeah, this, that pain, just like this excruciating inflammation pain in your body, in that certain place, and you're just like, there's just unexplainable, Pain. You can literally feel like it's like a fire burning in your body and you're just waiting for it to like, like, go away and it'll come and go and that's the scary part too is it'll just come and go whenever. So I think that's one of the main things that you could tell if you have endometriosis. Yes.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

Thank you for explaining that. Cause we really have to know, cause like you said the healthcare system is not built to diagnose this efficiently. Right. So we, we got to know, and we got to diagnose ourselves and you know, so, so let's point them in the right direction. How were you able to properly get diagnosed? What did you do in

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

So actually my story is kind of different because I got lucky, in a sense, because for me, the endometriosis was growing on my cysts, so it was, so my doctors at first thought it was just a regular ovarian cyst. So, these are, so, it was completely different than an endometriosis like cyst like thing and it's called a chocolate cyst when it, you know, because it's filled with endometriosis, like. gunk, et cetera. And so I had a growing on my ovaries, but at first, you know, I was misdiagnosed. So they just like, Oh, it's just a small thing. Just go to your OBGYN and get it, you know, tracked. So I would go get ultrasounds monthly. And finally, like it kept growing at an exponential rate every month, every time I went to go get the ultrasound, which is not normal. And you hear stories where women do get like ovarian cysts. Like, up to, you know, huge amounts, but mine were, like a technician finally figured out it was an endometriosis, like a chocolate cyst instead of just a regular ovarian cyst. So that was how I got diagnosed with endometriosis. But mind you, when I went to go see my OBGYN, I asked her if, you know, I had all these symptoms because I had an endo flare during Thanksgiving one time in 2021 that ignited this whole thing again. So fast forward, like. Six months into it, I was in so much pain and these cysts kept growing really, really fast that, you know, finally the technician was able to diagnose it correctly. So, but my doctor at first would dismiss me when I went to go see her and she was just like, no, it's not endometriosis because, you know, you do all your research and you think you're right. But then at the time, you know, I wasn't empowering myself enough to ask the right questions and just. And I just, like, let it be. I just let her have my, have my power, if that makes sense. Like, she just dismissed me, which a lot of people with endometriosis go through that. In the

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

That's terrible. That's terrible. That you said one out of 10. That's

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Yes, yeah, exactly. Which is so wild. And the wilder thing is that there's not enough doctors to do these type of surgeries too, because you really need, like, a specialist excision surgeon to do this type of work where they take out the endometrial cells or like, not the cells, but like, you know, the lesions where it gets stuck. Like, they have to take it out. It's kind of like a root, like, Kind of like a weed that you have to take out, right? Like, you need a specialist to do that. Not everybody can do this type, right? You're not gonna have like a heart surgeon do something else. You're like, you're gonna have them focus on just doing the heart surgery, right? And so, there's not enough. There's like, maybe like 200 in the whole world, but like 1 in 10 people have endometriosis, which is pretty crazy, right? Think about the number. So, the list of trying to get these surgeries, Even though it's so costly in general, but it's even hard to just see a specialist because they're so busy just that insane and and the thing is surgery is not a cure There is that's a treatment because you asked me earlier what treatments there are So that's like one of the best treatments you can get right now currently for endometriosis is getting an excision Laparoscopy surgery And it's, it's tough to get on the list, and I'm lucky because where I was, at the time I was doing IVF, and my doctor knew a surgeon nearby, so they kind of like communicated, because my IVF doctor knew endometriosis causes a lot of infertility, so he Luckily, I knew, you know, a doctor who understood endometriosis and so he worked closely with a surgeon and excision Specialist surgeon so like they worked together to help me conserve my ovary as much as possible So, I mean in that sense, I was lucky in my story of how it all came out to play but for a lot of other people it's not like that. So

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

Yeah. I feel really bad for those people who, you know, get brushed off by their, you know, practitioner, right? Physician. It's, it's horrible. You said it's excruciating pain. And do they just put you on pain meds until, you know, Yeah. Your name is called or something. Yeah.

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

like, for the surgery, I was supposed to be planned to do it in, like, June 20 at the time. Let's see. 2021. I was supposed to do it in, like, August. And then, mind you, it was, like, February when I was already having all this. Or, it was, It's actually Thanksgiving that I already had the flare up in 2020. And so it's like, oh, you, the waiting process can take like months and months, even years for people to see. And luckily she had a cancellation and she's like, you either do it now or you have to wait like months out. So she like just squeezed me in randomly. In general, it's just, it's really hard to even get a specialist. But like I said, I, everything worked out in my favor and I'm so blessed and lucky. But for a lot of people, it's not like that and it's hard. And the cost is expensive, but you know, I have insurance, etc. So, again, the healthcare system is very different in the U. S. I don't know, for other people, you know, like, I know people, like women in Europe, like, it's totally different because they, it's, It's their health care system is completely different too. So yeah,

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

you know, for, you know, to get on the list is one thing, but to know what you have is another thing to be aware because, because you, man, I think you manifested it because you, you, you, you, you seek that, right. You, you keep, you kept searching, you kept searching for the answers. Some people are not searching for the answers. Some people would just. You know, except what what their doctor says, right? Okay, this is just this is nothing. It's just, it's just you're a woman, right? It happens, right? So for, for those people that, that, you know, endures that pain. Right. It is, is, is much worse because for, for people who are aware of endometriosis, which is what we, what we, you know, that, that's why we're here on this podcast to talk about this and to share this, your story and, and how you can do this. You know, I really just want to help people here. What advice do you have for women that may be struggling with this? And then looking for that solution how, where do they, where do they start? Do they just start Googling, start looking for doctors who are, who may be aware of endometriosis? So where should they go? Where should they go?

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

thanks for asking that question. So honestly, you know, first is. Following your gut. So like say if you're googling. Yeah, so that's what I did I googled my symptoms and then I found out it was endometriosis and I was like, okay, that sounds like me So when you google or research or do your own research, that's the first thing do your own research of what you feel like you have and then just write it down and then For me, once I looked at the symptoms, I was like, this is endometriosis. I had that gut feeling. And then, you know, when I went to go talk to my OBGYN, obviously she dismissed me. But like, don't let that person dismiss you. Don't let that person gaslight you or make you feel any different. Go find another doctor, like empower yourself until you get the right answers, but follow your intuition. That's the main thing that I can say, because, you know, like, you just have to be confident in how you feel. And what you feel is true. And no one can do that for you except for yourself. And, you know, we're all having our own experiences in this health journey. Like, either you get to, you're lucky and you find the right doctor right away, who knows? What they're doing or they don't, so that's why you have to empower yourself to do the research first and then find a doctor that you feel comfortable and that understands you and understands endometriosis like maybe that doctor doesn't understand endometriosis, but they can refer you to someone or a specialist that knows right like for me my You OBGYN didn't know what she was doing, but then luckily I had the IVF doctor who knew I had endometriosis Who knew, you know, the surgery was the way to go for me, you know but like get all like all kinds of different information and then make that the best decision and I know a lot of Doctors right now are telling women to go get hysterectomies Which is insane. Maybe it works for some people, but hysterectomy is a huge, huge surgery, and there, and some people are still saying that it's a cure to do, like, that's a cure. There is no cures for endometriosis, by the way, as of now. But I really do believe that it will happen in the future sometime, but not right now. There's no cure So these women are getting these huge surgeries at such a young age like 20, 21 Thinking like this is gonna cure their body from endometriosis But like I said, it's like this endometriosis cell that grows in your body, right? It's not from the reproductive area That's why if you remove your reproductive organ it Still gonna be there because it's like a cell, like, right? It's like a cancer. So I want to let people know that, like, hysterectomies cannot, is not a cure, but it may help symptoms. You know, it just,

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

okay, let's talk about the the link between endometriosis and infertility. Do, can they still conceive even though they, they have this, and you did, right?

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Yeah, so yes, okay people it's just a little harder because your hormones are Imbalanced you have these endometriosis cells like you know or lesions growing in your body that are in Places that shouldn't be right so for me it happened for me. So, and I know thousands of other women who have gotten pregnant who have endometriosis. It's just that you do have to work a little harder to, sometimes you don't. It just depends, again, like case to case. But yeah, you can definitely be able to get pregnant. So for me, I had to get my laparoscopy first because remember like my endometrios, like I had endometriomas, they're called endometriomas, so they were six centimeters each, like on each ovary, like this big pretty much each. So that was causing me a lot of pain, so I had to remove those first, and then I did IVF, but after My first round of IVF, unfortunately, I got a miscarriage, but like, after I did you know, the miscarriage, I stopped and just like, waited it out, and before our second IVF round I got pregnant naturally, and I just truly believe that it was because of like, all my health, like, like, my lifestyle choices, the manifestation, like, I think it was all a combination of everything.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

Yeah.

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Sorry about that.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

You talk about IVF, talk a little bit about that and what, what's that experience like, because that's an option, right? For other people?

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Yes. So it's an option, but it's a costly option. Sorry about this. So IVF is a great way. It can, it's a great option that people should consider because a lot of women just believe that they should get a hysterectomy and thinking like, okay, whatever, right? Like I'm going to take out my One of the parts and then be done and within a lot of women have to choose that harsh Decision which is really sad, you know in a sense, right? Like either you're not gonna be a mom or not like, you know Like they already take that option away from you as such a young age So I want people to know that IVF is a great way. I mean, it's costly and But, if you think about it, if you really want to be a mother, or if you want to have the option, at least freeze your eggs before you do like a big surgery, or just like, see your different options again, right? Like, knowledge is power, this is what I say, so everybody is different, and you know exactly what you need to do, but a lot of people don't know the whole, like, Aspect of everything that they can have, like the options that they can have, right? But are only given one option and they're like, okay, this is it? Like, oh, I have to make a huge decision already? And I feel bad for those people because there are so many different options. And again, there's a gut feeling, right? In your body. Like, if you had such a huge decision like that, like in your 20s and a doctor's like, hey, I can do this. Give you a hysterectomy like you want to do it, but you you have like a freeze mode where in your gut feeling you're like Hell no, like I I can't do this right now But then you're doing it anyways, and you're going against that gut feeling, you know, like Know that your gut feeling is telling you there's something else like there should be different options So IVF is I think a great option if you can afford it or if you even can consider it.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

That gut feeling's really handy for you, huh?

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Yes

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

Um, you know, you talked about alternative care. What, what are the things that you've tried because I heard you, you done, you done acupuncture, some other types of therapy. How was that able to help your journey there?

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Oh, yes. So I did acupuncture because I'm Chinese American. So I really believe in like anything traditional holistic routes. And so I was like thinking in my head, I was like, there's no way that our ancestors did not deal with something like this. Like, how did they do it? It had to be some some natural way because, you know, hospitals and medic medicine is like a newer thing. It's You know man more man made than Whatever our ancestors did so then I would try to acupuncture I went for a year and I feel like it helped with just my anxiety in general And I thought it was gonna help with my infertility. It really didn't Maybe it did with the blood flow. It's supposed to help with blood circulation and when you have your blood circulation's not as well. So maybe it did? I, but I felt like it really helped with a lot of my anxiety, which I had, which felt really, really good. And when you have anxiety, right, your body's telling you. You're in like a fly or fight mode, so you want to make that your body feel more comfortable and relaxed in a sense, so I think that helped in that way, so I can hold the baby or have my body know like, hey, you're safe. Hold this little baby if you want. So that I think helped but I think one of the biggest things was me really loving myself taking care of myself and I know this may sound a little crazy, but

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

No, no.

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

didn't learn to love myself or put myself first. I was always like a person who Thought that I had to give everything to everybody else and I put their happiness above mine so I was like a people pleaser and I always thought like My purpose was to have everybody be happy, but myself like last and for some reason I think I had to go through my journey to really put myself first where I actually Stopped talking to like my I'm very close with my family. So I mean we talk every day we FaceTime We love each other so much, but for once like in my life, I didn't put their drama there their personal problems first I put myself first. I just did not talk to them. I You know, went for walks daily. I started meditating, started to eat healthy for myself, meaning like. Nutrient dense foods, stop drinking, right? Like, I did so many things, and I wanted to try everything in my own power to really make sure that I can make my dream come true. And if it doesn't, then I can say at least I tried. And that's what I said in my mindset was like, at least I can say I tried everything in my power. So, I think everything combined ended up to the result that I got.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

Hmm. I think I love that. I mean, I did that too. When I was going through some rough patch in my life and I call it ghost mode.

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Oh!

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

I went ghost mode on people. And, and you know, it, it turned out great. I mean, I, from, from, I don't even recognize that person you know, from years ago and, and now. I can't imagine myself you know, doing the things that I'm doing now, but without my experience, like you said, without, without this journey. You know, I don't think I'll ever, you know, amount to something before. Right. Cause I was really different. I don't know if, like you said, you know, people pleaser, I'm the same. I don't know if you're a Scorpio or not. Probably you are. I'm a people pleaser. Worth to try. But yeah it is, you know, our journey is, is, is. I'm happy that actually it happened to me, right? If I would ever, if I, if I, if I would go back and have to, you know, experience this again, I would, because it taught me a lot. This journey just taught me a lot about myself and how to love myself. And you think that you in your. When you're caring for yourself, you're loving yourself. You're selfish, but it isn't right. We find that, you know, it's, it's something that we need to do to be able to care for people, for other people, for our family, you got to care for yourself. Right. Which is really courageous of you for sharing that story and really you know, empowering for others, right. Gives a lot of people hope. Yeah. So I want to talk to you about your decision to pursue holistic coaching. You know, now you're helping a lot of women, you know. You know, overcome their own challenges and how, how did your personal journey with, with your, with your health influence your decision to, you know, help other women and become a coach?

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

thanks for asking that question. I love telling this because in my own journey of self discovery, like I told you I felt alone, right? Like all my friends and family didn't go through infertility. And when I finally put my story out there and met like minded women, I felt a community. And that was a feeling that I wanted to give to other people who felt alone. Like I didn't want anybody else. Feeling like I did or feeling like There is no hope and I just wanted to give that piece of hope to others and growing up I've always loved helping other people I think that's why I was like a people pleaser and I always put other people first because I always Loved helping other people. And this is something that I Figured out I can do through health coaching and life coaching which is beautiful and so I feel like I had to go through this journey to find my life purpose and this is why Like you said, it's beautiful, right? Like, I would go back to being in that dark period of time because this led me into what I'm supposed to be doing now in my life and me being here talking to you about, you know, my journey and helping other people and it's so beautiful to see that.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

Yeah. Yeah. No, it's amazing. It's, it takes a lot of courage to tell a personal journey, right. A personal story. But if it means that we're able to help that one person that's going to be listening to this podcast or you know, maybe you can change your life for the better, you know, Like you said, one out of 10 people, women suffers from this type of disease, a chronic disease, right? It's, we're all for it. You know, we, I don't care what other people might say. Our concern is for that one person to, you know, like yourself, like me. If I had somebody to tell me back then that what I was experiencing is this and that, and here's how to go about it. It would have been so much easier for me, but that's why we were doing this. That's and that's why I know you're doing this for, for other people. That's beautiful.

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Thank

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

want you. want your, your goal is to raise awareness about endometriosis and empowering women, right?

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Yes.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

what do you hope to achieve now? You wanna help other women, but what do you want to achieve with, with coaching?

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

For coaching in general, I feel like My purpose is to just enlighten the, and, enlighten the world in a sense, but just to raise awareness and raise the consciousness of, of everybody in general. So, yeah, it may not just be women with endometriosis, but in general, like, anybody with a chronic illness. May it be, you know, male or female, doesn't matter, so. You know, in general, a chronic illness is hard to deal with, and you do feel alone, you don't know where to go, but I just want people to know that they have their own power, that it's in their own hands, like their health, their mental health, their emotional health, everything is honestly in their own hands, like they have the power to do it, and I think a lot of us grow up in a society where, you know, like our society teaches us, like, don't be different, or you are not a powerful person, and like, you kind of lose The true power of who we are and I've been on a very spiritual journey and I think that's where all of this is leading me to is to really Enlighten this world and raise awareness to make people understand that they are actually this true powerful soul amazing Infinite being that you are and I totally believe that you know There's something out there more than just us little humans, right? And we're all energy and we're all amazing and there's like this collectiveness of awareness that people lack nowadays but I think that's one of my biggest journeys is to teach that and that's where my bliss off life concept came about and that's kind of like Raising awareness of unlocking your power within and when you do, you know, you get to live this bliss soft life of where everything's in your purpose everything is so easy and You just love yourself so much and you're just so confident and life is just so much happier this way And a lot of us I feel like you're so far from that and I was so far from that Right like you too, right and you go through your journey and then you're like, oh my gosh I'm such a different person now like Yeah, like you said, everybody needs to go through that ghost period to really figure out who they are. And I feel like when you do go into that ghost period, you do ignite something and then you become this amazing person that your really sole purpose is to do and be here for this human experience and then you get to live a BS life.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

I love

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

it. Yeah.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

I love listening to your podcast. If anyone wants to listen, it's Ignite Your Power. The Kathy Mao podcast, you know, it's a, it's, it's a great listen. You guys should check it out. I'll link link the podcast down in the description box below. So you guys can check, check it out, check out Kathy Mao. Well, thank you so much, Kathy, for coming on and sharing your story. Really, really. Amazing to hear that you have thrived despite of all your challenges and, and that gives a lot of people hope. So thank you so much for coming on

kathy-mou_1_02-22-2024_113405:

Thank you for having me. Thank you so much for having me. It was such a pleasure and you are such a light and we're so blessed to have you be like, do this and be on this platform and, you know, let us share a story so people can learn and really become who they are or meant to be. So thank you Bye.

lorenz_1_02-22-2024_143406:

coming on and sharing your energy here. And I can feel your energy, just vibe. I love it. All right. Thank you so much, Kathy. I appreciate you and we'll talk to you soon. Okay. Bye bye.