Ep. 94: Chuck Carroll’s Health Crisis After 275-Pound Weight Loss

Chuck Carroll didn't just struggle with his weight; he grew up expecting to die young. By the time he was a freshman in high school, he was already on blood pressure medication, and by his mid-twenties, he genuinely believed he wouldn't make it to 30. At 420 pounds, his body was sending him every warning signal imaginable. So he made a decision that would change everything.

Weight-loss surgery was the first step; a plant-based diet was the second, but as Chuck discovered, losing the weight was only the beginning. What followed was a health crisis that sent him to the hospital multiple times, left him searching desperately for answers, and ultimately led him to the Mayo Clinic.

In this episode, Chuck opens up about the physical and emotional battles that came after losing 275 pounds.

You'll also hear what Chuck would tell his 26-year-old self if he could go back. 

If you've ever felt like it's too late, like you've already tried everything, or like your body has simply given up on you, this episode is your reminder that it's not over.

Find Chuck at: 

The Exam Room Podcast https://www.pcrm.org/podcast

The Gut Insiders Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-gut-insiders/id1865185593

Subscribe to Chuck's Newsletter, Lost and Found at https://chuckcarroll.kit.com/newsletter

This episode is sponsored by Grand Teton Ancient Grains

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This episode is sponsored by Clean Food Dirty Girl Drop It Club (Plant-Powered Weight Loss). Open enrollment for Spring 2026 is April 1-15 https://dropitclub.cleanfooddirtygirl.com/badass

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Transcript

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Hi, friends. I don't know if you ever noticed, but I haven't had sponsors on the podcast. And that's because although I've been approached by a lot of brands, I don't use their products. I don't believe in their products and I haven't wanted to introduce them to you. But today I am proud to introduce you to Grand Teton Ancient Grains. I love this company. It's a little farm in Idaho where they actually grow all the, crops, and then they mill it on site. And so they use regenerative farming practices. And so they don't use like, pesticides, herbicides never glyphosate. They test for glyphosate, which is disgusting. It's the ingredient roundup. So they grow everything there. They mill everything there. As a matter of fact, when you get their flour, which is einkorn flour, by the way. And that's like the most ancient grain there is einkorn. It has a different kind of gluten in it. So, a lot of people find it really easy to digest. They don't get that terrible bloating feeling. But when you get their flour in the mail, it'll have the date that it was milled, which this one was literally days ago. And you have to use it within a year because it's fresh. It's a fresh product. It has the germ, it has the bran. Everything's intact. When you use traditional flours, they're meant to just sit on the shelf for years. So this is an incredible company. They have all kinds of great whole grains that I use in my bowls all the time, like spelt and emmer berries, all kinds of different things that are fabulous. And I use them instead of brown rice. Then they have all kinds of pasta products. So please welcome Grand Teton. I hope that you'll check out their, website, Ancient grains.com, and you can explore on their site how to get free shipping. So thank you to Ancient Grains. And now today's episode with Chuck Carroll. You know, Chuck Carroll as the host of the Exam Room podcast. You probably know his incredible story of weight loss. And then he's been battling some health issues. We'll talk about that. But wait till you hear what he says that he wish he could have told his 26 year old self. All right, let's get on with it. Oh, I'm Lauren Bernick helping you make the rest of your life the best of your life. Welcome to age like a badass mother. At one time, his five foot five frame struggled to support the 420 pounds it carried every day with a 66 inch waist and a six XL shirt. Chuck's daily diet was a 10,000 calorie fast food feast. Chuck is here today to share his story of losing 265 pounds, as well as his current health struggles and wins. He hosts the Exam Room podcast for PCR and I'm sure you guys have heard of it. It's a fabulous, fabulous, podcast. The show has been viewed and downloaded more than 125 million times, and is the number one ranked nutrition podcast in nearly 80 countries. Please welcome to the show Chuck Carroll, the weight loss champion. Welcome. Thank you. Thank you so much. Do I look. Okay? I didn't shave.

You are. Gorgeous. 5: 3:13

00 shadow. Do you want to go shave? I mean, what? I don't want no, no, no, I'm not. I'm doing. This. Thing. I'm also just worried about the eye. You know, I switched glasses. I usually wear these glasses, and I'm like, did I screw up? I kind of like these, but I guess. No, those are more the ones that you have on now. Like, totally more stylish, I dig them. Yeah, they're a little uncomfortable. Yeah. So I'm just worried about how we look. And that's life isn't vanity. Thy name is Chuck and Lauren, you know. Yeah I get it, I get it. And we're both. We're both doing pretty good. Okay. So, you know, I'm sorry for anybody who's heard your story before, but there's possibly people who really don't know. And so can you give us the, like, abbreviated version? Like, how did you get to 400 pounds, Chuck? Did you were you, like, a chubby kid? Did your parents eat unhealthy or what happened? Was I a chubby kid? Is the sky blue? Yeah, man, I was I was over 100 pounds by the time I was in the third grade. I think there was myself and one other person, in my class that was, tipping the scales at three bills already. I was in fifth grade. I was a chubby kid, and I. Do you remember that? I know you remember that they used to call out your weight. Maybe by the time you came around, they didn't do that anymore. But when I was growing up, the nurse would weigh you and then call out your weight for somebody to write down. And so, like when I was in fifth grade and I was over 100 pounds and all the kids were like, oh my God. Oh that's brutal. No. Yeah. We, we had a program where we had, the police come in and they did what they call, I think it was called identikit. And they gave us like little fake driver's licenses and stuff. You know, it's just in case you get lost, you can hand it to somebody. It's got all your particulars on there. But anyway, height and weight of course are going to go on there. And I remember stepping on the scales and it was like 100 and whatever. And I remember being mortified and like turning to the, officer who was doing the weighing. And I was like, I gotta go on a diet. And that was like third grade. Yes, yes, yes. Oh my gosh. You know, and, and what. The officer say. I honestly couldn't remember to, like, saved my life. I just remember being mortified. But, yeah, it would be many more years before I actually went on a diet. And then I went on many of them. But, Yeah, you know, it was just. Here's the deal. Like single mom, not a lot of money, not a lot of time, lots of trips to the drive thru. And, you know, we had no idea, you know, the detriment that that food would have on our body, whether it be physically getting addicted to it, the way that I did, whatever the case may be. So we all knew that we were struggling with our weight, made more than anyone else. And, you know what? It just built up over time. So you go from being that little chubby kid in the third grade to graduating high school at over 300 pounds, and then eventually getting up to 420 pounds because you're eating is completely out of control, and your day cannot end without a trip to Taco Bell, where you're loading up and one one trip, you know, one meal was like close to 5000 calories. What were you like? What was one meal? All right, let's see if I can still remember this. It's been a while since I did the weight loss presentation. Right. It was two seven. My burritos, two beef grilled stuffed burritos, a chicken quesadilla, a nacho spell grande de, a cheesy potato burrito, and a caramel empanada. Oh, my God. And there might be. I may be leaving something out, but that sounds about right. So yeah, it was like all of that and it was like $20 at the time. And this was like 16, 17 years ago. So you figure inflation like I'm dropping like at least 35 bucks per trip through the drive through these days. Wow. Yeah. And did you eat that like, oh, on the way home, did you start eating or did you wait till you got home. And wait. Till I got home. There was a ritual. Right. So you sit down, put the food on the coffee table, you turn on the TV, you put on your fat man comfy pants. You break out all the fire sauce that they give you, and then you just begin with the seven layer burritos, and you work your way down the line until it's all gone. And then. And then it was like food coma time and, you know, wake up till the morning. When, after you finished eating, were you just so stuffed or were you like, used to it? Where was your stomach like so stretched out that you were like, I feel okay now. I'd say I was pretty well used to it. I mean, I was full for sure, but, you know, I wasn't in agonizing pain, but it was just one of those things where I couldn't. I couldn't control myself. I. I was way out of control. Not like that. But, I mean, I've, I've felt like that, and I feel like I ate my share of fast food for sure growing up. So what was like, the breaking point? Or, you know, when you were like, okay, I got to do something about this or what triggered that? So many things. I mean, going on blood pressure medication when I'm at like freshman in high school, maybe even the eighth grade was constantly sick, got to a point where I couldn't walk very far and like, literally I'm talking just a matter of like ten, 20ft without my chest beginning to feel like it was tightening. And then knowing that, heart disease runs on both sides of my family. Never met my grandfather on my dad's side because he died, he had had a number of heart attacks before. One ultimately claimed his life before I was even born. My own father had heart issues on my mom's side. My grandfather there was having heart issues. And it's just like, all right, you know, like I'm just on the heart attack superhighway. And I'm still in my 20s. And I felt like, number one, I'm not going to live to see 30 if I don't make some changes. So that's pretty profound. But then, like, mentally, I also felt like garbage because it's like, yeah, okay, professionally I'm doing okay. I got my break on the radio. You know, I'm doing like morning radio in a major market, which is wonderful. I'm a sidekick on big FM in Washington, DC, which was so appropriate. And, but I had to lean into the big Chuck character. And so whenever they needed something stupid done, you know, let's have Chuck do it, you know. How did they call you big Chuck? Oh, yeah. Yeah, they built promotions around it and everything. You know, so you need somebody, like, to jump in the freezing Potomac River in the middle of January? Let's have Chuck do it. But let's put him in a grass skirt and a coconut bra. It's cool. Like it's radio, like. Let's see. I saw that on your Instagram. Yeah, yeah. Big Cupid, like, you name it. Like, I just leaned into it, so that's. And and was it like. Also, you probably are at the age where you want to date. Were you able to date or you know. So I did not have much confidence I had zero game. And I still have zero game. So it's, it's like do. You have a gorgeous wife. Well talented. And that's a miracle. You know the fact that I wound up with anybody, let alone her, you know, Julie rocks my world. So thank you. But, you know, at the time being so large, you know, it's like your self-esteem is not much. But I did get up the nerve to ask out, a young lady who I had a crush on and, you know, like, she kind of reluctantly agreed because we were vibing, but, like, then she refused to ever let anybody know that we were an item because she was ashamed. That's all I could think was that she was ashamed to be with somebody my size. And it was like a whole thing. And so I got tired of being hidden for, you know, a year and a half. And, at the time, though, I honestly thought Lauren like, that was, that was as good as I could get. So. You know, I don't think at. 25, something like. That. Wow. How old are you now? 43. 40. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. That's so that's really heartbreaking. So yeah. So all that and then was there. But what. But what was the thing that started you on your journey? I mean, I know all that played into it kind of felt good. Here's the thing. It's like there's not one thing like it's it's just a culmination of all of it. And so it's just like in my case, I woke up one morning. It was just like, I can't keep doing this, you know, like I'm either going to die or I'm going to live miserably and still die early. What kind of life is that? I have to make some changes. So not knowing what to do, having like tried every diet I felt like known to man and then some. I decided to have weight loss surgery because my father and stepmother at that point had had it. They had had success, you know, at least a short term and then, you know, so so that's what I wound up doing. And for a very long time, I was kind of the model patient for it, but kind of got disenfranchized, you know, I knew, like, I was a, I was a food addict, and I didn't want to reintroduce any of the garbage that I had been addicted to for so long. That got me into a really unhealthy space. But like going to the support groups, which were mandatory after the procedure and like being around other people would had it and like saying, well, you know, I found that maybe if I just eat a little bit of French fries, I'm okay. Then people start bringing bags of candy, bottles of sprite and soda and stuff and like the dietitians in the room. And she's just like, yeah, moderation. Moderation. I knew daggone good and well that like, you know, you can eat your way, so to speak, out of the surgery. And I also knew based off of previous experience, it's like once I reintroduce those foods into my system, I'm not going to be able to stop again. And so I kind of became disenfranchized. But when I really branched off and went on my own in terms of like seeking nutrition advice was when my surgeon, you know, told me like I needed to eat a hamburger because I had reached my goal weight. It was like, you've reached your goal weight, now it's time to eat a hamburger. Not like could should like, you need to eat this hamburger. And I was just like, I really don't think I do. And that was kind of like the last time I was, I was at the surgeon's office. And then, you know, I just I wasn't eating plant based, didn't really know what vegan was at that point. And so I just kind of was eating what I thought to be a healthy diet, which helped me. Yes. Maintain some of the weight loss started creeping up a little bit. But then when I finally discovered plant based was, I vroom all the baby fat, so to speak, that I had been carrying for so long just kind of melted away. I got all the way down to 140, stayed there for many, many, many years and was super healthy. So it was just that culmination of a whole lot of stuff. And then just like, I can't, I can't take it anymore. So it wasn't one thing. What, how much weight did you lose initially just after the weight loss surgery? And then how long was it until you found plant based eating? So that point. Yeah, initially I got down to about 155. So that would have been if I do the math here to to 265 pounds and then like, 15 more pounds of stubborn fat that was hanging on, fell off after I went plant based. And then, like all of my other numbers fell into place too, which was awesome. So that was like a year and a half to lose the weight initially. And then there was like, golly, like a good seven, eight year gap between then and when I went plant based. Yeah. How did you find out about plant based eating? I was hosting a sports radio show, with a Washington Commanders player. Here in town. And, we were invited to do a PSA about eating healthy for this group called the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. Neither one of us had ever heard of them before, and neither one of us knew what vegan meant. Neither one of us, had any idea what a plant based diet was, but we both like the idea of eating healthy. So we agreed to do it. And that was my introduction. And then a couple of more years passed after that. I was then working as a news reporter. Got tired of you know, reporting on death and destruction every day. And, was interviewing an athlete, a former professional wrestler was still a professional wrestler, guy by the name of Austin Aries, who was in WWE at the time, one of their champions. And he had written this awesome book called, My Plant Powered Journey from the bingo halls to the big time. And this is a guy who grew up in Wisconsin around, you know, beer and sausage and dairy and, you know, cheese. Yeah, big time cheesehead. And, and he was like, yeah, man, you know, you should really consider doing this plant based thing. And he was like, you know, go watch what the health. And, you know, give me the typical list of documentaries and books to read. And, the day after I watched What the Health, I went, vegan and, and have not looked back. You know, what the health is. I was already doing my plant based journey, and I made my husband go see it in the theater with me, and he was still eating just whatever he wanted and that. And he became, I would say, mostly vegetarian. He still sneaks a little here and there. Some fish or something. But. Yeah. What the health was a good one. Are you the kind of person who, when you saw what the health you just went in 100%, or did you dabble or did it take you a little time? Oh, I'm all or none guy. I didn't know what a healthy vegan diet looked like, but I definitely went vegan overnight. So, you know, a lot of gardening stuff up front. You know, but I was already eating an abundance of, you know, fresh fruits and vegetables. Really what that helped me with was eliminating dairy, which was still a big thing. I was still eating a lot of fish and chicken. Not so much cheese because cheese, you know, had a lot of fat and salt in it that I wasn't necessarily interested in. You know, so I'm still eating you know, pretty healthy. No fried foods, anything like that. But this this really got me over the hump, you know? So. Yeah, but definitely overnight. What? Yeah, I, I did too, and I always say, like, I really think that that's the I know that I want people to do what they have to do and do it how they need to do it. But I think the easiest way is just to go all in because let's your palate change. It gives you a chance to see results. It, you know, and if you keep kind of just dipping your toe, you're not you're not really getting the chance to, to do it to, to change your palate. Right. I agree. And, and and you know, to the fact that I think a lot of the foods that would be cut out if you're going to that whole food plant based diet because they're so addictive like that, terrifies people. But it's it's like trying to, you know, quit smoking by tapering off. Right? I agree with you. Like if you just go cold turkey. Yeah. Those first couple of weeks, they can be rough. I don't want to sugarcoat that. Like they they sucked for me. Because, like, my, my microbiome was changing. I was having, like, terrible bloating. Like, you know, I did it the. Wrong. Way, you know, come to find out. But, but, yeah, definitely just, like, get that garbage out of your system. And then, you know, once you come to that realization also that there are healthy recipes that can replicate, you know, your pizza and your burritos and things that you've loved, like we're talking about, like low fat, whole food plant based recipes that taste delicious. And you can eat that and still have you know, a great deal of satisfaction from it. Like is is game on. So suddenly this ultra restrictive diet isn't restrictive at all. You know, you're eating the same stuff, you're just eating healthier versions of it. Yeah, that's kind of what I love so much about eating this way. Like I always say this, I would never in my former life have eaten macaroni and cheese like that. I would be like, that's kid food that'll make me fat. And I love macaroni cheese. I eat it all the time now, you know, it's a whole grain pasta with, you know, nutritional yeast and chickpeas. Whatever I put in my Vitamix to make it like that, and it's. And broccoli in the water, and, you know, it's so damn good. And I can eat it without any guilt. Mac and cheese with broccoli. You tell that to anybody who isn't eating a whole food plant based diet. Not going to be like that. Sounds like garbage. But to me, you're, like making my mouth water right now. Like I'm all. I'm all for it. Like, it's so good. It's so good. It's so good. So. All right, so you're going along. Everything's well. You got your job with the exam room with Doctor Barnard doing this great podcast. Your life's going to like, you got a fabulous wife. And then what? What happened? You started having some health problems. What, like when did this first pop up and. And what was happening? Health problems. Hellboy. Oh, boy. Just, just. You know, once I know. Yeah, man, I. Know you've really been through the wringer. As a matter of fact. You know, I know you just got out of the hospital. You just had surgery. And so I really appreciate you being here on this cool. No place I'd rather be. Lawn. Okay. I just I just wanted to see your reaction. I just wanted to see your reaction. I'm totally buzzing. Whether you like it school. Like, I love doing that. Like, I love getting the opportunity, honestly, to share my story because what I have discovered in these three years, and I'll tell you all about that, it is that there are so many people out there who are suffering with these, like mysterious symptoms that have doctors baffled because all of the tests come back normal and they still feel like garbage. And so there's so many of these complex really under appreciated, not under appreciated, but like misunderstood cases, like impossible to diagnose. I want to be able to bring a little bit of hope to those people, because there were many days over the course of the last three years where I didn't know if I would ever get back to this point again. And right now, like, I'm pretty, I'm pretty darn close to feeling like I used to and like I, I'm so profoundly grateful to be in this position, to be able to share the story and, and just offer that that little bit of inspiration to somebody who's just clinging on to any shred of hope that they can possibly find. Let me be that lifeline for the time being. So I, from the bottom of my heart, really appreciate you giving me this opportunity. Yeah. And I appreciate you doing it. And yeah, I always try to really have that person on the who's watching this in mind, you know, and try to give them what they need. So. So what so what happened what what were like the signs and the little journey. Little bit of like. Gradual ramping up to to all kinds of chaos and help. But it began when, my mom got super sick and was in the hospital, like, we didn't know she was going to make it. And then, like shortly after I was able to return home, she she turned out okay. But shortly after, you know, I returned home. It was like I started to feel super, super, super bloated, like, really bloated. And and the pain that I was feeling was like it didn't matter what I ate, when I ate what I had to drink. Like it didn't matter. Like the bloating was persistent. And it reminded me of these women who I had interviewed on the show who had suffered mightily from endometriosis. Now, did I think for a second I had endometriosis? Absolutely not. Just ignored. Tucker, we have to talk. You want to talk about a complex case? Yeah. So yeah, it was not endometriosis surprise. It was me. Okay. But it was like. I used a lot of the tips and tricks, that they talked about for dealing with the bloating. I was like, leaning over the back of a sofa or the back of a chair, or using an abdominal binder. And just like wrapping yourself as tightly as possible just to put some pressure on the abdomen to, like, try to keep that bloating at bay. But like, nothing was really working. Nothing was really, you know, despite going to the gastroenterologist, he's baffled. We did some endoscopies, you know, colonoscopies. Everything's coming back. Normal, normal, normal. Little did I know that that was going to be the beginning of a whole bunch of, like, more questions than answers. Graduate. You know, so it's getting worse and worse, but I still make this trip. I had a two city speaking engagement. First in Oklahoma. Oh. I'm sorry. Where was I going? Nebraska. Omaha is going to Omaha. And then was going to L.A.. Well, when I landed in Omaha, I started to feel like I couldn't breathe, like really scary shortness of breath. And that got worse whenever I would eat or drink anything. So I kind of, like, stopped eating, stopped drinking, you know, even something is is mundane, is a cup of water would start to set me off. And so like, that was scary. But I'm a soldier, so I try to like, press on and go to LA. Well, when I got to LA, it was like my chest exploded and I was on fire and, like, not just like typical heartburn. I mean, like, this kind of radiated throughout my chest and in my lung area. What I didn't realize at the time was that we actually had stomach acid. Not to get gross, but I'm just letting you know what? How gross. Let's do. It. Come up through the esophagus, back down my windpipe, and was going into my lungs. And that was what was causing that same burning sensation. So, I didn't know if I was going to be able to, like, make it home. I didn't know what was going to happen. I'm kind of freaking out at this point. It's like my world is kind of turning upside down. I go to kind of a hole in the wall clinic. They take an X-ray and the guy's like, well, you know, it looks like a hernia right here is kind of pushing through. I sent that over to I was connected to, like, the hernia doctor and like, God bless, you know, connections. And having interviewed, like, a gazillion doctors, it's a small world once you get in it. So, I'm very grateful, you know, that a friend was able to put me in contact with with this guy, but he didn't see a hernia. So I was like, okay, well, I'm going to I'm going to take that off the table. But then, my friend Doctor Christy Funk also got me set up with some of her incredible, doctor friends there who did deeper scans and literally every single thing that we did that day. We're talking like hours of scans and tests in the hospital. More testing later on. Diagnostic testing at a at another, facility that had better imaging later that day. And everything is coming up normal, and I'm freaking out because the initial guy told me is like, if I'm you, I wouldn't fly home because we don't know how this hernia is going to kind of react. And I was like, oh shit, you know, excuse my language. You know, you could say, you could say whatever you want. All right. Well, yeah. Guys, in the name of the show. Okay. All right. So anyway, I'm kind of like freaking out, but it's like, I'm also like, well, I don't know how I'm going to make it back. I'm like, looking at renting cars. I'm looking at taking the train, and I'm just like, all of that's going to take days. I just got to, like, roll the dice and get home. So it's like, and I can't sleep. So it's like midnight and I'm changing my flight to the first flight out the next morning and I fly home. I make it there and I'm just like in tears as soon as I walk through the door because I don't know what's happening. Go back to the gastroenterologist. He maxes me out on acid suppressing medication, and that helps short term. But then like a couple of weeks later, boom, everything comes back again. But I'm still trying to press on. Go to Texas, for an event, come back from Texas. And this is when I really started to hit the fan. I'm sitting there. Yeah, shit. Hit the fan. There you go. You can say. And there you go. I'm sitting eating my breakfast one morning, and it was like, all of the sudden I felt stoned. And I'm talking like the kind of stoned I was back in high school, you know, you know, cutting class, doing what I did back in the day. Anyway, But I wasn't imbibing in that. I hadn't done that in a very, very long time. And I was like, what is going on? And then it went away, and then it would come back, and then it went away, and then it would come back. And like, this is getting really concerning to me. And then eventually any time I would eat or drink anything in the morning, those feelings would come. Back and they would stay all day. And it was like an out of body experience. And the anxiety that comes with that was through the roof. It was like, what is going on? Yeah, go to the E.R. for this one, you know, and again, the tests are all normal, you know, what does the doctor tell me to do? Take some Dramamine and eat salmon? Swear to God. Yeah. Take Dramamine and eat salmon. What was the point of the salmon? They were thinking I was low on omegas, you know. Yeah. So. Okay. Anyway, I believe that I get. I get tired of my gastroenterologist not having answers, and then, like, stopped returning my phone call. So. Yeah, shout out to this guy. Yeah. You know, because. He didn't know what to do. Like, you know, you put. Can. I'm just going. To get ready. Just go. You put the name. Advanced in your clinical practice, we expect you to be advanced. The only thing this guy knew how to do was a colonoscopy and an endoscopy. Anything that you know, he couldn't diagnose off of that was not going to be able to handle it. So you should have been called very basic basically. Yeah. Right. You know, like any other doctor, you know. This is so. It's so incredibly frustrating. I can't imagine how you were feeling because you have all these symptoms. You know, it's not right. You're starting to have trouble functioning. You're scared, you're overweight and trying to get answers and you can't get answers. And it's so sad, like you're. Telling me. My name. And then what happened? Like, how long did this go? This went on for what, three. Months. Months and months? Yeah. Yeah. So then I make the decision to go, to, George Washington University Hospital. See my old gastric, bypass surgeon, and it turns out he had retired. So I go see this other doctor who had taken over, and, we were on some test. Shocker. The majority of them are coming back normal. The only thing that we saw on the scan was, again, a small hiatal hernia. And then, some sort of what they call, biliary dyskinesia. Like my gallbladder. What's that acting? Right. Basically it was emptying slow, so, like, maybe there's, like, some sludge and some gook in there. And that's causing some issues. So not knowing what else to do and everything else having turned out normal, I once again raised the idea of the hiatal hernia. And he was like, I don't want to hear any more about that, you know? Can I. Just ask, what's the difference between, like, a hernia and a hiatal hernia? So there's a gazillion different types of hernias. A hiatal hernia is one that actually like where your diaphragm kind of fails and like the muscle kind of opens up and that allows your stomach then to rise through the diaphragm and go into your chest cavity and, you know, put some pressure on everything that's in there, including your lungs, which ultimately explained why I felt like I couldn't breathe. It's also very close to a lot of nerves that are there, including the vagus nerve, which by for spoiler alert, things may have been irritated and was causing the neurologic symptoms. Okay. So this doctor was adamant that he didn't want to hear any more about the hiatal hernia. Like was was stern about it. Like I was a child getting a talking to. I was like, oh, it's like, all right, whatever, dude. But he takes out the gallbladder and, because we didn't know what else to do, you know? And like, I'm talking to my people in the background and they're like, yeah, dude, this is this is where we're at. If you were my patient, I would take it to the hospital myself was like, cool, all right, with your blessing, let's do it. That only made my symptoms worse, to be honest with you. And that began a point where I felt so bad that, like, any time I would eat or drink anything again, literally water would send me, like into orbit. I, stopped eating for like six months and got all the way down to like 114 pounds, like straight, emaciated. Mind you, I still like I don't have my extra skin cut off from having lost all that weight initially, so I've got like a lot of droopy skin that I think at one time was estimated like 15 or 20 pounds worth. Right? It's just conveniently tucked and so like you look at that 114, you take, you know, even the 15 pounds off of that, like I'm under 100 pounds, I'm 55. I know I'm a small guy, but like, I should not be under 100 pounds. Like, that's that's asinine. Remember we began this conversation talking about the last time I was under 100 pounds was in the third grade. Right. Because that that identikit program was later in the year. I'm sure that that book It free pizza program put me over 100. But but anyway. Anyway. So like, I'm freaking out and, I, I go to Johns Hopkins and I ask the doctor there like the gastroenterologist, and I was like, so excited to go. I was like, we're going to go see the Wizards at Johns Hopkins. They're going to get me all fixed up. Go! They're number one. Had to wait forever to get this appointment. Number two, you know, having the conversation with the doctor, the doctor's puzzled. Shocker, because all the tests were normal. And and I remember asking her like, I was like, am I dying? Because I literally thought that that is what was happening to me at that point. And she's like, I don't know, again, just like cold. And I was like, oh, okay, we're there. All right. So that was a rough one. And I was, with my cousin at that point, and he had taken me up there because I'm feeling like I'm not really in a good space to drive. I wasn't comfortable driving given the symptoms that I was having. And, I remember my wife was on speaker phone at that point and, you know, she was like, well, that's not very comforting. And I was like, no, it's not. Jules, thank you for stating the obvious. And and it was not. And that was the one and only time I ever saw that doctor. And so I wrote, just kind of out of desperation one night, Doctor Brian Carlson, who, works as an incredible surgeon at, the Mayo Clinic. Phenomenal, type one diabetic success story on a plant based diet. Wonderful guy. I wrote him, and I was like, look, dude, here's the situation. It's growing dimmer. I gotta go see, like, your people up there. Can you help me out? And he did, but he he began that email. He was like, wow, you know, I'm happy to help you out, but please know, in some cases there are no answers. And I was like, oh shit. You know, again, that's three. I was like three since that. That's that's like. Not. Great news. But I was like, I don't, I don't care, like, let's go because we have to keep searching for answers. And it even took the teams there. And I love the Mayo Clinic. I mean, this is world class health care. It has the reputation that it does for a very good reason. And I wish everyone could could experience this once in their life at least, you know, God forbid you ever need to go there. But man, this is the place to go. And and they were so caring and compassionate and optimistic and hopeful. And we're using all of these positive terms while never guaranteeing, you know, a great outcome. But just. To finally have an ally, somebody who's on your side, who gets invested in your case and cares about you genuinely. Like I was it. I have made all the difference in the world. Like even though those first few times I was there and they were just running test after test after test, which kept coming back normal. Normal, normal. You know, they were still. So optimistic. And didn't discount you. It sounds because there's also that thing that has to be going through your mind that the doctors are kind of leading the way of like, this guy's a hypochondriac or it's all in his mind or, you know, that has to be is. And so just to have them believe you, to have them be a comfort to you, that's a big deal. It is. I never once felt like they thought that I was some sort of hypochondriac or faking it or whatever, like that. That was not the case. And they even have, you know, like programs that they put me through that were holistic, that taught, like breathing practices, diaphragmatic breathing to, you know, calm the anxiety, especially when you were short of breath and like that, you know, feeling like you can't breathe. I don't care who you are. That's a that's a pretty alarming feeling. So like being able to deal with that and, you know, them taking, a very close look at, you know, another doctor who thought that, I had had fibromyalgia and, you know, they confirm that diagnosis, but now they're not so sure. But anyway, it was it was just like they looked at everything, you know, even sending me to a chiropractor. And it was just like everybody got invested in my case, I guess, because it was like such a rare thing, I don't know, like, everybody was like gung ho for it. And I was like, oh, okay, man. Even the chiropractor, like, wants me to succeed. Like, sent me a letter, and it's like. I just wanted you to know I'm leaving the Mayo Clinic. But I'm going to practice, at Duke University. And so, you know, North Carolina is not too far from where you're at. If you ever need anything, just let me know. I was like. Thank you. Yeah. Anyway, these are good people, right? Anyway, come to find out. Scan after scan after scan, what pops up again? The hiatal hernia that got dismissed back. From the very first little walk in clinic, right? Yep yep yep yep. Yep yep yep yep yep. So this gets diagnosed. And then my, amazing gastroenterologist doctor Iris Wong was also smart enough to be like, hey, I wonder if something's wonky with your, with your gastric bypass surgery. Why don't you go see? Why don't you go see doctor? Oh. Mark on him. He's, He's, you know, gastric bypass surgery, specialist. You know, maybe we can talk about reversing that. So go over and see. Got him, got him. So. Oh. This is a case right here. I see you're telling me. Try living with it for three years. Right. So we make up the the game plan to, go on a feeding tube and put that into the portion of my stomach that have been stapled off and basically have been dormant now since I got that surgery in 2009. So coming up, this will be what, 17 years this year? And this is the surgery that you just had. Correct? Right. So mind you, like I just fast forwarded like two and a half, three years in a nutshell. I went to Mayo Clinic many, many, many times before we got to this point. So here's here's what they did right. Imagine this is a normal stomach because you're fast, right? When they do the gastric bypass, they staple off a portion of the stomach right here. And then this little part here, the thumb kind of becomes the portion of your stomach that remains in use. And then this bigger portion kind of, you know, stays there and doesn't do much ever again. So for those who are only listening, he's making a fist with his fingers curled in. And the only part, you know is they staple everything off except for the little thumb at the end. Exactly. So that's the only part of your stomach that's left? Yeah. So think about giving a thumbs up and then just kind of turning it sideways, turning your hand sideways. So what the feeding tube. They actually inserted it like right into the stapled off portion of the stomach that's been dormant all of this time. And so the thought there was, well, if we, you know, do the best that we can restoring him to quote normal anatomy and those symptoms go away, then we can go in and reverse the weight loss surgery, fix the hernia, and then obviously take out the feeding tube at the same time. So you're on a feeding tube right now? I am, yeah. Does that mean that you're not eating anything else. That is. Your only nutrition. And this is well. You've got it right there. I'm gonna. Say, like I don't see. It on my camera, but if you take it. No, I don't see. Oh, now I see it. It's like on an IV pole. Yeah, exactly. So I do walk around. I'm tethered to this thing, and. And you have a special. You're not just using like the hospital nutrition that they would give you. You're you're using a special plant based one. Right. Kate farms my friend. Yeah. They would they got all excited when I asked, for Kate Farms in the hospital. They were like, oh, my God. A patient node's feeding tube formula. I was like, yes, I do. I got my research. And so, yeah, this is, plant based. It's actually, I believe if story goes, it's, husband and wife had a daughter who was critically ill, needed a feeding tube. Couldn't tolerate the, products that were currently on the market because of, like, I want to say it was like a dairy issue or something. So they developed a plant based formula and then took it to market as Kate Farms. Kate being the child and boom, there you go. So they've got feeding tube formula and they've also got nutrition, shakes for people who are just looking to do meal replacement, which are actually quite tasty. They sent some to a PCR, a number of years ago, and those things went like hotcakes in the kitchen. Yeah, yeah. That's good to know. But yeah, they're good people. I hope nobody needs it. But if you do. Kate. I'm sorry. I'm sorry I never thought that I would need it, but here we are. But anyway. So, got them and Doctor Wong, I mean, they were spot on. Because here we are now, almost a month removed from, that surgery. And I have not felt this good in a very, very, very long time. I would say like 98 and 99% of my GI symptoms are gone. And then the neurologic symptoms, I say it's like 85, 90% gone or maybe even a little bit more than that. So I'm, I'm kind of I'm, I wouldn't say like being tethered to a feeding tube means I'm living my best life, but I'm living my best life for the last three years, that's for damn sure. Dang. And so. Okay. And so is the bottom line that your surgery was. It was a hiatal hernia mixed with what, a. Walkie talkie surgery? Yeah. So one of the other things that I discovered, from, the one doctor at GW hospital back here in the DC area, the one who was curt with me. He said that my original surgeon who did the gastric bypass had the reputation of being a butcher, and I was like, oh, that's good to know. And so, yeah, when they were in there exploring, what they call that new stomach, the doctor's calling a pouch. When they were in there and looking around, they were like, yeah, there's a lot of scar tissue. And here, you know, and this is actually a lot bigger than most pouches are and, you know, blah, blah, blah. And I was like, oh, all right. So it's a little bit wonky. I still don't understand completely how that would contribute to what's been going on, but I'm all for having it reversed. You know, because if that means I'm going to feel better, then that's what we're going to do and a story. And so. Are you. Nervous about gaining weight? I was no, I mean, because my metabolism went so wonky when I, got, you know, sick and went all the way down to 114 and then, like, started eating, you know, a normal diet for me again. Immediately. So it went from, you know, maybe 200 calories a day to close to 2000 again. And it was just like my metabolism was not ready for that. And so it kind of, you know, went Monte and, obviously I put on. You know, a few pounds over the last year. But since I've had this, it's like, like 20 pounds has already come back off. So like, my face is thinning out, the inflammation, I felt like, just like, washed out of my body pretty rapidly. And so I'm grateful for that. And I think that because I will return to eating that whole food plant based diet. So I'm not I'm not worried about. Yeah, gaining weight and I'm, I'm working with my friend maximum. So going for maybe wellness. On what he calls reverse dieting and like, muscle tone and, you know, all kinds of things. So we're going to build version 3.0. But I'm not worried about you know, being in the running to play Santa Claus next. Yeah. No, I think you're going to be fine. And I I'm so grateful, as I know that you are to for you to be getting to the bottom of this, because I know anyone who's followed this journey just felt horrible for you to to be going through this. And I do appreciate that, you know, you're trying to give hope to people who are getting diagnosed with nothing when they feel something. Yeah, it's the worst. It's it's sucks. And there are so many people out there and it's like it, it just it brings a sense of comfort to know that you're not the only person struggling, but at the same time, it's like one of the things I was guilty of was reading Reddit forums, you know, like people who are suffering from one thing or another and like, they're just at their wit's end and their doctors are baffled and like, they're begging and begging and begging for, you know, a good outcome for just one of those stories that maybe then they can use as the blueprint for their own healing. And, and I want to be that blueprint because right now it is largely void of success stories. I want to be that story for other people. I want them to know that they, you know, never give up, you know, just to keep on going. You know, it's it's like my granddaddy said to me back in the day is like, if you want to get through hell, you have to keep going. You know, you can't turn back. You have to keep going forward. And and so even though it's a very long and dark road, you just have to keep pushing. You just have to keep pushing. I, I yeah. And I wish you good success with that is there before we move on, is there anything else you want to say about it? I mean, it's, you know, the one thing I keep thinking about is, you, you know, your tagline is the weight loss champion. And I know that it's had to be so difficult to, you know, go through what you're going through in the public and to gain a little weight and for people to judge you and it's just so shitty. It's so shitty that you people feel judged. But like, what can you talk about the mental part of that? Yeah, it's the pressure. And yeah, that that sucks. So it's like I, I started getting those messages early last year. And, you know, the incorrect assumption that so many people jump to was that, you know, I had fallen off of the food wagon because at that point, like, I had not talked publicly about what I had been going through at that point for two years. Right. But what I found funny was like, nobody said anything to me when I was super, super, super skinny looking straight, anorexic. But as soon as I started to put weight on, like people were like, oh man, it looks like you're really struggling. You know, I was a food addict to, you know, hit me up at any time. Well intentioned. Right. But like, there was one person in particular who kept messaging me over and over and over again out of concern, and it was just like one day I just, like, kind of snapped and I was like, you don't know the story. You're assuming that I'm going to McDonald's. You're assuming that I'm going to Taco Bell, but you're assuming incorrectly 100%. You know, you don't know the story. And like, who are you to even bring that up? You say that this is something that you struggled with. Well, think about how it was for you back in the day when people would like fat shame you, right? Did it make you feel great? No. Well, what are you doing right now? Or. You know, and and and so like, it wasn't like, hey, fatty, fatty fat fat, you know, it's just like. I notice you're back at McDonald's. I was like, God darn it. Yeah. I'm not back at McDonald's man. And and there were so many people who assume that, that, that it was heartbreaking. And then eventually, you know, you know, people were like, well, should you really call yourself the weight loss champion anymore? You know, optics. And I'm just like. So we're there. So, temporarily, and reluctantly, I relinquished that title. But make no mistake about it, you boys claiming, comfort food and I'll get you stuffed. I'm not worried about it. I'm already 20 pounds on my way. I. And you know, I'm sorry to bring it up because I know it is a sore spot, but I feel like it's so. It's such a part of what I like to talk about is how we shame other people, how we're, you know, what is that? What's the word? Shots in France? That's not the right word, but where you. Have you ever heard of that? That's definitely not a word. It's something like that. It's some kind of scary German word where it's like you're happy when somebody is miserable or going through something bad. Is that a Freud thing? Is that like, shitting Freud? I don't know, maybe it's a shit. I hey, why did I bring that up? I don't know what the hell. I have no idea what it means. Like you're getting joy out of watching somebody go through something. So, Yeah, it's a it's a terrible word, but, you know, it just reminds you, like, you're out there trying to bring information to people to make their lives better, to help them. You're putting yourself out there, and it's hard. Yeah. I never want to forget that. I'm grateful every day to to be able to talk to the public. Yeah. There are aspects that are hard, like, I struggle to get my LDL cholesterol where it should be, you know, and that and, and I share openly with it. But yeah, there are people who are downright crappy to me all the time about it and have things to say. And my intention and your intention is to help people and to be vulnerable and so when people bring up things like that, I guess I just want to remind everybody to be loving and kind, because you don't know what other people are going through and not to make a assumptions. And, you know, I thought it was important to bring that up, even though I'm sorry, I, I, you know, I don't want to have to bring pain to you, but I think it's important to remind people you don't know what's going on with somebody and, you know, always assume the best. But here's the. Thing. Like, I also assume that somebody who does throw barbs, even though they, they like, royally pissed me off. You got to figure that there's something miserable going on in that person's life to to be just, like, taking it out on some random person. That they don't know. And and it's just like, okay, I don't know what you're going through right now. You've pissed me off. But in my heart of hearts, I hope that your day gets a little bit better. Yeah. Right now, pound sand. But I still got some empathy for you. And that's just kind of the way that I look at it. At least the more, you know, malicious ones, the the initial person that just, like, kept poking and poking and poking and coming from like, what they thought was a good place, I got it. But, you know, like, the more cruel ones are the ones that I don't, you know, I don't particularly care. For, you know, need to respond to. Yeah. So is there anything else before we move on that you want to say about this situation? Never give up, man. And thank you to everybody who has been so supportive of me. For every one Yahoo that's out there that posted, you know, venom, there have been a thousand nice messages that have come through, all of which are positive. And the way that people have also reached out to me pouring, pouring their own heart out, you know, has really been, eye opening to me how much, you know, we're all kind of suffering in one way or another, or it's somebody close to them and, you know, just them feeling vulnerable enough to to express that to me like that. That meant the world. So, if anything like, despite the fact that we, we kind of started this in a little bit of a negative light, at least getting to this point, going public with this, it's kind of restored my faith in humanity in a lot of ways. You know, there are far, far, far more good people out there than, than villains. So, yeah, I'm you are definitely beloved. And that's earned. That's earned from all your years of helping people and and goodwill and all you've done. So you're, you know, you're 43, what this is like about us, mother. So let's talk about aging a little. To what? What do you love about being 43? And what do you wish you could go back and tell your 20 year old self. Oh, boy. That conversation with a 20 year old, that would be a deep one. I mean, number one, it's like I don't regret having gastric bypass because that's all I knew at the time. But I would love to impart a lot of what I know now to the 26 year old version of me who was getting ready to go through with it. I literally had that procedure done just a couple of days after my 27th birthday. And so I just, I wish that maybe I could have had one more, try at doing things, a more natural way as opposed to, the gastric bypass. But, you know, here we are. And, and every opportunity, has presented itself for me to help other people who are struggling. So I'm looking at this is, is, you know, a blessing rather than a curse. And. Yeah, like, that's that's a, that's a choice that you have to make. Like happiness I do believe is a choice. I'm choosing that because it'd be so easy to go dark and cynical. All the time. And so, what am I looking forward to about being 43? Is actually feeling what a 43 year old looks like or should feel like. It's like I have not felt good at all in my 40s. You know, this has been a three year journey, and here I am, 43. So, I'm going to take a rain check and, give you an IOU for answering that particular thing. I just want to feel what 43 is, and then we'll get to that. So we'll circle back later on this year. What? Let's talk about your podcast because it is so spectacular. Tell me some of your your favorite standout guests. Well, I mean, I'd be remiss if I didn't start with my boy doctor Will also. Who has become a lot lately. Well, he is, because one of my. Great. Yeah, he is one of my best friends in real life as well. And, he and I just hit it off from, you know, the word go, and, formed a friendship. And so he's on every month on the exam room, and, now we do our own podcast as well, called The Gut Insider. So that's on his YouTube channel and all podcast platforms where we just, you know, get the opportunity to play around and be guys and, you know, try to educate, inspire and be immature at the same time. I think that. He's the fiber guy. In case anybody doesn't know, fiber fueled. What's his new book? Plant powered plus. Plant powered. Plus. Yeah. So really awesome guy. And, but, you know, it's just like to have had so many downloads, though, of the exam room and reached, you know, over 150 countries, you know, reaching number one for nutrition podcasts. And so many of them, it's it's mind blowing to me how ravenous the appetite is for health globally. This is not an American problem. It's not, you know, a Canadian problem. This is a global issue that that we're facing in terms of our health. And, just to be able to pull back the curtain for people to see, what is really going on in the world in terms of their health. I think it's it's really cool. You know, it's really, really, really cool to be able to reach people in Mozambique, in the Philippines and, you know, every country in Europe, like it's just mind blowing to me. Yeah. Do you have some advice that you've gotten on the podcast that, like, really sticks with you? Any gems of wisdom? Yeah. The one thing, and this was from a really early episode of the exam room I was doing with Doctor Barnard. And it was I was telling him a little bit about my story and how I was like, so hooked on food. And he was like, you know, that wasn't your fault, right? And I was like, what? Because I always assumed it was like I nobody was holding a gun to my head telling me, like, I had to eat, you know, 18in of, you know, Philly cheesesteak and a bucket of fries I like, willingly volunteered. I gave my money to do this. But he's like, no. And like, then he walked me through the addictive properties of food. And so like when, when I see somebody who is, like, super morbidly obese, it's it's like it's not their fault and they're hooked. They're they're just wearing their addiction literally on their sleeve and everywhere else. And that, you know, I so sympathize with that person. And so, I will never go up to somebody just cold and be like, it's not your fault, you know? But when the opportunity presents itself, being able to pass that kind of advice along to them, certainly makes them feel a lot better. Makes me feel better, too, because I'm educating them. And, you know, as they say back in the day, knowledge is half the battle. So yeah, there you go. That's that's. Good advice. I mean it. Yeah. I've had Doctor Barnard on here as well. And he is God. He is a gem. He really. Yeah. He really is. Any any other words of wisdom stick out to you? Words of wisdom. Little like nuggets of good advice. You know, such good advice. I mean, there's so much of it. And to me, like what? What I take away from the show, even more than the nutrition nuggets, are just like the incredible stories of people who have done such incredible transformations. Like, I thought that what I did in terms of losing the weight was something spectacular. No, man, talk about my boy Dennis, right? Dennis was like me, a fast food junkie. You know, a lot of times I believe he mentioned, like, he would go to the fast food thing before going home to eat, you know, and, like, hiding the evidence. Been there, done that. But Dennis thought he was having a heart attack one day, and he, like, is driving himself to the hospital. God bless. I'm having a heart attack. What am I going to do? Am I going to call 911? No I cannot. Why? Because the ambulance won't stop at McDonald's on the way. So Dennis goes to friggin McDonald's on his way to the E.R.. Okay? And like, gets his hamburger and fries. He gets his fix, goes to the hospital, never eats another burger and fries again. His arteries are damn near completely blocked. It's a miracle he makes it there. Finish the hamburger, finish the fries, but never had another one again. Goes whole food plant base and now is like just a role model for how to be resilient in terms of your health and, you know, never healthier. I love, love, love, love hearing stories like that. I do too. Do you, do you have, like, a any rituals that you do to prepare when you do a podcast? I'm not talking about researching the guest, but I'm like, right before the podcast. Is there anything you do know? Like you don't think that. It's it's far more magical than it actually is? Like, no, man, I like, I sit down, I flip on my mixer, do a mic check, make sure the camera's framed up, make sure I got typically before I went on the feeding tube, a nice fresh hot cup of coffee. This is just hot water because that's literally the only thing I'm allowed to consume. And that's it. And then it's like you sit down and you have a conversation, you know, should I walk you through putting on a little bit of powder before I do the exam room? Sure. But, you know, I didn't do that today. I because I okay, well, I guess I because I do I oh my god now I should I even say this. I say I. I sage my office, I get the sage sage it I palo santo make sure there's, you know, fresh energy I meditate I do a five minute meditation. As a matter of fact, I, I try, I just sit on my, my mat and my pillow and I calm myself, I ground myself, and I also picture myself connecting with my guests. Like, I don't know if you felt it this morning, but before we got on, I was meditating and I pictured my heart connecting with your heart. And, that's what I do. Before I felt if I. Need to be more like Chuck, just flip the damn thing on. And I. Was. I'm like, that's what I. I mean, like. This is, this is what I do like what I do works for me. What you do works for you, right? So it's like, I don't necessarily want to be all zen out when I sit down to do these things. Like, I want to have energy, I want to be me like, but if you got to like, you know, do the smudge stick, do the smudge stick, like. It's all good. Yeah. And you know, and then I do. Sometimes I do like a little jump rope or something because I do not want to be zen out. I do want to have some energy. Right? Sometimes I might do my jump rope for a minute or a jumping, you know, a couple jumping jacks. Because you're right. I do also want to bring my energy back up. Do you? But do you do me? Come on. Doing me. A couple last questions. What? Is there a person that you admire for the way they're aging? Yeah. Boy that's an interesting one. I mean you got to put Doctor Barnard on that. Yeah I mean this dude. Oh he's a nice looking man. He. Right. Yes. You know I will, I will relay that to him. I will, I will take us I think. I told her, don't worry. When he came on, I was hard to read. Doctor Barnard a handsome man. Oh, yes, he is. I will let him know. Yeah. But. Yeah. So honestly, like him, I think a doctor, Jessica Grant, dermatologist up in New York City. Just. I mean, to look at her is like, just to see beauty, like, it's unbelievable how beautiful her skin is. So. Yeah, those those two come to mind, and then, like, you can look at, like, the OG, like like a Colin Campbell, right? This is a guy. That's, you know, still doing his thing. You know, and it's like a little bit slower maybe. Sure or whatever. But like, he's still out there doing his thing and nobody can knock him like he's he's doing great. Like I love that, you know, same thing with, Essie Caldwell assistant. You know, it's just come on. Like, those are. Those are my role models, man. Like, I would love to get in that kind of position. I think that that would be fantastic. See? And and, an assistant, and. Oh. And man, an assistant. I could get in her physical shape. I mean, I can't even do half the exercise she can do in her whatever 90s does it. Did you see the clip where, we did a whole tribute to the entire assistant family in Washington, DC a couple of years ago, and and pulled that big friggin, like. Tractor top. Tire. Yeah. Across the stage, I was like, oh, is this happening right now? She was doing it. I was like, all right. Well, I know it's she's incredible. She's love me like my favorite. And then what? What is what's your favorite concert you've ever been to? Oh, boy. All right, so there's two. All right. Number one was, Ozzfest one year, I believe. System of a down. I was playing, right. And, like, their live show was amazing. Like, this was probably 20 years ago. I was there, and my ears are still ringing, like, just so good. And then the other one is so not PC, but what the hell? I mean, again, same of the show is badass mother. So Ludacris. Rap, I love. Ludacris. You like Luda. I have. Ludacris. So so Luda, you know, just puts out this album. He's on tour. Oh yeah. Eminem. It was, it was it was exhibit opened. Luda was in the middle, and then Eminem was the closer. I was like, Holy sh! Oh my God. Like, this is, this is the show, right? So like, but Luda had like, this enormous dog on stage that would lift its leg and then like, pee on people. But it was like water, you know? And I was like, this is the funniest daggone thing I've ever seen in my entire life at a concert. And like, I will never forget that. Like, it's not a real dog, right? No no no no no no. Oh, okay. I was like, how. Are 20 30ft mechanical dog. Yeah. And it would just like lift up its leg every so often and then just like pee on the audience. And I was like, this is the funniest damn thing I've ever seen. I was so grateful to be in the lawn seats and not up close. I didn't have to worry about getting hit, but yeah, man, that was hysterical. You know, I've never seen any of those three. I go to concerts all the time and I love live music, and I don't know how. I've never seen any of those three bands because they're three really good ones. I don't, I. Don't know, what do. You what do you typically go. To? Like, I would think. Oh, like, in all. Honesty, at 43, like if I were to go to a hip hop show, I would stand out like a sore thumb. I'm up for it. Like, whatever. Good music's good music to me. Yeah. But have you ever been to a hip hop show, a rap concert? I mean, it's been a while, but, yeah, I mean, I feel like I'm. Man, it's. I've had so many good concerts that I really didn't belong at, And more and more as I get older, like, all the time. But, you know, I don't care. I'm just going. I'm just having fun. I mean, I live in Austin, Texas. We're about to have South by Southwest. And I'll be. At all. The things. That all the all the stuff coming. Yeah, we go see Earth, Wind and fire. I got. Austin. Yeah. Earth, wind and fire. I hell of a live show. Yeah, I just saw them last year and they're coming again with, Lionel Richie. I'll probably go see them again. They're so good. They put on such a good show. That's awesome. With Lionel Richie. Lionel. Richest man. He really is. The funniest thing, I think I told this before is that my husband was like, oh, my God, Lionel Richie, this is like six months ago is playing at the Paramount, which is this tiny little theater. It's like the size of a, you know, movie theater with a balcony. It's art deco, kind of beautiful theater. He's like, can you believe that I'm getting tickets? Well, he didn't read the fine print, and it was a book tour. And there were these drunk ladies behind us. Everybody. Nobody else read the fine print either. Everybody was really pissed that they were there to hear Lionel Richie talk about his book instead of singing this, then these drunk ladies behind us wouldn't shut up. Sing, sing. And, you know, people are getting mad. And he's like, yeah, excuse me, ma'am, I'm not going to sing. I'm here to talk about my book. I mean, it was I thought a riot was going to break out, but. Oh dear. Yeah. Don't upset the drunk Karens in the back. But, you know, it was, it was, honestly, I was disappointed. But, I'm like, okay, I'm here. Let me, obviously he's going to have some things to say. And and he did. And it was great. It was a great night. Oh, I mean, everybody's happy. It was. Good. Everyone was happy. Yeah. Well, Chuck Carroll, I can't thank you enough for being so open and being here after your surgery, schlepping your feeding tube around and making time to come on the edge like a badass mother podcast. I know people have probably already listened to the exam room, but if not, and what was your other your new podcast, The insiders. The insiders, yeah. And then, also, yeah, if you go over to, the important thing is like, if you are struggling with a mystery illness or even a chronic illness, right? And your days are just dark and like, you need a little bit of hope or you've got somebody in your life that's in that position. Like, I've actually also started a newsletter that I call Lost and Found. Chuck's lost and found, you know, so it's like you lose your health, but we're going to help you find it again. And it just kind of walks people through my journey. And a lot of the tips and strategies that I found effective along the way, which includes a lot of, you know, how to have these conversations with your doctor when you feel like a lot being left on the table, you know, and advocating for yourself. So we we kind of in the newsletter teach strategies for doing that. And so if you go to my name Chuck carroll.com in sign up for my newsletter, it's completely free. It's just kind of my way of giving back to the world and and educating people. And you know, maybe starting to write a little bit more, but, yeah, weekly tips and updates and things like I'm gonna. Put that in the show notes. Thank you. Yeah. Chuck Carroll, two hours to elle.com. You got it. And, that is so just another gift that's come out of this whole thing that you're giving to people. I, I really appreciate I know the world appreciates that you're doing that. So continued health. Thank you and success. And I hope that 43 and 44 and beyond are fantastic. I hope that you'll come back when you're feeling better. So you can tell. I'm ready for. Things about aging. Well let's go. This is one of the few podcasts where I can, you know, actually show people that I got a potty mouth most days. So, Let's say. Whatever you do, you want to say something? No one said no. We can have more for the next episode. Yeah, I want to drop an F-bomb or anything. You know, Chuck Carroll. We got to work up to that one. We might put that one behind a paywall. If you want to hear Chuck say the F word, pony up. Okay. Oh, where he. Goes to charity. All right, well, continue to be well, Chuck. Thank you. All right. Thank you. Bye bye. Thanks for listening, friend. From my heart to yours, be well until we meet again.