Why did you become a pharmacist?

I wanted to combine my interests in science and medicine. My grandmother always loved her pharmacist, and she encouraged all of her grandchildren to become pharmacists. I always say, I’m the only one who listened to her!

I was not quite 23 when I graduated. In my very young mind, I wanted to go help people, without the hands-on, blood and guts component of being a doctor. Pharmacy seemed like the perfect solution. Luckily, I like it. I jumped right in and fell in love with the profession.

Going into retail was the only thing I wanted to do because I love getting to know my customers on a one-on-one basis. Even the other people I work with always say, “How do you know this about these people?” I get to know everybody really, really well. Whatever is ailing them, I research it—whether it was bladder issues or even wanting to prevent Alzheimer’s. I find articles for them and print educational materials about their condition or lifestyle factors like a healthy diet to prevent high blood pressure. I love connecting with people and want to help them improve their health the best way that I can.

I share the information, and patients look at me like, “Oh, I don’t normally get this from my pharmacist.” I’m passionate about food as medicine as well. I believe that diet and exercise are part of any treatment plan. Whatever I can do to help my patients live their best life beyond just taking medication, I’m always all about that.

I wanted to create a vision of health that was not only about living a long life but a long, vibrant and fulfilled life.

How did you become an advocate for bladder health?

I was diagnosed with interstitial cystitis, which is painful bladder syndrome, 26 years ago. I was able to find solutions to overcome my bladder pain. Then, I put it behind me. In 2018, I wrote a book with my sister, called Tiny Life Changes. I did a lot of interviews. Somehow one of the podcasters found out that I had this diagnosis and asked me about it. Next thing I know, everybody was asking me about it on every podcast. I was like, “Oh, I don’t even want to talk about this. It’s so embarrassing. It’s in my past.”

I had started sharing about health and wellness a little over three years ago on social media. I wanted to create a vision of health that was not only about living a long life but a long, vibrant and fulfilled life. I love sharing health information inside the pharmacy—and social media felt like another perfect place to do so. 

After the interviews, I was flooded with messages from women who had heard my story. I had shared very minimally on social media before that time, but it was something I knew I had to start talking about because it was an issue that was not discussed. Bladder issues are surrounded by much stigma. 

What do you hope to accomplish with your social media platforms?

Sharing how to overcome bladder pain—on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube—felt important because it can be extremely devastating. That led to other bladder issues because so many women have reached out to me who have recurrent UTIs or overactive bladder. It’s something I became very passionate about. 

I wanted to send a message of hope to others that you can move forward, past bladder pain. I’m happy to say I have done just that! My platform gives these women a safe space to not only find information but also share and gain hope and know they are not alone. 

I look forward to sharing more and more about bladder health in the future. I am often a guest on other people’s platforms and look forward to having more guests on my sites as well. 2020 has been a year that there have been so many changes. Change can be really daunting. Sometimes you don’t even want to change, but if you break it down into smaller changes, tiny changes really do add up to good results. My sister and I felt we knew many people were looking to make changes big or small in their own lives. Every Tuesday, I feature Women of Change on Instagram. These are ladies who I see encouraging others to make positive changes in their own lives and the lives of others. The women range from physicians to authors to founders of various charities. There has been a wonderful response. They are all so inspiring. 

I am often asked if I would start a podcast, so that may be in my future as well. Right now, I am concentrating on adding more valuable resources to my website: ditchbladderpain.com 

What’s the most rewarding part of your career?

It’s connecting with patients—on social media and in person. Lately, I wake up and then create content for wellness, mostly sharing about bladder health, and then post on my social media outlets. Most of what I do right now is about being a voice for women with bladder issues.

Previously, I was a pharmacy manager for a short while several years ago at a store that was very close to a large hospital campus. A gentleman came in and he had a prescription for an anti-inflammatory agent. I told him to take it with food and he looked at me like, “Take it with food?” I knew that was going to be an issue for him. 

So, I asked him if he had food and he said no. I gave him my snacks for the day. Then, he told me he was hit by a car and nobody would help him. It meant so much that I was willing to stop my work and give him a hand. He would always stop by, maybe every two weeks or so, just to say hello. 

There have been so many stories through the years, but that one really sticks out to me because I learned so much while I was at that store. I met so many people at that pharmacy who were without homes. It was wintertime while I was there, and they would come in to keep warm and I would talk to them. I would actually bring these little goodie bags to work every day, little blessings bags with snacks and stuff, and give them out in the parking lot before I went to work.

I feel like God put me there to be a face to homelessness. It wasn’t just me helping those people. They helped me as well. It touched my heart.