Explore every episode of the podcast The Spoonies Community
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
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| 2 ~ Eline's full story with chronic pain & illness (CRPS & FND). Part 2 | 13 Jan 2026 | 00:50:50 | |
The podcast episode continues on where Eline & Marcus left off: right at the second accident. Eline & Marcus delve into the experiences of living with chronic illness, reflecting on past challenges, navigating through hospitalization, new diagnosis and treatment, the impact on daily life, challenges with recovery, taking control of the situation, and finally the way into a new direction towards acceptance. Takeaways
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| 1 ~ Eline's full story with chronic pain & illness (CRPS & FND). Part 1 | 07 Jan 2026 | 00:45:46 | |
The podcast episode delves into the personal journey of Eline, living with chronic pain and illness, covering the challenges, setbacks, and moments of progress. It explores the impact of the accident, hospitalization, surgery, recovery, and the pursuit of a diagnosis. The narrative also touches on the emotional and physical toll of the journey, as well as the resilience and hope for a better future. Takeaways
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| 13 ~ How to talk about your chronic illness without letting the story define you | 29 May 2026 | 00:40:55 | |
This week on The Spoonies Community podcast, Marcus is back and we recorded the day after our 9-year anniversary, which felt like the right energy for a conversation this honest. We get into something that doesn't get talked about nearly enough in the chronic illness space: how do you actually tell your story to people? Not the watered-down version you give a taxi driver. Not the full version that leaves your nervous system wrecked for days. But the version that's true to your chronic pain experience, that doesn't drag you back into the worst of it every time, and that doesn't accidentally become the thing keeping you stuck. Because there's a really thin line between sharing your story as part of processing, and becoming the story. And once you cross it without realising, it starts working against your healing. We talk about why words like "always" and "never" are ones I genuinely never use with my clients. We talk about what happens in your brain when you downplay your chronic illness to make it easier for everyone else. And we get into something I feel strongly about - chronic illness identity. Who are you beyond your diagnosis, your symptoms, your roles? This is something we work on actively inside the Spoonies Community, and it's one of the most quietly powerful shifts a spoonie can make. This episode also touches on the community doors opening 1–5 June, including the free webinar series "The Missing Piece of Your Healing Journey That Nobody Talks About." If you've ever felt exhausted by having to explain your chronic pain or illness to people or feel like your condition has quietly taken over how you see yourself — this one is for you. Takeaways
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| 12 ~ Why me? Chronic illness & the fear of "this is forever". Rachelle & Saskia (NYAP) explain | 18 May 2026 | 00:56:42 | |
In this episode, I’m joined by Rachelle and Saskia from Not Your Average Psychic to talk about chronic illness, chronic pain, and the question so many of us have asked in the middle of a flare, a diagnosis, or yet another hospital visit: why me? We talk about the spiritual meaning of pain, and what changes when you stop seeing symptoms as proof that something is “wrong with you” and start seeing them as information. Not in a bypass-y way. Not in a “just think positive” way. But in a grounded way that still makes space for how exhausting it is when you’ve tried everything, you’re scared of change, and part of you is convinced this is just your life now. We also talk about the fear and resistance that can come up when healing asks you to live differently, and why the goal is not to flip your whole life upside down overnight. Sometimes the most important thing is to lower the threshold and make one new choice your body can actually handle. We talk about:
This episode is for people living with chronic illness or chronic pain who feel stuck in “this is forever,” and who want a perspective that includes the body, emotions, nervous system, and intuition, without pretending it’s easy.
If this episode resonates, I’d love for you to leave a review, share it with someone who’s been asking “why me?” too or send me a DM on Instagram. | |||
| 3 ~ Eline's full story with chronic pain & illness (CRPS & FND). Part 3 (Final) | 14 Jan 2026 | 00:41:34 | |
Eline & Marcus delve into the journey of chronic illness, exploring emotional healing, somatic work, grief, joy, independence, alternative healing, identity, community support, professional growth, and spiritual awakening. It highlights the transformative power of somatic work and the journey to independence, offering hope and inspiration to those facing similar challenges (speaking from Eline's own experience after 2 accidents) Takeaways
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| 11 ~ Miscarriage grief: when your body is still pregnant but the baby is gone | 04 May 2026 | 00:48:46 | |
In this episode, Marcus and I share our miscarriage story. Trigger warning: miscarriage / pregnancy loss. We also talk about the years before that. The journey into whether we even wanted children, and how chronic pain, disability, trauma, and caregiving changes the whole conversation around parenthood. Then we share what about our pregnancy loss and what the miscarriage actually looked like for us. The scan, the limbo. Still feeling nauseous and exhausted while knowing the pregnancy isn’t viable. Then the waiting & the bleeding. The hospital. The D&C. And the grief that hit weeks later, when the world had already moved on. We talk about:
This episode is for anyone who’s been through miscarriage or pregnancy loss, anyone trying to conceive after loss, and anyone navigating the question of having children while living with chronic illness.
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| 10 ~ Manouk de Bijl’s ulcerative colitis healing story: from symptoms to remission | 20 Apr 2026 | 00:57:53 | |
In this episode, I’m joined by Manouk de Bijl to talk about her ulcerative colitis healing story, from her first symptoms as a teenager to years of hospital visits, medication, pain, and being told it would be chronic. We talk about what it’s like to live with an invisible gut disease as a young woman, including the shame and fear that comes with symptoms you do not exactly bring up at a dinner table. Manouk shares how stress, survival mode, and trying to keep up with a demanding student life made everything worse, and why she reached a point where she knew she had to look beyond the path she was on. This is not a neat, polished “just do this and you’ll be fine” episode. It’s an honest conversation about what healing actually asked of her. Mindset, belief, nervous system regulation, food, emotional processing, and learning to trust her gut again, literally and emotionally. We also talk about remission, intuition, and the grief of realising the medical system never asked her how she did it, even when her test results showed no evidence of disease. If you’re living with ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s, chronic illness, gut issues, inflammation, or you’re stuck in the cycle of pushing through and crashing, I think this episode will land. Please find more of Manouk on: or https://www.instagram.com/manoukdebijl/ | |||
| 9 ~ Sex, intimacy & chronic illness: the conversation no one is having | 06 Apr 2026 | 00:41:44 | |
In this episode, Marcus and I are talking about sex, intimacy, chronic pain and chronic illness. We’re having an honest conversation about how disability, pain, fatigue and body changes can affect intimacy, relationships and self-confidence. When you live with chronic illness or disability, intimacy can feel complicated. It can bring up insecurity, awkwardness, grief, fear, body image struggles and a lot of questions that people often don’t talk about out loud. In this episode, we share our own experience of navigating intimacy after my accidents, while living with CRPS, FND, chronic pain, spasms and fatigue. We talk about what changed for us, what felt hard, what helped, and why communication became such a big part of finding each other again, not just as patient and carer, but as partners. We talk about:
This episode is for people living with chronic illness, chronic pain or disability, and for partners who want to better understand how to navigate intimacy together. Chapters
If this episode resonates, I’d love for you to leave a review, share it with someone who needs it, or send me a message on Instagram with your thoughts or questions. And if you’d like us to record a part 2 on this topic, let me know! | |||
| 8 ~ How your body stores emotions & creates chronic pain (somatic work explained with Marcus) | 23 Mar 2026 | 00:49:24 | |
Eline & Marcus sit down for an honest (and sometimes hilarious) conversation about somatic work for chronic pain and illness — and why it's not as "woo-woo" as Marcus originally thought. If you've ever wondered why chronic pain won't go away even when doctors say there's nothing wrong, or how your body stores emotions and trauma... this episode is for you. We talk about:
This conversation gets real about burnout, chronic illness, the bucket of emotions we all carry, and why your body is way smarter than you think. If you've been stuck in chronic pain, fatigue, or illness for years and nothing's worked... this might be the missing piece. Want to learn more about somatic work or book a free 30-minute call about the retreat? DM me on Instagram @thespooniescommunity — I'd love to chat. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction: Marcus learns what somatic work actually is | |||
| 7 ~ Losing autonomy and independence over your own body & life | 09 Mar 2026 | 00:41:36 | |
Marcus & Eline delve into the challenges of navigating the loss of autonomy over your own body & life and the dynamics of care and independence within a relationship. It explores the impact on both Marcus and Eline and the adjustments made to manage these challenges effectively. The conversation delves into the dynamics of prioritizing a partner's needs and balancing responsibilities in a relationship. It also explores the challenges and emotional aspects of caring for a partner's physical needs, as well as the impact of financial and emotional support on the relationship. Takeaways
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| 6 ~ Travelling as a wheelchair user | 09 Feb 2026 | 00:32:43 | |
Marcus & Eline dive into travelling as a wheelchair user! They discuss what is needed to travel comfortably, challenges, highlighting the need for careful planning and consideration. But it also explores the very positive impact of traveling on physical and mental well-being, as well as the process of overcoming fear and expanding horizons. The conversation delves into the intricacies of travel planning and stress management, highlighting the importance of booking assistance, embracing independence, and managing energy levels. It also explores the challenges of living with grief, adaptability, and accessibility, while emphasizing the significance of decision-making and the pursuit of comfort. Anyone feeling nervous but excited to take the leap? Definitely go and book your travels! Takeaways
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| 5 ~ Amelia Peckham transforms a life-changing injury into empowerment for the disabled community | 26 Jan 2026 | 00:52:23 | |
Amelia Peckham shares her journey from the accident that left her with a permanent disability to her recovery and rehabilitation. The conversation covers her life before the accident, the impact of the accident, the challenges of the first six months, and the motivation and support that helped her through. All of this led her to building her own company called Cool Crutches. She was determined that if walking on crutches would be the rest of her life, she would go do that with proper, ergonomically approved ones that wouldn't give her additional injuries. Takeaways
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Where can you find Amelia? @coolcrutches @amelia.peckham Use discount code "SPOONIES" to get 10% of your order on Cool Crutches! | |||
| 4 ~ What is a Spoonie & What is The Spoonies Community? | 19 Jan 2026 | 00:35:19 | |
Marcus & Eline delve into the origin of the Spoonies community, the concept of the Spoon Theory, and the creation of a safe and supportive space for individuals living with chronic illness. It explores the impact of the Spoon Theory, the need for a supportive community, and the various components of the Spoonies community, including support, connection, learning, and resources. The conversation covers the exclusive community model of Eline, emphasizing safety and commitment, as well as the global nature of the community and plans for in-person events. Takeaways
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