Shows
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 10. Holiday Special: Conversations in SpanglishIt's that time of the year again... and thanks to Ms. Rona, millions of Americans will experience how it feels to walk in the shoes of an immigrant during "Tis the Season". The longing for time with family and friends around the Holiday table. The faint echoes of holiday songs sung in our native languages. The imagined smells of typical dishes served on traditional pottery that live in the memory cells where our childhood dreams are stored. Thousands of immigrants around the world spend the holidays alone wishing to be able to afford the transport home to hug their loved one...2020-12-1741 min
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 9. Mental Health and Autoimmune Diseases: "You're maniac, I'm not!"The coronavirus pandemic has forced many of us to reveal details of our medical history that are considered high risk factors for poor outcomes from a COVID19 infection. This situation has generated emotional disruption and stress in our lives as we try to follow medical advice to keep safe and protected. This is added to the baseline changes that autoimmune diseases and the medications used to treat them have on our brain function responsible for a variety of mental symptoms, which not infrequently require professional attention. Join me in conversation with Dr. Ahmed Hankir, a medical specialist who...2020-12-0335 min
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 8. Crowns and MasqueradesAutoimmune Diseases are often treated with medication that suppress the immune system. It is therefore crucial to take essential measure to protect ourselves now that we are facing a surge in the infection rates by COVID19. Take a listen and also watch the video:
bit.ly/2UGltk8
2020-11-1811 min
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 7. Hombres en EsteroidesEven though greater than two thirds of people affected by autoimmune diseases are women, a significant portion of the patient population is male. Our guest speakers for this episode are Dr. Max Gutreiman, specialist in Internal Medicine practicing in Costa Rica, and my cousin Giovanni Estrada Bencardino, radiology technologist from Ibague, Colombia. Dr. Gutreiman's Ulcerative colitis and Giovanni's Bullous pemphigoid have impacted their lives for over a decade leading them to experience serious complications from their diseases and also life-threatening adverse effects from the medications used to treat them with high dose Prednisone as a staple in their...2020-11-0430 min
Women On SteroidsTRAILER EPISODE 7. Men On SteroidsEpisode 7. Hombres en Esteroides was recorded in Spanish. Our guest speakers are Dr. Max Gutreiman, Internist from Costa Rica, and Giovanni Estrada Bencardino, Radiology Technologist from Colombia. They shared with us their experience as health care workers as well as patients impacted by autoimmune diseases. Esperamos que lo disfruten. Pura Vida!2020-11-0401 min
Women On SteroidsBONUS EPISODE 6. Of Friendship and Love: BraveShe called me "Brave", and I said: "Brave On Steroids".
Prednisone has significantly enhanced traits in my personality that had stayed under the radar for all of my existence before dermatomyositis.
Sometimes, I am thankful for the added endurance, fake energy boost, and extra-hours of work due to insomnia. Some others, I don't find being a woman on steroids so much of "a blessing in disguise", but rather a liability.
This episode of my life still gives me goose bumps.
My friend Zehava still feels happy about the outcome and insists in calling me "Brave".2020-10-2811 min
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 6. Of Friendship and LoveDr. Zehava Sadka Rosenberg and I have known each other for 25 years. She has been a mentor, an advisor and a colleague for equal amount of time before and after my autoimmune disease diagnosis.
As someone who has struggle coming to terms with my medical condition and the secondary effects of the medications used to treat it, I could not have wished for a better friend than Zehava. She has been a solid rock and also a sounding board whenever I have needed her.
Join Zehava and I in...2020-10-2822 min
Women On SteroidsBONUS EPISODE 4. MEDITATE: Not just a calming technique. Advanced MR imaging in Autoimmune DiseasesOur invited speaker, Dr Eric Sigmund, will take us on a journey of discovery exploring the basic principles of image acquisition using diffusion weighted ((DWI) MR imaging and how the technique applies to autoimmune conditions affecting the muscles of the pelvis and thighs. Eric and I work together along with a group of investigators including Dr Steven Baete at the NYU Center for Biomedical Imaging developing MEDITATE. This is a sequence that uses DWI as a probe for assessment of muscle microstructure during exercise activation. The listener will find this episode the right combination of being informative, but yet entertaining...2020-10-2121 min
Women On SteroidsBONUS EPISODE 5. Of Airports and New MedsAll medications have the potential of causing adverse effects.
Patients must avoid taking new medication when getting in a plane or while airborne.2020-10-2002 min
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 5b. Steroid Replacement TherapySteroid replacement therapy includes immunosuppressants/immunomodulators and immunotherapy. Join Dr Franks and I as we discuss this and more in this rather important subject.2020-10-1620 min
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 5a. Treating Autoimmune Diseases: Steroids, the Lesser EvilThose of us who have been on steroids for prolonged periods of time can attest to how ambivalent we feel about these pharmacological agents. Prednisone, perhaps the most commonly prescribed corticosteroid, is highly effective in “smacking down” the evil autoimmune disease threatening to send our body into a downward spiral. But prednisone is equally effective in causing adverse effects that can be be quite important, still the lesser of two evils.2020-10-1429 min
Women On SteroidsTRAILER EPISODE 5. Treating Autoimmune Diseases: The Lesser of Two EvilsIn this episode we welcome back Dr. Andrew Franks, rheumatologist and dermatologist at Gramercy Park Dermatology and NYU School of Medicine. Dr. Franks and I will engage in conversation reviewing the available treatment protocols for autoimmune diseases affecting the musculoskeletal system with particular emphasis on dermatomyositis. #WomenOnSteroids will relate well with the description of the myriad of secondary effects caused by prednisone and other corticosteroids including sleep disorder, cardiovascular alterations, mania and other emotional manifestations, weight gain, hunger and deranged fat metabolism. We will then move on to review steroid replacement therapy including immunosuppressive agents and immunotherapy, and we will e...2020-10-1401 min
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 4. Imaging in Autoimmune Diseases: Truth RevealedImaging evaluation of autoimmune diseases plays a significant role in the correct diagnosis of these conditions. In this episode, we will engage in candid conversation with Dr. Xavier Tomas, musculoskeletal radiologist based at the Hospital Clinic de Barcelona. Xavi and I have been friends for close to twenty years. We came together through our mutual friend Dr. Anabel Garcia, also a musculoskeletal radiologist and colleague of Dr. Tomas in Barcelona.
Dr. Tomas will take the listener in a exploratory journey covering all imaging modalities and their contribution to the diagnosis of collagen vascular diseases such dermatomyositis, scleroderma, lupus and many o...2020-10-0745 min
Women On SteroidsTRAILER EPISODE 4. Imaging in Autoimmune Diseases: Truth RevealedImaging evaluation of autoimmune diseases plays a significant role in the correct diagnosis of these conditions. In this episode, we will engage in candid conversation with Dr. Xavier Tomas, musculoskeletal radiologist based at the Hospital Clinic de Barcelona. Xavi and I have been friends for close to twenty years. We came together through our mutual friend, Dr. Anabel Garcia, also a musculoskeletal radiologist and colleague of Dr. Tomas in Barcelona. Dr. Tomas will take our listeners in an exploratory journey covering all imaging modalities and their contribution to the diagnosis of collagen vascular diseases such as dermatomyositis, scleroderma, lupus and ot...2020-10-0604 min
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 3. Autoimmune Diseases: The Power of AdvocacyJoin me in conversation with Dr. Andrew Franks, who is on the Lupus Foundation of America’s Medical-Scientific Advisory Council, and an advocate for educational programs that increase awareness of autoimmune diseases among the general population.
Believe it or not, autoimmune diseases are the third most common category of disease in the United States after cancer and cardiovascular disease, affecting ∼5 to 8% of the population or 14.7 to 23.5 million people. Conservative estimates indicate that ∼78% of the people affected with autoimmune diseases are women (1). Women respond to infection, vaccination, and trauma with increased antibody production, whereas inflammation is usually more severe in men resultin...2020-09-3022 min
Women On SteroidsTRAILER EPISODE 3. Autoimmune Diseases: The Power of AdvocacyJoin me in conversation with Dr. Andrew Franks, who is on the Lupus Foundation of America’s Medical-Scientific Advisory Council, and an advocate for educational programs that increase awareness of autoimmune diseases among the general population.
Dr. Franks and I, along with our research teams at NYU, institution where I worked as Professor of Radiology and Orthopedic Surgery for 12 years until July 2019, were able to develop a dynamic diffusion-weighted MR imaging technique spear-headed by Dr. Eric Sigmund, physicist at the NYU Center for Biomedical Imaging. This advanced MR technique has proven useful in diagnosing subclinical microstructural alterations of the muscle fi...2020-09-2403 min
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 2. Autoimmune Diseases: The Elusive DiagnosisThe diagnosis of autoimmune diseases is frequently elusive. It often happens that presenting symptoms, cryptic physical exam findings and family history are misinterpreted by patients with autoimmune diseases and by the physicians and health professionals who care for them.
Join Dr. Andrew Franks and me as we recall the steps that we have taken together in our twelve year long journey as an autoimmune disease doctor-patient team. Before meeting Dr. Franks, my autoimmune disease was misdiagnosed as a dermatological condition: contact dermatitis. The many doctors who treated me with topical steroids for close to a year did not think of inq...2020-09-2338 min
Women On SteroidsTRAILER EPISODE 2. Autoimmune Diseases: The Elusive DiagnosisThe diagnosis of autoimmune diseases is frequently elusive. It often happens that presenting symptoms are ignored or misinterpreted by patients, their loved ones, and their doctors. Join is in conversation with Dr. Andrew Franks. Dropping Wednesday September 23rd at 3AM EST.2020-09-2201 min
Women On SteroidsEPISODE 1. Coming Out: Living with Autoimmune Diseases in a PandemicWhat motivates you to tune in and listen to "Women on Steroids"?
As we well know, we are living through the worst health crisis in recent history, the Coronavirus pandemic.
Handling of COVID19 by the corporate world, including health care organizations, has involved the request to their employees to disclose health conditions, also known as risk factors, that may worsen the outcome of those infected with the virus. This includes, among others, the use of medications that suppress the immune system, agents known as immunosuppressant or immunomodulators.
Through this process, we have learned...2020-09-1642 min
Women On SteroidsTRAILER EPISODE 1. Coming Out: Living with Autoimmune Diseases in a PandemicCOVID19 has exacerbated the struggle for women suffering from autoimmune diseases by unveiling their medical vulnerability. What was formerly hidden from public knowledge, now must be disclosed.
How does revealing our medical weakness affects our workplace interactions, the way that we project ourselves to other, and the way that we are perceived.
Are Women On Steroids (#WOS) slacking off from their professional duties? Are they just taking advantage of the "medical gain" provided by their disease? Now that we are seen, can our health weaknesses ever be forgiven?2020-08-2809 min
Women On SteroidsWomen On Steroids (Trailer)2020-08-2800 min