Business With Chronic Illness: Women Entrepreneurs Navigating Burnout & Autoimmune Conditions

What does it look like to build a business that works with your chronic illness instead of against it? This conversation with Gwendolyn Young will challenge everything you think you know about business design and capacity.

Gwendolyn Young is the founder of Your Virtual Admin Expert, a multi-six figure agency that provides administrative solutions for business owners. After 15 years of advising corporate executives, she made the bold decision to leave and start her own company so she could manage her lupus diagnosis while still doing meaningful work. Her approach to building around capacity rather than market demands...

Your energy crashing during business conversations is not random. It is your body giving you crucial information about who and what belongs in your life. When you're managing chronic illness while building a business, learning to trust these signals can be the difference between sustainable growth and complete burnout.

Alison Kero is a professional organizer who has spent over two decades helping people create calm, clarity, and balance in their lives. After being diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease in 2014, she had to completely rebuild her approach to work and life, ultimately discovering that organizing isn't just about...

What would it look like to build a multi-million dollar business while raising six kids, advocating full-time for a child with autism, and navigating everything that nobody put in the business plan?

That's exactly what Julie Cole did, and she didn't do it by following the standard playbook.

Julie is the co-founder of Mabel's Labels, a brand she started almost 23 years ago with her sister and two college friends when her eldest son was diagnosed with autism at three years old. She left a career in law, started making labels in a basement at 2am...

Though burnout is often described as being beyond tired, and in a clinical definition, is a state of emotional, mental, and often physical exhaustion brought on by prolonged or repeated stress. Janet Diaz shares a perspective and practical insights for chronic illness management while building your dream business that completely reframes how we understand burnout, especially when you're managing autoimmune conditions while building a business.

Janet is the co-founder of Soulcraft Journeys, creating transformational retreat experiences. She has also navigated decades in corporate roles while managing rheumatoid arthritis, ultimately discovering that her biggest challenges led her to...

What happens when you disappear from your own podcast without explanation? In this vulnerable return episode, I'm sharing the real story behind my unannounced break and what it taught me about the transitions we don't talk about in business.

I'm Nikita Williams, your host, and after running Business with Chronic Illness for years, I found myself in a quiet transition that didn't come with announcements or pretty bows. Sometimes something inside you changes before the outside world even knows it's happening.

In this episode, we explore:

- The quiet changes happening in your...

You've been posting daily. You're showing up in stories. You're creating reels that disappear into the void. And yet—it's taking more and more content just to be seen, let alone convert followers into paying clients.

If you're exhausted by social media and wondering why it's getting harder to turn all that effort into actual business growth, you're not alone. The game has changed in 2026.

In this episode (originally recorded during Super Bowl weekend 2024 and more relevant than ever), I sit down with Isabella Sanchez Castañeda—podcast strategist and host of the top 5% podcast On Ea...

Not everyone started this year with "new year, new you" energy. If you're a woman entrepreneur navigating grief—from a loss, a diagnosis, a relationship, or a version of yourself you had to let go—you're probably wondering: can I grieve this AND still show up for my business? Can I hold both grief and growth while building a sustainable business?

In this replay of one of 2025's most downloaded episodes, I sit down with Amanda Guin, an emotional intelligence coach, traumatology expert, and widow who lost her infant daughter to a congenital heart condition, navigated endometriosis and...

This year, expect empowering conversations with business owners navigating chronic illness and autoimmune disorders. Learn from their experiences, strategies, and lessons, with a focus on sustainability and health. Episodes will feature guests discussing new diagnoses, caregiving, and adapting business practices. Join the community on Substack for exclusive content and stay connected. Tune in for inspiration, support, and practical advice on building a profitable business while prioritizing your health.

Takeaways:

The journey of entrepreneurship can often feel at odds with the realities of living with chronic illness, particularly when it comes to the concept of capacity. In this episode, we tackle the often-misunderstood idea of capacity, shifting the narrative from a relentless push for more to a compassionate understanding of what we can realistically manage. Capacity isn't just about productivity; it's about how much our bodies and minds can handle at any given moment, especially when faced with the unpredictable nature of chronic health issues. We explore the three primary forms of capacity that influence our entrepreneurial experience: emotional...

What if your business didn’t fall apart every time your life asked you to slow down?

In this episode of Business with Chronic Illness, we’re naming a hard truth many entrepreneurs live with quietly: most businesses are built to work only on your best days.

When you rest, everything stops.

When life gets real, momentum disappears.

And you’re left feeling like you’re starting over again.

That’s not a you problem.

It’s a systems problem.

In This Episode, We Cover:

• Why...

Does your marketing disappear every time you take a break? You're not alone, and it's not a consistency problem. It's a systems problem disguised as a marketing problem.

In this solo episode of Business with Chronic Illness, I'm sharing why so many women entrepreneurs with chronic illness, burnout, or unpredictable capacity feel like they're constantly restarting their marketing from scratch. The truth? You don't have a marketing strategy; you have a performance schedule. And when you stop performing, your business stops breathing.

In this episode, you'll discover:

In this replay episode, I’m sitting down with certified coach and first-gen eldest daughter Nikkei Lamodi, to talk about what it really looks like to be an eldest daughter or late bloomer living with chronic illness and running a business.

We get into the invisible pressure of being the “strong one,” why eldest daughters are so prone to people-pleasing, perfectionism, and over-responsibility, and how all of that bleeds into your business, your boundaries, and your body.

Nikkei shares her story of caregiving, grief, chronic illness diagnosis, and the moment she realized she was sacrificing her ti...

If you’ve been looking at your audience lately — your email list, your downloads, your Instagram following — and thinking, “It’s just not big enough,” this episode is your gentle reset.

Today, I’m sharing an archived audio I originally recorded for my private client podcast. It’s a quiet reminder that the size of your audience has never been the thing that determines your success… the root system of your business does.

Inside, I share a story about repotting one of my new plants (yes, your girl is officially a plant mama 🌿) and what it taught me about su...

Tired of waiting for the perfect moment to start your creative business? Struggling with burnout from trying to follow cookie-cutter business advice that doesn't fit your life?

In this episode, I talk with Margo Tantau: creative director, licensing agent, and host of Windowsill Chats Podcast, about building a sustainable creative business by following your gut instead of formulas. Margo shares her non-linear path from corporate to running her own licensing agency, and why starting imperfectly is actually the key to long-term success.

We talk about why perfectionism keeps women entrepreneurs stuck, how to create a...

I feel like I'm doing everything right. I meditate. I have boundaries. My life is actually pretty good. So why do I still feel burnt out? Why can't I keep up with my business the way I want to? Why does it feel like something's still off?

If that sounds like you, this episode is going to connect some dots you didn't even know needed connecting.

Jen Yundt Coles is a functional medicine health coach, SIBO specialist, and someone who literally had a heart attack from stress she didn't even realize was stress. In this...

What do you do when your health changes and the business you've built can't keep up?

In this episode of Business with Chronic Illness, I sit down with Jemi Crookes, founder of The Think Lab, to talk about what happens when a diagnosis forces you to redefine leadership, business, and success itself.

After a misdiagnosis of Type 2 diabetes, Jemi discovered she was actually living with Type 1.5 (LADA)—a rare form of autoimmune diabetes that upended everything she knew about her body, her energy, and the way she worked. She left her corporate executive role and re...

Ever had one of those moments where you're building your business and you get a text from family, someone's sick, someone needs you, and you instantly think: "I should be there. What kind of person am I for not dropping everything?"

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Analía Gómez Vidal career coach who built her business while being thousands of miles away from her family in Argentina. We get honest about what to do when family needs you and your business needs you at the same time.

Analia shares how she na...

🌿 If you’re navigating entrepreneurship and chronic illness, or simply craving a more sustainable way to grow your business without sacrificing your health, energy, or self-care priorities, explore Chronically You & Profitable (CYAP).

About this Episode:

In this episode of Business with Chronic Illness, I'm joined by Jessica Setnick, RD, CSSD, LD—a registered dietitian, eating disorder specialist, and founder of a nonprofit making eating disorder care accessible—to talk about the invisible energy drain keeping entrepreneurs burned out: food shame.

Jessica opens up about her own journey of having to go to therapy just to l...

Ever look at everything on your business plate and think "there's no way I can do all of this"?

This episode is for entrepreneurs with chronic illness who feel overwhelmed trying to grow their business while managing fluctuating capacity. CEO of Functional Medicine Nutritionist Andrea Nakayama shares how she built Functional Nutrition Alliance while managing Hashimoto's, grief, and single parenthood—without burning out.

We're diving into business strategies for chronic illness entrepreneurs, including the "base camp method" for sustainable business growth, why persistence beats consistency when your capacity changes, and how to pivot your expectations wh...

What if the key to building a sustainable business with chronic illness isn't working harder, but setting better boundaries? In this episode, Brenda Snow, an Amazon Best Selling Author, shares how she built a 420-person company over 30 years while managing MS (Multiple Sclerosis) - without sacrificing her health or burning out.

If you're living with chronic illness and running a business, you know the struggle:

You feel like you need to be extraordinary just to keep up. You're constantly starting over after flare-ups. You can't keep up with the pace everyone else says you should...

Can you really grow your business when you’re living with chronic illness, burnout, or limited capacity? Absolutely, if your content helps people make informed decisions, you don't have to focus on or obsess about downloads.

In this episode of Business with Chronic Illness, with host Nikita Williams. I’m sharing how I signed clients from my podcast while I was healing from endometriosis and recovering from surgery, and how I turned a small but mighty audience into consistent revenue using sustainable business strategies that honor my health first and prevent burnout.

This is part of Th...

Think you need to work 60-hour weeks to build a successful freelance business with chronic illness or burnout? Amanda Bourbonais proves otherwise. After a severe chronic Lyme disease crisis forced her to leave corporate life, she built a six-figure copywriting business working just 20-25 hours per week, and she's maintained that rhythm for five years.

In this episode, Amanda shares how she turned rock bottom into a business foundation, why "I started my business so I could take naps" became her guiding principle, and how she prices projects based on deliverables (not hours) to create sustainable income...

When I first started my coaching business, I had maybe 30 minutes of energy in a day. And while the online world told me I needed to post multiple times a day, go to endless networking events, and keep up with algorithms, I simply couldn’t.

What I did know? Connection creates sales.

In this episode, I’m sharing the 30-Minute-a-Day Connection Strategy I used to build a six-figure business while living with chronic illness and how it became the foundation of my podcast, the biggest safety net in my business.

You’ll hear:

In this episode of Business with Chronic Illness, I'm joined by Jason Winters, an energy alignment coach and EFT tapping practitioner, to talk about the warning signs that your business is built out of alignment, especially important for entrepreneurs managing chronic illness and unpredictable energy levels.

Jason opens up about his experience with rapid business growth that felt unsustainable, from lowering his prices out of fear to over-delivering because of self-worth issues. He shares how he recognized these patterns as symptoms of deeper misalignment and the practical steps he took to restructure his business around what actually...

Selling doesn’t have to feel hard, especially when you're navigating the challenges of chronic illness or burnout.

In today’s episode, we dive into the three key problems that often keep us from converting leads into sales and how to tackle them with what I call the rooted sales process. We discuss the emotional and physical challenges that can make selling feel pushy or draining, leading to feelings of inadequacy and frustration. You'll learn how to create a sustainable approach to sales that aligns with our unique capacities and circumstances. Join me as I share practical step...

What happens when your growing business starts demanding more than your body can give?

In this episode of Business with Chronic Illness, I'm joined by Stephanie DiPisa, founder of Solara Suncare, mom of three, and Chronic Lyme advocate, to talk about the hard but necessary truth: sometimes the best thing for your business is doing less, not more.

Stephanie opens up about launching her first business at 40 with no beauty industry experience, building Solara into a successful brand sold everywhere from Target to Neiman Marcus, and how her journey with chronic Lyme disease taught her...

Ever been told to "just journal it out" and felt completely stuck? You're not broken—you're just trying to force a system that wasn't designed for your brain, body, or energy.

In this episode, I'm sharing why writing feels impossible when you're burned out (spoiler: it's not a mindset problem), the neuroscience behind why speaking works better than writing for many of us, and my Voice-First Content Strategy that's changed everything for me and my clients living with chronic illness.

If you've been struggling to create content, write emails, or get your thoughts out of yo...

What happens when your capacity looks different every single day, but your business still has to keep moving forward?

In this episode of Business with Chronic Illness, I’m joined by Ashley Carlson, an agency owner, mom of two, and chronic illness advocate, to talk about the hard but freeing truth: you can do anything, but you can’t do everything.

Ashley opens up about building and growing her agency while navigating multiple chronic illness diagnoses, monthly IVIG infusions, and the everyday realities of parenting. She shares how she’s redefined productivity, learned to ask for he...

In this powerful conversation, Justine opens up about how living with multiple autoimmune conditions for over 20 years didn't limit her business success—it became her secret weapon. From closing $5K sales calls from hospital beds to building a thriving consultancy, Justine shares why chronic illness taught her the exact skills that make entrepreneurs unstoppable.

What You'll Walk Away With:

In this heartfelt and wisdom-packed conversation, Nikita sits down with entrepreneur and community builder Pallavi Pande, founder of Dtcos and Dtcos Consulting. Pallavi shares how growing up in India, navigating chronic pain, and honoring her cultural values led her to build not one but two purpose-driven businesses while parenting and caregiving in a multi-generational household.

Whether you're living with chronic illness, burnout, or you're just tired of traditional hustle culture, this episode will remind you that rest is not retreat—it’s strategy.

You’ll walk away with:

Is food guilt quietly draining your capacity to show up in parts of your life and business?

In this episode, we explore what cravings, restriction, and shame around food might be trying to tell you not just about your body, but about your business.

I’m joined by integrative nutrition health coach Laura Banks, who shares her personal journey from hiding candy wrappers in her classroom to helping women heal their relationship with food in a way that actually increases clarity, consistency, and energy.

Together, we unpack the hidden emotional link between what yo...

If you’re trying to make money while managing chronic illness, this episode is your gentle nudge and grounded strategy all in one.

Whether you’re dreaming of replacing your income, supporting your household, or finally getting paid for the work you love—this episode breaks down how to create a business that supports both your health and your bank account.

I’m walking you through 3 essential shifts that have helped me (and my clients) earn sustainable income—even through flare-ups, fatigue, and doctor’s appointments. These aren’t quick hacks or hustle-heavy tactics. They’re real-world sh...

If you’ve ever felt like you were just trying to hold it all together… this episode is a soft landing.

Whether you’re navigating grief, chronic illness, trauma, or life just isn’t turning out the way you imagined, this is a conversation about what happens when you’re no longer okay, and the blueprint for “moving on” doesn’t fit your reality.

This week on the podcast, I’m joined by Dr. Amanda Guin a compassionate emotional intelligence coach, trauma-informed educator, and woman who has lived through unimaginable loss. Amanda’s story includes the death of her inf...

Have you ever wondered how someone builds an entire haircare brand without any outside investors while navigating cancer, health challenges, and life constantly interrupting their plans?

In this episode, I’m talking with Lynn Power, founder of Masami, a clean haircare brand built from the ground up. Lynn shares her journey of launching and growing multiple businesses while dealing with:

✨ A cancer diagnosis that changed everything

✨ The reality of building slow when fast growth wasn’t possible

✨ Learning to pivot her dreams when life didn’t go as planned

✨ Why traditiona...

In today’s episode, we’re exploring a question so many women with chronic illness as entrepreneurs may avoid asking themselves:

Is denial about your health keeping my business – and your life – stuck or even limiting my growth?

I sit down with Diane Hinds, an entertainment publicist, creative producer, and author, who opens up about how denial shaped her early years living with sickle cell disease and how it nearly cost her everything. She shares why pushing through was her default, how it impacted her health and career, and what changed when she finally embraced her limi...

Send Me A Text & Share Your QA's or Thoughts

Join The Free 5 Day Audio Series - Rooted Sales

Loved this episode? Leave a review: https://www.craftedtothrive.com/reviews/new/

Products We Love + Special Guest Gifts → Want to support the show and treat yourself? We’ve created a quick-access list of products I personally use and love, exclusive savings from podcast guests, and other gems that can help you live well and do business with chronic illness. Explore our faves + savings here!

Subscribe HERE to Chronically Profitable, A free exclusive weekly email seri...

Drawing from personal experiences and the latest research, we delve into the profound impact of working with chronic illness in entrepreneurship. This episode is all about shifting the narrative around how we approach business as women living with chronic conditions. We discuss the importance of recognizing that our health should dictate our work style, not the other way around. By challenging the status quo of 'always being on,' we encourage listeners to embrace their unique rhythms and to create business growth and business models that accommodate their health needs.

The conversation includes strategies for reconnecting with...

If you’re navigating chronic illness, burnout, or just done with hustle culture—but still want to grow a profitable, purpose-driven business—this conversation is for you.

In this episode, I’m joined by podcast strategist Isabella Sanchez Castañeda for a deep dive into how long-form content like podcasting is becoming essential for business growth in 2025. We explore how podcasting supports sustainable marketing, deeper visibility, and better client attraction, especially for coaches, creatives, and service providers who are tired of short-form content that doesn't convert.

Inside this episode, we talk about:

If you’ve been told that lead generation means pitching constantly, being visible everywhere, or following a one-size-fits-all funnel strategy… this episode is going to feel like a deep breath.

In this solo episode, I share the most powerful (and overlooked) way to grow your audience, build trust, and attract aligned clients — through the sustainable and soul-led path of community and collaboration.

Whether you're just starting out or looking to refine your approach as a coach, creative, or service provider living with chronic illness, I’ll share how to use your hobbies, professional skills, and innate t...

Thinking about leaving your 9–5, but chronic illness makes it feel impossible?

In this honest and empowering episode, I sit down with Liz Carmines—business owner and social media strategist—who shares her personal journey of navigating pain, brain fog, and burnout while working in corporate…and how she knew it was time to leap into full-time entrepreneurship.

We talk about the guilt of “not doing enough,” the emotional cost of looking fine when you're not, and the surprising things that made the transition feel safer and more doable.

If you’ve ever asked yourself, “Wha...