Episode 255

full
Published on:

15th Jul 2026

Episode 255: The Medical Gaslighting That’s Keeping People Sick [featuring Alexandra Wildeson]

In this episode, Patrick Casale talks with Alexandra (Alex) Wildeson, online content creator and host of the "Calling in Sick" podcast, about the realities of living with invisible and chronic health conditions, from gaslighting in the medical system to redefining success outside of capitalism's narrow achievement lens.

Here are 3 key takeaways:

  1. Community is Essential: Connecting with others who understand your experience is a game-changer in battling loneliness and advocating for yourself.
  2. Redefine Success and Identity: Chronic illness often forces a personal reckoning with what truly matters. Prioritizing health, authenticity, and relationships can bring unexpected fulfillment, even after loss or drastic change.
  3. Be Your Own Advocate: The healthcare system isn’t built for complexity, and preparing for appointments with goals, resources, and support can make a critical difference in outcomes.

More about Alex:

Alexandra (Alex) Wildeson is a content creator and host of Calling in Sick, a podcast on the Just Media Network that centers honest, nuanced conversations around chronic illness, women’s health, and modern wellness.

Drawing from her lived experience navigating multiple autoimmune and chronic conditions — including Polyarteritis Nodosa (PAN) Vasculitis, Mixed Connective Tissue Disease/Lupus, Endometriosis, Small Fiber Neuropathy, and Complex Regional Pain Syndrome — Alex blends storytelling, education, and lifestyle content to build community, challenge misconceptions, and expand how we define health, identity, and productivity.

Before pivoting into media and advocacy, Alex built her career in finance and capital allocation, working across investment banking, private equity, and venture capital, including roles at large institutional platforms. She continues this work today as a Venture Partner at HotStart, an early-stage venture fund focused on celebrity-founded brands.

Following a major spinal injury in 2023, Alex shifted her focus toward advocacy, content creation, and podcasting. Through Calling in Sick and her broader lifestyle platform, she explores what it means to build a meaningful, sustainable life while living with chronic illness — blending lived experience, practical tools, and healing modalities. She is also currently preparing to launch a digital platform aimed at expanding access to education, tools, and community for chronically ill individuals.

–––––––––––––––––––––

🎙️Listen to more episodes of the Neurodivergent Entrepreneur Podcast: https://ndpod.org

🎙️Spotify: https://ndpod.org/Spotify

🎙️Apple: https://ndpod.org/Apple-Podcast

🎙️ YouTube: https://ndpod.org/YouTube

🧠 Neurodivergent Entrepreneur Freebie Vault: https://ndpod.org/Freebie-Vault

✈️ Learn about Retreats: https://www.allthingspractice.com/private-practice-retreats

🗨️ Join The NeuroPreneur Circle Community: https://www.allthingspractice.com/neuropreneur-community

🗨️ Join the free Empowered Escape FB Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/empoweredescape

–––––––––––––––––––––

Thanks to Our Sponsors: The Receptionist for iPad!

✨ NeuroPreneur Circle

NeuroPreneur Circle is an online community built by and for neurodivergent entrepreneurs who want a supportive space to build a business, a space where they can show up as themselves and in whatever way feels most comfortable. NeuroPreneur Circle exists because community built on masking isn't really community. And business advice built for neurotypical brains isn't actually useful to us, no matter how many times we try to make it fit. Whatever your neurotype, whatever you're building, there's a space here for you. You've been creating alone long enough. Visit: https://atppod.com/community

Free Gifts for Our Listeners

✨ Free Podcasting Workbook

Get a practical podcasting workbook for therapists considering starting a podcast, created by Patrick Casale, host of the podcasts All Things Private Practice and Divergent Conversations.

You'll get a practical structure for therapists who want to start a podcast but don’t want to rush, perform, or build something they can’t sustain.

Grab your free copy of the Podcasting Workbook: https://ndpod.org/Free-Podcasting-Workbook

✨ Move Beyond Private Practice As A Neurodivergent Entrepreneur

Move Beyond Private Practice As A Neurodivergent Entrepreneur is a FREE 5-part mini-course designed for therapists who want sustainable financial independence beyond one-on-one work.

Access your free mini-course here: https://ndpod.org/Neurodivergent-Entrepreneur

Mentioned in this episode:

NeuroPreneur Circle Community

NeuroPreneur Circle is an online community built by and for neurodivergent entrepreneurs who want a supportive space to build a business, a space where they can show up as themselves and in whatever way feels most comfortable. NeuroPreneur Circle exists because community built on masking isn't really community. And business advice built for neurotypical brains isn't actually useful to us, no matter how many times we try to make it fit. Whatever your neurotype, whatever you're building, there's a space here for you. You've been creating alone long enough. Visit: https://atppod.com/community

Next Episode All Episodes Previous Episode

Listen for free

Show artwork for The Neurodivergent Entrepreneur

About the Podcast

The Neurodivergent Entrepreneur
Honest conversations about building a business while Neurodivergent, the self-doubt, the chaos, and everything in between.
The Neurodivergent Entrepreneur is a podcast for ADHD, Autistic, and all other neurodivergent entrepreneurs who are building businesses, creative work, and lives that actually fit how their brains work. Hosted by Patrick Casale, LCMHC, this show is for people who
want to create meaningful work, create outside of the box, grow their impact, and build something sustainable without losing themselves in the process.

Being a neurodivergent entrepreneur can feel like holding a lot of contradictions at once. You may have big ideas, deep passion, creative energy, and a strong desire to do things differently. You may also be navigating burnout, masking, self-doubt, perfectionism, rejection sensitivity, executive dysfunction, inconsistent energy, and the pressure to keep showing up when your capacity is already stretched. This podcast speaks to that reality honestly, because building a business around your brain, your values, and your lived experience can be powerful, complicated, messy, and deeply personal.

Patrick Casale is a chronically ill, AuDHD, mental health therapist, entrepreneur, TEDx speaker, event host, group practice owner, and neurodivergent business owner who has built, grown, burned out, pivoted, and kept going. His work brings together clinical insight, lived experience, business perspective, and real conversation about what it actually takes to create something that feels values aligned. His conversations are direct, compassionate, unfiltered, and practical, with room for both the emotional reality of entrepreneurship and the concrete decisions that shape a sustainable business.

New episodes drop every Wednesday and feature honest conversations with neurodivergent entrepreneurs, creators, therapists, business owners, and leaders. Together, Patrick and his guests explore entrepreneurship, identity, mental health, chronic health,
creativity, leadership, systems, money mindset, visibility, community, sustainable growth, and the behind-the-scenes reality of creating work that matters.

Build your dream business. Protect your capacity. Work with your brain instead of against it.