Our Wellrado Story
Nothing in life is a coincidence. Sometimes we cannot see God slowly and quietly paving our road, but He is. A few years ago, the two of us were connected through a group of women business owners in rural Eastern Colorado. That was it. Nothing further came of our friendship at the time besides following along with each other on social media. Little did we know that only a few years later, we would be connected over something much, much bigger.
No one expects to be in this position. 20 or 30 something. Wife. Mom. Business owner. Caregiver to husband with aggressive cancer. When you are forced into a desperate, isolating and unimaginable situation you go into survival mode. You easily slip into a dark place becoming a victim of what cancer is doing to your life. And in the same breath you fight to change your perspective, to educate yourself, advocate for your spouse, to ultimately put your trust in God and find the joy. At least, that’s what we tried to do day in and day out.
Jordan’s husband, Brady, was diagnosed with brain cancer in between Lyndsay’s husband, Derek’s, second and third relapse of Acute Myeloid Leukemia in 2023. Through the pain of what we were both experiencing— we found comfort in each other. We quickly went from acquaintances to talking to each other about everything under the sun. “How was his appointment?” “Who has the kids?” “How is he feeling?” “Are you working right now?” “Don’t forget to take care of yourself!” As terrible as it was that we were both living out a nightmare, it became a true blessing to have each other.
It wasn’t long after our friendship started that we quickly realized we were more like-minded than we thought. Not only were we advocating for our own husband’s and family’s health, but we soon were trying to offer support to one another. Desperation and facing your spouse’s mortality is a catalyst for immeasurable change. We both were on a search for answers inside and outside of the traditional medical system. We were both just two women desperately trying to help our families. We forged an unshakable bond through the overwhelm and uncertainty, and yet similarity, of our lives. The treatment and side effects of a sick husband, the caring of infant and toddler children, the upkeep of the home, the wellbeing of ourselves, the businesses we both owned and ran. The grieving of our “normal life” we envisioned before cancer. The missed moments of joy being replaced by fear and worry. No one really understands trying to juggle the medications, doctor’s appointments, denied insurance claims, grocery shopping, laundry, coordinating babysitters, continually asking for help from family, and still finding time to create real moments of connection with your child, eating a nourishing meal, leaning on your spirituality, and having the mental and physical energy to do it all with a joyful heart. Yet, we both just “got it” and we felt so thankful to be in a really hard place together. Our conversations quickly shifted to “You need to listen to this podcast!” “Have you heard of this test?” “We are trying to find a doctor that will work with us.” “You should try this!” “You will never believe what this doctor said.” As we both deeply researched and educated ourselves further, we realized that everything we had ever known when it came to health, wellness, cancer and the healthcare system was barely scratching the surface of the true knowledge we should all have. We both continued to spend every free moment we had looking for more answers as we navigated our healthcare system and the standard of care while also diving deep into integrative and holistic health and incorporating this new knowledge not only into our husband’s cancer treatments, but into our family’s daily wellness.
After five years to the day, Derek passed away in March of 2024. In the months after, the two of us met for lunch to catch up on life. What started as just another lunch date turned into one of the most exciting moments— each of us realizing our immense purpose having gone through this life experience – and sharing it with the world. Choosing joy, giving hope, and being there for one another gave us purpose in our pain. But more importantly, it gave us knowledge. Not the kind that comes from going to medical school, but the real-world kind where true wisdom is found that can’t be altered by a specific curriculum or limitation on what’s “statistically” possible. We innately knew that our local community, and larger network of friends, family and acquaintances, were seeking the type of knowledge we obtained through this journey. Daily we were both getting texts or messages from individuals curious as to the changes we were making, the products were buying, the books we were reading, and wellness routines we were implementing for our families. Our community, and especially moms, understand that without our health, we have nothing. We want better for ourselves, our children and our families. What started as two similar ideas that we each had to provide support to our community has now become our venture together: Wellrado.
OUR MISSION:
Wellrado was created to inspire hope and empower our community with information about integrative modalities and oncology. As caregivers, while also being young wives, mothers and business owners, we aim to share resources and rhythms that we have gathered in our search for healing and family wellness.
WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM WELLRADO:
+ Cancer and Wellness Resources
+ Integrative Oncology Education, Directories, and Modalities
+ Stories of healing through integrative medicine
+ Non-tox Products we love and trust
+ Community
+ Hope for healing
+ Permission to question everything
+ Rhythms and routines for family health and vitality
It’s our hope that at Wellrado you will find that piece of information or that seed you have been looking for in your health journey. That the introduction of a new idea, a new book, a new modality, a new study will help you on your journey to health and wellness. We believe in pursuing wellness one cell at a time.
