7 Tips for Staying Fit When You Have a Chronic Illness
They are the ultimate companion on walks, while waiting for your doctor’s appointment or when you’re bored and sick at home: podcasts.
Not only are they entertaining, but podcasts can also teach you new, interesting facts and tips in an accessible way. Podcasts are an especially helpful learning tool if brain fog, visual problems or other limitations make it difficult to read books.
Now what you like to listen to obviously depends on your interests, as well as your attention span (I’m looking at you, 2-hour long episodes of Huberman Lab!). Even things like annoying voices or preferring interview-style conversations versus solo speakers play a role in which podcasts turn out to be favorites. But thankfully, there’s something intriguing out there for everyone’s taste.
So here’s a wide variety of health, psychology and chronic illness podcasts worth listening to.
This article contains some affiliate links to products you may find useful, at no extra costs to you. All opinions are my own.
Healthy Living Podcasts
1. The Doctor’s Farmacy
Dr. Mark Hyman is a family physician specialized in functional medicine, who’s also advocating to change our food system. In his New York Times best-selling books and podcast, dr. Hyman shows you why you should tap into the power of real food to live a long, healthy, energetic and happy life.
The Doctor’s Pharmacy coves a wide range of topics, from reducing chronic inflammation in the body and boosting your immunity, to longevity, brain health and his food philosophy. On average, episodes are 1 hour long, often featuring well-known medical professionals or other experts as guests. You can also listen to a shorter series focused on changes you can make to improve you wellbeing called Health Bites. However, not all the advice given will be easily applicable when you’re living with chronic illness.
Podcast episodes you may find interesting:
- #770: How To Improve Energy Production, Reduce Inflammation, And Promote Longevity with Drs. Chris Rinsch and Stuart Phillips, Wim Hof, Dr. Susanna Søberg, and Dr. Steven Gundry.
- #526: Activiating Your Natural Healing Systems with dr. Andrew Weil.
- #569: 5 Steps to Get to the Root Cause of Your Symptoms with Dr. Elizabeth Boham, Dr. Todd LePine, and Dr. George Papanicolaou.
2. The Wellness Mama Podcast
Katie Wells is a mom of 6 who’s passionate about creating a healthy life for her family. On her highly successful blog Wellness Mama, Katie and her team feature natural remedies, DIY beauty recipes and tips for creating a toxin-free home.
Through this lens of holistic medicine, The Wellness Mama Podcast dives into all aspects of your wellbeing: gut health, hormones, natural movement, emotional wellness and conscious parenting. The show also covers some more controversial topics, like vaccines, birth control and sun screen, so not every episode will be a good fit for everybody.
Although taking up all the advice on chemical-free living and cooking from scratch can feel overwhelming, The Wellness Mama Podcast has over 600 episodes packed with useful information on how you can take more control over your health and happiness.
Podcast episodes you may find interesting:
- 686: Dr. Amy Myers on a Functional Take on Gut Health, Thyroid Health & Reducing Autoimmunity.
- 652: Built to Move: 10 Essential Habits to Help You Move Freely and Live Fully with Juliet and Kelly Starrett.
- 675: Energetic Time Management, Self-Trust, and Alignment with Heather Chauvin.
3. Feel Better, Live More
The #1 health podcast in the United Kingdom wants to empower you to become the architect of your own health. After years of working as a general practitioner and training with medical experts, dr. Rangan Chatterjee gets to the bottom of what makes us sick and what keeps us healthy in Feel Better, Live More.
In the weekly episodes, dr. Chatterjee and his famous guests explore everything related to the four pillars of what he calls “progressive medicine”: Relax, Eat, Move and Sleep. You can get helpful advice on natural movement, balancing blood sugar, getting better sleep, mental health and healthy living from experts like Mel Robbins, Oliver Burkeman, Gabor Maté and Lewis Howes.
A little heads up: The regular shows will take up two hours of your time – which may not work well for those of us with low attention span or memory problems due to chronic illness. If that’s you, you could also subscribe to the podcast to get bite-sized bonus episodes.
Podcast episodes you may find interesting:
- #364: Lessons from the World’s Longest Scientific Study of Happiness with Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz
- #348: The New Addition to My Morning Routine: Master Your Mind Through Movement and Breathwork with Erwan Le Corre
- #321: How to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones with James Clear
4. Wellness with Ella
If you enjoy empowering conversations that’ll give you tools, tips and inspiration to support your wellbeing, than Wellness with Ella is just the podcast for you.
You might already know host Ella Mills from her Delicously Ella blog, plant-based cookbooks, restaurants and healthy food products. In her show, Ella and her guests open up about their own journeys to better health and happiness, as well as how over time they’ve transformed challenges and struggles into personal growth. They also discuss what wellness really means, and how we can achieve that.
The latest seasons of Wellness with Ella contain one-hour chats with authors, scientists and doctors, with some bite-sized episodes in between.
Podcast episodes you might find interesting:
- Season 9, episode #1: Ella Mills: Finding Purpose and Putting Mental Health First
- Season 8, episode #5: Habits to Live to 100, Blue Zones and Cold Showers with Dan Buettner
- Season 7, episode #6: Bite-Sized: How to Improve Gut Health
More Healthy Living podcasts worth listening to: The Rich Roll podcast with deep, insightful conversations about wellness and the 1000 Hours Outside podcast about supporting your family’s wellbeing by heading outdoors.
Psychology Podcasts
5. Huberman Lab
It’s not hard to tell that Andrew Huberman is a neuroscientist and professor at Stanford University, because his podcasts are audio lectures on how the brain controls our perception, behavior and health.
In the 2-hour-long episodes, dr. Huberman meticulously analyzes the science on successful goal setting, how to improve your focus and memory, and why you should meditate. Every other episode, renowned guests come on the show to share their expertise on health behaviors like designing fitness protocols, optimize your hormones and mastering your breathing.
Although the psychological and medical jargon used is explained well, this podcast may be challenging to follow if you struggle to focus for long and/or have limited knowledge of the body and brain.
Podcast episodes you might find interesting:
- #9: Control Pain & Heal Faster with Your Brain
- #58: The Power of Play to Rewire & Improve Your Brain
- #110: How to Stop Headaches Using Science-Based Approaches
6. The Mindful Kind
With The Mindful Kind podcast, Australian coach Rachael Kable wants to share fun and simple ways to live more mindfully can improve your wellbeing.
In the 10-minute episodes, she covers how mindfulness can impact various areas in your life, from resilience to relationships and self-image, in a soothing, empathetic voice. Rachael also shows how mindfulness helps to reduce stress, manage difficult emotions and cope with challenging times.
At the time of writing, there have not been any new episodes released since April 2022. But with more than 300 helpful episodes in the archives, you can still find plenty of support and enjoyment through The Mindful Kind podcast.
Podcast episodes you might find interesting:
- #311: What To Do When You’re Feeling Lost
- #307: How to Stop Emotional Dumping
- #297: Protecting Yourself from Toxic Positivity
7. The Mental Illness Happy Hour
When you’re dealing with depression, anxiety or addiction, it can feel like you’re all alone and there’s no help. The Mental Illness Happy Hour wants to change that.
In this weekly, hour-long podcast, comedian Paul Gilmartin interviews artists, friends “and the occasional doctor” about mental health problems. Together, they shed a light on hard-to-talk-about topics like trauma, loneliness, negative self-image and how mental illness affects your life.
Because of the candid conversations about dark and difficult subject matters, this podcast can be triggering for some people. However, other listeners will likely feel seen and understood, as well as get helpful advice from people who’ve been there.
Podcast episodes you might find interesting:
- #660: Releasing Trauma from the Body with Felina Danalis
- #644: Double Depression with Bethanne Patrick
- #636: Your Brain on Art with Ivy Ross and Susan Magsamen
More Psychology podcasts worth listening to: 10% Happier by Dan Harris about what it actually takes to lead a happier life; and Jay Shetty’s podcast On Purpose that makes wisdom go viral.
Chronic Illness Podcasts
8. The Chronic Illness Therapist
Destiny Winters is an American mental health therapist specializing in chronic pain and invisible illnesses. On The Chronic Illness Therapist, she proves to you it’s not “all in your head” and you deserve real answers and support.
In the episodes, ranging from 15 minutes to over an hour, Destiny and her guests tackle issues like relationships with chronic illness, grieving the parts of you you’ve lost, medical trauma and what real advocacy looks like.
By combining professional expertise with personal experiences, The Chronic Illness Podcast makes a great listen when you struggle with all the emotional aspects of living with chronic illness.
Podcast episodes you might find interesting:
- #38: The 7 Types of Rest and How It Applies to Those of Us with Chronic Illnesses
- #5: Pain’s in the Brain, But Not In Your Head with Tyler Orr
- #18: Medical Trauma & Gaslighting: One Therapist’s Story is Many of Our Stories with Christy Reichart
9. The Rest Room
When Natasha Lipman got diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, she couldn’t find the advice she needed on how to better understand your body and learning to live with this debilitating condition. Through her work as a BBC journalist and health writer, Natasha had access to experts in the field, and so she created the resource she wished she’d had: The Rest Room podcast.
The half-hour long episodes tackle real-life issues that so many people with chronic illness face, like navigating work and chronic illness, and making the most of your medical appointments, but also how you can start a hobby when you’re sick or how to plan a spoonie-friendly wedding.
Although the last episode of The Rest Room dates back to January 2023, you can still find much valuable advice in the podcast archives.
Podcast episodes you might find interesting:
- Pacing: The Guide for People Who’d Rather Be Doing Other Things
- How to Read More with Chronic Illness
- What Exactly is Post-Exertional Malaise?
10. Major Pain Podcast
Being seriously sick can be very lonely. That’s why the Major Pain Podcast started a collection of interviews from people living with chronic illness and disability. The show highlights their experiences in society and with the medical system in order to raise awareness and better understanding of what it’s like to live with horrible symptoms every day.
Fun fact: In the very first episode, content creator Jesse Mercury shares his long history with an undiagnosed illness. By turning to his listeners to help solve his medical mystery in May 2023, we learn in August 2023 that Jesse finally has a name for his chronic health problems!
Other podcast episodes you might find interesting:
- Karra Eloff on Maintaining Joyful Relationships in Spite of Chronic Illness or Chronic Pain
- Beth Ruffin on Balancing Work Life With Health Challenges
More Chronic Illness podcasts worth listening to: Tune into the brand new podcast Holistic Healing with Lorrie to listen to my first podcast appearance! (To be released soon)
I’m curious, which health, psychology and chronic illness podcasts do you love listening to?
