In this powerful episode of 24 Days Without You: A Mother’s Story, A Movement for Change, we sit down with Annie Sterle—maternal health advocate, speaker, and filmmaker. After surviving amniotic fluid embolism (AFE), a rare and life-threatening obstetric emergency, Annie transformed her own near-tragedy into a mission for change. She shares her journey through resilience, caregiving, and postpartum depression, and how hope became her compass. Annie now dedicates her life to amplifying maternal voices, reshaping systems of care, and sparking a movement to ensure better outcomes for mothers and families everywhere.

Midlife can feel like a season of depletion—but it’s also a powerful opportunity to realign and renew. In this episode of Midlife Unmasked, Dr. Sarah Bird, a functional medicine physician and women’s health expert, joins us to explore how resilience practices and functional medicine approaches can help women reclaim their health, vitality, and sense of self.

We dive into the tools and strategies that support physical balance, emotional well-being, and whole-person renewal, offering a roadmap for women who want to move through midlife with strength, clarity, and joy.

Are you feeling stretched thin caring for both your kids and your aging parents—while still trying to keep your own life afloat? You’re not alone. This episode of Midlife Unmasked dives deep into the realities of the sandwich generation and how midlife women can build resilience, set boundaries, and actually care for themselves while caring for others.

We welcome Dr. Sherry Chesak is a Clinical Professor in the School of Nursing at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Chesak is a registered nurses with a Master of Science degree focusing in Nursing Education and a PhD in Nursing. She is arecognized nurse leader and scientist who investigates resilience-promoting interventions for both professional and family caregivers. Her program of research is centered on care for the caregiver, and she primarily studies mindfulness-based interventions that promote resilience and mitigate stressamong clinicians and family caregivers. She has led inter-disciplinary teams in the assessment of stress and burnout over time and identifying predictors of burnout.