Hi, I’m Lydia.

I’m a physical therapist, clinic leader, nonprofit cofounder, speaker, and mom to two boys — including my youngest son, who lives with an ultra-rare genetic condition called Multisystemic Smooth Muscle Dysfunction Syndrome (MSMDS).

What started as survival slowly became advocacy.

Over the years, our family has navigated prolonged hospitalizations, ICU stays, medical uncertainty, palliative care conversations, and the day-to-day realities of raising a medically complex child while still trying to build a normal life around it.

At the same time, I’ve worked inside healthcare myself — giving me a perspective that lives at the intersection of both worlds.

Today, I speak to medical professionals, students, advocacy groups, researchers, and families about:

• communication

• systems navigation

• resilience

• grief

• advocacy

• and the human side of medicine