How do you prepare a child for surgery and build trust with their medical team? This episode explores how families and healthcare providers can work together to support children through procedures like tonsillectomy and other medical challenges.

This week's guest, Dr. Tali Lando, shares her perspective as a pediatric ENT surgeon, author, and mom of three teenage daughters. She and Katie discuss what it's really like for families navigating medical care with complex kids and how parents can advocate effectively while still building strong partnerships with their child's care team.

If you've ever wondered how to build trust with your child's doctor, prepare your child for surgery, or understand the perspective of the people caring for your child, this episode offers meaningful insight and reassurance. Dr. Lando's message is clear: the best outcomes happen when families and providers work together as partners.

We extend our sincere gratitude to our sponsor for this episode, Gebauer PainEase®. We are pleased to provide more information about this product, and we invite you to learn more by visiting their website.

Resources & Ways to Connect:

Book: Breathless: Surgical Tales from the Brink and Back By Dr. Tali Lando

Available on Amazon

Website

Instagram

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Medical information provided is not a substitute for professional advice—please consult your care team.

Keywords: pediatric ENT surgeon, tonsillectomy preparation for kids, preparing children for surgery, pediatric airway specialist, parenting medically complex children, doctor-patient partnership, advocating for your child in healthcare, pediatric surgery preparation, airway disorders in children, Breathless Dr. Tali Lando, medical memoir pediatric surgeon, supporting families in pediatric healthcare

What does life really look like after a child receives a kidney transplant? Many people think transplant is the end of the journey—but for families, it's often just the beginning.

This week's guest, Lyndsey Fedorko, returns to the podcast to share the next chapter of her son James's medical journey—life after a kidney transplant. After years of dialysis, hospitalizations, and uncertainty, James received a life-saving kidney transplant from his aunt, marking the beginning of a new season for their family.

Lyndsey and Katie reflect on the intense months surrounding transplant surgery, including relocating their family to Houston, navigating the transplant workup process, and the emotional weight of waiting while two surgeries—donor and recipient—happened at the same time. Lyndsey shares what recovery really looked like, from the long hospital stay caused by a rare complication to the daily routines required to protect James's new kidney.

Lyndsey shares openly about the ongoing care James still needs, including medications, monitoring for rejection, therapies, and the unexpected challenges that came after transplant—including a rejection episode that required intensive treatments.

If you've ever wondered what life after pediatric transplant truly looks like, this conversation offers an honest and hopeful look at resilience, advocacy, and the power of family support.

We extend our sincere gratitude to our sponsor for this episode, Gebauer PainEase®. We are pleased to provide more information about this product, and we invite you to learn more by visiting their website.

Resources & Ways to Connect:

Connect with Lyndsey

Children's Transplant Initiative
Provides housing and support for families traveling for pediatric transplant care.

IROC (Improving Renal Outcomes Collaborative)- Support and Educational Resources for families navigating pediatirc Kidney Transplants

Connect with us!

• Subscribe: Never miss an episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
  
  

• Visit insidethechildrenshospital.com to search stories and episodes easily
  
  

• Follow us on Instagram for updates and opportunities to connect with other parents
  
  

• Download SupportSpot: receive Child Life tools at your fingertips.
  
  

• Leave a Review: It helps other families find us and access our resources!

Medical information provided is not a substitute for professional advice—please consult your care team.

Keywords: pediatric kidney transplant, life after transplant child, dialysis in children, kidney disease in kids, transplant rejection treatment, pediatric transplant recovery, living donor kidney transplant, children's transplant initiative housing, transplant parent story, caring for medically complex child, pediatric kidney failure journey, transplant family support, child life coping tools, parenting through pediatric illness.

This week's guests, perinatal mental health therapists Emily Souder and Mahaley Patel, share the story behind their book Your NICU Story: Reflecting on Your Family's Experience—a guided journal created to help families process the emotional impact of a NICU stay. Mahaley also opens up about her daughter, Sachi, who died after a NICU stay, and how storytelling and narrative healing became a lifeline in her grief.

She and Emily talk with Katie about why so many NICU parents carry trauma long after discharge and how writing your story can help families reconnect with what they experienced. They also discuss the emotional weight of making medical decisions during a NICU stay, the importance of compassionate healthcare providers, and why healing sometimes begins months or even years later.

If you've ever struggled to process a NICU experience—or wondered how to revisit it in a way that feels safe and meaningful—this conversation offers powerful insight and hope. Emily and Mahaley's biggest message? Your story deserves space, compassion, and time—and reflecting on it can be an important step toward healing.

We extend our sincere gratitude to our sponsor for this episode, Gebauer PainEase®. We are pleased to provide more information about this product, and we invite you to learn more by visiting their website.

Resources & Ways to Connect:

Book: Your NICU Story: Reflecting on Your Family's Experience
Available wherever books are sold, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and local bookstores.

Emily Souder, LMFT, PMH-C

Website

Instagram

Mahaley Patel, LMFT, PMH-C

Instagram

Connect & Support from Child Life On Call:

• Subscribe: Never miss an episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
  
  

• Visit insidethechildrenshospital.com to search stories and episodes easily
  
  

• Follow us on Instagram for updates and opportunities to connect with other parents
  
  

• Download SupportSpot: receive Child Life tools at your fingertips.
  
  

• Leave a Review: It helps other families find us and access our resources!

Medical information provided is not a substitute for professional advice—please consult your care team.

Keywords: NICU trauma, healing after NICU, NICU parent mental health, NICU journaling prompts, birth trauma support, NICU loss support, perinatal mental health therapist, processing NICU experience, life after NICU discharge, NICU storytelling, guided journal for NICU parents, neonatal intensive care support, grief after NICU, NICU parent resources