I Built a 7 Figure Business with a Chronic Illness
Part 1: The Illness
(This picture of pills is a 4 week supply of what I was taking during the past year - upwards of 85 pills and supplements per day.)I’m going to show you exactly how I achieved that, and how you can, too. Because this is not a pity party for me - this is a story of overcoming.
In 2009, I got bit by a tick carrying Lyme Disease when I was living near Philadelphia, PA.
Overnight I went from totally functional and active - to suicidal and depressed - for the first and only time in my life.
I started getting migraines - sometimes as frequently as 3 days a week.
I went from being able to run a marathon - to weeks and months out of a year bed-bound: too exhausted to cook, or walk my dogs, or do anything outside of client delivery. I gained weight, was constantly inflamed, and every part of my body hurt.
It took a decade before someone finally suggested Lyme disease might be the culprit.
I never got the bullseye rash so typical of tick bites. I don’t have all of the markers the CDC requires for a Lyme diagnosis. So, my symptoms were written off or misdiagnosed for years.
When I was finally told that the Lyme disease initially went straight to my brain - causing me to feel suicidal and depressed - I wept. I had spent years judging myself for those feelings - thinking I just needed to be better at therapy.
Those depressive feelings passed within a few months, but the other symptoms kept on.
Over the years I would go through periods of remission - where I could hike and have adventures - and other times where I would be bed-bound for weeks or months.
I saw lots of doctors and alternative practitioners who either dismissed me, or diagnosed me with everything from fibromyalgia, to chronic fatigue, to overweight, to PTSD, to gluten-intolerant.
Fast forward to January 2022.We moved into our newly built dream house on January 15th. On January 18th my father-in-law died after a significant battle with dementia. A week later Jeff and I both got COVID. Jeff was better after 2 weeks. My symptoms lasted for 10 weeks - and by then my immune system was seriously compromised.
My Lyme symptoms flared up again (which they do anytime my immune system isn’t 100%), and I ended up spending most of 2022 in bed.
By September 2022 I was desperate to feel better. After 14 years of searching, I finally found a doctor who believed everything I was saying, and administered a blood test that absolutely confirmed I had Lyme disease, along with 20 other co-infections.
With her support, I committed to a year-long alternative protocol to eradicate the Lyme and other co-infections from my body. Think: chemotherapy for Lyme. That began in September 2022.Of course, none of this treatment was covered by health insurance - because again, according to the CDC - I don’t have Lyme. I refused to do the other available treatment - stuffing my body with antibiotics for months at a time, which would have been covered by insurance.
I invested tens of thousands of dollars to eradicate Lyme and the co-infections from my system.As part of the treatment, I also received what my husband Jeff and I called my “weekly bloodletting,” where blood would be removed from my body, then cleaned, and redeposited - because a lot of the infections were hanging out in my bloodstream.
For most of the year I was doing this protocol I was nauseous. I lost 30 pounds. I had months when I couldn’t leave the house except for medical appointments. The migraines got worse - they would last for up to 5 days at a time.
I ended up going to the ER at one point because my doctor thought I was having a heart attack. It turns out the Lyme infection was eating away at the oxygen in my blood - causing me to struggle to breathe.
I came down with Mono and Strep Throat at that same time, and was unable to do anything for myself other than shower - for 10 weeks.
Throughout the year-long treatment, I only took one week off of client delivery - when I couldn’t talk because of the strep throat.
Most of my clients have no idea what I live with on a daily basis, because they get to experience the best of me - my psychic skills and business acumen - both of which are always available to me, even when I’m lying in bed.I get to have a part of my life where I am brilliant - regardless of what’s going on with my health - which is what keeps me going on bad days.
I’ve got my business and life set up in such a way to accommodate living with a chronic illness.
In fact, this past year my business generated more sales than it has in a couple of years. I also served a record number of private clients in 2023 - as of this writing - 75!In 2023, I also built out a funnel of new front door offers, hired and trained a new business manager, streamlined all back-end operating systems, plus created and launched two new marketing funnels. So there’s that.
The Lyme treatment ended in August. I recently had the Lyme blood test again, and I am 62% improved from a year ago.The migraines are gone. I’m sleeping through the night consistently for the first time in 15 years. I have energy to walk my dogs daily, and go to the gym, and take yoga classes. I’m even cooking dinner for us tonight!
I no longer spend every Friday through Sunday in bed, resting up for my 4 day work week. I have a life. I get to spend quality time with my husband and friends.
I haven’t spoken about this very much - because part of me felt like I should have been able to heal my own body by now.
I created a dream business, dream marriage, and dream home for myself - why can’t I create a dream body?But then…what if I had waited until I felt better to launch my current business?
What if I put off my purpose and mission because I thought it would be too hard to have a purpose-driven business AND a chronic illness?
What if I hadn’t spent the past 25 years serving thousands of conscious business owners and instead only focused on myself?
What if I had chosen the path of identifying AS this chronic illness instead of living WITH it?
That’s my prayer for you - if you too are living with chronic illness - don’t wait for complete healing to live your mission. Do it now.
Part 2: My Life
I want to share with you what I do personally to support living with a chronic illness, and having a successful business - so that you can see it is possible for you, too.
This past year of doing this alternative treatment protocol to eradicate Lyme disease and 20 other co-infections from my body taught me the most beautiful lesson of this entire 15 year journey with chronic illness:
My body is not the enemy.For years it was the enemy. I was always resentful of my body not keeping up with what my mind desired to do. It was always the problem in my relationship with myself.
I now understand that I can trust my body to tell me what it needs - and that my body also wants what is best for me.
I give my body everything it desires - whether that be weekly massage, or sleeping until 10 am, or building an entire deck system in our back yard to house a hot tub and sauna to support my body’s well being.
I give it 17 weeks off a year from client delivery.
I give it copious amounts of rest. Sleep is my #1 priority, because that plays such a large role in keeping my immune system strong -which is what keeps the Lyme symptoms at bay.
I’m way more compassionate and gentle with my body now.
I need and deserve a LOT of support.My husband Jeff plays the biggest role in ensuring I can care for my body and run a business that I love. Behind the scenes he handles about 90-95% of what happens in our household. He also goes with me to medical appointments, and helps me make decisions about my health.
Jeff came into our marriage knowing I was living with a chronic illness, and how that impacted my day-to-day life. Jeff is my rock; I’m the first to admit I can’t function without him.
In our first year of dating, at the height of COVID, I was diagnosed with giant fibroids in and around my uterus. I had a total hysterectomy, resulting in a foot-long incision in my abdomen, and 3 days alone in the hospital recovering (because of COVID rules). Jeff took complete care of me during the 3 weeks I spent in bed recovering.
I’m very blessed that Jeff is a willing participant in finding ways to live with illness, and such a competent and loving life partner.
I do the household management that I can from my often-horizontal position - like bill paying, making appointments with household vendors, and keeping us organized.
In my single days, I had a housekeeper and personal assistant who would handle my household’s day-to-day operations - run errands, grocery shop, food prep, walk my dogs, deep clean the fridge - all of the things I couldn’t reliably be available for.
It was humbling to be lying on my couch while people cleaned and worked around me, especially as a single person - like who can’t manage their own individual life?
I had to learn that I deserve whatever support I need, without justification.
I advocate for myself, all of the time.Finding a physician who would take me seriously, give me an accurate diagnosis, and an appropriate treatment plan took 14 years. I had lots of professionals dismiss or misdiagnose my symptoms.
I had friends who wouldn’t understand why I’d cancel plans at the last minute. I had men I was dating tell me to get over myself. I had relatives who didn’t understand the enormity of what I was facing.
In all this, I learned to be my own advocate, even in the face of not having a clear diagnosis.
I got incredibly good at saying NO to anything that doesn’t feel like a hell-yes to me. Like small talk; replying to cold pitches via DM; working with clients who drain my energy; working more than 3 weeks a month; constantly posting on social media; or staying out late at night.
I connect.I’m outside almost daily, even if its just sitting on the deck outside my bedroom. I pray; meditate; listen to guided meditations and solfeggio frequencies. I tune in and quiet my mind.
I affirm the small whispers of my soul, and act on them, immediately. Always.
I invest in my health and my growth.I made a major financial investment in my health this past year to eradicate Lyme disease and 20 other co-infections in my body.
I invested tens of thousands of dollars - even though going into the treatment protocol I knew my energy would be even more diminished, and I might not have the bandwidth to work that much - in order to generate funds to pay for the treatment.
I invested in things for our home that make it easier for me to function during the treatment - like a hot tub and an infrared sauna with red light therapy. We had to regrade our entire backyard and build a deck system in order to bring in the hot tub and sauna. The entire process took months.
I also continue to lean on incredible mentors personally and professionally - including especially my husband - who help me to create a life and business that work FOR me.
I RECEIVE in all ways, all the time.It’s been humbling, and so, so good for me - to learn that other people WANT to help - so different than what I was taught as a child.
I come from extreme childhood trauma which meant I had a lot of internal re-wiring to do.
Ten years ago I wouldn’t even let someone hold a door open for me. Now it surprises me anytime I am not offered help.
I’ve got so much support in my life and business. Anytime I feel overwhelmed, I get support. When I realize my to-do list is too long, I get support. When I am tired, I ask for help.
I dropped the need to get it right.Over and over again I’ve been shown that you don’t need to have things going perfectly in your life in order to have a successful business.
You can have health challenges and serve clients. You can live your purpose while lying in bed.
You can have a big mission and serve thousands of people without hustling, or working hard, or doing things perfectly.
Part 3: The Business
So, how do you build a successful 7 figure business while navigating a chronic illness?
Let me break it down for you:
Don’t wait until you feel better.Years ago I was so angry at my body for yet another Lyme flare up at a most inconvenient time. I was $50k away from doubling my business income from the year before.
I couldn’t get out of bed, and I had no bandwidth to market.
My mentor told me to surrender to what my body needed.
Nothing else had worked, so in a moment of frustration - or perhaps true channeled clarity - I did. The only action I took in my business between Thanksgiving and New Years Day was client delivery.
My business generated $87k in sales in those 33 days.
That was a huge turning point for me in how I operate my business.
It confirmed that taking action isn’t the only path to wealth.
Normalize wealth without looking Insta-Awesome.My goal has never been to be Insta-famous or super popular. I don’t care about posting awesome photos of my life and business all over Instagram.
My goal is to make great money doing what I love, so I can put my money where my heart is - and to teach others to do the same.
That’s it.
Consciously expand your capacity to receive.I used to be afraid of taking on too many clients, because what if I couldn’t serve them? What if it was too draining? What if my body couldn’t keep up?
What I’ve learned over the past 15 years, is that my psychic skills and business acumen continue to strengthen and grow, regardless of what’s going on with my body. That’s the part of me that my clients need access to.
I also learned that I can trust my psychic ability to hold all of the information I need about my clients, so I can speak to their individual needs, and give them customized feedback based on their unique soul design.
I take notes when I meet with clients, but most times I don’t reference them - because the true soul information my clients seek is channeled through me whenever it is needed.
That’s what allowed me to serve 75 clients this year privately while also going through the year-long treatment protocol for Lyme.
Assume everything is working out in your highest good - before the evidence shows up.I assume everything is working out. I lean on my husband and mentors when I forget that the entire Universe is conspiring to support me.
I remember everything I have accomplished before - because I have all of the evidence in the world that I have already created a life beyond my wildest imagination.
When you assume things are working out for you, miracles and magic happen.
Be willing to disappoint others.I do what matters to me most, first.
I play in my business and have fun. I love on my clients. I access the best of who I am when I’m with them.
I don’t beat myself up anymore when I’m not productive. I take naps when I need to. I watch a lot of movies. I cuddle with my husband and our dogs.
I say no, A LOT. I only take on clients that I know I can help.
I am at peace with disappointing others.
Get ALL the support.I am always working with multiple mentors to help me be the leader of my business. Some of them I’ve had close to a decade or more.
These are the people who show me where I’m stopping myself, or holding back. They support me in finding the shortcuts that get the best results.
Use soul-alignment to discover your shortcuts to growth.The biggest trick, in my bag of tricks for 7 figure success, is creating abundance by soul design.
I understand in intimate detail exactly how my soul is designed to do business and make money. When I operate exclusively within my soul design my business works.
I also use soul alignment to figure out the short cuts - so I don’t HAVE to do all the things in order to have a 7 figure business. This is the biggest reason I have the time, space, and resources to care for my body.
I don’t have to always market, yet I have a steady funnel of prospective clients coming into my business. My client programs get results, consistently. My business operates extremely well behind the scenes.
It doesn’t need to be more complicated than that.
If you’ve been navigating living with a chronic illness and running a business, you are not alone.Drop me a note (emma@emmachurchman.com) and let me know what you’re dealing with. We need to talk about how to live WITH chronic illness and still play full out with our purpose and mission.
If you’re curious about how to find the shortcuts for your business to grow to explode your income using your existing audience, click the button to learn about my programs:
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