Hello, my name is Katarina I go by Kat. I’m 27, I have one child- a son. His name is Matthew. Now my story goes way back when I was a little girl. My parents were young when they had me, but didn’t really know how to parent honestly. Most of my childhood I was neglected and kinda “forgotten” about. I was abused physically by my father, left in unlivable conditions, and no one wanted to interact with me to help me grow as a young girl.

As I gotten older, I grew distant from my father & he wasn’t apart of my life during the crucial period of my life, and my relationship with my mother became more toxic- to the point where I had to become a parent to my own mother at the age of 13. I helped raise my brother and helped care for my mother and grandmother. In 2023 I lost my mother and that has changed my view of life and view of my mother tremendously. Now having my own child, my view of life has changed.

In this episode, I sit down and reflect on my 2025—raw, unfiltered, and real. I open up about the health battles I faced, the physical and emotional toll they took, and the lessons learned through every setback. I talk about the trials and tribulations of being laid off and how I turned TikTok into a business during one of the hardest seasons of my life. From the lowest moments to unexpected wins, this year pushed me to grow in ways I never imagined. This episode is about resilience, self-advocacy, and finding purpose through pain. If you’ve ever felt tested by your health, your circumstances, or your own doubts, this one’s for you.

This episode is with Tammy and her son Bentley. Tammy is somebody who came into my life one day on TikTok and we hit it off, she's a sweet woman and once she got to know me, she started sharing her story about her son Bentley, and all the things that he's going through with his eyes and all his health issues. Bentley has a visual disability. He's on the spectrum, and he has a condition that affects his mobility. He is very shy, but you can tell he's a good kid, who hopes for the best in life, and that's all we can hope for for our future.

Follow Tammy on TikTok @Tammy_Lynn 2010

Hey my names Danyele. Im 32, and disabled. I have Epilepsy, a neurogenic bladder, and bilateral medullary sponge kidney. I am a mother, and a wife. I struggle not only with my physical health, but especially my mental health.

I like to joke that I’m a cockroach, because there’s been many times where I could’ve died. But I haven’t, life has other plans for me. I am grateful for my supportive husband, and my loving children.

TikTok @dumpster.fire.danyele

This episode is with Deborah Vick. She is the founder of a nonprofit called victorious, she is an author, a speaker and a mindfulness and adaptive yoga instructor. She's also been a disability advocate for over 30 years. She has many conditions as she likes to say she collects them some of those conditions include multiple spinal issues, multiple auto immune disorders, crps, Pots, and much more. She is surprisingly really positive person, and I truly admire her resilience, and her openness to share all that she goes through.

Follow her on TikTok @Forwardrolling

My name is Geraldine Tan. I used to be a professional actress, opera and musical theater performer, TV/character model, feature and fiction writer and published poet. Now, I can only do Admin work for a fledgling film company, and stand up comedy open mic as a hobby.

I deal with a lot of health issues, mostly hereditary, or with the propensity for certain issues. Autoimmune, a hypermobility disorder, a newly discovered pituitary tumor (microadenoma) and Rathke's cleft cyst. Some of them may also be somatic, such as monocular diplopia, from trauma and neglect from my youth.

I'm very honored to be on this episode of TJ West. His videos are a comfort and inspiration to so many.

This episode is with two of my new friends, Jen and Mike. They are a happy married couple who have unconditional love a strong bond, family values, and they're so happily both visually impaired or blind. They both have been through so much, but they truly embody which strength and family and love can do to keep you together through the toughest of times.

You can follow them on TikTok @blindhoundfarms

My name is Matt I am classified as deafblind with other disabilities as well, I have stage 2 kidney failure,neuropathy,diabetes, hip dysplasia, I have chronic pain and chronic migraines my vision is 20/400 which means I see light shapes shadows and silhouettes no color and that’s all on a good day on a bad day I can’t see anything at all and I typically have trouble walking sometimes I even lose the use of my legs and or have blackouts without my hearing aids, I have 10% of my Hearing left, the doctors have no clue what’s wrong with me or why I’m going through any of this so we’re still currently trying to figure it out, but I don’t let any of this Stop me from doing what I wanna do in life. I still go out and have fun fishing hiking exploring new and exciting things.

Even though life is rough and it seems impossible, sometimes My faith stays strong and my mind stays clear.

Follow him on TikTok @theblinddeaffisherman