Sickboy
CBC
Sickboy is the only place where terminal diagnoses can peacefully coexist with jokes we probably shouldn't make. Hosted by three best friends, Jeremie, Brian, and Taylor, this show smashes taboos around illness, death, and everything in between. Inspired by Jeremie’s life with Cystic Fibrosis, we dive headfirst into the uncomfortable, the hilarious, and the heartbreaking. We talk to people living with everything from chronic disease to catastrophic injury, mental health struggles to medical miracles - and we do it with radical empathy, zero BS, and the kind of unfiltered jokes that get us kicked out of support groups. If you’ve ever felt weird, broken, or like no one gets it, welcome. New episodes drop every Wednesday. Pull up a seat; it’s gonna get real.Follow Sickboy on Instagram & TikTok!
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jan 24, 2022 • 1h 7min
What The Hell Is Ramsay Hunt Syndrome?! (Shingles Are The Devil)
According to the National Organization for Rare Diseases, "Ramsay Hunt Syndrome (RHS) is a rare neurological disorder characterized by paralysis of the facial nerve (facial palsy) and a rash affecting the ear or mouth." According to Jennifer, it's the Satan reincarnate. This week Jennifer tells an incredibly fascinating tale to the fellas all about how a viral disease completely changed her life. Shingles, which a lot of people think is a simple rash, is anything but. Depending on where you develop shingles it could lead to something as severe as a facial paralysis and much much more.
Jan 21, 2022 • 1h 19min
Drinking Pee For Your Health?! Tip: Don't. - Feel Good Friday
Can you remember the worst date you’ve ever been on? I bet it comes nowhere near the date from hell one woman from China was on during a COVID lockdown. Speaking of COVID, did you know the military is joining the fight? The SpFN vaccine is made with bullets. The lockdown vibes in China are next next level. Finally Ding Dong of the week opens a whole can of worms regarding drinking your own piss. Spoiler alert, drinking pee for your health is a bad idea. ANNOUNCEMENT!! Our Discord is now open to the public. Come join our community and chime in on the incredible conversations happening over at: https://discord.gg/expeUDN
Jan 19, 2022 • 30min
Sickboy Introduces: Sorry About The Kid
Alex remembers everything about the day a speeding police car killed his fourteen year old brother, but can no longer recall memories from when he was alive. And now, 30 years later, Alex wants them back. In this emotional four-part series, Alex unearths his childhood grief. What happens when trauma and memory collide? Sorry About The Kid is a deeply personal meditation on the losses that define us. Hosted by Alex McKinnon. Produced with Mira Burt-Wintonick (WireTap, Love Me). More episodes are available at hyperurl.co/sorryaboutthekid
Jan 19, 2022 • 42min
Routine Checkup: Sorry About The Kid - When Grief And Memories Collide
How do you forget your favourite person in the world? Alex remembers everything about the day a speeding police car killed his brother. But his brother, alive? Those memories are lost. And now, 30 years later, Alex wants them back. Sorry About The Kid is CBC's newest podcast and Alex is the host. Alex joins the fellas to talk about his process of unearthing his childhood grief — with help from family, friends, and a therapist who witnessed his brother’s death. What happens when trauma and memory collide?
Jan 17, 2022 • 1h 3min
Decades Long Trauma: Suicide
Gabby is a nurse living in Nova Scotia. When she was 8 years old, in her hometown (a small fishing village in Newfoundland) she experienced something that would affect her for years to come. Gabby discovered her grandfather deceased. Tune in this week as Gabby walks the fellas through the years of her life where those memories were repressed and what mental health struggles she faced as a result. PTSD and anxiety are no joke, and even still to this day mental health is heavily stigmatized (especially in rural Newfoundland). Gabby is an excellent storyteller and by sharing her story we hope to chip away at that stigma just a little bit more. If you or someone you know is struggling, the national suicide hotline is open 24/7/365 - 1- 833-456-4566.
Jan 14, 2022 • 1h 3min
Selling Farts In A Jar Isn't All It's Cracked Up To Be - Feel Good Friday
Big news in the world of health this week! MDMA and Psilocybin have both been approved for medical use in Canada! A man successfully had a genetically altered pig heart transplanted into his own body, and there is a unisex condom making waves over in Malaysia! The fellas chat about how video games could play an integral role in managing children's emotions from a recent trial coming out of Massachusetts General Hospital called RAGE-control (something Brian's brother could have probably used as a kid). Finally for WHAT THE HELLTH?! Jer dives into the world of selling farts in a jar and shows us a story of one woman who was making thousands of dollars... but at what cost to her well-being?
Jan 12, 2022 • 42min
Routine Checkup: Ducks In A Row - Healthcare Reimagined with Sue Robins
Sue Robins is back on the show, this time to talk about the necessary changes we need to see in healthcare. Sue is a healthcare activist, speaker and author. Her latest book, 'Ducks in a Row: Health Care Reimagined,' is for everyone who is unhappy with healthcare. 'Ducks in a Row' offers a scrappy challenge to the established healthcare world. She talks to the fellas about a lack of humanity in healthcare, how healthcare is not a car factory and how the hero narrative in healthcare is actually doing healthcare workers a disservice. Her book is available January 18th — look for it at https://www.suerobins.com/
Jan 10, 2022 • 1h 2min
The Search For Joy After Trauma - Brain Injury & PTSD w/ Emily Rodger
While working as a dental hygienist, Emily Rodger decided to pursue her passion for triathlon and cycling. In her full first year of bike racing (let me repeat: FIRST YEAR), she competed in 21 races, which included 17 podiums, 14 first place finishes, a national Masters title, and a world Masters title in time trial. Emily was on cloud 9, until she was violently struck by a car while on her bike. This accident did not hold her back, but it was the first of several incidents which led to years of physical, mental and emotional hardship. Emily is an incredible inspiration and we're grateful for her presence on the show.
Jan 7, 2022 • 1h 10min
Mama's Liquid Love - Feel Good Friday
The fellas are back in the studio and kick off the first Friday of 2022 full of beans. Jeremie is turning 34 and wants an airbag for the elderly for his birthday. Speaking of gifts, move over diamonds there is a new precious gemstone in town — breastmilk jewelry is so 2022. What's scarier than a petri dish full of human brain cells playing pong better than AI? Alexa telling a small child to stick a penny into an electrical socket. Speaking of shocking, have you ever seen what happens to the human body after it gets shocked by lightning? What'd be worse: being zapped or waking up in the morgue freezer still alive? All this and more on this week's Feel Good Friday.
Jan 5, 2022 • 55min
Routine Checkup: The Opioid Epidemic - Not Ending Any Time Soon
Dr. Michael L. Barnett is Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and a primary care physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. His research focuses on high-risk medications and the organization of primary and specialty care. This week he joins the fellas to talk about the opioid epidemic that continues to ravage the United States and what needs to change in order for us to see light at the end of the tunnel. There are many huge gaps in the addiction treatment system in the U.S. — reliance on abstinence-based therapy, low provider supply, unwillingness to address uninsurance or housing as a major issue. This is just the tip of the iceberg.
