Episode 196

Why Leaving Corporate with Chronic Illness Feels So Scary (and What Helps) | Liz Carmines

Published on: 2nd May, 2025

Thinking about leaving your 9–5, but chronic illness makes it feel impossible?

In this honest and empowering episode, I sit down with Liz Carmines—business owner and social media strategist—who shares her personal journey of navigating pain, brain fog, and burnout while working in corporate…and how she knew it was time to leap into full-time entrepreneurship.

We talk about the guilt of “not doing enough,” the emotional cost of looking fine when you're not, and the surprising things that made the transition feel safer and more doable.

If you’ve ever asked yourself, “What happens if my health flares up and I can’t keep going?” or “Can I really run a business with this body?” — this conversation is for you.

In this episode, we explore:

  • Why corporate flexibility isn’t always enough when you’re in pain
  • How chronic illness shapes our fears around financial and emotional stability
  • What to do before quitting to transition smoother
  • A way to structure your business for peace of mind, not just profit
  • The healing power of agency, boundaries, and building a team early
  • Mindset shifts that help when fear or impostor syndrome creeps in
  • What to consider now if you want to leave your job later

Whether you’re side hustling with limited energy, stuck in guilt loops at work, or just craving more freedom on your terms, this episode will make you feel seen and supported.

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Products We Love + Special Guest Gifts → Want to support the show and treat yourself? We’ve created a quick-access list of products I personally use and love, exclusive savings from podcast guests, and other gems that can help you live well and do business with chronic illness. Explore our faves + savings here!


Subscribe HERE to Chronically Profitable, A free exclusive weekly email series designed for creatives and women with chronic illnesses. You'll learn how to make a liveable income with your hobbies, professional skills, and innate talents by building a successful online coaching business with simple strategies that work for you, even on flare days, and feel better living with chronic illness.


To Start and Grow A Coaching or Service-Based Business with Chronic Illness, Book A Free Sales Call With Nikita Here.


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About the Podcast

Business With Chronic Illness: Simple Sustainable Growth and Burnout Healing For CEO Women
A podcast for entrepreneurs who want success while keeping their health first in business.
Running a business while living with chronic illness is not easy, and most business advice ignores the reality of burnout, living with autoimmune disorders, unpredictable energy, and navigating everyday health and wellness while starting and growing a business. That’s why this podcast is designed to help you build a business that works with your body, not against it.

If you’re a woman entrepreneur, creative, or CEO navigating chronic illness, burnout, or healing and recovering from hustle culture, this show is for you.

Every week, host Nikita Williams brings you simple, sustainable business strategies rooted in her four core content pillars:
• Business Systems and Operations: capacity-first planning, automation, and flare-proof operations.
• Sustainable Marketing and Sales: creative, voice-first strategies like podcasting that convert without social burnout.
• Mindset & Life with Chronic Illness: stories, resets, and tools to honor your health and energy.
• Empowering Entrepreneur Stories: real women building profitable businesses with chronic illness.

Expect a mix of coaching insights, practical strategies, and inspiring interviews delivered with warmth, realness, and the reminder that rest is a strategy and you can be successful at whatever pace you have right now.

As a globally-ranked podcast host (top 2.5%), award-winning business coach, and speaker, Nikita has built a six-figure business while navigating endometriosis, Hashimoto’s, Fibromyalgia, and chronic pain. She’s helped hundreds of women say yes to building profitable businesses that align with their health, life, and values.

Featured guests include thought leaders like Jasmine Star, Danielle Bayard Jackson, Natasha Samuel, and more.

Business With Chronic Illness is where women come to find support, clarity, and simple strategies to grow without the hustle.

Follow the show now so you don’t miss an episode, and visit craftedtothrive.com
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About your host

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Nikita Williams

Welcome to Business with Chronic Illness — the podcast for women who are building big dreams with limited energy.
I’m Nikita Williams, and I know what it’s like to be living in pain, carrying a diagnosis (or several), and still wanting more — more purpose, more income, more alignment, more ease. After leaving behind a traditional path and navigating the emotional rollercoaster of chronic illness, I decided to rewrite the rules of success. And now? I help other women do the same.
Here, we have honest conversations about what it really takes to build a sustainable, profitable business when your health is unpredictable. No hustle culture. No toxic positivity. Just powerful stories, practical strategies, and mindset shifts that work — even on flare days.
You’ll hear from guests who get it, solo episodes from my heart to yours, and insights I’ve learned coaching dozens of women through launching and growing their dream businesses — on their terms.
Because business is personal. And when you build it that way, it not only becomes easier… it becomes life-giving.
💬 Tune in, take what you need, and know this: You Are Crafted To Thrive.