E209 | Lacey Jai Henderson: Beating Cancer, Betting On Yourself & Re-Defining Disability

We like to say meanings are in people, not in words. 

That statement never seemed more true than in reference to today’s guest, Lacey Jai Henderson. After losing her leg to Synovial Sarcoma at 9, Lacey has worked to rewrite the script for people living with disability everywhere. 

Following a Division I athletic scholarship for cheerleading, Lacey started competing in Paralympic Track and Field. Through a long journey of therapy, finding resilience and a lot of time on the track, she became an American Record Holder and a Rio Paralympian. In addition to working as a disability advocate, Lacey is getting her Master's in Sport and Performance Psychology and pursuing her CMPC certification while still training full time for paralympic track and field.

We cover: 

• Maneuvering life changing and/or impossibly hard conversations 
• How to use/approach ever-changing terminology with adaptive/disabled individuals
• Discovering underlying drives and communicating your preferred coaching style
• Why a dark sense of humor can become an important survival technique 

Connect with Lacey:

• Via her podcast: Picked Last in Gym Class 
• Via her social media: @laceyisyourfriend (IG), @laceyisyourfriend (Twitter)
• Via her website: https://laceyjhenderson.com/

And a big shout out to the sponsor of today’s episode LMNT. LMNT is our go-to hydration product. With no sugar and no additives, LMNT is how I manage to maintain my voice when speaking for 16 hours and traveling every other weekend of the year. Right now, they are offering you a free 8-flavor sample pack (just pay $5 shipping) if you go to drinkLMNT.com/aoc!

Support for today’s episode also comes from Dynamic Fitness & Strength. Dynamic offers the highest quality strength and conditioning equipment designed just for you, your space and your budget. Whether you’re looking to outfit your college, high school or professional gym or even just your garage, check out our friends at Dynamic and tell them Team AoC sent you!

We all know public speaking is one of the biggest fears people have; “What would I talk about?” “What if people don’t care?”, “How do I select my approach?” Let us give you confidence, clarity and a community of other people who can help you figure this out. 

If you’re ready to get guidance and you want practice speaking so you can be seen as a subject matter expert in your space, or just better at pitching your ideas, check out artofcoaching.com/speaker for dates and info!