Jeremie Saunders, Taylor MacGillivary, and Brian Stever

Jeremie Saunders, Taylor MacGillivary, and Brian Stever are the hosts of Sick Boy.

Describe Sickboy in 10 words or less.
Irreverent health podcast with a comedic twist.

What are your favorite episodes?
Jeremie: Hard to say what my favourite episode would be. But most memorable would have to be the conversation we had with Audrey Parker. She was a woman who decided to go forward with MAiD (Medical Assistance in Dying). We recorded with her 1 month  before her death day and the recording was live in front of the Dalhouse Medical Students in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It was a heartwrenching, beautiful and hilarious conversation that changed my life.

Taylor: We’ve had the opportunity to speak with so many people about so many things, that the answer to this question is always shifting. Because I’m a new dad who used IVF to have my daughter, one of the episodes that jumps to mind for me is a conversation we had with a woman named Joanne Gallant about miscarriages. There were so many things about the female reproductive system that I was so egregiously ignorant of, that it was just a phenomenal learning experience. It also completely changed the way I thought about sharing important information with people in my life, so that in the event of something tragic, I don’t feel isolated or alone, but I’ve got support from people who understand what I’m going through.

Brian: All the episodes that featured Brandon Thomas. Brandon was first introduced to us in episode 27, “Osteosarcoma/Life as an Amputee”. We met Brandon after he had gone through a surgical procedure known as a ‘Van Ness RotationPlasty’, where his the top half of his leg was amputated and the bottom half was turned around and reattached to the head of his femur so his ankle could function as a knee joint. Brandon was 21 when we met him and we quickly became best friends. He slept over at my house countless times, we hung out on evenings and weekends together. It was like we’d known him our entire lives. Brandon appeared on the show multiple times over the next two year period as a guest and at times as a guest host. Devastatingly Brandon’s cancer kept coming back and he died in 2018. The single greatest thing I’ve taken away from doing this podcast is my friendship with Brandon and the conversations we had with him in those early years helped lay the foundation for the show as it exists today.

Why are you the perfect hosts for this show?
Jeremie: Personally, I think I’m a perfect host because I’m a legit sick boy. I’ve lived with Cystic Fibrosis for my entire life, and when I was a kid I remember being teased by another boy in my class. He called me disease boy. It stung at the time, but when we created the podcast I decided to take back the hurtful nickname and make it my own. Sickboy rolls off the tongue a hell of a lot better than Disease Boy. 

Taylor: Since the moment I met Jeremie, we laughed about some of the ridiculous things that come along with him being sick. Whether it’s the Avenger-esque six pack he sports from nearly coughing himself to death, or the nebulizer he uses for medication that I was convinced was a weed vape (way before it was legal), humour has always been a part of our relationship to his illness.

Brian: Jeremie has a knack for hosting and steering conversations effortlessly. Taylor, with his inquisitive nature, is brilliant at posing thought-provoking questions, making every discussion enlightening. On the other hand, I find myself delving more into the emotional spectrum. I am keen on understanding the emotional impact of a moment on someone, rather than getting caught up in the details of the event. I think in some part these roles are representative of who we are as individuals, but I also believe that through recording this show for almost 9 years in some ways these roles have also shaped us.

How are you all different? What do you each bring to the table?
Jeremie: Aside from bringing the perspective of the sick human to the show I think I also bring a deep sense of curiosity to the table. I went to University to study acting. A big part of acting is digging into all of the aspects of humanity that make us tick in order to understand a particular character. Why do we make the decisions we make? What past experiences have shaped us into who we are? I think training at a conservatory style acting school has really hammered home this fascination with what makes humans human and what better a place to hone that curiosity when speaking to strangers about some of the most intimate and challenging aspects of their lives.

Taylor: On Sickboy, I bring a philosophical lean to the conversation, which, I think, opens up discussion that feels much less like we’re interviewing someone, and rather just asking interesting questions that opens up the floor for our guests, and also Bri and Jer.

I’ve spent a lot of time in my life studying mindfulness and yoga philosophy, and it gives me a way of questions that get to the heart of the human condition, but also creates a great framework for me to understand the experience of others, however different it may be from mine.

Brian: Guys, I already answered this question above. Why don’t you guys ever listen to me!!!???

Jeremie, do people reach out to you about Cystic Fibrosis?
Jeremie: Constantly. Whether it’s new parents of a CF child, or patients who have lived with the disease for years, or perhaps a new partner of someone living with CF. This might be one of my favourite aspects of doing this show. Speaking to others about CF is my way of advocating. Encouraging patients or their loved ones to advocate by sharing my experience and knowledge on the disease. 

Oddly enough, we did an episode early on in the podcast about how I got circumcised at the age of 16 because of “Phimosis” (unrelated to CF) and since that episode has come out we’ve had over 15 people reach out to tell us that they never realized they had phimosis until they listened to that episode and they have had their whole life changed for the better after getting circumcised as a result. So, yeah… people reach out about CF, but way more people have reached out about their semi-broken penises. 

How does making Sickboy impact your life? Are you more in tune with people who are suffering? Are you better listeners? Are you more comfortable talking about illness?
Jeremie: I sort of mentioned this before but after we created Sickboy and it began to take on a life of it’s own, I realized that this is my way of advocating for the patient voice. Patient advocacy can be really challenging, but one of the things that make advocating for yourself or your loved ones easier is being armed with knowledge. Speaking about your illness provides you with that knowledge. Sure it might not be knowledge that you may find in a medical text book, but it’s the knowledge of your own personal experience. What you feel in your body. What you feel in your mind. When you deepen your vocabulary surrounding your own personal experience, you deepen you knowledge about what it is that you need, when you need it. And that goes a lot way for the patient. 

Taylor: Once it was out there in the world that I have these types of challenging conversations about illness, I noticed how many people were eager to talk about what they were going through in a more casual manner, but had previously felt like talking about their illness had to be heavy because of the way people typically approach the topic.

In my personal life, it has also enhanced my capacity for empathy, which is, admittedly, not a natural strong suit of mine. That has allowed me to have better communication with my wife, and it has also allowed me to be much more thoughtful and mindful of how I want to communicate with my daughters as they get older.

Brian: Sickboy has significantly changed my life and the way I empathize with those around me. It has not only been a platform for me to channel my creative and entrepreneurial spirit but also a place where I've connected with countless incredible individuals and built friendships. Each conversation, each episode we've recorded, has been a learning expedition, expanding my understanding and empathy. It has challenged me to view life from multiple points of view, each with its unique narrative and emotional undertone. Additionally, the friendship I've been able to further build with Jeremie and Taylor over the years has grown stronger, and together we've created a space where candid discussions, laughter, and insights flourish. Sickboy is not just a podcast to me, it's a journey that continues to shape my personal and professional life profoundly.

What’s a podcast you love that everyone already knows about?
Jeremie: The UFO Rabbit Hole

Taylor: Wind of Change 

Brian: Hard Fork

What’s a podcast you love that not enough people know about?
Jeremie: Bad Dad Rad Dad

Taylor: Hello From The Magic Tavern

Brian: Just Chips Dot Com

Thanks, Jeremie, Taylor, and Brian!