A new year is almost upon us, “What’s Her Problem?” community! What better way to prepare than by taking stock of everything that’s happened for this publication in 2025 and looking ahead to 2026?
“What’s Her Problem?” Stats
“What’s Her Problem?” launched on August 1, 2025
21 New Issues Published
Currently, there are 838 total Followers! Of those, 250 are Subscribers, 20 of whom are Paid Subscribers, including 2 fabulous Open-Hearted Supporters, the highest tier of Paid Subscriptions.
Subscribers are located across 31 U.S. States and 19 countries.1
This far exceeds the goals I set for this year. Thank you all so much!
2025 Superlatives
Most Viewed Post:
The Doctor Will See You Now(ish)
Most Audience Interaction with a Post:
What’s Her Problem?
Deb’s Personal Top 3 of the Year:
Holding My Heartbeat in My Hands
This was one of the hardest to write, but I’m very proud of how it turned out.
How Are You Feeling?
I love that this piece sits at the intersection of two of my interests: patient advocacy and musical theatre.
Weird Science
While this was a crazy experience, it’s one of my favorite stories. And the twist at the end is so emblematic of the ups and downs of my health journey.
Posts That Generated the Most Conversation with Family and Friends:
Breaking Up is Hard to Do
The Time Delta Lost My Walker (Parts 1 and 2)
Most Popular Note:
If you haven’t used Notes on Substack, it’s their social media tool. Upon curating your interests and settings, it becomes a far friendlier and less toxic social media environment than some other platforms. I post something there almost every day about this Substack, my medical journey, and, occasionally, the local wildlife.
Favorite Compliment I’ve Received About “What’s Her Problem?”:
Many of you said such lovely things, but I picked my fave based a bit on sentimentality. My lifelong best friend told me she enjoys listening to the audio version of each post because it makes her feel like I am telling her a story, and she learns something new from every issue.
Most Poorly Publicized Accomplishments of 2025:
I set up the “What’s Her Problem?” website with sections for past posts. If you only want to read posts about Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM), or you prefer to focus on Chronic Illness, Disability, Neuropathy, Living with an ICD, or Resources, the issues are now filtered for your convenience. Check it out!
I was invited to write a guest blog post on “Tips for Managing Chronic Illness and Mental Health” for Launch Psychological Associates, which you can read here.
Goals for “What’s Her Problem?” in 2026
Build More Community!:
I would love to see more people liking, commenting, and restacking each post, as well as interacting with each other in the comments sections. If you comment on a post, you will get a relatively prompt response directly from me!
Make the Interview Series a Regular Feature:
I loved talking to my first Interview Series Guest, Sarah Hom, and can’t wait to share more installments of these long-form video chats with you in 2026. I’ve got a couple in the works that I’m excited for you to watch/listen to.
Tweak Some Offerings:
I am constantly looking at new things to try for both Free and Paid Subscribers, as well as my own schedule, and this publication will continue to evolve over time.
I’m open to feedback! Are there any topics or features you would like to see? Always feel free to reach out with a comment or question.
More Collaborations:
I hope to collaborate with other creators on Substack, whether by trading recommendations, exchanging guest posts, or swapping podcasts and Interview Series appearances.
Plan for the Next Two Weeks
It’s time for a holiday break! In lieu of new issues, on Friday, December 26, 2025 and Friday, January 2, 2026, you will receive “From the Archives” editions of “What’s Her Problem?” The next new post will hit your inbox on Friday, January 9, 2026.
A final thank you message from me, as we close out the year:
Each issue of “What’s Her Problem?” includes questions for further discussion. You can Leave a Comment publicly below, or become a Paid Subscriber to join the conversation in the private community Chat.
This week’s questions:
Do you have any feedback on “What’s Her Problem?” Any topics or questions you hope will be addressed in the future? Are there features or benefits for Free or Paid Subscribers that you’d like to see?
As of 12/6/25
This is a great summary! If I could actually get my poop in a group, I would put together something similar. Alas, I remain terminally disorganized.