Our Story
The Mind Your Liver™ Podcast emerged from survival, resilience, and the power of real human connection.
WHY THIS PODCAST EXISTS
MIND YOUR LIVER. IT NEEDS YOU. ™
Vanessa Wojtala is the Founder and President of the Liver Awareness Foundation and the creator of the Mind Your Liver™ Podcast. Her work sits at the intersection of lived experience, media advocacy, and young adult health education, shaped not by theory, but by survival.
In 2022, Vanessa survived sudden and catastrophic liver failure while thousands of miles from home. Facing an uncertain prognosis, she immersed herself in liver function, liver disease, and lifestyle related risk factors with the urgency of fighting for her life. What emerged was a difficult realization, years of normalized wine culture and unexamined behaviors had quietly shaped her risk long before symptoms appeared.
As a survivor of liver failure, alcohol related hepatitis, and stage 4 cirrhosis, Vanessa built this mission from the inside out. Through discipline, informed self advocacy, and sustained lifestyle change, she reversed a diagnosis once considered irreversible. Her work today reflects that truth, recovery is possible, prevention matters, and young adults deserve earlier education and honest conversations about liver health.
With a background in multimedia journalism, sports marketing, and digital entrepreneurship, Vanessa leads all creative and strategic direction across the Liver Awareness Foundation’s education, media, and advocacy initiatives. She is committed to an alcohol free life, including wine, and uses her lived experience to drive stigma reduction, early education, and empowerment for young adults navigating risk, recovery, and long term liver health.
MIND YOUR LIVER. IT NEEDS YOU. ™
This podcast is shaped by lived experience and supported by clinical and advisory expertise through the Liver Awareness Foundation, helping guide education, awareness, and prevention conversations beyond the mic.
Elizabeth “Liz” Lee and the Trust That Shaped This Work
Elizabeth “Liz” Lee was Vanessa Wojtala’s primary health care provider following discharge from hospital after acute liver failure. She provided direct clinical care through the Francis Family Liver Clinic at Toronto General Hospital, one of Canada’s leading liver specialty clinics for advanced and complex liver disease.
From January 2023 through December 2024, Liz was responsible for Vanessa’s ongoing medical care, monitoring, and clinical guidance during recovery from liver failure, alcohol related hepatitis, and stage four cirrhosis. Her role included active medical management, follow up care, patient education, and continuity of care throughout a prolonged and high risk recovery period.
As the Liver Awareness Foundation began to take shape, Liz played a foundational role in establishing its medical backbone. She brought clinical expertise, leadership, and real world patient perspective into the organization, helping ensure that its education and advocacy work would be grounded in evidence based care and informed by lived experience from the beginning.
In December 2024, Vanessa’s medical care was formally transferred to another provider to eliminate any conflict of interest. Vanessa provided full and informed consent for Liz to disclose relevant medical history for educational and advocacy purposes. This transition allowed Liz to step into a formal leadership role within the Liver Awareness Foundation as Vice President and Board Director, contributing her clinical expertise to education, prevention, and stigma reduction efforts.
Elizabeth Lee currently serves as Vice President of the Liver Awareness Foundation, providing clinical insight and advisory support to its education and advocacy work.
Together, alongside a growing team of clinicians, researchers, and advisors, they are advancing a shared mission:
To empower young adults with liver health knowledge, break stigma, and confront the silent threats of liver disease through education, prevention, and early action.