In this episode, I had a conversation with Ariana Thacker, founder and CEO of MoldCo, to discuss mold-related illness and Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS). In 5-10 years everyone will know and understand how pervasive this is.
Ariana shares her personal journey from chemical engineer and venture capitalist to patient—and ultimately founder—after severe mold exposure left her cognitively impaired, exhausted, and searching for answers the conventional medical system couldn’t provide. We break down how mold illness actually presents in the body, why it’s so often misdiagnosed or dismissed, and how inflammation can affect the brain, hormones, immune system, and mental health.
We also discuss genetic susceptibility, what proper testing actually looks like, and how treatment protocols like the Shoemaker approach work in practice.
Ariana Thacker is the founder and CEO of MoldCo, a healthcare technology company and virtual care clinic redefining how medicine approaches environmental illness, starting with mold.
My experience with CIRS: Biotoxin.com
Free evidence-based questionnaire to help make the mold-health connection and determine your environmental risk score: https://access.moldco.com/signs.
Use ‘MIKHAILA’ for 15% off Ariana’s Mold Home Test Kit, Complete Health Panel, and CIRS Lab Panel: https://www.moldco.com/
—Ariana’s Links—
Testing: https://www.moldco.com/products
Free Questionnaire: https://access.moldco.com/signs
Company LinkedIn: 
/ moldco
Ariana’s LinkedIn: / arianadthacker
Instagram: 
/ themoldcompany
Ariana’s X: https://x.com/m0ldilocks
MoldCo’s X: https://x.com/themoldcompany
For a high quality, ideology-free education consider enrolling in Peterson Academy: https://petersonacademy.com/
—Chapters—
00:00 – Introduction
01:30 – Who Is Laila Mickelwait?
03:15 – The Story That Changed Laila’s Life Forever
06:00 – How Easy It Was to Upload Crime to Pornhub
10:00 – Launching the #TraffickingHub Movement
12:00 – The Global Petition and Media Firestorm
13:30 – Credit Card Companies Cut Ties with Pornhub
14:40 – 91% of Pornhub Content Deleted
16:00 – Why Verifying Uploaders Doesn’t Fix the Problem
18:00 – Real Victims, Real Lawsuits, Real Consequences
22:00 – Inside MindGeek and How the System Enabled Abuse
25:00 – What Allowed This to Go On for So Long
28:00 – Shocking Content That Was Monetized and Ignored
30:00 – The Need for Age and Consent Verification
33:00 – How Laws Are Finally Catching Up
36:00 – The Long-Term Trauma for Victims
40:00 – Laila’s Origin Story and Her Father’s Influence
44:00 – Parenting, Prevention, and Shame-Free Communication
48:00 – Early Exposure to Porn: The Stats and Impact
51:00 – Age Verification Laws and Industry Pushback
54:00 – Supreme Court Battle: States vs. Pornhub
56:00 – Porn Addiction and Its Neurological Effects
59:00 – Why This Fight Is Far from Over
#moldexposure #moldtoxicity #mycotoxins #indoorairquality #moldremediation