Today we’d like to introduce you to Katya Karlova.
Hi Katya, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Katya Karlova is a former corporate VP turned visionary author and resilience alchemist, model, creator, speaker, and endometriosis advocate. Her debut book, Invisible Pain, Unstoppable Power, launches in summer 2025. Originally from Moldova, Katya immigrated to the U.S. as a child, later graduating early twice and earning degrees from both UCLA and University College London.
Over a 15-year global career in talent management and leadership coaching, she earned accolades including UCLA’s Young Alumnus of the Year and recognition as one of the top 50 talent professionals in the United States. But her path took a powerful turn during the COVID pandemic, when isolation forced her to confront lifelong struggles with body dysmorphia, anxiety, and depression.
In a bold act of healing, Katya broke into modeling—reclaiming control over her self-image and embracing her curves and femininity. This transformation also gave her the confidence to advocate for herself in a healthcare system that had dismissed her chronic pain for nearly two decades, ultimately leading to a life-changing endometriosis diagnosis.
Today, with over 500K followers across social media, Katya uses her platform to promote body positivity, feminine power, and self-love—while raising awareness for endometriosis and fighting for better treatment of women’s health issues. She’s been featured in Forbes, Grazia, and Cosmopolitan, named one of the Top 20 Empowering Women in the U.S. by Womenpreneur magazine, and partners with mission-driven brands aligned with her values.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Oh definitely not smooth! The issue is that talking about women’s health and especially reproductive health is still considered taboo and a stigma and it shouldn’t be.
If men had endometriosis, we would already have a cute. Rather, there is no cure and treatments are ineffective and antiquated with some side effects as bad as the illness itself.
We need to become comfortable discussing this subject if we hope to make any progress and it’s desperately needed. 1/10 women AT LEAST have endo or adenomyosis, a similar disease, that’s at least 190 million women worldwide and likely three times that because diagnosis requires surgery. Waiting 7-10 years for diagnosis and in my case 22 is simply unacceptable, familities, marriages, careers…are all being affected, especially when infertility is the result of ignorance and mismanagement by healthcare professionals.
We need to take a bold stance to protect women, living in pain is not living and fearing the loss of your fertility because a doctor is uninformed is shocking.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m known most for being the woman who walked away from a 15 year corporate career as a talent VP & leadership coach to follow a path more aligned with my heart by becoming a creator, model, speaker and now author, producer and philanthropist. I’ve always believed that women are so often put in boxes and it’s impossible to be both professional and sensual in our society. Most recently, in a shockingly related way, I’ve become an advocate for endometriosis, a chronic inflammatory disease that primarily affects women and 1/1o, 190 million, or even likely 30% of women around the world. Being a model and creator gave me the confidence I needed to advocate for myself in the medical community and finally get a life-changing diagnosis. I now work to continue me message of feminine power but also share a lot about endo and why we need to finally break the stigma and taboos that hold us back from actually helping so many women who are suffering every day with pain most cannot imagine.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
Since I lost my accent, most people don’t know that I’m also a first generation immigrant! I was born in Moldova and didn’t speak English when I emigrated here. Moldova is the poorest and often forgotten country in Europe, I hope one day I can contribute to people’s perception of the country and see it not for it’s corruption but for it’s rich history and gorgeous natural beauty,
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.katyabkarlova.com
- Instagram: @katya.b.karlova
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/katya.b.karlova
- Twitter: https://x.com/katya_b_karlova
Image Credits
@viggo.obscura- has consented
