Katya Karlova, Model, Speaker, and Endo Advocate to Release New Book, “Invisible Pain, Unstoppable Power”
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 October 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. She partners with mission-driven brands aligned with her values.
Katya is releasing her new book, “Invisible Pain, Unstoppable Power” accompanied by a journal in October.
You’ve had a successful corporate career that you left to become an advocate for endometriosis. Share your journey.
That’s a great question, I’ve certainly had a curvy road and it hasn’t been easy! I had a very successful corporate career but I always had deep, lingering body image issues, facing them head on through modeling is what helped me work through them. People often don’t understand boudoir photography and how it’s all about empowerment, confidence, feminine power, etc but that’s exactly what it is and it helped me heal my issues with my body which translated to me being more confident overall. We undermine what a big role the way we feel in our own bodies actually plays in how we show up in life. The confidence I gained helped me advocate for myself in the broken medical industry until I finally found a diagnosis for the chronic pain and various other symptoms I’d hidden for 22 years. I advocate for endo because it’s not just an invisible illness it’s extremely dismissed, disregarded and women experience gaslighting for 7-10 years before they get a diagnosis and even then, there is no cure and the treatments are antiquated or ineffective. If men had this disease I believe there would be a cure so I use my platform to raise awareness because we need men as allies to solve this.
In a bold act of healing, you broke into modeling—reclaiming control over your self-image and embracing her curves and femininity. How has modeling changed your life?
It’s transformed my life completely. I finally feel comfortable in my body and can now tell how many people really don’t and it shows up in many ways- people become more people-pleasing, live with guilt or shame, struggle with their mental health…so many things and I relate to all of them. The relationship we have with our bodies is crucial to our overall wellness and yet, we don’t talk about it enough or recognize its importance, especially for women who go through various significant phases in their lives. Working with brands like Secrets in Lace, True Corset, Marie Mur, Love Honey and so many others has been like a dream- if you told me 5 years ago I’d be modeling lingerie I would not have believed you!!
Tell us about your debut book, Invisible Pain, Unstoppable Power and your mission to put women’s health in the forefront of discussion globally.
The truth is harsh…women’s health and especially women’s reproductive & sexual health truly has a stigma and taboo associated with it, especially around the world. I’m passionate about helping women going through endo or an invisible illness because I was completely lost, feeling alone, isolated and just broken after my diagnosis. This book isn’t what people think it is, it’s not a sob story about how hard my journey was, it’s a guide to help them through the difficult healing process and a blueprint for perseverance and resilience, I poured all I learned into this book to help others find empowerment and purpose through the pain.
What are some of the misnomers about endometriosis?
Wow, there are SO many myths about endo it’s shocking. Most doctors and gynecologists aren’t even operating under the correct information and often do more damage than good, that’s what happened to me unfortunately. I share a lot of that on my non-profit site www.endo-visible.com which I’d recommend anyone to check out and hopefully donate because endo is so incredibly expensive to treat and poorly funded. I created several free resources on this exact topic that people can download and share.
Tell us about your nonprofit and your mission.
The mission of the Endo-Visible Foundation is to raise awareness, initiate advocacy and work to make endo treatment affordable. Most people don’t know that endo warriors spend tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars on treatments because so much is not covered by insurance. I spent $75,000 of my own savings my first year battling endo so in addition to my body being drained, my bank account was too. I want people to know that because I hope it shows them their donation really makes a difference.
Why “Endo-Visible”?
Endometriosis is often called the invisible disease by the World Health Organization (WHO)—its pain hidden beneath the surface, its impact misunderstood, and those who suffer from it too often unheard.
We chose the name Endo-Visible Foundation because our mission is to change that. We exist to make endo seen, to give voice to the millions living with this chronic, life-altering condition, and to build a world where women’s pain is no longer ignored.
“Endo-Visible” is a promise to break the silence and bring visibility to what has too long remained unseen. It’s also a subtle play on the word indivisible, showing that we by coming together we become stronger, always.
What is next?
Wow, this year it was so important for me to finish my first book, launch my non profit and finish my documentary and that last one I’m still working on! It’s funny, I never planned on any of these things but someone has to speak out, silence only fuels stigma and that’s what we’re fighting against. It’s only now that some countries and states are creating legislation around women’s health, up until now women suffered and it was just “normal” which I find truly shocking having now gone through it myself. There is a lot to do on endo advocacy but I also want to never forget my initial goal of sharing a path toward discovering, embracing and living within our feminine power. I talk about that in my book and in addition to teaching the art of resilience, I also want to teach the art of femininity so perhaps in addition to speaking engagements there is a coaching element down the line!
@katyabkarlova
The Endo-Visible Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization committed to shedding light on endometriosis—a chronic, whole body inflammatory, and currently incurable illness that affects 1 in 10 women worldwide. We are dedicated to raising awareness, providing educational resources, and offer unwavering support to those living with the pain and complexities of this often misunderstood disease.
