Today we’d like to introduce you to Cat Hursh.
Hi Cat, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I’ve had an entrepreneurial spirit for as long as I can remember. From a young age, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life: create videos and play basketball. By the age of four, I was making my own movies using an old family camcorder and editing them on our home computer. Around the same time, I picked up a basketball—and both passions quickly became places where I felt free to be myself.
As I got older, I played in the Katy Youth Basketball League while continuing to make videos. In fifth grade, inspired by The Hunger Games, I wrote a script in my journal and rallied my entire class to film a homemade version of the movie. After weeks of practicing at recess, we gathered on a Saturday morning at a nearby park, shooting the whole project on an iPad and editing it in iMovie.
At age 11, I launched my first YouTube channel, posting vlogs, basketball videos, challenges, and more. I fell in love with the idea that I could create anything I wanted and share it with the world. In eighth grade, I started another channel with friends, uploading weekly videos that grew to over 8,000 subscribers. My personal channel had also hit over 2,000. I was amazed people actually cared about what I was making.
Meanwhile, basketball was becoming more serious. I made the varsity team as a freshman in high school, which meant less time for YouTube. My friends’ channel faded, but I kept creating on my own because I couldn’t let it go. Then in 2017, YouTube updated its policies and flagged many of my harmless vlogs as inappropriate, eventually terminating my channel. Just like that, years of work were gone. It crushed me—but not enough to stop me. I started fresh on a new channel.
My senior year of high school, COVID-19 hit, cutting my final season and school experience short. Then, at 18, I tore my knee and underwent my first major surgery, putting my basketball dreams—and much of my happiness—on hold. I couldn’t play, I couldn’t create, and I spiraled into depression. One knee surgery became two… then three. Every time I tried to come back, something else broke—physically and mentally. I felt like I was losing everything that made me… me.
But deep down, I wasn’t ready to give up. By the summer of 2022, after my second surgery, I pushed myself harder than ever—training daily, emailing coaches, chasing one last shot to play college ball. I got that shot: a walk-on tryout at Houston Baptist University (now Houston Christian University). I made the team. By November, I’d earned a full-ride scholarship to play Division I basketball—a lifelong dream come true.
But something still wasn’t right. My knee never fully healed. I played through constant pain, popping Advil before every practice, hurting my shoulder in the process. By early 2023, I had shoulder surgery… and another knee surgery. When I returned that fall, everything changed. The pain was unbearable. I couldn’t run or jump without agony. Eventually, the coaches sat me down and told me I was being medically retired. Just like that, my basketball career—my identity—was gone.
I went numb. The physical pain was nothing compared to the mental weight. I fell into a dark place and began abusing prescription drugs—the same ones I was given after every surgery. On November 4th, 2023, I overdosed. I woke up in an ambulance, unable to answer simple questions, convinced I was going to die. Lying in that hospital bed, vomiting and terrified, I had an epiphany: nothing I was facing was worth my life.
I wasn’t trying to die. I was trying to escape. But I realized the only way out was through. My older brother made me a promise: if I started creating again—the thing I’d always loved—he’d face his fear of heights and go skydiving with me. So I started small: I posted my overdose story on YouTube. For the first time in years, I felt free, like I didn’t have to hide or run from my pain anymore. I committed to posting one video a week for a year, to feed that inner child who first fell in love with making movies.
It wasn’t all easy. I was still grieving basketball. Still healing. But I kept creating—and I kept living. I turned 22 and traveled across the world to Taiwan and the Philippines with my brother. For the first time, I saw how big and beautiful the world really is. When we got home, he kept his promise: we jumped out of a plane together. It changed both of us forever.
The very next day, I underwent my fourth major knee surgery — a complex reconstruction that required an overnight hospital stay. After eight long weeks on crutches, I was finally able to walk again… but then disaster struck. I was t-boned in a serious car accident. Glass embedded in my arm. My legs, badly bruised. Worst of all: I lost my memory for nearly three hours. It was my second ambulance ride in just seven months. At the ER, after a battery of tests, doctors discovered my liver was lacerated. I spent days in the hospital — shaken, in pain, but incredibly lucky to be alive.
But the worst injury was invisible: a traumatic brain injury that left me with daily, crushing headaches that no doctor could fix. I had one semester left of college, but because no one could see the pain, support was limited. Still, I made good on my promise to myself: I kept creating. I kept living.
Within a year, I gained over 10,000 subscribers on YouTube—but more importantly, I rediscovered me. The real me. No more hiding. No more running. Just showing up every day, as I am. I graduated college. I believed in myself again.
As I write this in June 2025, I’m building the next chapter—still creating, still healing, still believing. The most important thing I’ve learned over the past five years is this: don’t run from your pain. Face it. One step at a time. Some days, even one step feels like too much—and that’s okay. Because life always moves forward. Things change. Hope returns. And simply being alive is a blessing we should never forget.
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?
Not at all—it’s been far from smooth. Growing up, I often felt disconnected from most people, like an outsider. I realized at a very young age that I was different—I didn’t like boys—and for years I tried to suppress those feelings. I just wanted to be “normal” like everyone else. But those distractions never worked, and it became an isolating experience for a young kid who was scared to be themselves.
Basketball became my safe space—the one place where it was okay to be a tomboy, to be different. On the court, I didn’t have to fit into anyone’s expectations. I could just be an athlete. But outside of basketball, life felt lonely. Every internal struggle I had stayed bottled up because I was terrified of rejection or not being accepted. I hid parts of myself from my family, friends—everyone. Over time, that turned into avoidant behavior and, ultimately, self-hatred. I didn’t want to be the way I was.
There were so many times I tried to be like the other girls—dating guys, dressing more feminine—but all it did was deepen the disconnect I felt with myself. It wasn’t until I was 21, after I lost basketball, that I was finally forced to face who I really was. Without my outlet, without the identity of “the athlete” or “the tomboy,” all that was left… was me. Cat. And in that uncomfortable space, I slowly began to build self-love—the love I had always been searching for.
To this day, I still wrestle with fears of rejection, social anxiety, and the need for acceptance. But the difference now is that I understand the only acceptance I truly need… is my own. And that realization has allowed me to live with so much more freedom.
I may always carry those fears with me, but facing them head-on has given me a confidence I never thought I could have.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
In simple terms—I’m a creator. I specialize in turning ideas into captivating stories through the art of filmmaking. I love every part of the process: writing the script, filming the content, and bringing the story to life through editing. Whether it’s a short film, a documentary-style vlog, or a personal story, I aim to make the viewer feel something real.
What I’m most known for—and what I’m most proud of—is creating vulnerable, authentic content. In a world where social media is often filled with carefully curated highlights and filtered realities, I choose to do the opposite. I share the hard stuff—the struggles, the failures, the mental health battles—because I believe that’s where real connection happens. Life isn’t always sunshine and perfect moments, and I don’t pretend that it is. My channel and platform have become a safe space where people feel seen, heard, and comfortable enough to share their own stories. That community—that honesty—is what I’m most proud of building.
What sets me apart from others is this willingness to be completely transparent. Many creators focus on aesthetics or the illusion of a perfect life, but I’ve found that the real beauty comes from showing the broken pieces—and how you put them back together. I don’t shy away from my lowest moments because I know they’re part of the story. In fact, some of my most meaningful content has come from the hardest chapters of my life. I turn pain into art, and struggle into something hopeful—and that honesty is what allows me to deeply connect with my audience in a way that feels human, not just entertaining.
What’s next?
My plans for the future are simple but meaningful: I want to build a career doing what I love — creating. Whether that’s editing videos, producing for a company, continuing to grow my YouTube channel, or one day directing a film, my goal is to tell stories that connect with people.
I recently graduated college and recovered from my sixth and final surgery. Now, I’m actively searching for that dream opportunity — a role where I can learn, grow, and contribute as a creator. I’m ready to start a new chapter: one that pushes me outside my comfort zone, introduces me to new people, and expands my perspective.
Beyond building my career, I’m eager to travel — to experience new cultures, food, art, and music… and of course, to capture it all on film. I want to create a life that feels like an adventure, both personally and professionally. Life will never be easy, but if it weren’t for the challenges and hardships, there would be no happiness or peace. Always. Keep. Going.
Pricing:
- Photography Pricing: 1 Hour Shoot: … $50 & 30 Minute Shoot: … $35
- Videography Pricing: 1 Hour Filming Session.$ 75 2 Hour Filming Session… $ 140 Half-Day (4 Hours)…$ 250 Full-Day (8 Hours)$..$450
- Video Editing: Basic Edit (1-2 min video)…$60 Standard Edit (3-5 min video)…$100 Extended Edit (6-10 min video)…$200 Social Media Reels..$30
Contact Info:
- Website: https://cathursh.wixsite.com/cathursh
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cathursh/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cat-hursh/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@CatHursh
