Amateur Activist with Isabela Herrera

Cait joins the Amateur Activist to talk about the beast that is purity culture, a subculture of evangelical Christianity that saw its peak in the late 90's early 2000s that promoted a biblical view of purity. It does this by discouraging dating & promoting virginity before marriage through things like purity rings and purity vows / balls. The impact of purity culture on Christians is felt decades later and Cait and Isabela attempt to start to peel back the layers and simply have a discussion about the impact it had on their lives as well as the impact it had on some peers. What is purity? Is there unequal pressure put on women over men when it comes to staying pure? Do we toss out everything we learned in regards to purity culture? Can someone be sexually active in a committed relationship be seen as "purer" if their heart and actions are pure? The big question Cait and Isabela try to answer is: how can churches have a conversation about purity? We hope this conversation gives you a little bit of hope - that God is in it all, that there is a way to come out of purity culture and figure out what is healthy and helpful for you and your relationships. (and we hope you laugh)

Some accounts that we find helpful:

Instagram:

Sex The Whole Story

the.Holistic.Psychologist

Talk Purity to Me

Victoria joins the Amateur Activist to talk about tools they use to navigate the season of lockdowns and restrictions in 2021. As Sydney approaches almost 50 straight days in lockdown, Victoria and Isabela look back at the lockdowns of 2020 - what their mindsets were, the pressure they felt to be creative and handle it well and compare it to their mindsets now. They talk about the importance of community, even if it's in the form of "diet connection" and share various tools and grounding exercises that have helped them both do the last 43 days "well." We hope you feel encouraged and resourced by this episode. This is an overwhelming season, whether you're in lockdown or not, and we can get through this. 

At the end of the episode, Victoria and Isabela share different resources that have helped them and we've added them below:

Instagram Accounts:

Dr. Caroline Leaf

Afffirmation

Lets Talk Mental Health

MH Advocates

Honestly Holistic

Online:

Beyond Blue

Lifeline Australia - 13 11 14

Kids Helpline - 1800 55 1800

Mental Health America - 1800 273 8255

Yoga with Adrian 

Smiling Mind App

Isabel & Steph join the Amateur Activist to talk about their collective experience with OCD, how it presents in their lives, how they've learned to live with it & how their friends and family can support them on this journey. Isabel shares her experience of being recently diagnosed with OCD after having an overwhelming year, doing her research and finding the right therapist. Steph shares what she's learned over the last 6 years after doing her own research and receiving a diagnosis. Isabela shares the lightbulb moment of being told she has intrusive thoughts and corresponding compulsions, what the last 3 years have looked like and what tools she's acquired that has helped. Together, these three friends laugh through their shared experience of having one of the more common mental health issues. We hope that those struggling with overall anxiety disorders or OCD feel welcomed and seen, that those looking to support loved ones feel resourced, and that everyone else learned something new. 

Some resources that we recommend:

IG - @Windsor.Flynn

IG - @Obsessivelyeverafter

IG - @memes.ocd

Podcast - OCD Stories

Join us on episode 11 of "Not Your Average" Podcast as Jae Schaefer (friend, healer, creative writer) and Isabela have a really deep and interesting conversation around healing, the inner child, mental health & different ways they both navigate that and the link between creative writing and sexuality. Take an hour out of your day this week while we all self-iso to listen to an encouraging, comforting, fun yet challenging chat with two amazing women. For any podcast enquiries or sponsorships, please email [email protected] or DM her on instagram [ @belagiirrll ]! Don't forget to subscribe and leave us a review (they mean the world to Isabela) xx 

Resources: 

Jae Schaefer:

Instagram: @jaeschaefer

Facebook: Jae Schaefer

Youtube: Jae Schaefer

Keep an eye out for updates on the release of "Flirting with the Muse". 

Join us on episode 9 Part B of "Not Your Average" Podcast as Sarah Young (compassionate, Canadian, Theologian) and Isabela continue to unpack a couple different hot topics within theology & Christian circles. Episode 9 is unique in that it's 2 parts and it covers quite a big topic. Sarah and I are both young bible college students (with Sarah currently in a Master's program) and anything we talk about is from a place of discussion and conversation. 

**Disclaimer from the heart of Isabela:

"I just want to make sure that everyone listening knows this: regardless of what you believe or don't believe in, you are not only welcome here, in this little space, you are also immensely loved by the God we're about to talk about. We hope that you'll stick around for this bit, regardless of your belief system, because you never know .. you might find some of the questions interesting, you might find yourself forming thoughts around some of the things we're going to discuss, you might even find yourself disagreeing with us which is AWESOME and so so welcome and we want to hear about it and take this discussion outside of this week's episode." 

For any podcast enquiries or sponsorships or questions about today's episode, please email [email protected] or DM her on instagram [ @belagiirrll ]! Don't forget to subscribe and leave us a review (they mean the world to Isabela) xx

Join us on episode 9 Part A of "Not Your Average" Podcast as Sarah Young (compassionate, Canadian, Theologian) and Isabela begin to unpack who Sarah is and, they soon realize, how strongly theology has woven itself through Sarah. This episode is just the start of a great conversation that is to be continued in Part B coming soon (in just 3 days!). If you know Sarah, you know how big her heart is and how curious she can be and they talk a lot about, what seems to be everything. While you wait for Part B, spend some time this week/day to unpack all that is Sarah Young - the melancholy, the dark & twisty, the curious, and all the rabbit trails. For any podcast enquiries or sponsorships, please email [email protected] or DM her on instagram [ @belagiirrll ]! Don't forget to subscribe and leave us a review (they mean the world to Isabela) xx