🖤 Content note: This episode discusses child loss, grief, and trauma. Please take care while listening.In Episode 10 of Auntie Mel Mel Life Unfiltered, Mel sits down with Jason, the creator of Letters to Zachary, a grief community born from unimaginable loss and transformed into connection, vulnerability, and purpose.

Jason is a father who spent 12 years as a stay-at-home dad and medical caregiver to his two children with complex needs. After the sudden and unexpected passing of his son Zachary, Jason chose to grieve out loud—creating Letters to Zachary as a raw, unfiltered space where men can feel safe being vulnerable, grieving parents can feel seen, and women can better understand how men process loss.

This conversation explores grief from a father’s perspective, the emotional weight men are often expected to carry silently, the realities of caregiving loss, and how vulnerability can become a lifeline—not just for healing, but for connection.

This episode is honest, heavy at times, and incredibly important. If you’ve experienced loss, love someone who is grieving, or believe men deserve space to feel, this conversation is for you.

🌐 Website: https://letterstozachary.com/
📘 Coloring Book (created in honor of Zachary): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DC5GSFZK

#Episode10
#LettersToZachary
#GriefSupport
#ChildLossAwareness
#GrievingParents
#MenAndGrief
#Fatherhood
#MentalHealthAwareness
#GriefJourney
#HealingThroughGrief
#CaregiverGrief
#VulnerabilityIsStrength
#YouAreNotAlone
#LifeUnfilteredPodcast

In this episode, I’m joined by Victoria, a somatic and mindfulness coach and co-founder of the Healing Arts Center. We talk about healing from the inside out, nervous system regulation, burnout, trauma, and what it really means to reconnect with your body in a gentle, supportive way.

Victoria shares her journey into somatic work, how mindfulness and body-based practices can support healing during major life transitions, and simple tools listeners can begin using right away. This conversation is grounded, insightful, and a reminder that healing isn’t about fixing yourself — it’s about learning to feel safe within yourself again.

🎧 Audio note: During the first ~18 minutes, my audio is very quiet and slightly robotic due to a headset issue, while Victoria’s audio sounds great. You may want to turn your volume up or skip ahead. Around the 18-minute mark, my audio returns to full volume and sounds clear for the remainder of the episode.

🔗 Learn more about Healing Arts Center:
https://www.healingartsvb.com/

#AuntieMelMel
#LifeUnfiltered
#SomaticHealing
#Mindfulness
#NervousSystemRegulation
#HolisticHealing
#HealingJourney
#TraumaInformed
#BurnoutRecovery
#WellnessPodcast
#MentalHealthMatters

Content Warning:This episode includes discussion of pregnancy loss, adoption, and foster care themes. Listener discretion is advised.

In this episode of Auntie Mel Mel: Life Unfiltered, I sit down with Megan Jones to talk about her journey into motherhood through adoption.

This is a conversation about love, resilience, and finding your way forward when life doesn’t unfold the way you expected. Megan shares her story in her own words — reflecting on motherhood, hope, and the unexpected steps that led her to becoming a mom.

Whether you’re navigating your own path to parenthood, considering adoption, or simply listening with an open heart, this episode is honest, gentle, and deeply human.

Grab a cozy drink and join us.

#AuntieMelMel

#LifeUnfiltered

#PodcastEpisode

#AdoptionJourney

#MotherhoodUnfiltered

#DifferentPathsToMotherhood

#ChosenFamily

#HopeAndHealing

Welcome to WWAMMD — What Would Auntie Mel Mel Do? 🎡

In this first-ever WWAMMD episode, Auntie Mel Mel and co-host Chris Morgan spin the wheel and answer big, real-life questions covering mental health, dating, relationships, music, technology, and modern culture.

WWAMMD is a monthly series where nothing is off-limits and conversations are honest, compassionate, and unfiltered. This episode also dives into how music plays a powerful role in healing and emotional connection.

🎥 Full video available on YouTube
📅 New WWAMMD episodes drop the last Friday of every month

Have a question or want to be a future co-host?
Reach out — this space is built for real voices and real stories.

#WWAMMD
#WhatWouldAuntieMelMelDo
#AuntieMelMelLifeUnfiltered
#MentalHealthPodcast
#VideoPodcast
#RealConversations
#DatingAndRelationships
#MusicAndHealing
#ModernLife
#NoFilter

Karyn Ward’s journey is one of loss, resilience, and choosing recovery when everything felt lost. From becoming a young mother and losing her twins to SIDS, to navigating addiction, incarceration, and ultimately finding hope through recovery and service — Karyn shares her story with honesty and strength.

Today, she is a leader in the recovery community, an advocate for incarcerated women and the homeless, and is pursuing her education to become a Substance Use Disorder counselor. This episode is a powerful reminder that healing is possible and second chances exist.

🎙️ Episode 7 of Auntie Mel Mel: Life Unfiltered

Connect with Karyn Ward:

Learn more about Karyn’s journey, advocacy, and work in recovery in her CanvasRebel feature:

👉 https://canvasrebel.com/meet-karyn-ward/

This episode contains discussion of child loss (SIDS), addiction, incarceration, and trauma. Listener discretion is advised.

#AuntieMelMel #LifeUnfiltered #Episode7

#RecoveryIsPossible #SecondChances #WomenInRecovery

#AddictionRecovery #PrisonToPurpose #HealingJourney

#SIDSAwareness #MentalHealthMatters #RealStories

In this episode, Auntie Mel Mel sits down with Nicole Reynolds, a birth, postpartum, and grief/loss doula and perinatal mental health therapist, to talk about the realities that often go unspoken. Together, we explore what doulas really do, why mental health support in the perinatal space matters so much, and the grief that can exist when others move toward parenthood while you’re waiting, unable to, choosing not to, or delaying.Nicole also shares insight into setting boundaries around baby announcements and pregnancy-centered conversations, and how to honor your feelings without rushing yourself toward someone else’s timeline.

This episode is for anyone living in the in-between — holding hope, grief, and uncertainty all at once — and needing a reminder that your path is valid exactly as it is.

🎙️ Topics include:

• What doulas really do and who they support

• Perinatal mental health

• Beyond Pregnancy grief

• Around fertility, timing, and choice

• Navigating baby announcements and social

• Pressure holding space for yourself without fixing or forcing

If this episode resonates, please like, follow, share, and leave a review — it helps this community grow and lets more people know they’re not alone.

#AuntieMelMelLifeUnfiltered#MoreThanBirth#PerinatalMentalHealth#DoulaSupport#ReproductiveGrief#MentalHealthMatters#TheInBetween#ChildfreeByChoice#FertilityJourney#PlusSizeVoices#WomenSupportingWomen#RealConversations#LifeUnfiltered#PodcastCommunity

In this episode of Auntie Mel Mel: Life Unfiltered, I’m joined by Kristen, CEO & founder of Intertwine Canine, for an honest, educational, and fun conversation about dogs, humans, and the things that don’t get talked about enough in the animal industry.

We dive into:

🐶 Why dogs aren’t “stubborn” — they’re often just untrained or misunderstood

🐶 Dog training myths and outdated methods that are still being pushed

🐶 Finding the middle ground in training — not force, not labels, but understanding

🐶 The human side of the leash and how our behavior impacts our dogs

🐶 What real training should actually look likeThis is not a quick-fix episode.Not about forcing compliance.

And definitely not about labeling dogs as “bad.”Kristen is incredibly passionate about what she does, and you can feel it throughout this conversation — plus her Boston accent and energy made this episode such a fun one to record.

If you’re open to learning, questioning what you’ve been told, and looking at dogs a little differently, this episode is for you.

🎧 New episodes drop Tuesdays at 6am ESTAvailable on YouTube & Spotify

🔗 CONNECT WITH KRISTEN / INTERTWINE CANINE

🌐 Website: https://intertwinecanine.com/

📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Intertwinecanine

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/intertwinecanine.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCo5AX0MrAbTUlXCG5qxNwfA

💛 Thanks for being here Auntie Mel Mel

#AuntieMelMelLifeUnfiltered#IntertwineCanine#DogTraining#DogBehavior#DogTrainingMyths#PositiveDogTraining#DogOwners#PetPodcast#AnimalIndustry#UnderstandingDogs#NoBadDogs#DogTrainingEducation#PodcastYouTube#PodcastLife

In this episode of Auntie Mel Mel: Life Unfiltered, I’m joined by Chris Morgan for a powerful, honest conversation about mental health from both sides of the couch.

Chris is a Certified Peer Recovery Supporter, meaning he supports others not just through training — but through lived experience. Together, we talk openly about addiction, mental health struggles, recovery, burnout, and what it really means to help others while still doing your own healing work.

This episode dives deep into the realities of mental health — the stigma, the misconceptions, the pressure to “have it all together,” and the importance of asking for help. It’s raw, real, and rooted in hope.

⚠️ Content Warning: This episode includes discussion of suicide, addiction, and mental health. Please listen with care and take breaks if needed.

If this conversation resonates with you, know this: you are not alone — and support is available.

If you’re in the U.S. and need immediate support, you can call or text 988, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. If you’re outside the U.S., please reach out to your local crisis support services.

#AuntieMelMelLifeUnfiltered

#MentalHealthMatters

#BothSidesOfTheCouch

#PeerRecovery

#CertifiedPeerSupport

#AddictionRecovery

#RecoveryIsPossible

#MentalHealthAwareness

#EndTheStigma

#YouAreNotAlone

#RealConversations

#HealingJourney

#LivedExperience

#HopeAndHealing

#PodcastCommunity

In this deeply honest episode, I sit down with my cousin Stephanie for a conversation that went far beyond what we planned. We talk about choosing sobriety, raising a teenage daughter while healing yourself, and the complicated emotions that come with motherhood — including the ones people don’t always say out loud.

Stephanie opens up about navigating grief, family dynamics, and breaking generational cycles, all while showing up as a mom and finding her footing in a new season of life. This is a raw, compassionate, and real conversation about resilience, self-awareness, and choosing growth even when it’s uncomfortable.

Content Warning: This episode includes discussion of suicide, addiction, grief, divorce, and family trauma. Listener discretion is advised.

If you or someone you love is struggling, you can call or text 988 in the U.S. to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, available 24/7.

In this episode of Auntie Mel Mel: Life Unfiltered, I’m sitting down with a longtime friend I’ve known since elementary school to talk all things concerts, music, memories, and the chaos that comes with live shows.

We weren’t best friends who did everything together growing up—but somehow, over the years, music became a shared thread in our lives. Funny enough, we both attended Inkcarceration, a massive tattoo and music festival held at the Mansfield Reformatory, for years… without ever actually going together. Life is wild like that.

We talk about:

Growing up with music and early music obsessions

First concerts (and embarrassing moments we wish we could forget)

How music taste changes as you get older

What makes Inkcarceration such a unique experience

Pit stories, parking lot memories, and questionable decisions

Bands we love, bands we’ve outgrown, and brutal honesty

Why live music still hits differently no matter your age

Inkcarceration is a three-day outdoor festival held inside the prison yard of a former reformatory—yes, the same place The Shawshank Redemption was filmed—where people show up as their truest, loudest, most unapologetic selves. The outfits are wild, the energy is unmatched, and the memories are unforgettable.

This episode is raw, nostalgic, hilarious, and definitely not recommended for listeners under 18.

🎸 Listener discretion advised.

⚠️ Content Warning

This episode contains adult language and mature themes. Not suitable for listeners under 18.

❤️ Final Note

If you’ve ever lost your friends in a crowd, screamed lyrics with strangers, or felt like a song permanently attached itself to a moment in your life—this episode is for you.