Victoria Sinis is the founder of Creating Gems, an organization created to help young women break free from harmful narratives about themselves. Victoria used to work for an OnlyFans agency, recruiting creators, curating their social media presence, and managing marketing funnels designed to drive traffic to explicit content. In this episode, she shares what made her walk away from an industry she once believed was empowering.

This episode is a re-release. It was first released in June of 2024. 

Episode Resources

Article: Why So Many Teen Girls Are Planning on Becoming OnlyFans Stars

Article: What Porn, Loneliness, and OnlyFans Have To Do with Men Buying Sex

Podcast: Consider Before Consuming, Ep. 109: You Asked, We Answered

Victoria's Website: Creating Gems

Rosalia Rivera is a consent educator and abuse prevention specialist who works to help parents break cycles of abuse through empowered, proactive conversations. In this episode of Consider Before Consuming, she shares her personal experiences with pornography, the dangers of leaving sex education to the internet, and how parents can build safe, shame-free spaces for their children to learn about consent and autonomy. She also dives into how pornography plays a role in grooming, the rise in child-on-child sexual abuse, and why media literacy and digital safety are more important than ever.

Episode Resources

Consent Parenting

Podcast: Consider Before Consuming Ep. 17: Heidi Olson

Book: I Said No by Kimberly King

Book: Good Pictures, Bad Pictures by Kristen Jenson

FTND Parent Resource Page

Trigger Warning

This episode includes topics of child sextortion and suicide. Listener discretion is advised. 

Episode Description

In this episode of Consider Before Consuming, Shannon Heacock and John Burnett share the deeply personal and devastating story of their son, Elijah. Recently, at just 16 years old, Elijah became a victim of sextortion — a form of online exploitation where predators manipulate and blackmail their victims using threats and explicit imagery, sometimes even using AI-generated content. Tragically, the manipulation and fear led Elijah to take his own life. John and Shannon’s courage in telling Elijah’s story is rooted in their hope that it can prevent other families from facing the same heartbreaking loss.

Episode Resources 

Suicide & Crisis Lifeline - Call or Text "988"

NCMEC Resource: Take it Down

Victim Resources

Article: Understanding Sextortion: A Growing Threat and How to Protect Yourself

Louie Greek is a Training Specialist with Truckers Against Trafficking, who has spent more than a decade fighting human trafficking, using his expertise in law enforcement and military service to train people on how to recognize, respond to, and ultimately prevent exploitation. In this Consider Before Consuming podcast episode, Louie shares eye-opening insights on the realities of trafficking, the role of demand in fueling exploitation, and the actions we can take to stop it.

Episode Resources 

Truckers Against Trafficking: Resources

Article: How You Can Spot, Report, and Prevent Human Trafficking

Podcast: Consider Before Consuming Ep. 96: Valiant Richey

Conversation Blueprint: Let's Talk About Porn

*This episode contains descriptions of sexual violence and sex trafficking. Listener discretion is advised.

Selena is the Associate Program Director of a sex trafficking survivor sanctuary. As a former porn performer and sex trafficking survivor, Selena knows firsthand what the women she is helping have experienced.

In this Consider Before Consuming episode, Selena sheds light on the dark realities of the porn industry, the deceptive nature of sex trafficking, and the power of resilience.

Episode Resources

Article: I Was Fine with Porn and the Commercial Sex Industry, Until I Worked in a Brothel

Video: What Being In Porn Is Really Like

Victim Resources

Hope Rising

Mandy is a women's empowerment and trauma-informed life coach who helps women who have experienced betrayal trauma. In this episode of Consider Before Consuming, Mandy shares her personal experience of discovering her partner’s secret struggle with porn addiction, his cheating with porn stars, and the betrayal trauma that followed. She describes the emotional toll, the gaslighting, and the psychological abuse she endured, as well as the healing journey that led her to become a trauma-informed life coach.

Episode Resources 

Article: The Emotional Trauma of Having a Porn-Addicted Partner

Mandy's Website

Conversation Blueprint: Let's Talk About Porn

Timothy Reigle is a coach, author, podcaster, and the founder of Into The Wilderness Ministries. Tim has used his own experience in defeating addiction to help hundreds of men to overcome their addictions to porn and sex.

In this Consider Before Consuming episode, Tim shares about the 15 years he spent in a cycle of porn addiction that escalated into destructive behaviors, impacting his marriage and mental health. He shares how he finally broke free, the strategies that helped him find lasting recovery, and how he now helps others do the same.

Episode Resources

Article: How Porn Can Become an Escalating Behavior

Podcast: Consider Before Consuming Ep. 114: Rachel Denton

Timothy's Website: Into the Wilderness

Timothy Instagram: @timothyreigle

Trigger Warning

Trigger Warning: The following episode contains discussions of child physical and sexual abuse. Listener discretion is advised. 

Episode Description

Seth Gehle is an author and speaker who uses his platform to encourage others to overcome their own challenges and find strength in adversity by sharing his own story of resiliency after a traumatic childhood. In this Consider Before Consuming episode, Seth shares about the years of abuse that shaped his childhood, the role of pornography in shaping his perceptions of relationships, and the path he took to heal.

Episode Resources

Victim Resources

Seth's Website and Book

Consider Before Consuming Ep. 107: Matt and Sarah

Trigger Warning

*Trigger Warning: The following episode contains descriptions of disturbing porn themes and discussions of child sexual abuse. Listener discretion is advised 

Melinda Tankard Reist is an author, speaker, and the Movement Director of Collective Shout. She's spent many years as a leading advocate against the sexual exploitation of girls and women. In this episode, she shares the impact of porn culture on youth, relationships, and society. She unpacks her latest research on the alarming rise of sexual harassment in schools, particularly toward teachers. She also addresses how boys are being conditioned to see girls as objects through exposure to violent pornography.

Episode Resources 

Article: Porn Impacts Student Sexual Harassment in Schools—Here’s How

Video: This SANE Nurse Explains How Pornography Inspires Sexual Assault

Melinda Tankard-Reist's Website

Collective Shout

Sexual Harassment of Teachers Report

Trigger Warning: This episode includes discussions of child sex trafficking. Listener discretion is advised.

Lydia Cacho is a world-renowned investigative journalist, author, and human rights activist who has dedicated her life to exposing the dark realities of human trafficking, child exploitation, and the intersections of pornography and organized crime. In this episode of Consider Before Consuming, Lydia shares her decades-long fight against corruption, the dangers she has faced, and the resilience that keeps her pushing forward.

Episode Resources 

Article: By the Numbers: Is the Porn Industry Connected to Sex Trafficking?

Lydia's Instagram: @Lydiacacho

Lydia's Books