We Are The Stigma

This episode left us speechless on cloud nine, Friends! Ready for some gold nuggets of life knowledge? Buckle in bc this one will rock your socks! We are chatting with Bevin, beautiful soul and aerobics creator of Fat Kid Dance Party. Bevin shares of self-love, chasing your purpose, and reminds us that "all bodies are good bodies!" She lives out loud with her forest dance parties and radical self-ownership, we left the convo insanely inspired, and we know you will too!  We are so grateful for the time Bevin shared with us, and for the gifts she is sharing with the world. 

In this episode we discuss:

• Body size & our changing bodies AKA Body Currency
• Founding of Bevin's aerobics class, Fat Kid Dance Party
• Multifaceted self-love
• Chasing one's purpose 
• Why is is so essential to work on our body images

Empowering leaders to feel free in their minds & bodies, Bevin is the creator of Fat Kid Dance Party - Dance Aerobics for ALL bodies -  and the host of the podcast Bevin: A Femme Over 40 and her Friends.
 

• You can find Bevin on Instagram  @bevinsparty and @fatkiddanceparty 
• For all information on Fat Kid Dance party (including weekly online classes & workout videos) visit fatkiddanceparty.com 
• You can also find her podcast Here!

• You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook
• You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube & Instagram 
• Find Melissa on Instagram @_thepetitecactus

**The best way to support We Are The Stigma is by leaving us a five-star review on iTunes! Take a screenshot of your written review, and we'll send you any book written by our past guests! It's a way we can support them and you! 

***As always share with others, and reach out if you’d like to share your story https://wearethestigma.com/be-a-guest-on-our-show/

It's another 10 Minute Monday! Where we have silly and uncomfortable talks, in hopes of ending the stigma. One small conversation at a time will create tiny changes, which can lead to huge societal shifts. 
There's no shame in the menstruation game !

See you next week for an all new episode xox

• You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook
• You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube & Instagram 
• Find Melissa on Instagram @_thepetitecactus

**The best way to support We Are The Stigma is by leaving us a five-star review on iTunes! Take a screenshot of your written review, and we'll send you any book written by our past guests! It's a way we can support them and you! 

***As always share with others, and reach out if you’d like to share your story https://wearethestigma.com/be-a-guest-on-our-show/

Trigger Warning: This episode deals w/Childhood sexual abuse, self-harm & suicide. 
If you or someone you know may be dealing with childhood abuse, please call 1-800-422-4453 
Help is always available. Please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline for 24hr support at 1-800-273-8255

We're back this week! It's episode 6 of Season 3, and we're getting profoundly raw and vulnerable with 20-year-old Desi Martin. We all know there is beauty to be found on the other side of our struggles, but what's even more vital than that truth is how many of us have not yet discovered that true beauty, and that is OKAY!! Our journey is JUST AS important as our destination, and Desi is a brilliant example of that.

Desi spent most of her adolescence burring the trauma of childhood sexual abuse; at 18 years old, her trauma would no longer stay hidden, and she was forced to face it head-on. Through addiction, suicide attempts, self-harm, and restrictive eating, Desi has continued to hang on. This episode is powerful, not simply for her resilience and strength to speak openly, but also because Desi is very much still in the trenches of mental illness and all that has come with her childhood abuse. She shares her story today in hopes of reminding others - you are not alone. 
We cannot express how deeply grateful we are for this conversation, and we know you will be, too <3

In this episode, we discuss:
-childhood trauma and abuse
-addiction
-PTSD
-bipolar disorder
-eating disorder/restrictive eating
-how we learn to survive through the love of those around us

Desi is a 20 year-young woman from Colorado. She loves cows, art, and the friends who've continued to love her. She's a survivor of childhood sexual abuse and is working through her PTSD while going to school in hopes of becoming a therapist. Her goal is to one day help others as they navigate mental health challenges and walk through their childhood trauma.

• You can find Desi on Instagram @desirayhopemartin   
• You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook
• You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube & Instagram 
• Find Melissa on Instagram @_thepetitecactus

**The best way to support We Are The Stigma is by leaving us a five-star review on iTunes! Take a screenshot of your written review, and we'll send you any book written by our past guests! It's a way we can support them and you! 

***As always share with others, and reach out if you’d like to share your story https://wearethestigma.com/be-a-guest-on-our-show/

We're back! We're chatting with w/family friend & fire fighter, Hernan Cruz, about incarceration & rehabilitation! Hernan is a living example of what it means to take a rock bottom and build your life into whatever beautiful thing you choose! Hernan gets brilliantly venerable AF as he shares his life pre-incarceration, his time in prison, and the fulfilled life he lives post-incarceration. At a very young age & impressionable age, Hernan became involved in gangs and the lifestyle that came with it, which ultimately led to serving 9 years in prison. Through the power of friendship, leadership, and a divine intervention Hernan rose from a dark place and a deep past, and grew into a man living a life full of meaning.

Hernan is a 29-year-old California native, who spends his days fighting fires and changing the lives of others. Sharing one's past tends to help the lives of those around you, and Hernan's story is PROOF of the profound truth - our past can help set others free! 

In this episode we discuss:

• The path that led Hernan to a 9 year prison sentence
• Life behind bars
• Rehabilitation
• Post release & recovery

This episode Cody & Melissa are chatting with trailblazer Allison Morgan, founder of Zensational Kids. As parents trying to navigate the seas ourselves, we learned SO MUCH from this interview and we are SO EXCITED to share it with you! There are so many gold nuggets and Allison has a beautiful way of delivering them all.

In this episode we discuss:

• Creating safety and connection within our own nervous system in order to build resilience
• Sharing mindful tools with children to help them calm and cope
• How we can all heal from the trauma of COVID-19 

Allison Morgan MA, OTR, E-RYT is the founder and CEO of Zensational Kids, an educational company bringing evidence-based yoga and mindfulness practices to school communities worldwide. She is a pediatric occupational therapist, author, public speaker/trainer, and mother driven to empower youth and the adults that care/serve them how to cultivate the inner resources we all desperately need in order to thrive in life at every age. Allison is passionate about training educators, parents, mental health professionals and allied health professionals effective techniques to develop skills such as self-awareness, management skills, compassion and resilience so they can model and authentically teach these skills to children.

Allison began integrating yoga and mindfulness into her therapy sessions with children in 2007. Discovering the multitude of physical, emotional, cognitive and behavioral benefits these practices offered her occupational therapy clients, and recognizing the need for more mental health and social-emotional learning programs in schools, Allison began writing curriculum and developing teacher training programs to help others share these practices.

• Visit Zensationalkids.com for resources, information on trainings and programs, free videos, and the link to a free e-book full of tools you can use TODAY!
• Follow Allison on Instagram  @Zensational_kids
• You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook
• You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube & Instagram 
• Find Melissa on Instagram @_thepetitecactus

**The best way to support We Are The Stigma is by leaving us a five-star review on iTunes!

***As always share with others, and reach out if you’d like to share your story https://wearethestigma.com/be-a-guest-on-our-show/

Hold on to your seats, because we're about to go on a BEAUTIFUL ride! Cody & Melissa share a fluid and heartfelt conversation with the brilliant Shannon Louyindoula. The conversation flows as beautifully as her written words, and we are left feeling inspired, hopeful, and at peace, all at once.  

In this episode we discuss:

• Adoption & Miracles
• The light, and dark sides of trauma
• Learning to “just be”
• Embracing Femininity
• The power of pleasure

Shannon is a wife, mother, songwriter and influencer. She was born and raised in Houston, TX but currently lives in rural Indiana. Shannon is an advocate for walking your own path, and cultivating your own inner guru. 

Adopted at the age of 13, it was her overnight shift from chaos to extreme order that served as her introduction to miracles. Shannon went on to study human development and psychology at the University of Houston, where she received a bachelor of science. This served as a springboard for her deep dive into self-reflection, and generational healing. 

Through the unfolding of her own path she has come to realize that "everything you need is already inside you. You just have to be brave enough to stand in front of the mirror".

• Follow Shannon and read her lovely written work on Instagram @mme.louy
• You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook
• You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube & Instagram 
• Find Melissa on Instagram @_thepetitecactus

**The best way to support We Are The Stigma is by leaving us a five-star review on iTunes!

***As always share with others, and reach out if you’d like to share your story https://wearethestigma.com/be-a-guest-on-our-show/

The first 10 Minute Monday of Season 3! Melissa & Cody are discussing all thing Ginger! Cody, a red head himself (or is he?) talks about what it was like growing up with red hair & freckles.
We learn:
Red heads don't steal souls (only hearts)
The carpets don't always match the drapes
& Red heads aren't aliens (we think)

Come get goofy with us! And remember, no matter what skin color, hair color, or body type - Choose kindness, always :)

-You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook
-You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube!
-Find Melissa on Instagram @_thepetitecactus
-The best way to support We Are The Stigma is by leaving us a five-star review on iTunes!

-As always share with others, and reach out if you’d like to share your story https://wearethestigma.com/be-a-guest-on-our-show/

It's Season 3 Episode 2 and Melissa & Cody are chatting with the beautifully bold and fiercely  powerful, Carrie Pullaro! When we first heard carries story on Season 2 Episode 30, we knew we had to interview her, and we are so grateful we were given the opportunity! Carrie's story is relatable and deeply honest. We were left juiced up and ready to step from our own shadows, into our light! 

This episode we talk about:

• Addiction & recovery 
• Testing positive for herpes
• Using abortion like birth control
• Living w/shame
• Working through our past to live a life free of ourselves

Carrie Pullaro is a Personal Freedom & Emotional Wellbeing Coach, NLP Practitioner, Speaker, and founder of the program "ACTION”.

"ACTION" focuses on supporting women in breaking through shame and a lack of self worth. By helping them break free from the self defeating stories that prevent them from living the life that they desire, they are empowered to pursue their goals and dreams. It also allows women to activate their voices through living a beautiful and expressed life. "ACTION" supports women in healing from past trauma and encourages them to embrace every part of their true self.

Find Carrie at carriepullaro.com
Follow her on Instagram @carriepullaro
Find her on Facebook @ Carrie Pullaro
To book a call w/Carrie, click here

-You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook
-You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube!
-Find Melissa on Instagram @_thepetitecactus
-The best way to support We Are The Stigma is by leaving us a five-star review on iTunes!

-As always share with others, and reach out if you’d like to share your story https://wearethestigma.com/be-a-guest-on-our-show/

Welcome back to an all-new season of We Are The Stigma!! Melissa & Cody kick off this season with the best-selling Canadian Author, Elaine Alec, and it gets beautifully powerful!!
Elaine Alec (she/her) is an author, political advisor, women’s advocate, and spiritual thought leader, and teacher and is a direct descendant of hereditary chiefs, Pelkamulaxw and Soorimpt.

The trio discusses the power of self-love, recovery from addiction, healing your trauma wounds, the idea of cultivating safe spaces, and what it’s like to chase your dreams. Though the most educational and eye-opening part of this interview is when we learn of #MMIWG -Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women & Girls, who have become victims of what is known as The Highway of Tears.

Melissa & Cody left this conversation with a deeper understanding of their privilege, with this knowledge of a very real - and very dark - reality of the genocide of indigenous peoples that is still happening today.  However, their hearts on fire knowing beautiful souls are doing real work in a world that, at times, can feel seemingly hopeless. We are forever grateful for the wisdom and life truths Elaine took the time to share with us, we know you will be as well.

Find Elaine on IG
Purchase her book, Calling My Spirit Back, on Amazon (Don't forget to leave her a review!)
Read more about her here
And be sure to check out her YouTube 

“For over two decades, Elaine has been a leading expert in Indigenous community planning, health advocacy, and creating safe spaces utilizing Indigenous approaches and ceremony. She is the author of “Calling My Spirit Back” a book which links an extremely personal examination of lived experience to a much broader overview of serious national sociological concerns, accompanied by tangible steps to approach them.
Alec was a founding member of the Comprehensive Community Planning Mentorship Initiative in British Columbia. She is a founding partner at Alderhill Planning Inc. and is a regular speaker at conferences and workshops on the topic of Indigenous planning, governance, healing and trauma informed approaches in planning.”

-You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook
-You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube!
-Find Melissa on Instagram @_thepetitecactus
-The best way to support We Are The Stigma is by leaving us a five-star review on iTunes!

-As always share with others, and reach out if you’d like to share your story https://wearethestigma.com/be-a-guest-on-our-show/

Holy Moley, y’all!! Somehow, we made it! Season 2 has come to an end and damn, it’s been a good one.

This season has been full of goosebumps and laughter, we have learned SO MUCH, and we are forever grateful for the humans who have shared with us, and for our listeners who have joined along for the ride. We truly hope it was as good for you, as it was for us *insert sex joke*

 Rather than trying to find the words to describe the awesomeness of each guess, we let them do all the talking! In this episode we discuss season 2 highlights & our excitement for the future! Then we end by asking every single one of Season 2 guests - If you could go back and tell anything to yourself, or someone else who may be struggling, what would it be? From harm reduction to trauma, we are HERE for it.  Whatever your personal struggle may be, we promise these answers will fill you with HOPE. 

Have a great end of 2020, and we’ll see you on the other side xox 

(Don’t forget, you can leave us a review on iTunes, send us a screenshot and we’ll send you a copy of The Human Glitch, by Ben Woodward!!)

-The best way to support We Are The Stigma is by leaving us a five-star review! 

-As always share with others, and reach out if you’d like to share your story https://wearethestigma.com/be-a-guest-on-our-show/

-You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook 

-You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube!