We Are The Stigma

In episode 11 the co-hosts share a deeply vulnerable conversation with Ameé Quiriconi from the highly impactful podcast, One Broken Mom.  Early along her motherhood journey, Ameé experienced firsthand what passing down trauma from generation to generation looked like. Feeling like she was failing as a mother while becoming an empty version of herself,  Ameé decides to abandon motherhood. For nearly seven years, she was the "Weekend Parent" until circumstances changed and she was given a life-changing decision - step up and return to motherhood - she said "Yes!" 

Amee is now healing herself, her children, and the hundreds of people who tune into her weekly podcast...Including your co-hosts. 

Melissa opens up about her struggle with postpartum depression and the lasting effect it's had on herself and her son. We cannot change what has happened to us, but we can change our present & future.  

"Being a trauma-informed parent and a trauma-survivor is unspeakably hard and demanding. There are days where it is still hard to breathe but thankfully those are fewer and further between as the healing all around continues. But the only thing I think about, and what motivates me today is to show up, day in and day out, and be the parent I needed as a child - for my kids and for myself. And so I learn, grow and share with others, so that we can all get better together." - Ameé Quiriconi

One Broken Mom is an adult show and may contain adult language. The topics weave in and out of the world of childhood traumas & adversities, neuroscience, and psychology as well as parenting, relationships, and self-improvement. The topics are serious but Ameé brings an entertaining balance of candor, boldness, empathy, and even a sense of humor to each interview. 

• Learn all about Ameé at https://www.ameequiriconi.com/about-amee. Follow her on Instagram & Facebook.
• You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube!
• 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 on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook 

Thanks for listening!! xox

On this impromptu 10 Minute Monday, Cody & Melissa are holding space for those who may not celebrate Mothers Day. While the holiday can be loved-filled for some, they also recognize how difficult it can be for others. Those struggling to become mothers, we see you. If you have lost a child, we see you. Those who have lost their mother, left their mother, or simply don’t have a mother, we see you. And the single dads who have taken on motherhood, we see you too <3 
Join the couple as they start the difficult conversation that needs to be had more. Sending all of our love xox

-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 on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook
-You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube!

In episode 9 Cody chats with long time friend and head chef and owner of Amass Restaurant, Matthew Orlando, about responsible cooking and what the restaurant industry looks like in the times of Covid-19. 

Matt Orlando was born February 7, 1977 and raised in Encinitas, California. After working through the kitchens of San Diego, he decided to make the move to New York City, where he worked at Charlie Palmer’s Auerole for two years, before landing a position at Eric Ripert’s three-starred Michelin restaurant, Le Bernardin. After realizing his need to further refine his cooking skills, Matt moved to England to work both at Raymond Blanc’s two- starred Michelin restaurant, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons and Heston Blumenthal’s three- starred Michelin restaurant, The Fat Duck.
It was while working at The Fat Duck that Matt met René Redzepi, owner and head chef of Noma in Copenhagen, Denmark. This chance meeting led to a two-year Sous Chef position at Noma, before Matt returned to New York City to take a Sous Chef position at Thomas Keller’s three-starred Michelin restaurant, Per Se. After three years at Per Se, René asked Matt to return to take the reigns as Noma’s first Chef de Cuisine.
After working at Noma for two-and-a-half years, Matt felt the time was right to build his dream project. In July 2013, he opened Amass on the waterfront of the former industrial area of Refshaleøen, Copenhagen. A restaurant that has come to prove that modern gastronomy and hospitality can go hand in hand with sustainability. As a testament to this ethos, Matt also proceeded to get his restaurant organically certified in 2016, ensuring 90 - 100% of the food and beverages served at Amass are organic and free of pesticides. Matt seeks inspiration in the by-products his kitchen produces; creating unique and exciting flavors, whilst drastically reducing the restaurant’s carbon footprint and always with deliciousness as the driving force behind his work.
In January of 2019 Matt proceeded to open another dream project just a couple of 100 meters from Amass. Broaden & Build is a craft brewery, casual restaurant and bar, operating under the same mindset as Amass, while trying to create a symbiotic relationship between the beer and food brewed and served on site.
AMASSRESTAURANT.COM

Follow Matthew on Instagram
Find out more about AMASS by visiting their website amassrestaurant.com
& Find AMASS on Instagram 

-You can follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook
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 Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube!
Thanks for listening!! xox

In episode 8, Melissa and Cody aim to break stigmas for the voiceless Pit Bull. The couple share a powerful conversation with French artist Sophie Gamand, an animal advocate and the creator of the photo series Pit Bull Flower Power. Sophie visits animal shelters and photographs shelter-dogs to help pups get adopted. To face her own fears, Sophie began creating beautiful flower crowns for Pit Bulls to wear, these photos ultimately let to Pit Bull Flower Power, which has become one of the most powerful tools in today’s pit bull advocacy worldwide. The trio discuss the stigmas of the Pit Bull, society's relationship with dogs in general, and what is next the creative Sophie herself.

We are left asking ourselves 2 questions - what can we do to make a difference, and what beautiful thing will Sophie do next.

Sophie Gamand is a French award-winning photographer and animal advocate living and working in New York. Since 2010, she has been focusing on dogs and our relationship with them. Sophie travels around the U.S. (and abroad) photographing shelter dogs and at-risk dogs to raise awareness of their fate, tell their stories, and help them get adopted. Her most known projects are Wet Dog (miserable dogs at bath time) and Pit Bull Flower Power (for which she has crowned about 450 shelter pit bulls with flowers).

Learn more about Sophie and her work by visiting sophiegamand.com 

To see more of her work check out her Instagram and Facebook

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

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 on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook 

Thanks for listening!! xox

It’s the show’s one year anniversary, and your co-hosts are giddy with excitement! This episode is near and dear to Cody & Melissa’s hearts and they couldn’t wait to share it with the world! If you’re looking for inspiration, spiritual awakenings, and raising your energy to seek your purpose, look no further! This is Raising Your Frequency 101, taught by Kristina Furia, MS from Your New Frequency. 

Kristina spent the first ten years of her career as a mental health counselor and psychotherapist before realizing her true calling as a transformational teacher, speaker, and coach. With a Masters degree in clinical and counseling psychology as well as a certification in coaching, Kristina applies her diverse knowledge-set of the mind, body, and spirit to empower those she works with to lean into their true purpose, to be free of the confines of a harsh inner critic, and to experience each day as a unique gift.

Whether you’re seeking a change like Melissa, or already deep in your awakening like Cody, there is much knowledge to be found in this conversation. Sit back & open your minds as we drop knowledge bombs in your ears!!

We love you all, and are so grateful you have taken this journey with us! If you’ve been with us for the past year, or you’re just tuning in, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. 

-For more information on Kristina visit yournewfrequency.com
You can follow Kristina on Instagram & Facebook

-Follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube!

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/

-Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook 

Thanks for listening!! xox

Please be advised, this episode touches on the topic of suicide.

In this episode, the co-hosts dive into head trauma and addiction with fellow recovery advocate, Adam Danielson. Adam vulnerably shares his nearly fatal rock bottoms with addiction and alcoholism, until he finally sought recovery. Adam then had to acknowledge his alcohol use disorder and the head trauma that may have exasperated his substance abuse. 

Get ready for a deep conversation, as Adam tells his story of overcoming long odds to have over 3 years in recovery and live the beautiful life he lives today. This conversation is raw & real, and together the trio remember their individual struggles with shared laughs and understanding. 

Adam Danielson is a 33-year-old father, husband and recovery advocate. After a decade-long struggle with head injuries, alcoholism, and addiction, he found the strength to turn his life around. He now shares that strength with others and spends his time helping those struggling. He is the co-host of the recovery community, 1000 Hours Dry, promoting an alcohol-free lifestyle. 

You can find him on Instagram @adamacd87 

Find his recovery community 1000 Hours Dry @1000HoursDry

Or by searching #TheDryClub 

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 on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook 

Thanks for listening!! xox

In Episode 4, Cody & Melissa share a beautiful conversation with the Feely Human, Nōn Wels. A fellow podcast host, Nōn shares about his eating disorder; the trauma, the battle, and his recovery journey. The trio openly discusses the stigmas that come along with male anorexia, undiagnosed depression, and anxiety. Nōn is a self-described feely human, and being a feely, vulnerable man is both beautiful and stigmatized, and Nōn is doing all that he can to connect on a deeper level with people from all walks of life. Join the couple as they find inspiration and growth through this one conversation, with this one beautiful human. 

In 2018, Nōn created the You, Me, Empathy podcast to give others a safe space to feel their feelings and share their stories of mental health, recovery, and personal triumph through eating disorders, mental illness, trauma, and myriad ebbs and flows this wild wonder we call life throws our way.

And right now, Nōn is crowdfunding for the first phase of The Feely Human Collective—a collaborative mental health community that serves to empower each of us to tap into our innate capacity for empathy, vulnerability, and emotional wayfinding. The Feely Human Collective features workshops, an online journal, a podcast, and shop. Later phases of the collective will include workshops in businesses and schools, in-person retreats, a live storytelling series, and much more.

Nōn Wels is a mental health advocate, writer, doggo lover, runner, empath, and feely human who resides in Southern California. In his late teens and early twenties, he nearly died from a mixture of undiagnosed depression, anxiety, and Anorexia. Now, in his late 30s, he shares his experiences openly to allow others to be seen and heard.

Find ‘You, Me, Empathy; on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook

You, Me, Empathy on Apple Podcasts

The Feely Human Collective crowdfunding campaign

The Feely Human Collective on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook

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 on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook 

Thanks for listening!! xox

It's our second 10 min Monday and we're tackling Labor & Delivery! As Melissa's due date quickly approaches, the co-hosts decide there's no better time to discuss the beautiful - and not so beautiful - parts of birth. The couple reminisce on their past child birth experiences, discuss cultural traditions and ask themselves how something so natural is seen by most of society as rather unnatural! NSFW these 10 mins leave nothing unexposed! After all, our 10 Minute Mondays are all about having uncomfortable conversations!

Have an idea for a 10 Min Monday?? Send us a message! We'd love to hear from you!!! You can find us on all social media platforms Facebook, Instagram & Twitter! 

Wanna be a guest on our show? Email us at [email protected]
Thanks for listening!! xox 
 

Season 2, Episode 2 and we're discussing all things BDSM with Molly Lazarus.  This topic has been an anticipated one and Melissa & Cody are ready to dive right in, but where to start?! Luckily, Molly is patient, educated, and passionate and the conversation quickly blooms into something beautiful. Leave behind your misconceptions and open your minds as we tackle role playing, dominance, submission, safe-words and stigmas. In the end can you guess what we really discover?? A community, the beauty in vulnerability, human connection and an inspiring story of living life out loud. 

Molly Lazarus is a sexuality writer based in the Bay Area. She got her start as a kink-community organizer and shibari model in Osaka, Japan. She now specializes in articles and courses for adults looking to explore safely and consensually.

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/

You can follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook 

Thanks for listening!! xox

On our season premier, we go in depth with Gabrielle of Resilient Yoga and her story of surviving domestic violence. Gabrielle shares how she walked through her trauma, stepped into her power and now uses her pain to help & inspire others. Gabrielle teaches all of us about the stigmas and ways we can truly help people experiencing domestic violence. Domestic violence is as serious as it gets and we can all be better equipped to help and remove the stigmas surrounding it. 

Gabrielle Baty was born and raised in Lansing, Michigan. She is a 30-year-old mama to a handsome 7-year-old boy and beautiful 4-year-old girl. Gabby is a 200-hour certified yoga teacher and licensed skin therapist. She is a domestic violence survivor turned thriver, spreading awareness as a member of the domestic violence speakers bureau and helping others thrive through the healing powers of yoga.

You can follow Gabrielle on Instagram.

If you or someone you know is affected by Domestic Violence please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.

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

As always, you can share this episode 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 on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook 

Thanks for listening!! xox