trauma

Living In Legacy & Breaking The Curse With Khalisa Rae

Original Air Date: July 5, 2021

Have you ever had a conversation that changed your life? 

This week’s episode, ‘Living In Legacy & Breaking The Curse’, with Khalisa Rae, is all of that and more. 

Our guest, Khalisa Rae, is an award winning poet and journalist in Durham, NC that speaks with furious rebellion. She is also the author of Ghost in a Black Girl's Throat (Red Hen Press 2021).

Her essays are featured in Autostraddle, Catapult, LitHub, as well as articles in B*tch Media, NBC-BLK, and others.

Her poetry appears in Frontier Poetry, Florida Review, Rust & Moth, PANK,  Carousel, HOBART, among countless others. 

She is the winner of the Bright Wings Poetry contest, the Furious Flower Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Prize, and the White Stag Publishing Contest, among other prizes. 

Currently, she serves as Assistant Editor for Glass Poetry and co-founder of Think in Ink and the Women of Color Speak reading series. Her second collection Unlearning Eden is forthcoming from White Stag Publishing in 2022. 

This day, Khalisa gifted all of us with her honesty, poetry, insights, brilliance, and creativity. I am truly grateful for the courage and vulnerability she brought to our conversation. We explored:

-Healing from trauma

-How to create your own team of superheroes 

-The importance of honoring your gifts

-The power of words 

-Protecting your light 

Khalisa shared some really powerful stories that left me feeling more grounded and connected to my inner power. 

Not to mention that she shared with us two poems that hit me right in my soul. 

I’m telling you - this episode will be a game-changer. For anyone who is serving a mission greater than themselves - this episode is for you. 

You can learn more about Khalisa through her website. Khalisarae.com

Or you can follow her on twitter or instagram

tomearl.me/khalisa

Moving Beyond Fear and Embracing your Experience with Nurjahan Boulden

Original Air Date: May 13, 2019

What fear have you been carrying that you are ready to set down? 

 What would it look like to move beyond fear and embrace your experiences?  

This week’s episode provides a bold and courageous reflection on these questions. 

My guest, Nurjahan Boulden, was 21 years old when she was shot with an assault rifle in an attack that killed the man next to her.

That one night changed the trajectory of her life. 

Even as she moved on to become a teacher and mother of three, PTSD and complications from the bullet wound continually threatened her future. 

13 years later, she is now recognized as America’s leading coach for survivors of gun violence who are ready to Feel Safe Again™. 

Fear has been a companion of mine during 2020. I have a feeling I am not alone in this. 

Rather than numbing myself or hiding from it, I have made it a goal to confront, get to know, and investigate my fears. 

A significant part of that journey is listening to the stories, wisdom and reflections from others who are on that same path. 

This episode with Nurjahan is one that I listen to often when I need a reminder of the inner-power that I, and all of us, possess.

For the astute listener keeping track at home, you’ll note that this episode originally aired May 13, 2019. 

As I was re-listening to it this week, I knew that the messages and insights Nurjahan shares could really serve a lot of us at this very moment. 

Even if you distinctly remember listening to this episode when it first aired, I passionately urge you to give it a re-listen. 

The experiences you have gained over the past 1.5 years will allow you to gain new gifts as you re-listen. 

Trust me. 

Do yourself this favor of hitting play. 

Thank you, Nurjahan, for sharing such a vulnerable, authentic, and empowering interview.

tomearl.me/nb

Compassionate Survival & Dancing Through Healing With Jayson James and Lydiana Garcia

When was the last time you danced out all your feelings?

We’re all doing a bit of “surviving” after the last few years… and we could all use a little extra love.

You MUST listen to our special episode that can only be described as POWERFUL as we went really deep with Jayson James and Lydiana Garcia about being strong and vulnerable and what it takes to keep going.

Lydiana is a therapist and healer, using her passion for dancing to support trauma survivors. She describes herself as a mom, healer, dancer, spirit, teacher, and student. 

Jayson describes themself as compassionate, warm, bright, survivor, loving, and balanced.

This is one amazing discussion you won’t want to miss.

🎧 Ready to listen?

Go to: www.tomearl.me/jl

After the episode, hang out with our guests on Instagram!

Jayson.

Lydiana.

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Mindset Matters With Lashana (Ms. West Creative Coach) and Charlese (Girl at The Yellow Desk)

Mindset Matters. 

Simply stated, it’s because your perception is your reality. To combat negativity, you MUST change your thoughts to change your life.

On this week’s episode, we move beyond all the mindset cliches and what you think you know about it while we take a deep dive into the importance and methods of cultivating thoughts needed for a better and more successful life. 

I’m joined by two brilliant guests: LaShana aka Ms.West Creative Coach and Charlese - Girl at The Yellow Desk.

LaShana and Charlese share their personal stories and journeys, along with how they’ve learned to pivot, grow, and succeed despite life’s twists and turns. 

We also talked about how to build meaningful relationships, especially with your customers and the importance of active listening and research so that your audience feels seen and heard. 

Most importantly, we explored the way motivation follows movement and we covered what to do if you’re feeling stuck, burnt out, lost or frustrated so you can turn it around.

Charlese Latham is known as the Girl at the Yellow Desk. She was an entrepreneur in the beauty industry for over 20 years, but her inspiring story of resilience tells us how a devastating accident led to early retirement of the only career she knew and starting over again with a new business and life, with more success than ever.

Her strengths are Copywriting and Content Creation, especially for course launches and she absolutely loves to support other female entrepreneurs by taking away their overwhelm during busy launch seasons with her 3 steps to a 5-figure course launch system.

She’s been published in Entrepreneur.com, featured in Self Magazine, interviewed on dozens of podcasts, spoken on several summits, worked with multiple 6 and 7 figure client launches, is about to release her book, and has recently launched her very own course: Plan Your Best Launch, Ever!

You can connect with Charlese on Instagram @GirlattheYellowDesk and use the link in her profile to grab her FREE Social Media Templates for a 5 Figure Launch.

LaShana West aka Ms. West Creative Coach has been serving in the mental health field for over 20 years.  This is where she learned the importance of having true compassion and engaging in servant leadership.  All of these learning opportunities have positioned her to serve and step into a new direction by helping others in the creative and entrepreneurial field.  

With the mental health background coupled with the business acumen LaShana is able to help the "whole person".  LaShana believes that past unresolved trauma and imposter syndrome is a common barrier for most people no matter if you're a 9-5er or entrepreneur.  But with support and accountability you can do ANYTHING that your heart desires!

You can connect with LaShana on her website: www.mswestcreativecoach.com or text the word ‘Mindset’ to 678-336-7756 and she’ll send you her best tips!

👉 I promise you, THIS is an epic episode, you won’t be the same after. 

🎧 Listen HERE.

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Living In Legacy & Breaking The Curse With Khalisa Rae

Have you ever had a conversation that changed your life? 

This week’s episode, ‘Living In Legacy & Breaking The Curse’, with Khalisa Rae, is all of that and more. 

Our guest, Khalisa Rae, is an award winning poet and journalist that speaks with furious rebellion. She is also the author of Ghost in a Black Girl's Throat (Red Hen Press 2021). 

This day, Khalisa gifted all of us with her honesty, poetry, insights, brilliance, and creativity. I am truly grateful for the courage and vulnerability she brought to our conversation. We explored:

-Healing from trauma

-How to create your own team of superheroes 

-The importance of honor your gifts

-The power of words 

-Protecting your light 

Khalisa shared some really powerful stories that left me feeling more grounded and connected to my inner power. 

Not to mention that she shared with us two poems that hit me right in my soul. 

I’m telling you - this episode will be a game-changer. For anyone who is serving a mission greater than themselves - this episode is for you. 

You can learn more about Khalisa through her website.

Or you can follow her on Twitter @k_lisarae

--

Here is Khalisa Rae’s Full Bio:

Khalisa Rae is a poet and journalist in Durham, NC that speaks with furious rebellion. She is the author of Ghost in a Black Girl's Throat (Red Hen Press 2021). 

Her essays are featured in Autostraddle, Catapult, LitHub, as well as articles in B*tch Media, NBC-BLK, and others.

Her poetry appears in Frontier Poetry, Florida Review, Rust & Moth, PANK,  Carousel, HOBART, among countless others. 

She is the winner of the Bright Wings Poetry contest, the Furious Flower Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Prize, and the White Stag Publishing Contest, among other prizes. 

Currently, she serves as Assistant Editor for Glass Poetry and co-founder of Think in Ink and the Women of Color Speak reading series. Her second collection Unlearning Eden is forthcoming from White Stag Publishing in 2022. Follow her at @k_lisarae on Twitter. Find more information here and here.

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Staying On The Path An Interview With Warrior Poets Jamie Dawson and Sam(ira) Obeid

For all of us striving to stay on the path - this one is for you. 

This week’s episode is truly special. 

I felt so honored and grateful just for getting the chance to be in the same room as these two warrior poets. 

My guests this week, Jamie Dawson and Sam(ira) Obeid, are two of the most creative and brilliant people I have had the privilege of knowing. 

We wove through many important and timely conversations all while striving to remain open, honest, and vulnerable. 

Accountability and introspection were two themes that tied together the thoughts expressed. 

Jamie and Sam both shared their deep insights on heavy conversations such as:

-How do we process the grief, the trauma, and the roller coaster that these past 12+ months have been? 

-What does true allyship look like? 

-What role do creativity, art, and poetry play in processing? 

-What lies at the intersection of art and activism? 

Jamie and Sam both provided true gifts on this one. 

Please do yourself the favor of listening in. 

For all of us striving to stay on the path - this one is for you. 

You rock. 

Jamie Dawson is a professional writer, performer, and black arts scholar whose talents range from spoken word, theatre, and commissioned works on the topics such as black life, multiculturalism, women’s rights, healing, and connection to each other through Earth.

You can follow Jamie on Instagram here

Sam Sam(ira) Obeid is an Indian. Scholar. Warrior. Poet. Queer. Sam has been placed 5th at the Women of the World Poetry Slam in 2015. Sam has been featured on Button Poetry and an international anthology, The World That Belongs to Us: An Anthology of Queer Poetry from South Asia by Harper Collins India. 

You can follow Sam on Instagram here

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Living Your Most Pleasurable Life With Kimra Luna

Imagine you have a million dollar business. 

Imagine you have a multi-million dollar business that took you years to build.  

Everyday you get to empower amazing people.

You’re living the dream. 

And loving it. 

Until one day - you’re not. 

Inside you start to feel a calling to serve a new mission. 

That inner-voice grows until it becomes a choir singing it is time to change direction. 

Would you have the courage to walk away from this super successful company that has brought you notoriety, wealth, and an enormous audience? 

This was the crossroads this week’s guest, Kimra Luna, found herself about a year ago. 

If you Google ‘Kimra Luna’ you’ll find a number of articles, including Forbes and Business Insider, detailing Kimra’s journey from “Welfare To $1M [Business Owner].”

As someone who has been in the entrepreneur community for a decade, Kimra’s name was one of the first you’d come across when looking for tips to start your business. 

A few months ago, I was on Facebook and saw Kimra post a Google drive folder that gave everyone complete access to her entire course curriculum, modules and resources. 

Previously you would have paid thousands of dollars to access this kind of content from Kimra. 

And now - it was all there - with the message from Kimra that she is leaving the business coaching world and embarking on her new mission a cosmic sensuality coach and pleasure activist.

I immediately messaged Kimra asking if she’d be open to sitting down for an interview to share her story and her journey. 

As you meant imagine - this turned out to be one of my favorite interviews of all time. 

Yes - Kimra shares details on what led to her decision. 

But the majority of this episode goes all in on the vital, important, and necessary mission and business that Kimra has launched. 

We talked about healing from trauma, sex, love, relationships, music, sensuality, self-love and activism.  Topics she covers every week on her podcast and Youtube channel.

Kimra took a deep dive into the core component of her new signature program - 30 Days of Slowing The Eff Down - and you discover your deepest desires, connect with your personal pleasure and shed the shame so you can channel your inner creatrix and live the life you deserve. 

I’m telling you - this episode is a must-listen!

Please do yourself the favor if absorbing the knowledge, compassion and tools Kimra openly shares during this episode. 

Alright.  This was the longest writeup ever - I know. 

Time to stop reading and start listening. 

Hit play.

Here we go.  

You can find her works at kimraluna.com or on Instagram at @kimraluna

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Let’s Heal Together With Jimanekia Eborn

Jimanekia Eborn is a Queer Media Consultant, Comprehensive Sex Educator, and Sexual Assault & Trauma Expert. She is the host of Trauma Queen - a podcast mini-series for survivors of assault and our allies. The podcast focuses on uplifting voices in all communities and exploring our collective journey to healing.  

Jimanekia has worked in mental health for the last 10 years, which is where she saw the need for sexual education and sexual trauma support. This has led to her passion for assisting and supporting those that are sexual assault survivors and those without access to comprehensive sex education. Her compassion and passion for these populations has pushed her to continue building safe spaces for clientele, sharing education, and supporting their mental spaces.

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Poetry for Incarcerated Youth With Matthew Cuban

This week, I’m joined by Matthew ‘Cuban’ Hernandez, a poet, speaker, and performance coach from Jacksonville, Florida. He has toured as far as Abu Dhabi and nearly every major city in the United States and Europe, performing, teaching and coaching poetry. 

 Matthew is the author of 3032, and is currently fundraising to provide 3,032 copies of his book to incarcerated youth in the Greater Los Angeles area and beyond. A teaching artist for nearly ten years, Matthew has spent the last four years working in youth detention centers across LA County. He believes allowing young people to see themselves reflected in art will empower them with the knowledge that they also have a story to tell. 

 A powerful performer as well, he has opened for artists such as Wu-Tang and has performed for platforms like BuzzFeed and NPR. Matthew is also a three time Southern Fried poetry slam champion and an award-winning poetry coach. Cuban’s favorite activity is making people feel great, including through poetry. 

 On this episode, Matthew shares how he started writing poetry and what inspires his work, as well as what it’s like teaching poetry with young people and campaigning to get their art funded. We talk about the relationship between creativity and vulnerability, how to practice self-love from secondary trauma, and what it’s like to live as an empath. Enjoy our hugging, laughing, and “singing”, in addition to three of Matthew’s incredible poems. 

 You can support Matthews Kickstarter here https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/3032bookgiveaway/matthew-cuban-3032-books-of-poetry-to-incarcerated-youth

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Moving Beyond Fear and Embracing your Experience

This week’s episode, with special guest Nurjahan Boulden, is so important and powerful.  Nurjahan was 21 years old when she was shot with an assault rifle in an attack that killed the man next to her. That one night changed the trajectory of her life. Even as she moved on to become a teacher and mother of three, PTSD and complications from the bullet wound continually threatened her future. 13 years later, she is now recognized as America’s leading coach for survivors of gun violence who are ready to Feel Safe Again™.

Nurjahan and I talked about perseverance (especially through fear), facing reality, navigating trauma, and reclaiming your voice. I was moved by Nurjahan’s honesty and openness as she shared her truth in this interview. Plus, we also talked about her love of dancing.

Nurjahan’s story has been featured in a number of publications, including Cosmopolitan and Women’s Health. In addition to paving the way to recovery for survivors around the world, she hosts online support groups and community resilience workshops, and is partnering with mental health professionals to bring gun violence prevention and recovery programs to schools and organizations across America.

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