#25 - Transgender Visibility: Beyond Adjectives | Rachel

Explicit content warning

03/30/22 • 68 min

In a very special episode, and in honor of Transgender Day of Visibility, Candice sits down with her dear friend, Rachel. Rachel speaks about how the pandemic impacted her work as a massage therapist and reflects on what it’s like to live as a trans woman during this time of unprecedented political backlash. She generously shares about why she decided to come out as a trans woman, and the many challenges she has faced along the way. She tells us how therapy and a strong support network carried her through her journey of transitioning and speaks to why, as a binary trans woman, she personally yearns to be received plain and simply as a woman, without all the awkwardness and adjectives. Candice digs into why it is we so often inaccurately conflate cognitive dissonance with safety concerns, and the two discuss healthy alternatives to transphobic projections. They explore how misogyny and internalized homophobia so often lead to violence and pathological enforcement of gender norms, and how legislation (even the bills that fail to pass) are actively endangering LGBTQ+ individuals as we speak. Rachel shares tangible examples of how cis gender folks often do harm by treating trans people differently, and she offers some practical tips for self-awareness in an effort to help cis folks up-level their support - from hollow promises of allyship toward meaningful action.
.

Rachel is a neurodivergent transgender woman. She is a queer, polyamorous, sex positive and staunchly feminist person who holds little space for ideals that seek to dehumanize, alienate, invalidate or otherwise harm the people of her community and beyond. She is passionate about providing a safe, accepting, healing space for all people, all identities, and all bodies.

LEARN, SUPPORT & TAKE ACTION

Transgender Day of Visibility
GLAAD | Things You Can Do For Transgender Equality
Human Rights Campaign | Understanding the Transgender Community
ACLU | Donate to the Legal Fight

Support the show

The stories and opinions shared in this episode are based on personal experience and are not intended to malign any individual, group, or organization.
Join The Deeper Pulse at Patreon for weekly bonus episodes + other exclusive bonus content. Follow The Deeper Pulse on IG @thedeeperpulse + @candiceschutter for more regular updates.

LEARN, SUPPORT & TAKE ACTION

Transgender Day of Visibility
GLAAD | Things You Can Do For Transgender Equality
Human Rights Campaign | Understanding the Transgender Community
ACLU | Donate to the Legal Fight

Support the show

Previous Episode

#24 - The 'Nature' of Self-Care + Pruning 101 | Monica Maggio

What on earth does pruning plants have to do with self-care? More than you might expect. Candice talks with ‘plant nerd’ and pruning coach, Monica Maggio, about her experience working as a plant care specialist. Monica explains how consciously carrying for perennial plants fosters self-awareness, empathy, and accountability. Monica gets personal, sharing a watershed moment in high school that inspired her to pursue environmental studies and horticulture. Now, after over a decade of working intimately with clients and their plants, she has uncovered a fascinating overlap between pruning methodologies and how we care for ourselves. Candice is all-in on this topic, admitting how her own 'stuff' has long been reflected in how she goes about pruning her rose bushes. The two discuss what plants have to teach us about trauma and resilience, and Monica walks us through a handful of helpful pruning techniques. Together, they marvel at how each approach provides a useful metaphor for self-development and our place in the natural order of things. Monica continually invites us to turn our attention toward indigenous cultures who have long embodied an interdependent relationship with nature. She references Robin Wall Kimmerer, author of Braiding Sweetgrass, who writes: "Action on behalf of life transforms. Because the relationship between self and the world is reciprocal... as we work to heal the earth, the earth heals us.”
Monica Maggio is a fruit growing expert and pruning coach based in Portland, OR. Monica believes good pruning combines science, art, nature, and nurture in powerful ways that help plants (and the people that care for them) thrive. Her business Core Home Fruit, and newest membership project The Pruning Portal, offer a variety of practical resources to help anyone learn to prune with skill and success one snip at a time!

corehomefruit.com | IG @corehomefruit | youtube.com/c/corehomefruit
Referenced in this episode:

Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Support the show

Next Episode

#26 - Individualized Care & Women's Health | Samantha LeVine, ND

Candice sits down with naturopathic physician, Samantha LeVine to discuss individualized care, particularly as it pertains to women’s health. Dr. Sam tells us about the moment when, at age seven, she realized she would become a doctor specializing in women’s health. She describes naturopathic medicine, what differentiates it from a conventional practice, and how regulations vary from state to state. Candice shares how Dr. Sam’s approach was a real game-changer for her own personal journey of health and self-care. She shares about the mysterious stroke-like symptoms she experienced in her twenties and early thirties, and how most medical professionals she encountered failed to take her mental health into account when suggesting diagnosis and treatment. The two discuss other examples of how emotional landscapes can impact physical health, and Dr. Sam emphasizes how essential it is to be physiologically informed when it comes to emotional challenges. Dr. Sam offers a fascinating explanation of how sugar, both positively and negatively, impacts the brain and whether or not there is a difference between medicine and medication. The episode wraps up with some very practical guidance regarding peri-menopausal and post-menopausal considerations. Dr. Sam tells us how to better prepare the body for this 'change of life' using proper testing and then talks candidly about whether or not hormone replacement therapy is a good idea.

Samantha LeVine, ND is a board-certified naturopathic physician practicing general care in Portland, OR. She’s been in private practice for nearly 20 years and loves to support community members of all ages. Specialties include women’s health and hormones, thyroid support, nutrition, gastrointestinal complaints, mood imbalance, sleep support etc. Doc Sam trained in midwifery in graduate school (NCNM, now called NUNM) and loves to really treat the whole person in her approach to healing. In addition to being a small business owner, Doc Sam enjoys time with her two children, ages 13 and 21, gardening, reading, hiking, dancing, and cooking.

docerenaturopathicwellness.com

Support the show