We Are The Stigma

It’s our first bonus episode and we’re getting witchy with it! Melissa and guest co-host Julie (from episode 2) are chatting with the enchanting Amy Lea, about all things witchcraft! Sisters Melissa & Julie are on their own witchcraft journey, so they take this opportunity to ask all of the questions and learn all of the things. Amy Lea shares how she started her witchcraft practice, how she came out of the broom closet, and what her life looks like today. Her passion is spreading her knowledge and supporting baby-witches along the way!

The co-hosts learn about Divination, the light and dark sides of practicing witchcraft, how to get started in your practice, questions to ask when purchasing the basic witchcraft tools, and so much more! Additionally, we discuss #100daysofwitchcraft and #hexyourlocalrapist. This episode is FULL of knowledge, the most important fact of all - witchcraft is a lifestyle, not satanic and not necessarily religious!

There’s no right or wrong way to practice, all that matters is that you do. And of course, there are loads of stigmas, join us as we break them!

Make sure you catch the episode’s opening, we make two major announcements!!

Amy Lea is a 29-year- old Witch based out of Western Canada, where she lives with her supportive husband and 2 dogs. Specializing in Divination, work with the dead and attempting to keep plants alive - Amy has been out of the broom closet for almost a decade and is passionate about breaking down stereotypes in the witchcraft community.

Find Amy Lea on Instagram @VenusInTulle on Facebook Venus In Tulle and over on Venusintulle.com Follow her hashtag #100daysofwitchcraft over on instagram

Find co-host Julie on Instagram @lilhunnnybee

Wanna share your story? Visit the blog here.

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Wanna support our show?? The best way to do that is by leaving us a 5 star review on itunes, and giving our episode a share!

We’d love to hear from you! Email us [email protected]

As always, thanks for listening!! xox

In episode 15 of We Are The Stigma, married co-hosts Cody & Melissa settle in for a candid conversation with BPD (borderline personality disorder) advocate, Megan Glosson. The conversation centers around one main thing - mental health hospitals. Megan, who recently completed her own treatment, explains the ins and outs of seeking help for ones mental health. The trio discusses stigma, judgment, and misconceptions of mental institutions while laughing over shared experiences. Melissa and Cody have also found themselves in the psych ward, so they're able to reminisce as well. If you’ve been searching for a sign to seek help, this is it. Reach out, it’s far less scary than society plays it out to be.

Megan Glosson is an avid writer and mental health advocate. She's currently published on The Mighty, Project Wednesday, Thought Catalog, Unwritten, Your Tango, HerStoryBlog, Words Between Coasts, SheSaid, Yahoo, and MSN. Megan is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University (B. Mus, 2010) and resides in Murfreesboro, Tennessee with her two beautiful daughters, geek husband, and 3 cats.
You can learn more about Megan's mental health struggles and journey towards a life worth living by following her blog, Living On The Borderline.

Wanna share your story? Visit the blog here.

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

Welcome back! After an impromptu reset, we are back and ready to start the second half of Season 3, with new guests and the same love!

Cody & Melissa spent the break re-evaluating the show and making conscious changes. In this episode, they go behind the scenes and discuss what the future holds.

We are asking for feedback - what can we do differently, and where can we better serve YOU, the listener? We value your opinions, and we'd love to hear from you! Feel free to send us a message via Instagram @_wearethestigma

Sending you all of our love, we hope to see you on the next episode with a brand-new, super awesome interview.

-You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram and Facebook
-You can follow Cody’s spiritual journey here on YouTube & his Limiting Beliefs Sessions on 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 briefly discusses self-harm; if you or someone you know is struggling, please reach out to local MHS ♥️

This week Melissa & Cody are chatting with Kristen Hassan! A sober mama, wife, nurse, and content creator.

Kristen shares the highs and lows of life and how a trip to a mental institution led her and her husband down a recovery path.

In this episode, we discuss:
-Addiction/sobriety/recovery
-Mommy wine culture
-Sober marriage

Find Kristen on:
TikTok @recover_queen
IG @__itsmekris_

Kristen is in recovery from alcohol abuse. She shares her story of trauma, mental illness, and recovery to help break the stigma around addiction and mental health. She is a registered nurse, mom of four, and married to her best friend, who also happens to be sober.

-You can follow us @_wearethestigma on Instagram and Facebook

-You can find Cody on Tiktok @codywkreutz and Instagram @codykreutz

-Find Melissa on Instagram @_thepetitecactus and TikTok @melskreutz

**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 our past guests wrote! 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 storyhttps://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/