KICPOD LiSTNR

Ash Paraskevas had kissed girls long before she ever had sex with a woman. She would make out with girls in high school and tell herself it was something she was doing for attention. But after seven years in a heterosexual relationship, Ash could no longer ignore her feelings towards women. As scary as it was to leave her long-term relationship, she knew she had to do it if she was ever going to live authentically as a lesbian.
In part two of our conversation, Ash shares how it felt to leave the safe space of her relationship, and how she started to explore her feelings with women, including her first time, how she learned to have sex with women, and how she learned to accept herself as a lesbian.
If you missed part one of our conversation, catch up here: https://pod.fo/e/23735c 
FOLLOW US
KICPOD @kicpod on InstagramJoin our closed KICPOD Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/630561419185145/Steph Claire Smith @stephclairesmith on Instagram & @steph_claire_smith on TikTokLaura Henshaw @laura.henshaw on Instagram & @laura.henshaw on TiktokAsh Paraskevas @ashparaskevas on InstagramKic @kic.app on Instagram & @kic on TikTok and kicapp.com or download the app from the App Store and Google Play Store
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we answer your D&M about how to decline an invite to an overseas wedding.
You said: “I don’t know how to handle telling my best friend that I may not be at her wedding.”
We share our thoughts on overseas weddings and the expectations placed on guests to attend - often at large financial expense.
Plus we asked you to spill your celebrity run in stories! Usain Bolt, Princess Mary, and even…us!?
SPECIAL SHARES
Steph: the podcast 'Pop Culture Parenting' with Dr Billy Garvey and Nick McCormack https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/pop-culture-parenting/id1600660063  Steph: the book 'Ten things I wish you knew about your child's mental health' by Dr Billy Garvey https://www.penguin.com.au/books/ten-things-i-wish-you-knew-about-your-childs-mental-health-9781761345838  Laura: no special share this week, sorry!! FOLLOW US
KICPOD @kicpod on InstagramJoin our closed KICPOD Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/630561419185145/Steph Claire Smith @stephclairesmith on Instagram & @steph_claire_smith on TikTokLaura Henshaw @laura.henshaw on Instagram & @laura.henshaw on TiktokKic @kic.app on Instagram & @kic on TikTok and kicapp.com or download the app from the App Store and Google Play Store
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One in six people with vulvas reported feeling anxious or embarrassed about the way their labia looks. The recently published Labia Diversity Report from Women’s Health Victoria surveyed 1,030 women and people with labia aged between 18-50 about how they feel about their labia. They found 31% of those surveyed associated their labia with words like ‘weird’, ‘disgusting’ or ‘ugly’ and one in four Gen-Z were anxious about the way their labia looked.
In this special bonus episode of KICPOD, Laura sits down with Ellie Sedgwick, from Comfortable In My Skin, a platform where she shares photos and stories of the enormous diversity of labias that exist. Laura and Ellie discuss how Ellie went from contemplating a labiaplasty to taking photos of labia for a living, where the pressure to have a perfect labia comes from, and why no one needs to be ashamed of how their labia looks.
FIND OUT MORE
Read the report ‘Real bodies: understanding and celebrating labia diversity’ here https://whv.org.au/resources/whv-publications/real-bodies-understanding-and-celebrating-labia-diversity 
Follow Ellie on Instagram @comfortableinmyskin_
Check out the vulva photo gallery here on Ellie's website https://www.comfortableinmyskin.com.au/
FOLLOW US
KICPOD @kicpod on InstagramJoin our closed KICPOD Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/630561419185145/Steph Claire Smith @stephclairesmith on Instagram & @steph_claire_smith on TikTokLaura Henshaw @laura.henshaw on Instagram & @laura.henshaw on TiktokKic @kic.app on Instagram & @kic on TikTok and kicapp.com or download the app from the App Store and Google Play Store
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How much screen time is too much? Mandy Richardson is a child development and early parenting specialist and the creator of Raise Toddlers: a platform created to inspire and equip parents with the skills and tools they need to raise children from birth to six years old.
Very importantly, Mandy is not anti-screens!
But when she notices her three daughters have spent too much time on screens, she introduces a screen reset: time away from screens to bring them back down to baseline.
In this episode, Mandy joins Steph from Perth to discuss the impact of screen time and how to implement a screen reset if you think it could suit your family. They discuss what is happening in children’s brains when they’re watching a screen, how screens can impact a child’s behaviour and how to reintroduce screens after the screen reset has finished.
FIND OUT MORE
Follow Mandy on Instagram @raisetoddlersFind out more about Raise Toddlers https://raisetoddlers.com.au/ Become a Raise Toddlers member for the screen reset support in our Facebook group  https://raisetoddlers.com.au/membership/To celebrate Raise Toddler’s third birthday, you can use the code THREE for 20% off any products and services
FOLLOW US
KICPOD @kicpod on InstagramSteph Claire Smith @stephclairesmith on Instagram, @steph_claire_smith on TikTokJoin our virtual mothers' group in the the KICBUMP Facebook group. Search 'KICBUMP Community'Kic @kic.app on Instagram, @kic on TikTok and kicapp.com
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a recent episode of The Kardashians, Kylie Jenner broke down in tears over comments she received about the way she looks. In the episode she said "people have been talking about my looks since I was 12, 13…after 10-plus years of hearing about (my looks), it just gets exhausting." We watched it and we want to share our thoughts.
Plus Laura has been spending time on Facebook Marketplace since moving house which made us think that you guys must have some wild Marketplace stories…and you proved us right!
SPECIAL SHARES
Steph: the song ‘you look like you love me’ by Ella Langley (feat. Riley Green) https://open.spotify.com/track/0y5Ex8oQ8zCH5TQxHUy1Eo?autoplay=true  Laura: A Family Affair on Netflix https://www.netflix.com/au/title/81361154?source=35  Kic UPDATE
We’ve teamed up with frank green to release our very own empowering Kic collection!! Stay hydrated with our reusable water bottle, grab your morning coffee in our sustainable cup or sip your smoothie on the go. With three affirmations: I am strong. I am capable and I am confident in three exclusive colours, aqua, flamingo and cherry. It’s your daily reminder that you’ve got this. Available 9am Thursday 18th July online at frank green or in rebel stores across Australia. Plus…. pre-sale starts tomorrow (Tuesday 16th) at 9am for all Kic subscribers. Keep an eye out on your inbox where we’ll send you an exclusive link to shop the pre-sale! 
FOLLOW US
KICPOD @kicpod on InstagramJoin our closed KICPOD Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/630561419185145/Steph Claire Smith @stephclairesmith on Instagram & @steph_claire_smith on TikTokLaura Henshaw @laura.henshaw on Instagram & @laura.henshaw on TiktokKic @kic.app on Instagram & @kic on TikTok and kicapp.com or download the app from the App Store and Google Play Store
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the third part of our three-episode special about having difficult conversations, we invite our coach Janey Martino back into the studio to talk through making assumptions and not taking things personally. 
We’ve personally gone through our own experience of assuming we know what the other person is thinking and how they will react to something…without actually talking to them about it.
In this episode, Janey unpacks what assumptions are, how they impact us, how they can be holding us back in our jobs and relationships, how we can stop making them when we start paying attention to them, and how all of this helps to stop us taking things personally.
If you missed part one and two of this special, we'd recommend you scroll back in your feed and listen.
Part one: the most challenging conversation we've ever had to have https://pod.fo/e/24ff9b 
Part two: learning to trust ourselves with our coach Janey Martino https://pod.fo/e/250d12 
FOLLOW US
KICPOD @kicpod on InstagramJoin our closed KICPOD Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/630561419185145/Steph Claire Smith @stephclairesmith on Instagram & @steph_claire_smith on TikTokLaura Henshaw @laura.henshaw on Instagram & @laura.henshaw on TiktokCheck out Janey’s coaching business ‘The Kintsugi Way’ https://kintsugiway.co/Kic @kic.app on Instagram & @kic on TikTok and kicapp.com or download the app from the App Store and Google Play Store
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.