Open Deeply Podcast

Kate Loree, Sunny Megatron

Welcome to the Open Deeply podcast where guests dive deep into the vulnerable experiences that shaped them. We believe life storytelling has power…the power to heal and inspire others. Join acclaimed dream team, internationally recognized sex educator Sunny Megatron and seasoned sex positive psychotherapist, Kate Loree, LMFT. Through a sex positive, trauma informed lens, we explore the struggles and serendipitious happenings that led to our guest’s truth, life purpose, and wisdom. In doing so, these stories may light the way for your own sexual and personal truth. Choose an episode, and your journey towards finding your sexual and personal truth can start now.

  1. Neurodivergent Rising: A New Vision of Self Energy with Dr. Kristina Kyser - Ep. 65

    22H AGO

    Neurodivergent Rising: A New Vision of Self Energy with Dr. Kristina Kyser - Ep. 65

    In this powerful conversation, Kate Loree and Sunny Megatron sit down with educator and former psychotherapist Dr. Kristina Kyser, a late-diagnosed AuDHD scholar whose work bridges trauma healing, neurodivergence, spirituality, and systems-level critique. Together they explore how our understanding of autism, ADHD, and nervous-system sensitivity cannot be separated from the larger cultural forces that shape them. Dr. Kyser challenges dominant ideas about “normality,” unpacking why the concept of normal may be one of the most harmful assumptions in modern psychology—and what becomes possible when we stop trying to fit ourselves inside it. The conversation moves through wide-ranging territory: the relationship between neurodivergence and colonial systems of power, what animist and Indigenous cosmologies can teach us about human difference, and why meaningful healing must weave together spirituality, social awareness, and nervous-system repair. Dr. Kyser also shares insights from her own journey of unmasking and slowing down, discussing how stepping outside roles of compliance, pleasing, and patriarchal conditioning can reconnect us with our deeper nature. Along the way, Kate and Sunny explore big questions about identity, rage, gaslighting, power structures, and the cultural “spells” that shape how we understand ourselves. This is a conversation about breaking inherited frameworks, reclaiming embodied truth, and imagining forms of healing that are relational, political, and deeply human. Here is Dr. Kristina Kyser's Bio: Somatic-Spiritual Educator & Neurodivergent Guide Kristina (she/her) is a late-diagnosed AuDHD educator, former psychotherapist, and course creator with a PhD in English Literature and over 13 years of clinical experience. Her work bridges trauma healing, Buddhist and animist practice, and systems-level critique. She creates initiatory spaces that blend science, soul, and lived neurodivergence in service of collective remembering and repair. And this is where you can find Dr. Kristina Kyser: https://www.instagram.com/kristina.kyser.phd/ https://www.tiktok.com/@kristina.kyser Book mentioned in this episode: Columbus and Other Cannibals by Jack D. Forbes How to find Sunny Megatron: Website: http://sunnymegatron.com Facebook http://facebook.com/sunnymegatron Twitter http://twitter.com/sunnymegatron Instagram http://instagram.com/sunnymegatron Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@sunnymegatron YouTube https://www.youtube.com/sunnymegatron American Sex Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/2HroMhWJnyZbMSsOBKwBnk How to find Kate Loree: Website http://kateloree.com Instagram: http://instagram.com/opendeeplywithkateloree Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@opendeeplywithkateloree Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kateloreelmft Twitter http://twitter.com/kateloreelmft YouTube https://youtube.com/channel/UCSTFAqGYKW3sIUa0tKivbqQ Open Deeply podcast is not therapy or a replacement for therapy.

    1h 32m
  2. Shame Free and Slutastic with Dirty Lola - Ep 64

    12/29/2025

    Shame Free and Slutastic with Dirty Lola - Ep 64

    What happens when sexual shame hijacks our internal compass—and what becomes possible when we reclaim it? In this powerful and playful episode of Open Deeply, Kate Loree and Sunny Megatron are joined by the brilliant and beloved Dirty Lola—award-winning sexpert, edutainer, and longtime voice in the sex-positive community—for a deep dive into shame, pleasure, creativity, and liberation. We begin with joy: how pleasure becomes more accessible when shame loosens its grip. From there, the conversation moves into the roots of sexual shame—especially religious and cultural conditioning—and how that shame doesn’t just distort our relationship to sex, but to ourselves, our intuition, and our capacity for free thought. Lola shares her own journey of growing up in a religious household, breaking free from rigid belief systems, and cultivating a life grounded in curiosity, humor, and embodied truth. Together, we explore: • How shame disables the internal compass and hands power back to controlling institutions • The surprising relationship between shame, rigidity, and creativity—and why creativity may be a powerful antidote • Kink as both a site of shame and a pathway to healing • Laughing at what once felt unbearable • Fourteen different forms of shame—from sexual and relational shame to creativity, illness, and survivor shame—and which ones still tug at us • The difference between being ashamed and refusing to tolerate shaming environments • What a truly shame-free space feels like in the body • Why “being ashamed of being ashamed” can trap people in a hall of mirrors—and how to take the first brave step out • How to balance safety, risk tolerance, and liberation amid the many sources of shame in the United States today Come for the sex-positive wisdom. Stay for the liberation. Dirty Lola's Bio: Dirty Lola is an award-winning sexpert, edutainer, and longtime voice in the sex-positive community. With over 11 years of experience working in sex shops, she’s helped thousands navigate toys, turn-ons, and the beautifully messy world of pleasure. Known for blending humor, honesty, and empathy into her work, she has hosted live Q&A shows, appeared on your favorite podcasts and streaming services, spoken on national stages, and guided folks through love, sex, and everything in between. Whether it’s kink, communication, or keeping the spark alive, she’s got the answers — and the lube. How to find Dirty Lola: IG - @DirtyLola Threads - DirtyLola FB - Dirty Lola How to find Sunny Megatron: Website: http://sunnymegatron.com Facebook http://facebook.com/sunnymegatron Twitter http://twitter.com/sunnymegatron Instagram http://instagram.com/sunnymegatron Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@sunnymegatron YouTube https://www.youtube.com/sunnymegatron American Sex Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/2HroMhWJnyZbMSsOBKwBnk How to find Kate Loree: Website http://kateloree.com Instagram: http://instagram.com/opendeeplywithkateloree Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@opendeeplywithkateloree Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kateloreelmft Twitter http://twitter.com/kateloreelmft YouTube https://youtube.com/channel/UCSTFAqGYKW3sIUa0tKivbqQ Open Deeply podcast is not therapy or a replacement for therapy.

    1h 30m
  3. The Wheel of Consent with Dr. Betty Martin - Ep 63

    10/27/2025

    The Wheel of Consent with Dr. Betty Martin - Ep 63

    In this illuminating episode of Open Deeply, hosts Sunny Megatron and Kate Loree dive into the groundbreaking work of Dr. Betty Martin, creator of The Wheel of Consent—a framework that has transformed how people understand giving, receiving, and the subtle power dynamics within touch, communication, and pleasure. Together, we explore how the Wheel challenges our cultural assumptions about consent, revealing that true consent isn’t just about saying “yes” or “no”—it’s about learning who it’s for, what we actually want, and how to stay connected to our body’s truth in every interaction. Dr. Martin shares the personal and professional experiences that inspired her to create this model and offers practical tools for anyone wishing to live more in alignment with consent—whether in intimate encounters, friendships, workplaces, or everyday exchanges. The conversation also delves into: • How to unlearn social conditioning that teaches us to please or freeze • Using the Wheel as a trauma-informed path toward nervous system regulation and safety in receiving • Exploring desire and arousal beyond shame while maintaining clear ethical boundaries • How consent work intersects with equity, privilege, and dismantling domination patterns So please join us as we once again dare to Open Deeply. Betty Martin's Bio: Dr. Betty Martin has had her hands on people professionally for over 40 years. After retiring from being a Chiropractor, she became a certified Surrogate Partner and Somatic Sex Educator. Her explorations in somatic-based therapy and practices informed her creation of the now famous, Wheel of Consent. Betty developed the training "Like a Pro: The Wheel of Consent for Professionals", to support practitioners to create empowered agreements in their client sessions. Originally developed to teach consent skills to sex workers and touch providers, the training is now attended by somatic therapists, sexuality educators, medical and health care workers, activists, and the spectrum of touch-based professional providers. It starts with touch and expands into all forms of human relating. How to find Betty Martin: Website: https://www.wheelofconsent.org/about Link to Wheel of Consent: https://www.wheelofconsent.org/wheel http://instagram.com/drbettymartin http://facebook.com/bettymartin How to find Sunny Megatron: Website: http://sunnymegatron.com Facebook http://facebook.com/sunnymegatron Twitter http://twitter.com/sunnymegatron Instagram http://instagram.com/sunnymegatron Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@sunnymegatron YouTube https://www.youtube.com/sunnymegatron American Sex Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/2HroMhWJnyZbMSsOBKwBnk How to find Kate Loree: Website http://kateloree.com Instagram: http://instagram.com/opendeeplywithkateloree Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@opendeeplywithkateloree Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kateloreelmft Twitter http://twitter.com/kateloreelmft YouTube https://youtube.com/channel/UCSTFAqGYKW3sIUa0tKivbqQ Open Deeply podcast is not therapy or a replacement for therapy.

  4. Dr. Holly Richmond on Exploring Consensual Non-monogamy as a Trauma Survivor - Ep 62

    10/06/2025

    Dr. Holly Richmond on Exploring Consensual Non-monogamy as a Trauma Survivor - Ep 62

    Reclaiming one’s body and voice is a key part of the healing journey for an abuse survivor, but can this process happen concurrent with practicing consensual non-monogamy? In this episode, Dr. Holly Richmond talks to us about how survivors can avoid potential re-traumatization and increase the chance for corrective experiences within consensual non-monogamy. Trauma survivors often learn to freeze/fawn as a way to reduce harm. These behavioral patterns can continue to stay with them as they explore non-monogamy making consent difficult to verify. In this episode, we discuss how to increase a sense of agency and pleasure while healing as consensual non-monogamy is explored. Please join us as once again, we face the hard topics and dare to Open Deeply. How to find Dr. Holly Richmond: Media links: drhollyrichmond.com and @drhollyrichmond on IG. My book, Reclaiming Pleasure, is available on Amazon and at all major book sellers. How to find Sunny Megatron: Website: http://sunnymegatron.com Facebook http://facebook.com/sunnymegatron Twitter http://twitter.com/sunnymegatron Instagram http://instagram.com/sunnymegatron Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@sunnymegatron YouTube https://www.youtube.com/sunnymegatron American Sex Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/2HroMhWJnyZbMSsOBKwBnk How to find Kate Loree: Website http://kateloree.com Instagram: http://instagram.com/opendeeplywithkateloree Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@opendeeplywithkateloree Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kateloreelmft Twitter http://twitter.com/kateloreelmft YouTube https://youtube.com/channel/UCSTFAqGYKW3sIUa0tKivbqQ Open Deeply podcast is not therapy or a replacement for therapy.

  5. Trauma Resiliency Skills with Jennifer Burton Flier - Ep 60

    07/14/2025

    Trauma Resiliency Skills with Jennifer Burton Flier - Ep 60

    Part of the intention of Open Deeply podcast is to highlight what can block us from opening deeply into our human potential. A key block is unresolved or ongoing trauma. The year 2025 has been incredibly traumatic for many so we thought it was high time to bring on one of the best trauma experts out there, psychotherapist, Jennifer Burton Flier. Jen has been a wise yoda for countless therapists as they learn to use the Trauma Resiliency Model, but in this episode, we have her all to ourselves. The Trauma Resiliency Model is a somatic psychotherapeutic method to cope and heal trauma. The model comes with a set of skills that anyone can learn and use in their life and through out their day. Furthermore, Jen explains how these skills can be woven into difficult communication with a partner. And finally, we discuss how to use these skills to cope with the cultural stressors of 2025. Please join us as once again, we dare to open deeply. Jen's Bio: Jennifer Burton Flier is a California-based therapist and senior faculty member with the Trauma Resource Institute. She teaches the Trauma and Community Resiliency Models, sharing evidence-based wellness skills with diverse communities across the U.S. and internationally. Her work focuses on helping people stabilize the nervous system and reconnect with their natural resilience in the face of stress and trauma, offering simple, effective tools for bringing more balance and ease into daily life. She has over 30 years of clinical experience supporting adults with chronic mental illness. Today, her private practice specializes in healing trauma and attachment patterns with teens, adults, couples, and families. Jennifer is now also branching out into offering intensives and retreats, providing deeper, immersive healing experiences in supportive, growth-oriented environments. She is certified in EMDR, Expressive Arts Therapy, and is a Certified Daring Way™ and Rising Strong™ Facilitator, integrating Brené Brown’s work into her trauma-informed approach. Her clinical and teaching work is deeply grounded in TRI’s models and her commitment to accessible, embodied healing. Jennifer has been featured on several podcasts including The Laverne Cox Show, Sluts & Scholars, and Resiliency Within. How to Find Jennifer Burton: https://jenniferburtonmft.com/ https://www.traumaresourceinstitute.com/blog/2021/4/2/the-community-resiliency-model-crm-on-the-laverne-cox-show https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/jennifer-burton-flier-san-francisco-ca/166426 How to find Sunny Megatron: Website: http://sunnymegatron.com Facebook http://facebook.com/sunnymegatron Twitter http://twitter.com/sunnymegatron Instagram http://instagram.com/sunnymegatron Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@sunnymegatron YouTube https://www.youtube.com/sunnymegatron American Sex Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/2HroMhWJnyZbMSsOBKwBnk How to find Kate Loree: Website http://kateloree.com Instagram: http://instagram.com/opendeeplywithkateloree Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kateloreelmft Twitter http://twitter.com/kateloreelmft YouTube https://youtube.com/channel/UCSTFAqGYKW3sIUa0tKivbqQ Open Deeply podcast is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Open Deeply Podcast is not therapy nor a replacement for therapy.

  6. Patriarchy Isn't What You Think with Dr. Kate Balestrieri - Ep 59

    05/19/2025

    Patriarchy Isn't What You Think with Dr. Kate Balestrieri - Ep 59

    It could be argued that agents of capitalism have built the patriarchal system as a means to keep both men and women controlled and in line. But what if we broke free? What would happen to sex, love and freedom then? Dr. Kate Balesteri joins us to discuss what patriarchy actually is, how it hurts all genders, and how we (men, women and every gender) can take back our agency while heightening our authenticity and consciousness. You can find Dr. Kate Balestrieri at: https://www.modernintimacy.com/dr-kate-balestrieri-sex-therapist/ Facebook http://facebook.com/dr.katebalestrieri http://instagram.com/drkatebalestrieri Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@drkatebalestrieri Dr. Kate Balestrieri"s Bio: Dr. Kate Balestrieri, Psy.D., CSAT-S, is a Licensed Psychologist (Clinical and Forensic) in CA, FL, NY and IL. She is a Certified Sex Therapist, Certified Sex Addiction Therapist – Supervisor, and PACT III trained couples’ therapist. Dr. Balestrieri earned her Doctorate of Clinical Psychology from the Illinois School of Professional Psychology, Chicago, and completed her Post-Doctoral Fellowship though the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, with a concentration in Forensic Psychology. In over 16 years of clinical experience, she has conducted clinical and forensic evaluations, provided expert witness testimony in court, and been a treatment provider in clinical, forensic, and correctional settings. The Founder of Modern Intimacy, Dr. Balestrieri is a passionate advocate for mental, relational and sexual health. Throughout her work, Dr. Balestrieri focuses on helping people build resilience and recovery from what ails them to move from a position of pain or discomfort to one of thriving, holistically in their lives. A sex positive provider and human, Dr. Balestrieri is dedicated to helping people have a more expansive and integrated relationship with sexuality. Dr. Balestrieri is a regular contributor for PopSugar, Poosh, YourTango, Psychology Today, House of Wise and has been featured in many other publications. She is also the host of the Get Naked with Dr. Kate podcast, on which she discusses mental health, sex and relationships. You can listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio or anywhere you get your podcasts! How to find Sunny Megatron: Website: http://sunnymegatron.com Facebook http://facebook.com/sunnymegatron Twitter http://twitter.com/sunnymegatron Instagram http://instagram.com/sunnymegatron Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@sunnymegatron YouTube https://www.youtube.com/sunnymegatron American Sex Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/2HroMhWJnyZbMSsOBKwBnk How to find Kate Loree: Website http://kateloree.com Instagram: http://instagram.com/opendeeplywithkateloree Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@opendeeplywithkateloree Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kateloreelmft Twitter http://twitter.com/kateloreelmft YouTube https://youtube.com/channel/UCSTFAqGYKW3sIUa0tKivbqQ Book referenced: How to find Sunny Megatron: Website: http://sunnymegatron.com Facebook http://facebook.com/sunnymegatron Twitter http://twitter.com/sunnymegatron Instagram http://instagram.com/sunnymegatron Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@sunnymegatron YouTube https://www.youtube.com/sunnymegatron American Sex Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/2HroMhWJnyZbMSsOBKwBnk How to find Kate Loree: Website http://kateloree.com Instagram: http://instagram.com/opendeeplywithkateloree Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@opendeeplywithkateloree Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kateloreelmft Twitter http://twitter.com/kateloreelmft YouTube https://youtube.com/channel/UCSTFAqGYKW3sIUa0tKivbqQ Book referenced: What Happened to My Sex Life?: A Sex Therapist's Guide to Reclaiming Lost Desire, Connection, and Pleasure by Dr. Kate Balestrieri Open Deeply podcast is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Open Deeply podcast is not therapy or a replacement for therapy.

    57 min
  7. Glauber Loures De Assis on Ayahuasca and the Santo Daime Church  - Ep 58

    01/06/2025

    Glauber Loures De Assis on Ayahuasca and the Santo Daime Church - Ep 58

    Ayahuasca isn’t right for everyone, but if you have decided to dive down this psychedelic rabbit hole, hopefully you have already discovered the necessity to support, respect, and listen to the indigenous cultures that have had intergenerational relationships with this powerful plant medicine. That necessity is the catalyst for inviting indigenous rights activist and psychedelic leader, Dr. Glauber Loures de Assis, as a guest on this episode of Open Deeply. Glauber is the founder and president of Céu da Divina Estrela, a legal and tax-exempt Santo Daime ayahuasca church in Brazil, a Ph.D. in sociology, and has led more than 500 ceremonies in Brazil, Europe and the United States. He points out that, “While some investors in the psychedelic sector considered the flooding at Burning Man to be their most dangerous experience in many years, communities in the Amazon are fighting daily for their lives amid both fire and flood, state-sponsored famine and the threat of death from illegal miners.” And yet we shouldn’t be so short sighted to believe that this is a one-way relationship. If we listen, then we will discover that they can help us profoundly when we need it most. For instance, Glauber states, ““Indigenous contexts offer awareness beyond the psychotherapeutic, where illness and healing are social processes oriented within a collective experience.” Our culture founded on individualism knows little of that. He speaks beyond, psychedelics to kindelics and somadelics, all concepts that we are unfamiliar with, but shamans and indigenous cultures, like the Brazilian Yanomami know so well. Glauber teaches us about these concepts, expands our horizons, and even speaks on the Psychedelic Parenthood Community. Get ready to have your mind blown as we once again dare to Open Deeply. Glauber's Bio: Dr. Glauber Loures de Assis is a researcher of sacred plants and their traditions and a psychedelic dad. He has a Ph.D in sociology from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG). He is the author of numerous articles and book chapters, and the co-editor of the book Women and Psychedelics: Uncovering Invisible Voices (Synergetic Press). He has built his Santo Daime practice in dialogue with his local Brazilian ayahuasca community and with the blessings of Indigenous elders and activists in Brazil. He is also the co-founder of Jornadas de Kura, a plant medicine center in Brazil that promotes an alliance between the ceremonial use of sacred plants, public education on plant medicine and psychedelic science. He is father to 3 children and lives with his wife Jacqueline Rodrigues in Santa Luzia, Minas Gerais, Brazil.Glauber is driven by the desire to collectively co-create a plant medicine community in which all families are safe, welcome and integrated into the psychedelic field. A community in which diversity is embraced, children and elders are taken seriously, ancestral Indigenous traditions are honored, and where all kinds of families can coexist in solidarity. How to find Glauber: glauber@psychedelicparenthood.org IG: http://instagram.com/glauberloures How to find Sunny Megatron: Website: http://sunnymegatron.com Facebook http://facebook.com/sunnymegatron Twitter http://twitter.com/sunnymegatron Instagram http://instagram.com/sunnymegatron Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@sunnymegatron YouTube https://www.youtube.com/sunnymegatron American Sex Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/2HroMhWJnyZbMSsOBKwBnk How to find Kate Loree: Website http://kateloree.com Instagram: http://instagram.com/opendeeplywithkateloree Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@opendeeplywithkateloree Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kateloreelmft Twitter http://twitter.com/kateloreelmft YouTube https://youtube.com/channel/UCSTFAqGYKW3sIUa0tKivbqQ Book referenced: The Falling Sky: Words of a Yanomami Shaman by Davi Kopenawa and Bruce Albert. Open Deeply podcast is not therapy or a replacement for therapy.

    1h 9m
5
out of 5
29 Ratings

About

Welcome to the Open Deeply podcast where guests dive deep into the vulnerable experiences that shaped them. We believe life storytelling has power…the power to heal and inspire others. Join acclaimed dream team, internationally recognized sex educator Sunny Megatron and seasoned sex positive psychotherapist, Kate Loree, LMFT. Through a sex positive, trauma informed lens, we explore the struggles and serendipitious happenings that led to our guest’s truth, life purpose, and wisdom. In doing so, these stories may light the way for your own sexual and personal truth. Choose an episode, and your journey towards finding your sexual and personal truth can start now.