Just Breathe: Parenting Your LGBTQ Teen Heather Hester

The holidays are a time of magic, love, and connection. Unfortunately, the crises in our lives don’t stop just because it is the holidays.
This episode is all about equipping you with the tools and language needed to gracefully handle situations with non-affirming individuals. We'll use the guide "The Language of LGBTQIA+" to understand the terminology your child or friend might use. Alongside this, we'll discuss the importance of maintaining presence with all kids, investing quality time with your partner, and nurturing a sense of gratitude to keep the positivity alive, even amidst chaotic times.
But there's more. We'll debunk common misbeliefs propagated by non-affirming individuals and learn how to respond to them. You'll discover how to provide essential support to LGBTQ+ individuals during the holiday season, and I'll share some self-care tips that have proved to be lifesavers during holiday crises. And last but certainly not least, we'll explore the transformative power of gratitude. Take the time to amplify the positive, find peace amidst chaos, and embrace the holidays in all their messy wonder.
Don't miss this heartwarming and empowering conversation - it'll leave you feeling ready to embrace the holiday season with open arms and an open heart.
Connect with Heather:
Learn more about The Just Breathe Community: https://member.chrysalismama.com/just-breathe-community-membership
YouTube: @chrysalismama9499
TikTok: @chrysalismama
Learn how you can make an impact: https://linktr.ee/chrysalismama
Solutions listed on her website: https://chrysalismama.com/solutions
Join the Just Breathe Community! https://member.chrysalismama.com/just-breathe-community-membership
Please subscribe to, rate, and review Just Breathe. And, as always, please share with anyone who needs to know they are not alone!

As we celebrate the fourth glorious year of Just Breathe, I can't help but look back on our remarkable journey. Our endeavor to support families, friends, allies, and LGBTQ individuals themselves has grown into a thriving business, a testament to our collective hard work and shared belief. We've welcomed a plethora of guests, each leaving us with invaluable lessons and beautiful memories. From shared laughter to tears, we've nurtured an environment of growth, learning, and love.
This episode is not just a celebration of our journey but also a tribute to my beloved golden doodle, Teagan. Diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer, Teagan, our family's constant, taught us to cherish every moment and draw strength from each other. Her unwavering presence during challenging times, whether it be my son's coming out or my sister's illness, filled our hearts with unconditional love. As we pay tribute to Teagan's remarkable legacy, join us in spreading love, fostering connections, and making a difference, one ripple at a time.
Get your Ally Toolkit for just $7.00 now by texting TOOLKIT to 847-881-3324
Connect with Heather:
Learn more about The Just Breathe Community: https://member.chrysalismama.com/just-breathe-community-membership
YouTube: @chrysalismama9499
TikTok: @chrysalismama
Learn how you can make an impact: https://linktr.ee/chrysalismama
Solutions listed on her website: https://chrysalismama.com/solutions
Join the Just Breathe Community! https://member.chrysalismama.com/just-breathe-community-membership
Please subscribe to, rate, and review Just Breathe. And, as always, please share with anyone who needs to know they are not alone!

Have you ever felt lost in your own skin, or like a puzzle piece that doesn't fit? Feel the weight lift as you join us in a poignant conversation with Michael Mammina, a master life coach who has navigated his way through these feelings and has emerged as a beacon of inspiration. In this episode, he candidly shares his personal journey of coming to terms with his sexuality, encountering severe bullying, and grappling with the feeling of being an outsider. Despite his outward success, Michael felt an internal void until he discovered the concept of the 'shadow' and its profound impact on our lives.
Our discussion is not merely a narration of Michael's journey but resonates with every individual who has felt different, out-of-place, or trapped by their own fears. We delve deep into the impact of shame on the LGBTQ community, the stages of coming out, with a special focus on the 'avoidance stage' and 'overcompensation stage'. At the heart of our conversation is the importance of self-love in leading an authentic life and the influential role of support in weathering life's storms.
Throughout our exploration, Michael imparts practical advice and tools for self-acceptance, personal growth, and creating safe spaces for those coming out. This episode will serve as a gentle reminder that it's never too late and there's never a wrong time to seek help, learn to love ourselves, and live our best lives. So, buckle up for an inspiring journey into self-discovery, acceptance, and transformation, and remember to soak up each moment, seek support, and just breathe.
Resources Mentioned
The Dark Side of the Light Chasers By Debbie Ford
The Velvet Rage by Alan Downs PhD
About our Guest:
Michael Mammina is a Master Life Coach with multiple certifications and global professional experience, whose passion is to create the space for successful people to increase their self-worth and net worth while achieving their desires. Self-worth is a dynamic of emotional and mental health that is often sadly neglected. Unless you truly value yourself, you won't have the motivation to exercise, get enough sleep, eat healthfully, and care for yourself. Michael helps people uncover and own their inherent self-worth while holding them accountable to take action, and co-creates the safety to reach inside and see what is holding them back from their dreams.
Discover that you are truly perfect, whole, and able - exactly as you are with no limits.
https://michaelmammina.com/
Get your Free eBook to help listeners learn 5 simple steps to get them toward the life they desire. Methods to break through the obstacales that are holding them back at https://michaelmammina.com/5steps/

Connect with Heather:
Learn more about The Just Breathe Community: https://member.chrysalismama.com/just-breathe-community-membership
YouTube: @chrysalismama9499
TikTok: a...

Picture your child standing tall, brimming with confidence and equipped with the tools to deftly handle bullying. That's the promise that my guest, Suzanne Jean, delivers on in our insightful conversation today. Suzanne, a passionate advocate for empowering young minds, takes us back to the 70s, painting a stark picture of how at-risk children were stigmatized and criminalized. She then walks us through the evolution of her innovative four-pillar program that cultivates self-confidence through self-defense, with a focus on awareness, attention, avoidance, and action. Suzanne's dedication to transforming young lives shines through as she stresses the significance of being mindful, engaging in open dialogues, and educating children about the intricate workings of their brains.
Diving into compelling narratives, Suzanne shares the transformative journey of her daughter's inner-city classroom. These stories serve as a testament to the potency of self-awareness and resilience. She speaks of the profound impact of positive affirmation and the effectiveness of her program through self-defense, mindfulness, play, and breath work. These tools are instrumental in boosting confidence and teaching kids to regulate their emotions, ultimately changing their behavior and their lives for the better.
We wrap up our conversation by emphasizing the urgent need to equip our children with the knowledge and the skills to navigate the complex world of emotions. The issue of bullying prevention and youth empowerment take center stage as we explore the connection between the brain, body, and spirit. Suzanne offers valuable insights on managing anxiety, fear, and other challenging emotions. She shares her vision to train youth as leaders, introducing them to the world of martial arts and sports. Tune in for a conversation that aims to enlighten, inspire, and empower.
About our Guest:
Suzanne Jean is the Director of Fit4Defense Consulting Ltd. operating a unique anti-bullying program called PowerED. This is a holistic life program that inspires confidence in participants to be heard, safe in the community and free from abuse through assertive communication, self defense and awareness exercises. Suzanne has over fifty years of experience in the design, implementation and accreditation of community-based programs in the social service field. She possesses lifelong experience as a martial artist with a black belt in karate and an advanced tai chi practitioner. Suzanne is a recently published author of "Bullying Stops Here-Steps to Safety, Strength, Confidence and Empowerment. 
https://www.fit4defense.ca/
Suzanne book - Bullying Stops Here - https://amzn.to/46Z4jl3

Connect with Heather:
Learn more about The Just Breathe Community: https://member.chrysalismama.com/just-breathe-community-membership
YouTube: @chrysalismama9499
TikTok: @chrysalismama
Learn how you can make an impact: https://linktr.ee/chrysalismama
Solutions listed on her website: https://chrysalismama.com/solutions
Join the Just Breathe Community! a href="https://member.chrysalismama.com/just-breathe-community-membership" rel="noopener noreferrer"...

What if you could harness the power of breath to live a more present, intentional, and authentic life? Join me as I engage in a transformative conversation with Jennifer (Jen) Murray, the founder of the High Vibe Healing Collective, who uses breath work and other techniques to cultivate a heart-aligned life and inspire others to do the same.
Get a glimpse into Jen's unique parenting journey, where they weave in somatic practices and astrology to remain genuine and heart-centered during the tumultuous pandemic times. We dissect the role of breath work in breaking old parenting habits, importance of language in shaping our children's lives, and how embracing our humanness can lead to a more enriched parent-child relationship. Jen's personal stories about how their children have served as life's greatest reminders are likely to strike a chord with many of you.
In our exploration of the collective illness of unworthiness and conformity, we delve into how breaking socialization patterns can lead to a more inclusive and loving space for our loved ones. Hear Jen's insights on how breath work and astrology can help us combat this sense of lack and worthiness and guide us towards a more integrated life.
About our Guest:
Jennifer (Jen) Murray (they/them) is the Founder of the High Vibe Healing Collective, using their lived experiences as a white-bodied, queer, loving mama, to breathe new ways of being and belonging. They emphasize inclusivity and conscious co-creation of embodied wellness, uplifting LGBTQ+ communities and inspiring heart-aligned leadership for a more justice-oriented world. Jen sparks joy-filled, loving, cosmically divine communities with a passion for social justice and accountability.
https://highvibehealingcollective.com/
Connect with Heather:
Learn more about The Just Breathe Community: https://member.chrysalismama.com/just-breathe-community-membership
YouTube: @chrysalismama9499
TikTok: @chrysalismama
Learn how you can make an impact: https://linktr.ee/chrysalismama
Solutions listed on her website: https://chrysalismama.com/solutions
Join the Just Breathe Community! https://member.chrysalismama.com/just-breathe-community-membership
Please subscribe to, rate, and review Just Breathe. And, as always, please share with anyone who needs to know they are not alone!

Join us as we navigate the compelling topics of consent culture, representation in media, and gender inclusivity in sports with our remarkable guest, Michele Meek. As a writer, filmmaker, professor, and entrepreneur, Michele brings an enlightening perspective to our conversation. Listen in as we explore her work on consent culture, her interest in representation in film and media, and her upcoming short film on gender and inclusivity in sports. From her earliest interest in sexuality to her most recent book, Consent Culture and Teen Films, Michele’s insights are bound to challenge your thinking and start important conversations.
Engage in our thoughtful discussion on teaching kids about consent culture and bodily autonomy from a young age. We examine the best ways to initiate conversations about boundaries, body safety, and how to introduce age-appropriate books to children. As we navigate through this topic, we also touch on the positive effects of consent culture in teaching young individuals the importance of communication and respect for others.
Finally, we'll get into the topic of representation in youth media, focusing on the need for more diversity in gender representation, particularly in teen films. We contemplate the effects of traditional sports rules and regulations on youth athletes, with a focus on gender divisions. As we close, we look at the possibilities of gender-neutral sports leagues and the benefits of allowing children to express themselves without being confined to a box. Michele's extensive research on gender diversity and her conviction that society needs to be more open to these findings, makes this a conversation you won't want to miss.
About our Guest:
MICHELE MEEK, Ph.D. (she/her) is a writer, filmmaker, professor, and entrepreneur. She authored the book Consent Culture and Teen Films (published in 2023 with Indiana University Press), and she has published several other books including Independent Female Filmmakers (2019) and The Mastermind Failure Club (2020). She presented a TEDx talk “Why we’re confused about consent—rewriting our stories of seduction” and has written for Ms. Magazine, Script Magazine, Entrepreneur, The Good Men Project, Salon.com, among others.
Michele has also directed numerous award-winning short films, including  Bay Creek Tennis Camp (2023),  Imagine Kolle 37 (2017), and Red...