Permission To Be Human

Janelle and Andrea

Welcome to Permission to be Human! --- We're Andrea and Janelle--two midlife mavericks sharing openly about our own experiences--messy AF and no regrets----with marriage, divorce, polyamory and pleasure. You'll hear from relationship experts, meet real life Bravehearts and get intimacy skills. Truth: When we're brave enough to ask for what we want, honor our boundaries and have the hard conversations--with partners, friends, family and, most importantly, ourselves--magic happens and happiness ensues. If you're seeking permission to create a new map for relationships and want to feel less alone along the way, we got you. With glitter and radical acceptance, Janelle & Andrea. --- Follow, subscribe, share and download wherever you get your podcasts! --- Learn more about us at: permissiontobehuman.live --- Music: "Running Wild" by LVDY https://www.lvdymusic.com/

  1. APR 7

    125: We Loved It Enough to Let It End: Andrea & Janelle's Conscious Final Episode

    125: We Loved It Enough to Let It End: Andrea & Janelle's Conscious Final Episode This final episode is less a goodbye and more a mic drop on three years of evolution, experimentation, and radical honesty. Andrea and Janelle close out Permission to Be Human NOT because they ran out of things to say—but because the podcast served its purpose, teaching them how to figure out what they want and ask for it. What started as processing relationships in real time became an accidental roadmap for anyone willing to question everything, and a massive return on their own life investment. There's a nod to LVDY, Sophie Howell and We Can Do Hard Things. You'll hear: -Why ending "on a high note" can be a radical act -The arc of the becoming and the gratitude for bravehearts -Why it was never about their way, but an invitation to find yours -The vital shift from external validation to internal alignment -A recap of Seasons' 1-6 -How building a relationship with self is always the first move -About their next big adventures -------------- We're Andrea and Janelle--two midlife mavericks sharing openly about our own experiences--messy AF and no regrets----with marriage, divorce, polyamory and pleasure. You'll hear from relationship experts, meet real life Bravehearts and get intimacy skills.  Truth: When we're brave enough to ask for what we want, honor our  boundaries and have the hard conversations--with partners, friends, family and, most importantly, ourselves--magic happens and happiness ensues. If you're seeking permission to create a new map for relationships and want to feel less alone along the way, we got you. With glitter and radical acceptance, Janelle & Andrea. Follow, subscribe and share!Learn more about us at: https://www.permissiontobehuman.live/ Music: "Running Wild" by LVDY https://www.lvdymusic.com/

    33 min
  2. MAR 24

    124: Part 8/8, Relationship Death Doulas Talk Repair, Intimacy & Rebirth: Designing a Relationship that Works Series

    124: Part 8/8, Relationship Death Doulas Talk Repair, Intimacy & Rebirth: Designing a Relationship that Works Series What if the problem isn't your relationship… it's that you won't let it die? In this episode, Andrea & Janelle interview relationship death doulas Yana Rumi and Cari Caldwell, who don't just "work on" their relationship—they burn it down on purpose. No catastrophe required. Just a willingness to stop pretending, drop the roles, and meet each other again from zero. Truth: most relationships don't fail because of conflict—they suffocate under unspoken agreements, stale identities, and quiet resentment. Like computers, relationships require a defrag and a restart ;-). You'll hear: -About the flatlined nature of "Happily Ever After" -Why you should schedule sex without intercourse expectation -How predictability can be such a cage -Truth: Repair isn't a failure, its a gym where the intimacy muscles get stronger -How jealousy, desire and curiosity are all just sensations Why they're NOT committed to forever, but to each other's fullest expression -The beauty of choosing each other again after brief separation -Validation about the "weight of survival" Learn more at relationshipdeathdoulas.life -------------- We're Andrea and Janelle--two midlife mavericks sharing openly about our own experiences--messy AF and no regrets----with marriage, divorce, polyamory and pleasure. You'll hear from relationship experts, meet real life Bravehearts and get intimacy skills.  Truth: When we're brave enough to ask for what we want, honor our  boundaries and have the hard conversations--with partners, friends, family and, most importantly, ourselves--magic happens and happiness ensues. If you're seeking permission to create a new map for relationships and want to feel less alone along the way, we got you. With glitter and radical acceptance, Janelle & Andrea. Follow, subscribe and share!Learn more about us at: https://www.permissiontobehuman.live/ Music: "Running Wild" by LVDY https://www.lvdymusic.com/

    43 min
  3. MAR 17

    123: Part 7/8, Legally Married, Personally Single: A Radical Family Experiment: Designing a Relationship that Works Series

    123: Part 7/8, Legally Married, Personally Single: A Radical Family Experiment: Designing a Relationship that Works Series In this episode, Andrea and Janelle sit down with Nitsan Mesika, a wilderness therapist and psychedelic practitioner who has spent 25 years legally married to her partner… while both consider themselves single. Instead of divorce, they designed something new: a shared home, separate bedrooms, fluid parenting roles, independent romantic lives, and a fierce commitment to the family rather than a formula. Nitsan's story is a reminder that relationships aren't static agreements — they're living ecosystems. There's a nod to Non Violent Communication. You'll hear: -How she explained it all to her kids -Why Nitsan and her partner don't strive to be the same -The difference between conflict and rupture -When texting is better than talking -How Nitsan parented in her non-traditional setting -Why a relationships don't have to follow norms to be stable, loving, or ethical. -------------- We're Andrea and Janelle--two midlife mavericks sharing openly about our own experiences--messy AF and no regrets----with marriage, divorce, polyamory and pleasure. You'll hear from relationship experts, meet real life Bravehearts and get intimacy skills.  Truth: When we're brave enough to ask for what we want, honor our  boundaries and have the hard conversations--with partners, friends, family and, most importantly, ourselves--magic happens and happiness ensues. If you're seeking permission to create a new map for relationships and want to feel less alone along the way, we got you. With glitter and radical acceptance, Janelle & Andrea. Follow, subscribe and share!Learn more about us at: https://www.permissiontobehuman.live/ Music: "Running Wild" by LVDY https://www.lvdymusic.com/

    44 min
  4. MAR 11

    122: Part 6/8, Polyamory, Parenting, and the Art of Staying Yourself: Designing a Relationship that Works Series

    122: Part 6/8, Polyamory, Parenting, and the Art of Staying Yourself: Designing a Relationship that Works Series What if the real secret to a lasting relationship isn't the structure — monogamy, polyamory, swinging, or anything else — but the willingness to approach with love? In this episode, Andrea and Janelle sit down with John Holle and Katie Wise, a Boulder-based couple married for 17 years who have experimented with nearly every relationship format imaginable. From open play and live-in partners to raising teenagers inside a radically honest household, their story is less about labels and more about curiosity, growth, and choosing each other again and again. It's messy, tender, funny, and surprisingly wise. There's a nod to play therapy, the book "Polysecure", Tamera and the documentary, "The Village of Lovers." You'll hear: -How their childhoods--chaotic divorce and big-time care--impacted their own choices -About the Burning Man that began their foundation -The intense chapter of a household with three adults and two kid -Navigating jealousy, attachment styles, and the myth that one person must meet every nee -Why community, coaching, and conscious conversation have been essential to their marriag -Why the structure matters less than the love residing inside Learn more about John's mediation practice at consciousfamilyfirm.com. Katie's band can be found online at Katie Wise + Bhakti Explosion -------------- We're Andrea and Janelle--two midlife mavericks sharing openly about our own experiences--messy AF and no regrets----with marriage, divorce, polyamory and pleasure. You'll hear from relationship experts, meet real life Bravehearts and get intimacy skills.  Truth: When we're brave enough to ask for what we want, honor our  boundaries and have the hard conversations--with partners, friends, family and, most importantly, ourselves--magic happens and happiness ensues. If you're seeking permission to create a new map for relationships and want to feel less alone along the way, we got you. With glitter and radical acceptance, Janelle & Andrea. Follow, subscribe and share!Learn more about us at: https://www.permissiontobehuman.live/ Music: "Running Wild" by LVDY https://www.lvdymusic.com/

    49 min
  5. MAR 3

    121: Part 5/8, Why Clean Devotion & DS Dynamics = Orgasms and Freedom: How to Design a Relationship that Works

    121: Part 5/8, Why Clean Devotion & DS  Dynamics = Orgasms and Freedom: How to Design a Relationship that Works   In this episode, Andrea and Janelle sit down with Adam and Emily, partners in their 50s who are crafting love with intention instead of default settings. After marriages, monogamy, and open relating, they've chosen a dynamic they call monogamous with a dominant/submissive current. They speak candidly about unlearning self-sacrifice, dismantling "happy wife, happy life," and replacing conflict avoidance with courageous truth. What if structure, commitment and focus actually led to freedom? What if being with another helped you meet yourself? You'll hear: -About the orgasms that await on the other side of the fire -How to confront geographic challenges with fluidity and ease -The value of an intuitive "f**k yes" policy -About Adam's devotion without self-abandonment -How Emily has reframed "submission" -Why you should "excavate" early and often -------------- We're Andrea and Janelle--two midlife mavericks sharing openly about our own experiences--messy AF and no regrets----with marriage, divorce, polyamory and pleasure. You'll hear from relationship experts, meet real life Bravehearts and get intimacy skills.  Truth: When we're brave enough to ask for what we want, honor our  boundaries and have the hard conversations--with partners, friends, family and, most importantly, ourselves--magic happens and happiness ensues. If you're seeking permission to create a new map for relationships and want to feel less alone along the way, we got you. With glitter and radical acceptance, Janelle & Andrea. Follow, subscribe and share!Learn more about us at: https://www.permissiontobehuman.live/ Music: "Running Wild" by LVDY https://www.lvdymusic.com/

    43 min
  6. FEB 20

    120: 4/8, Ali Katz Married Herself: Why We Should Stop Waiting to be Chosen; How to Design a Relationship That Works Series

    120: 4/8, Ali Katz Married Herself: Why We Should Stop Waiting to be Chosen; How to Design a Relationship That Works Series Andrea sits down with Ali Katz — entrepreneur, community builder, mother, and self-marriage pioneer — to explore her journey of box-checking success, internal disconnection, discovery of the warring selves within and the need for identity death before birthing a new soul. If you're waiting for the one, if you're healing from heartbreak, if you're seeking belonging without self-abandonment, or if you're looking to dismantle the traditional relationship script, this is for you. You'll hear: -How Ali fell in love with who she is -All about her proposal, ring, vows and Costa Rica wedding -Why magic rituals (and a Ketubah!) create reality -Why we need not WAIT to be chosen -How she built internal safety instead of outsourcing -All about an ayahuasca journey vision -Her mid-life shift from the beaches of LA to the fields of Boulder -How self-devotion prevents future partner resentment   Find Ali's wedding online (!!!) at www.thealikatz.com/marry-yourself -------------- We're Andrea and Janelle--two midlife mavericks sharing openly about our own experiences--messy AF and no regrets----with marriage, divorce, polyamory and pleasure. You'll hear from relationship experts, meet real life Bravehearts and get intimacy skills.  Truth: When we're brave enough to ask for what we want, honor our  boundaries and have the hard conversations--with partners, friends, family and, most importantly, ourselves--magic happens and happiness ensues. If you're seeking permission to create a new map for relationships and want to feel less alone along the way, we got you. With glitter and radical acceptance, Janelle & Andrea. Follow, subscribe and share!Learn more about us at: https://www.permissiontobehuman.live/ Music: "Running Wild" by LVDY https://www.lvdymusic.com/

    44 min
  7. FEB 17

    119: Part 3/8: Monogamous, Sleeping Apart & Growing Together: How to Design a Relationship that Works Series

    119: Part 3/8: Monogamous, Sleeping Apart & Growing Together: How to Design a Relationship that Works Series Twenty-four years, one marriage, separate bedrooms, and zero regrets—meet Jonathan and Angela, the monogamous couple proving that "traditional" doesn't have to mean boring AF. From their "let's put all cards on the table" first date where they basically arranged their own marriage, to their eight-month pandemic deep-dive that finally let them fine-tune 19 years of functional-but-not-optimized coupledom, these two are rewriting the relationship rulebook one shower date at a time. The secret sauce? Radical independence with devotion, love languages as tacos (yes, really), and understanding that intimacy isn't just about sex—it's about being each other's biggest cheerleader while also knowing when to meow it out and go to your separate corners. Spoiler: sleeping apart might actually save your relationship, and you don't need grand gestures when Post-it notes and offering a water bottle speak volumes in the right love language. You'll hear:   -How they created their own 'arranged' marriage on the first date -Separate bedrooms = less resentment = relationship gold -Why re-learning the 5 Love languages as tacos changed everything -"What makes the whole work" beats "what makes me happy right now" -Why little things beat the grand gestures -------------- We're Andrea and Janelle--two midlife mavericks sharing openly about our own experiences--messy AF and no regrets----with marriage, divorce, polyamory and pleasure. You'll hear from relationship experts, meet real life Bravehearts and get intimacy skills.  Truth: When we're brave enough to ask for what we want, honor our  boundaries and have the hard conversations--with partners, friends, family and, most importantly, ourselves--magic happens and happiness ensues. If you're seeking permission to create a new map for relationships and want to feel less alone along the way, we got you. With glitter and radical acceptance, Janelle & Andrea. Follow, subscribe and share!Learn more about us at: https://www.permissiontobehuman.live/ Music: "Running Wild" by LVDY https://www.lvdymusic.com/

    51 min
5
out of 5
13 Ratings

About

Welcome to Permission to be Human! --- We're Andrea and Janelle--two midlife mavericks sharing openly about our own experiences--messy AF and no regrets----with marriage, divorce, polyamory and pleasure. You'll hear from relationship experts, meet real life Bravehearts and get intimacy skills. Truth: When we're brave enough to ask for what we want, honor our boundaries and have the hard conversations--with partners, friends, family and, most importantly, ourselves--magic happens and happiness ensues. If you're seeking permission to create a new map for relationships and want to feel less alone along the way, we got you. With glitter and radical acceptance, Janelle & Andrea. --- Follow, subscribe, share and download wherever you get your podcasts! --- Learn more about us at: permissiontobehuman.live --- Music: "Running Wild" by LVDY https://www.lvdymusic.com/

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