Healing Ninjas Podcast

In this episode, we hear from Abdul Ali, a 25-year-old Ethiopian-American Social Activist, Organizer, and Educator from Maine. 

Ali shares with us his story, from having his parents divorced when he was 7 years old and coming to this country as a refugee. He reflects on the toll it took on him to have to choose between his dad or mom while growing up. Ali talks about what it was like to live with his father and brother in a shelter, have no structure, and feel like he had to raise himself. He opens up about later going to live with his mom and having to adjust to living with a step-dad and two siblings he’d never met. And later being kicked out of that home because of a misunderstanding at 12 years old. Ali reflects on how these experiences led to him growing up without a sense of belonging or safety.

Ali further goes into how these experiences led to him being arrested, placed on probation at 15, and inevitably ending up in prison for two years. He speaks about taking college courses while incarcerated and finding theater as an outlet to talk about his story and getting the community to care. Ali describes losing one of his theater partners to an overdose and participating in an Islamic burial where he had to bury him with his bare hands. He ends by sharing some words of wisdom on how people can take their stories and use them as a force of change.

Listen to his episode and follow his work on:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/humblephilosopher2020/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abdul-ali-3a670ba0/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100036604031534 

In this next episode, we hear from Ray Tebout, a strength-based human resources professional, addiction counselor, and founder of Mind Frame & Development Solutions.

Ray reflects on how people sometimes grow up normalizing what they feel, including the bad, and move through life thinking there is no alternative. Ray shares how healing was not always important to him and how changes in his nutrition allowed him to realize that some of what he was feeling was connected to other aspects of his life including his eating habits. Ray talks about losing his mother at a young age and growing up with a father who struggled with drug addiction. He dives deep into what it was like to become the “unofficial head of household” and carrying the responsibility of being an adult and caregiver to his siblings while still being a child himself. Ray discusses how all of these experiences led to him becoming good at disassociating from his feelings, and being very calm in crisis situations, but how this inevitably led him to make some very poor choices in his life as well.

Ray reflects deeply on his personal relationships and discusses how he dated the same kind of people, and repeated similar unhelpful dynamics in his professional life. He also talks about coming to the realization that his friends were not equipped with the tools to help him, which inevitably led to him finding a therapist for himself. Ray shares how he approached therapy with very clear goals and was intentional about finding a therapist that he could truly connect with in order to get the support he needed to get to a better place. Ray recommends reading the Grief Recovery Handbook. He also suggests that listeners find someone objective to talk about their deepest thoughts (or dirt), whether it’s a therapist, a spiritual advisor, or yourself; because we need to have those honest conversations and hold up the mirror to ourselves.

Be sure to connect and support Ray via: 

Gmail: [email protected]  

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ray-tebout/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ray.tebout

In this next episode, we hear from Mayte Villalba, a medical assistant, and owner of Resiliently Beautiful. 

Mayte bravely talks about what it was like to engage in her healing journey after years of holding it all in. She reflects on her experience with bullying in high school, turning into the head of the household after her parents separated, and becoming a mother figure to both her siblings and mom. Mayte also shares what it was like to grow up with an alcoholic father and later using alcohol as a coping mechanism in her own life. Mayte opens up about her sexual assault and how she sought out therapy and other supports in college only to lose all of that after being dropped from school for poor grades. 

Mayte recounts what it was like to be admitted to a psych ward following a suicide attempt, and later fighting the stigma associated with taking medication after deciding that it was something she needed. Mayte shares how she found refuge in art therapy while in the hospital and how she decided to launch her own small business, Resiliently Beautiful, as a means of turning her pain into something nice. She suggests that people not pack their pain in until exploding but instead find ways of taking it out gradually through activities such as writing, working out, reading, and art. Mayte also emphasizes the importance of learning to slow down and sitting with our emotions.

Be sure to connect and support Mayte via:

Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ResilientlyBeautiful 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/resiliently.beautiful/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Resilientlybeautiful

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayte-villalba-rma-cpt-a1a62a178/

In this next episode, we hear from Jennifer Szenay, a lake enthusiast from Michigan, an intern at Prison Radio, and an advocate for families who have been impacted by mass incarceration. 

Jennifer talks about growing up and living a double life where she tried to push all of her trauma to the side and live in denial of the pain she was experiencing. She reflects on what it was like to slow down and finally be able to look inwardly so that she could begin her healing process. Jennifer shares how she lost her father to an execution-style murder at 7 years old, her mother to a sentence of life without the possibility of parole at 8, and living in a very abusive foster care situation. Jennifer also talks about fighting for emancipation at age 15 and having a child at 18 years old. 

Despite all of these experiences, Jennifer dives deep into one part of her healing process which involved her engaging with the two young men who were responsible for her father’s murder. She talks about growing up with a lot of hate for these two young men but later seeing her own son grow up and realizing that they, too, had families who were collateral damage in the choices they had made. And understanding that they were also someone’s grandson, brother, or cousin. Jennifer talks about the importance of restorative justice and how engaging in this kind of work allowed her to look past her own pain and realize that she was not alone. 

Jennifer is currently in the process of writing her own memoir and she is also collecting the stories of men who have served 20-30 years in prison in an effort to pass down some of their words of advice to young men currently in the community. 

Connect with Jennifer and support her journey and work via:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coconutavocados/ 

Gmail: [email protected]

Linktree: https://www.linktr.ee/thejennieproject 

In this next episode, Paulina Isabel Almarosa, a licensed clinical social worker and founder of LatinxGrief, allows herself to be vulnerable and emphasizes that therapists don’t have it all figured out. Pauliana talks about what it was like to work in different spaces including jails, hospitals, schools, and other community organizations, and seeing her own life reflected in the lives of other people. She reflects on what it was like to have her own grief invalidated so many times in her life and wanting to create a comforting and healing space for people to process their grief without being shamed for their emotions.

Paulina shares how she grew up in a constant state of survival, and never really have had an opportunity to engage in her own healing work because of needing to prioritize the needs of her family, school, and “being successful”. She opens up about losing her father to lung cancer, supporting her brother through incarceration, and having to carry so much grief in her life without having space to process it because of so much “toxic positivity.” Paulina dives deep into what grief looks like and how it extends beyond just the concept of “death”, stating that “grief can also be the loss of something important in your life.” She also discusses how she started to listen to her body and began trying out different healing modalities including “sobadas”, “limpiadas”, and “acupuncture” to begin her physical healing process. 

Paulina urges more therapists and healers to come together and create resources for the Latinx and Black community that focuses on grief. 

Follow Paulina on: 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latinxgrief/

In this next episode, we hear from Autumn Walker, a licensed professional counselor in Maryland, who is seeking to normalize mental health. Autumn talks about how going through her own healing process allowed her to discover new sides of her story, and be able to pass on lessons learned to others wishing to engage in healing work for themselves. She reflects on what it was like to understand that, growing up, her basic needs (i.e. food, clothes, etc.) were always met but coming to the realization, as an adult, that her emotional needs were not always met as well. Autumn opens up about being exposed to domestic violence at an early age and developing coping mechanisms that she would later take time to process and unlearn in her adulthood. 

Autumn describes healing as a “rose growing from concrete” and an “ongoing process” which leads to you opening one door and seeing that there are so many other doors and levels that you can unlock in the process. Autumn also talks about healing being a form of “resilience” and having the ability to turn your “lemons into lemonade” while learning to face obstacles that come with healing because, as Autumn puts it, “new levels means new devils.”

As a therapist, she asks that listeners not see healing as a burden but rather as a requirement and training to reach different levels of peace in our lives. She suggests that people think about going to therapy, engaging in yoga, meditative practice, and spirituality as another means of centering ourselves in our healing work. Autumn also elevates the importance of having a positive social support system and filtering out connections that are not serving us. She also encourages people to listen to podcasts like Between Sessions and to buy a journal to dig deep into ourselves through bullet points, lyrics, drawings, writing, or anything that calls out to you.

Be sure to connect with Autumn via: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesoulreasons/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/autumn-walker-5a84a590/

In this next episode, we hear from Yuri Orozco, a Colombian woman, dog enthusiast, scuba diver, and student at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Yuri talks about what it was like to grow up as the daughter of an incarcerated father, going in and out of prisons, and struggling to build a connection with him. Yuri reflects on what it was like to read books like the “New Jim Crow” by Michelle Alexander, and how it led to the start of her healing journey as she began to understand the impact of mass incarceration on her relationship with her dad. She discusses how healing became important, not only for her internal emotional balance but because she was able to realize that it would impact her romantic relationships, familial connections, and even her job as a Spanish court interpreter.

Yuri shares how focusing on her healing allowed her to be intentional about the way she handled the different emotional “seasons” of her life. Allowing her to be able to take on difficult moments when she could and acknowledging the time when she needed to take a step back. She recommends reading books like “Unfuck Your Brain” by Faith G. Harper and “Monkey Mind: A Memoir of Anxiety” by Daniel Smith. Yuri also has the following suggestions for people who want to engage in their healing journey:

1) Surround yourself with people you trust, have like minded-goals, and aren’t always involved in drama. And to distance yourself from friends or family who are not supportive or loving. 

2) Take time to be with nature. Go to the beach, camping, be outdoors, and get as much sun as you can.

3) Practice meditation and breathing techniques to calm down during a stressful moment and rely on those tools in times of stress and crisis. 

Be sure to connect with Yuri via: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yuriorozconyc/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yuri.orozco 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yuri-orozco-49978211a/  

In this next episode, we hear from Arturo ‘Velaz’ Munoz, a poet, lecturer, and host of the Varrio Voices Podcast. He talks about what it was like at 10 years old to become a source of income at home and being introduced to alcohol early on. He shares his experience in therapy where he discovered that nothing was inherently wrong with him but also learned just how much was wrong with the conditions that he had to live through. 

Arturo talks about growing up with the name ‘Silencio’ (silent) and using writing as a means to vent what he was feeling inside. He opens up about reflecting on his writings in college, and realizing that he talked a lot about “trauma”, without explicitly using that word, and instead, describing difficult moments as living with “demons” in his life. Arturo discusses what it was like to begin sharing his writing publicly and making people uncomfortable with his choice of words, and realizing that his writing could also be political. 

Arturo shares what it was like to see healing as not just necessary for himself but also as a means to help heal those close to him and his community. Arturo asks that people share and subscribe to podcasts like Varrio Voices and Healing Ninjas, stating how important it is to support culturally conscious resources for our communities. 

Be sure to connect with Arturo vía:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arturo2020 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/velazporvida 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/arthur.munoz.790 

And find Varrio Voices via:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/varriovoices

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VarrioVoices/ 

Website: www.VarrioVoices.com

Podcast: Spotify, Apple podcasts, and more!

Thank you Arturo for sharing so much with us and being part of the healing Ninjas community! We appreciate you. 

Learning to use loving and supportive language for ourselves is important to the healing process.

In this next episode, our interviewee chose to remain anonymous. She talks about what it means to be a survivor of sexual assault and living in a country where so much violence is happening against women, particularly Black and Indigenous women. She reflects on the importance of setting language boundaries with people in our lives, making it clear when words that are being used are causing us harm, and also making sure that the language that we have of ourselves is affirming, loving, and kind. She discusses the importance of acknowledging the pain that we carry and the need for us to change and reframe the way we think about ourselves. She also talks about what it has been like to process her experience as a survivor and finding the ability to feel proud of herself and live a happy life.

She suggests looking into the teachings of researcher and neuroscientist Joe Dispenza as we engage in our own healing work. 

A huge thank you to our interviewee for the courage to share her experiences with all of us. We appreciate you very much and we welcome you into the Healing Ninjas community!

Healing is painful and it can bring up a lot of anger in the process, but the end results can be tremendous.

In this episode, we hear from Antonio Reza, a half Mexican and half Irish formerly incarcerated man, who shares how “hurt people, hurt people”, and how failing to address root problems in our lives can ultimately cause us to act out in ways that are destructive to ourselves and those around us. Antonio shares his thoughts on how toxic masculinity, and lack of emotional expression, affects the relationships that men have with their significant others, family, and kids. He reflects on how he used his pain and rage to propel his professional and academic success, but coming to a period in his life where the loss of two close friends drove him into a period of depression; that led to him being hospitalized and put on suicide watch. Antonio speaks about the fear of digging deeper into his past traumas and how keeping busy kept him from facing his demons for most of his life. 

Antonio graduated as a Valedictorian from college and is currently in law school continuing to pursue his dreams along with his healing. He encourages formerly incarcerated people to go for their goals and dive into the healing process. 

Be sure to connect with Antonio via:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antonio-reza-77549a165/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000158100378 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/antonio_reza_/