Imposter Syndrome

Imposter Syndrome is something that so many of us deal with. Not feeling “good enough” can stop us from pursuing a certain career, standing up for what we believe in, or even doing something fun like erotic dancing!

In this episode, Debbie chats with Erica Courdae, Certified Coach and Entrepreneur. Erica’s work primarily focuses on diversity, equity, and inclusion. She explains her take on Imposter Syndrome and speaks to how the lack of diversity in the media contributes to that deeply rooted feeling of “not being good enough”. 

About Erica

Erica Courdae has dedicated her life to expanding how others interact with the world through powerful conversations. As an entrepreneur + certified coach her work is frequently focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), imperfect allyship, and imposter syndrome. This work has taken her across the country onto stages and into communities as a key speaker and educator. Erica also has a podcast that features open conversation and dialogue on the topics of her work and more, Pause on the Play. Her support and leadership facilitates engaged conversations within 6 figure communities, international podcasts, and live events to connect people and create change.

As always we hope you enjoy this conversation but there is plenty of adult language, so make sure to pop your headphones on!

If you enjoyed our intimate conversation then feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page or rate us highly over on iTunes!

Resources

Find our more about Erica and her work over on her website and social media:

www.ericacourdae.com

Instagram: @ericacourdae

Facebook: @ericacourdae

And don’t miss Erica’s upcoming Ideal Client Workshop where she will help you dig deep and figure out your values!

Subscribe to Erica & India’s podcast Pause on the Play!

Other Resources:

• The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
• The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself by Michael A. Singer
• Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown

Homesickness + Searching For Identity

Do you consider your birthplace to be part of your identity? What happens when you move away from that place? Do you lose part of who you are? Or are you recreating your identity? What does it mean to be a settler in Canada?

In this episode, Debbie chats with Victoria Spooner, radio show host, musician and fellow Brit who moved to Canada 7.5 years ago. Victoria struggles with homesickness and trying to figure out her identity.

About Victoria

Victoria Spooner is a communications professional, musician and broadcaster from South London, currently living in Vancouver on unceded, Coast Salish territory. Victoria hosts The Storytelling Show, She-Boom! and Last Orders on Vancouver Co-op Radio. She also makes radio, audio docs, podcasts, songs and the best cup of tea you’ve ever tasted.

Victoria and Debbie explore homesickness and how it is connected to one's sense of identity. As always we hope you enjoy this conversation but there is plenty of adult language, so make sure to pop your headphones on!

If you enjoyed our intimate conversation then feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page or rate us highly over on iTunes!

Resources

Find our more about Victoria over on her social media profiles:

Twitter @urban_sorceress

Instagram @urbansorceress

Mix Cloud: www.mixcloud.com/victoriaspooner/

Podcasts:

Red Man Laughing with Ryan McMahon

The Adam Buxton Podcast

Sex Education for Parents & Kids

We all learned about the birds and the bees at some point – at school, on YouTube, from our friends, or *cringe* from THAT TALK with our parents. But maybe talking sex with your parents or kids doesn’t have to be that weird?

In this episode, Debbie chats with Kim Cook, sex educator, nurse, and author of Teen World Confidential, about how parents (and their kids) can normalize conversations about sex, relationships, masturbation, identity, and more!

National Sex Education day is on February 2. Take up the challenge and spend 10 minutes talking to your kids about sex.

About Kim

Kim Cook, the author of Teen World Confidential: Five Minute Topics to Open Conversation about Sex and Relationships, is a Certified Health Education Specialist and a former elementary school nurse. As an educator, she supports parents to have healthy and productive conversations about sex and relationships with their kids. Understanding that parents often need support to get the conversations started, she has initiated the National Sex Education Day campaign, which encourages parents to spend just ten minutes engaging in age-appropriate conversations with their children on February 2nd.

This is a fun and educational conversation. However, if you don't want to talk about sex with your kids just yet, then you might want to pop your headphones on! 

Resources

Find our more about Kim over on her websites and social media:

www.teenworldconfidential.com

www.nationalsexeducationday.com

Twitter @twconfidential

Instagram @twconfidential

Books:

Teen World Confidential: Five Minute Topics to Open Conversation About Sex and Relationships by Kim T. Cook

Condom Nation: The U.S. Government’s Sex Education Campaign from World War I to the Internet by Alexandra M. Lord

Podcasts:

• 6-Minute Sex Ed with Kim Cavill
• Sex Positive Families with Melissa Carnagey

Websites:

• Amaze.org
• Planned Parenthood
• Family Planning UK
• Centre for Disease Control (USA)
• PFLAG.org

Check out the resources page on Kim’s website for a list of resources as well as some great videos!! 

Trans Death Care

In this episode of Uncomfortable, Debbie chats with Toni King-Rose, an advocator for Transgender Rights within funeral and death care services and offers peer support for Trans people working in the death care industry. 

About Toni:

Toni is a 20-year-old, male-identifying, openly transgender funeral student currently going through an accredited Canadian mortuary Program. He works part-time at an independent retirement living complex as a housekeeper and friend and volunteers with Dying With Dignity Canada. Toni believes that it’s never too early in life to start talking about your own death and about the deaths of others.  And how all genders need to be involved in the conversations.

I hope that you enjoy our conversation but as always, do note that there is some adult content, so when listening, it’s best to pop on those headphones!

Resources

Make sure to follow Toni over on his social media sites:

Twitter @transdeathcare

Instagram @transdeathcare

WillowEOL – www.willoweol.com
Check out their interview with Debbie here.

BC Funeral Association

Trans Doe Task Force

GLAAD – GLAAD tackles tough issues to shape the narrative and provoke dialogue that leads to cultural change.

Trans Pulse Canada – a community-based survey of the health and well-being of trans and non-binary people in Canada.

Money 101 for Entrepreneurs

In this episode of Uncomfortable, Debbie chats with Merideth Bisiker, a Certified Money Coach. We talk about money, taxes, and what to think about when you are an entrepreneur.

About Meredith

For the past 25 years, Merideth Bisiker has been working in banking, finance and accounting…and loves it! As Payroll Compliance Practitioner (Canadian Payroll Association), she is currently pursuing the Chartered Personal Accountant designation.

Merideth is passionate about the stories that “the numbers” tell her clients and provides up-to-date information that allows them to make confident decisions. And as a Certified Money Coach (CMC)®, she’s able to support her clients as they implement changes in their businesses that feel equally exciting and daunting. She especially enjoys working with creatives who aren’t keen on numbers and reports, and who want a simple yet effective “translation” of the numbers. 

In this episode we talk about…. ”money”….you guessed it! We do specifically talk about business owners & Entrepreneurs and why the money conversation can be very uncomfortable!

I hope that you enjoy our conversation but as always, do note that there is some adult content, so when listening, it’s best to pop on those headphones!

Resources

Find out more about Merideth and the work that she does over on her website:

www.pacificrockaccounting.com

You can contact Merideth at info@pacificrockaccounting.com if you have any questions or if you are interested in working with her!

Other resources:

Canada Revenue Agency
Click here to find out more about the Canada Revenue Agency Liason Officer Service.

Your Mental Wealth website by Ted and Brad Klonz

Business Development of Canada

Community Futures Britsh Columbia

Futurpreneur Canada
Click here to view the Futurpreneur Business Plan Writer

Absent Parents

In this episode of Uncomfortable, Debbie chats with Erica and Sana from the Systers With A Why podcast. The sisters share their experience growing up in a single-parent household and why they don’t feel the need to look for their father.

Systers With A Why is a podcast where two sisters, Erica and Sana, casually chat about the “Why’s” of life while questioning themselves and others. You can find it on all of your favourite podcast players! In this episode, we chat about absent parents. Both Sana and Erica were raised by their mom as their dad left when they were very young. They’ve never felt a connection to him and never felt the need to find him. Now with kids of their own, they wonder if children should try to find and reconnect with a parent who left.

I hope that you enjoy our conversation but as always, do note that there is some adult content, so when listening, it’s best to pop on those headphones!

If you enjoyed our intimate conversation then feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page or rate us highly over on iTunes!

Resources

Make sure to subscribe to their podcast:

Systers With A Why on Libsyn

You can follow Systers With A Why on social media:

Instagram @systerswithawhy
Twitter @systerswithawhy

Reconciliation

In this episode of Uncomfortable, Debbie chats with Chastity Davis, a mixed heritage woman of First Nations and European descent. We chat about reconciliation and what it means both politically and individually. 

About Chastity

Chastity Davis is a mixed heritage woman of First Nations and European descent. A proud member of the Tla’amin Nation, located in Powell River just off the beautiful Sunshine Coast of BC. Chastity strives to keep her sacred First Nations culture, traditions, and values incorporated into her modern-day life. She has dedicated my life to facilitate the building of bridges between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.

In this episode, we talk about truth & reconciliation, what it means both politically and individually.

I hope that you enjoy our conversation but as always, do note that there is some adult content, so when listening, it’s best to pop on those headphones!

If you enjoyed our intimate conversation then feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page or rate us highly over on iTunes!

Resources

Make sure to head over to Chastity’s website to find our more about her work:

www.chastitydavis.com

You can follow Chastity on social media:

Instagram @chastity_davis
Twitter @CDavisConsult

Other articles/reports:

The Indian Act – Wikipedia
United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
National Centre for Truth & Reconciliation
Truth & Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action

Indigenous Podcasts:

Unreserved with Rosanna Deerchild, CBC Podcast
All My Relations with Matika Wilbur & Adrienne Keene
Red Man Laughing with Ryan McMahon
Métis in Space with Molly Swain & Chelsea Vowel 

Periods Part 2: Menstrual Products, Poverty, & Power

In this episode of Uncomfortable, we chat with Madeleine Shaw, co-founder of Lunapads. Lunapads is a Vancouver based business that manufactures reusable menstrual products. We discuss period products, myths, shame, period poverty and, so much more!

About Our Guest:

Madeleine Shaw, the co-founder of Lunapads. Lunapads create reusable alternatives to disposable pads & tampons featuring modern washable cloth pads, magical leak-free period undies, and menstrual cups. Madeleine is not only one part of the driving force behind this powerful ethical brand, she is also the Founder and Creative Director of G Day for Girls, a global social movement where Girls and their Champions can come together to welcome, witness and receive Girls as they enter the next phase of their life journey.

I hope that you enjoy our conversation but as always, do note that there is some adult content so when listening, it’s best to pop on those headphones!

If you enjoyed our intimate conversation then feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page or rate us highly over on iTunes!

Resources:

Find out more about Lunapads by visiting www.lunapads.ca

You can follow Lunapads on social media:

Instagram @lunapads 
Twitter @lunapads
Facebook @Lunapads
Pinterest @lunapads

To find out more about GDay visit www.gday.world

Other cool links and articles we touched on in the podcast:

Seeking Ceremony – creating ceremony around special events and life milestones.

Afripads – leading manufacture and largest commercial supplier across Africa of reusable pads.

The Period Promise Campaign – Period Promise campaign by United Way to reduce the isolation created by period poverty, in our own neighbourhoods.

The Period Purse – The Period Purse strives to achieve menstrual equity by providing marginalized menstruators with access to free menstrual products, and to reduce the stigma surrounding periods through public education and advocacy.

Article: If Men Could Menstruate by Gloria Steinem

Free Bleeding Post from Lunapad’s social media.

Periods Part 1: Period Bypassing

In this episode of Uncomfortable, we talk to De’Nicea Hilton, a Doctor of Oriental Medicine and Holistic Period & Fertility Strategist. We chat about “Period Bypassing” a term coined by De’Nicea during her work with women around menstrual cycles. 

About De'Nicea:

Imagine a place where girls, teens and women walk around completely aware of themselves, Being Whole, and so comfortable fully expressing their Authentic Selves. They’re exuding confidence and loving who they are. And to think…it all started with learning about their menstrual cycle.

 De’Nicea Hilton is the host of Period Bypassing, where the practice is to Educate, Embrace and Embody Holistic Menstrual Health.

 Through her experience as a Doctor of Oriental Medicine and Holistic Period & Fertility Strategist, De’Nicea noticed girls, teens and women were living with unpleasant menstrual cycles, confused about themselves, unaware of their bodies and living fragmented – the effects of Period Bypassing™. However, this shifted when they learned about their menstrual cycle.

 Transcending Period Bypassing™, the Flow-Asis is filled with all sorts of opportunities to learn Holistic Menstrual Health in group mentorship or be personally guided one-to-one in syncing with and harmonizing your cycle for Menstrual Cycle Conditions and Fertility Challenges. 

De’Nicea teaches a multi-faceted perspective of the menstrual cycle that shatters the belief of what’s been accepted as “normal” for what is healthy.

In the Flow-Asis, De’Nicea opens their eyes to creating a life FOR her rather than accepting things being done TO her by using the Menstrual Cycle as her guide – detecting cues and listening to messages of what her Mind, Body and Spirit are saying she needs.

While women have been searching all over for the answers to her questions about her Cycle, Fertility and overall Health, De’Nicea helps her see that the answers have been within her the whole time. She just needs to know how to access and interpret it.

Resources:

Feel free to connect with De’Nicea over on her website and social media:

www.deniceahilton.com

www.periodbypassing.com

Instagram @deniceahilton
Twitter @DeNiceaHilton
Facebook @DeNiceaHilton

Check out the Period Bypassing Podcast: http://periodbypassing.libsyn.com/

Article: Women who stop taking the Pill can find their partners less attractive - The Telegraph.

Giving a F*ck About Climate Change

This episode comes to you live from the Climate Strike in Vancouver. Debbie is joined by marching buddies Jessica Roberts-Farina and Peggy Liu as well as over 100,000 others from Vancouver as they strike and march for Climate Action.