Latchkey Urchins & Friends

Send us a Text Message.Anne and Alison reflect on all the ways they've grown as a result of committing to this podcast. It's filled with lots of love and gratitude!Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Struggle Party episodes are a change for Alison and Anne to share what they're reading, watching, or listening to. They each share one struggle and how they used tools to get through it.Topics:Charlotte Kasl's booksResonance Summit with Sarah PeytonTravel gets harder with ageGetting comfortable with free timeDating/relationships and traumaTherapyShow notes: https://www.latchkeyurchins.com/episodes/sp3-4-enlightenment-is-expensiveFollow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Elizabeth Gillette is back for a Part II discussion on insecure attachment and how to repair ruptures or conflicts.Elizabeth Gillette teaches courses that help people feel grounded, healthy, and whole in their relationships—because how you experience relationships impacts everything else.She is an attachment specialist, author, therapist, mother, and partner, and she lives for seeing people changing their relational patterns, experiencing true connection, and being the ones to do things DIFFERENTLY in their families.https://www.elizabethgillette.com/Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Elizabeth Gillette teaches courses that help people feel grounded, healthy, and whole in their relationships—because how you experience relationships impacts everything else.She is an attachment specialist, author, therapist, mother, and partner, and she lives for seeing people changing their relational patterns, experiencing true connection, and being the ones to do things DIFFERENTLY in their families.https://www.elizabethgillette.com/Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Struggle Parties are a change for Anne and Alison to share a struggle their going through and tools to get through. They also share what they're reading, watching, or listening to right now that they recommend. Did you know owls don't have b*tthole's? No really. Google it.Right now Anne and Alison are enjoying:Tara Swart's The SourceThomas MertonCarl JungThe New LookFollow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Sharon Hirsch serves as the President and CEO of Prevent Child Abuse North Carolina, where she leads a team that focuses on making prevention a priority for NC and building capacity for communities to have the knowledge, support, and resources to prevent child abuse and neglect.  She has more than 35 years' experience in nonprofit and government agency management, public relations, advocacy and child well-being. At PCANC she has led efforts to catalyze community prevention plans, has increased staff capacity to provide supports for evidence-based parenting programs and has secured more than $1 million in new investments in prevention programming.  She was recently named one of 25 Women in Business Award recipients by the Triangle Business Journal for 2024.Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We interview Joe and Mendy McNulty, a former Pastor and Pastor's wife, about their lives growing up in the Church of the Nazarene, a fundamentalist Christian faith. They share how they left the church and found new, alternative ways to help people heal. Anne and Alison learn wild stories of what it's like to grow up as a fundamentalist including hell simulations, false biology lessons, and zero sex education.Joe McNulty is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. “Informed by attachment theory and IFS, I incorporate effective counseling models to work with couples, families, and individuals. My passion is to help people recover their hearts so they can be who they are made to be and do what they are made to do.”Mendy McNulty is a Nashville-based Internal Family Systems Practitioner and Healing Consultant. “I hold a Bachelor's degree in Religious Studies and a Master's degree in Education. I have 16 years of experience working in public school and university settings. I'm trained and endorsed by the Internal Family Systems Institute in Level 1 and Level 2: Deepening and Expanding IFS Practice. I have found extensive healing for myself through deep internal reflection in non-ordinary state work.”Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We interview Karla Amanda Brown about her journey in becoming a therapist and why group therapy is so important for healing. Karla Amanda Brown is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Certified Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Provider, Level 2 Psychedelic Somatic Interactional Psychotherapist, and the Founder/CEO of Soul Centric Counseling and Soul Centric Collective. Soul Centric Collective was founded with a desire to support people with access to healing, compassionate care, and lifesaving communities.https://soulcentriccollective.com/Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Alison's long-time friend Simón Lowrie joins the pod to talk about his experience growing up homeschooled with one of his brothers while their older brother was a child prodigy. We discuss both the merits and shortcomings of deciding to homeschool kids. It can be a refuge for kids who don't fit into public schools but it can also be a haven for religious zealots to spread propaganda. Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Anne and Alison share:what they're reading, watching, or listening to right now and their cultural reflectionsa struggle they're each going through and tools they're using to grow and get through itFollow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We got 5 listener-submitted stories about Latchkey, awkward, painful, neglectful, or loving family holiday stories—some funny, some sentimental. Join hosts Anne and Alison with guest cohost Kyle Kimball, refugee lawyer, and our guest from Season 2's popular episode: When Gifted Kids Wake Up to Their Trauma.Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We interview Darcia Narvaez, co-author of the book The Evolved Nest: Nature's Way of Raising Children and Creating Connected Communities. Darcia Narvaez, Professor Emerita of Psychology at the University of Notre Dame, is Fellow of American Psychological Association, American Educational Research Association, Association for Psychological Science, American Association for the Advancement of Science. She studies evolved morality, child development & human flourishing in a transdisciplinary manner. Her book, Neurobiology and the Development of Human Morality: Evolution, Culture and Wisdom won multiple awards. Recent books include Restoring the Kinship Worldview, and The Evolved Nest. Her short films are Breaking the Cycle, The Evolved Nest, and Reimagining Humanity. She is president of KindredWorld.org and founder of EvolvedNest.org.Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Anne and Alison share what they're currently reading, watching, and listening to. They each share one thing they've been struggling with lately and how they've gotten through. Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We interview Kevin Adler about his new book, out today, When We Walk: Forgotten Humanity, Broken Systems, and the Role We Can Each Play in Ending Homelessness in America. Kevin F. Adler is an award-winning social entrepreneur and the author of the new book, When We Walk By, a must-read guide for ending homelessness in America. Since 2014, Kevin has served as the Founder and CEO of Miracle Messages, a nonprofit that helps people experiencing homelessness rebuild their social support systems and financial security through family reunification services, a phone buddy program, and the first basic income pilot for unhoused individuals in the US, backed by Google.org and as part of a $2.1 million randomized control trial led by researchers at USC. Kevin's pioneering work on homelessness and relational poverty has been featured in the New York Times, Washington Post, PBS NewsHour, Los Angeles Times, CNN, on a billboard in Times Square, in his TED Talk, and in his groundbreaking (and hopeful) new book, When We Walk By: Forgotten Humanity, Broken Systems, and the Role We Can Each Play in Ending Homelessness in America. Kevin is also the author of Natural Disasters as a Catalyst for Social Capital, a book that explores how shared traumas can unite or divide communities. Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We interview Stephanie Sellers, PhD about her book Daughters Healing from Family Mobbing.Stephanie A. Sellers holds a Ph.D. in Native American Studies with a research focus on women's issues. She's a committed volunteer victim's advocate and professor at Gettysburg College. She's authored two other books, Native American Autobiography Redefined: A Handbook and Native American Women's Studies Primer, and is a founding member of a collegiate women's leadership committee for the American Association of University Women.Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Anne and Alison talk with Geanne Meta, author of Parenting Well After Childhood Abuse, Be a Great Parent Even if Yours Were Crap. Geanne (pronounced Ge-Anne) is a mom, sister, wife, grandmom, friend, animal rescuer, good cook - and also, a childhood sexual abuse survivor who isn't afraid to talk about it. She has a passion for sharing her story in hopes of helping the multitude of others who suffer in silence.GeanneMeta.comFollow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We're back for Season 3! We start this season off by speaking with body-centered psychotherapist Heidi Andersen about why trauma healing has to happen in the body, not just the mind. Heidi Andersen is the founder of Reclaiming Beauty.  "I believe embodiment heals. I'm here to support you in healing your relationship with food and your body so you can free yourself from destructive thoughts and behaviors and discover the inner peace and freedom you deserve.As a Body-centered psychotherapist, I have 15 years of experience supporting clients in addressing trauma and attachment wounds that have led to a challenging relationship with food and body. I use an integrated approach drawing on my training in Embodied Recovery for Eating Disorders, Internal Family Systems, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Expressive Arts and Yoga. I am thrilled to have completed my certification process as a Certified Body Trust® Specialist."IG: @reclaimingbeautyFollow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Anne and Alison look back at moments from Season 2 and share how they've grown from the teachings of their wise guests.Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We interview Caleb Nichols about his experience growing up with many adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and how he has turned those experiences into art through his writing and music.Caleb Nichols is a queer poet and musician from California. His chapbook of poems "TEEMS///\RECEDES" was called "a gorgeous abundance" by Chen Chen, and his music has been featured and shared by places like Paste and Out Magazine. Caleb is a PhD candidate in Creative and Critical Writing at Bangor University in Wales where he's writing about queer ecopoetics in contemporary poetry, films, and media. Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Anne and Alison talk to relationship expert Jayson Gaddis on his path to healing his childhood wounds through the teachings of his romantic relationships. He shares the moment he stopped viewing himself as the victim in his failed relationships and started to take ownership of his life and responsibility for his growth. He's creating a relational world in which people care how their actions impact the way people feel. It's a world we want to live in! We discuss attachment styles (anxious, avoidant, secure), Buddhism/Naropa University, childhood emotional neglect, healing, intimacy, relationships, friendships, and end with the feelings wheel game.Jayson Gaddis is an artist, author, podcaster, speaker, executive coach, CEO, founder, human behavior specialist and relationship expert. He is the creator of Interpersonal Intelligence® and Present Centered Relationship Coaching® and has trained over 200 coaches in 11 countries. His book Getting to Zero: How to work Through Conflict In Your High Stakes Relationships was voted Editors Choice, Best non-fiction, and Best Leadership and Business book in 2021 on Amazon. He's been married to his amazing wife since 2007 and has two beautiful kids. They live in Boulder, Colorado. When he doesn't live and breathe this relationship stuff with his family, he pretty much gets his ass handed to him.Jayson Gaddis: https://www.jaysongaddis.comThe Relationship School -https://relationshipschool.comGetting to Zero: https://www.gettingtozerobook.comFollow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Bonus episode! Anne and Alison share:A struggle party (something we're struggling with)A glimmer (moment of joy and connection)What we're currently reading, watching, and listening to that we recommendFollow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Anne and Alison talk with transformational life coach, Christina Berkley about her childhood as a latchkey kid, Canadian immigrant from Romania, her journey healing her own trauma, and how that lead her to work as a coach. Trance and plant medicine have been foundational to her healing and practice. Working with Christina as a coach in 2014, Alison was able to do some deep inner child healing work.https://christinaberkley.com/https://www.instagram.com/coachchristinaberkley/Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

This week we discuss dysfunctional family roles and dynamics including scapegoat, hero, golden child, caretaker, identified patient, rebel, and more. Anne and Caroline share their stories of growing up Gen X with wild older brothers who grew up to have real mental health struggles. Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We interview author and speaker Tabitha A. Scott about her healing journey away from corporate burnout culture. She documents her journey in the award-winning book, Trust Your Animal Instincts.Tabitha is an award-winning author and speaker who helps inspire action, ignite change, and provide connection, direction, and power. With over 20 years' experience leading corporate innovation and sustainability, she was named one of the Top 10 Most Inspiring Women Leaders of 2022, is a thought leader on the 2023 Forbes Business Council, and her work was honored at the White House as part of its Energy Data Initiative.Tabitha's website.Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We interview author and coach Mary Giuliani about her new book, It's Not About Food, Drugs, or Alcohol: It's About Healing Complex PTSD. Mary Giuliani is in long-term recovery from alcohol, drugs, food addiction, and severe obesity.  She has a 25-year background as a Master Certified Coach,  is a keynote speaker, and is the author of  "It's Not About Food, Drugs, or Alcohol: It's About Healing Complex PTSD." She specializes in supporting survivors in healing from complex PTSD, achieving long-term recovery, and turning their pain into purpose.Mary's website.Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We talk about the fact that many children considered "gifted" were either neurodivergent and/or coping with trauma or C-PTSD. We talk about how American culture neglects kids and families and that we now live in the dystopian hellscape that 80s action movies predicted. Kyle Kimball is a law student at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands focusing on climate refugee law. His work criticizing neoclassical economics as it relates to climate change was featured when he spoke at MEERTALK in 2022. Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We interview Dr. Jamie Marich about her new book, Dissociation Made Simple: A Stigma-Free Guide to Embracing Your Dissociative Mind and Navigating Daily Life (2023). We talk about how dissociation is a very natural coping strategy for a stressful or traumatic childhood. She's helping define and normalize the term "dissociated."Dr. Jamie Marich (she/they) describes herself as a facilitator of transformative experiences. A clinical trauma specialist, expressive artist, writer, yogini, performer, short filmmaker, Reiki master, TEDx speaker, and recovery advocate, she unites all of these elements in her mission to inspire healing in others. She began her career as a humanitarian aid worker in Bosnia-Hercegovina from 2000-2003, primarily teaching English and music while freelancing with other projects. Jamie travels internationally teaching on topics related to trauma, EMDR therapy, expressive arts, mindfulness, and yoga, while maintaining a private practice and online education operations in her home base of Northeast Ohio. Jamie is the author of numerous books on trauma recovery and healing, with many more projects in the works. Marich is the founder of The Institute for Creative Mindfulness.Get her new book here.JamieMarich.comFollow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

We start the year off by talking about sobriety, toxic intensity, cycles of trauma and addiction, and making the choice to turn around family trauma by healing at all costs.Carey Smith Sipp is the Director of Strategic Partnerships at PACEs Connection and a disrupter of multi-generational cycles of trauma and addiction. PACEs = Positive and Adverse Childhood Experiences. Her book, The TurnAround Mom: How an Abuse and Addiction Survivor Stopped the Toxic Cycle for Her Family—and How You Can, Too! was published in 2007.The author of a book on breaking multi-generational cycles of addiction and abuse, Carey was writing about the health implications of what she called “toxic intensity” before learning, in 2000, about adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).  A lifelong student of the sciences, Carey is drawn to learn daily about brain development, health, and leadership. With all humility, she calls herself a cautionary tale and a success story of what positive and adverse childhood experiences can do to a human. She is an avid believer in post-traumatic growth, big ideas, and the power of good people working to change the world. She also believes that to disrupt toxic systems, we as adults must learn and share about PACEs science, examine and heal our own trauma, and view every child as being our own. PACEs story: "I grew up in addiction and abuse. When I had children, I vowed they would have a saner, calmer childhood than my own, so I joined a recovery group for family and friends of alcoholics, immersed myself in parenting education, and quit drinking, just in case. Somehow I knew children's brains are wired for peace and calm or for agitation and addiction. In 1996, when I started working on a book about breaking cycles of addiction and abuse, I called the National Association for Children of Alcoholics for resources. In 2000, one of the pieces of information they sent was the ACE Study. I read it and wept. My score explained my health issues; my prognosis was grim. Instinctively, I delved deeper into recovery, spirituality, parenting, exercise, and nutrition. A few years later, hope came when advances in brain science showed the brain has plasticity, the body wants to heal. In 2008 I started contributing articles about PACEs science to a medical information website. Five years later I met Jane Stevens, and five years after that, I was hired at PACEs Connection. My work comes full circle as I write about how PACEs lead to addiction and addiction leads to PACEs, and that PACEs science and trauma-informed communities hold solutions to preventing multi-generational cycles of addiction and abuse."PACEsConnection.comBuy Carey's book.Follow us on Instagram.Check out our bonus YouTube content.Latchkey Urchins & Friends website.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Song "One Cloud is Lonely" by Próxima Parada.Cover art by Claire Dierksen.

Our favorite cohosts are back: Tyler Tamai, RN, BSN, and Kevin Annonymous, RN, a psychiatric nurse. They join us in hearing and reacting to listener-submitted stories about the hilarious, the awkward, and the tragic–all the moments that make the holidays a stressful, joyful, and potentially traumatic time of year. Tune in to hear about the dad who bought 4 Christmas trees...with a catch! The time Alison invited a homeless spiritual guru to her family's Christmas, which household item Kevin turned into drug paraphernalia, and Anne's son steal the show with the best short holiday story.Latchkey Urchins & Friends websiteAudio mastering by Josh Collins.Music by Próxima Parada.

Anne and Alison talk with Nivida Chandra about parentification. She is the author of the viral Aeon piece, Parentification: When parents cast a child into the role of mediator, friend and carer, the wounds are profound. But recovery is possible. We talk about feeling like unemotional sociopaths, breaking out of our urchin shells, and explore cultural differences between collectivist and individualist societies. Chandra helps us explore the nuance in boundaries and self-love.Nivida Chandra is a psychologist and researcher, working with adult survivors of childhood emotional neglect. She is the founder of the mental health centre KindSpace and the founder-editor of The Shrinking Couch website, which publishes informational and experiential articles for those affected by mental health concerns. Her doctoral work was on parentification in urban India. She holds a PhD in psychology from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi and was a Fulbright scholar to the Silver School of Social Work at New York University. She lives in New Delhi.Latchkey Urchins & Friends websiteAudio mastering by Josh Collins.Music by Próxima Parada.

Chances are you've seen Laura Danger chat about some hard-hitting topics: domestic labor is labor, weaponized incompetence, naming the issues, using data to point to injustices, and community care. Laura has 17.5 million likes on her videos on TikTok—and there's a reason why! Laura, through her work as a certified Fair Play facilitator, educates and advocates for active and engaged partnerships, self-love and the dismantling of the systems that keep us from thriving. She's giving couples and household partners the exact tools and language they need to negotiate care, mental load, emotional labor, and everything else that tends to split us apart and keep us fighting or sulking. Her wisdom could save any of your struggling relationships!Laura Danger is an educator, community advocate, and millennial parent using her platform to empower overwhelmed caregivers to value their own time and the priceless care labor they provide. She's impassioned, silly, and sincere and she brings equal doses of ambition and realism to her work. She believes we can build a better future...together.Laura's Instagram: @thatdarnchatLaura's TikTok: @thatdarnchatLaura's website.Latchkey Urchins & Friends websiteAudio mastering by Josh Collins.Music by Próxima Parada.

We interview Harriet Shearsmith, author, podcast, and award-winning UK blogger on motherhood, self-love, estrangement, and fashion. We were inspired to interview Harriet after reading and seeing the popularity of Jennette McCurdy's book I'm Glad My Mom Died. Harriet shares why she thinks Jennette's story is resonating with so many right now and shares her own story of recovering from narcissistic parental abuse and her journey to parental estrangement. She shares how she's creating a better parenting world through her inspirational online content.Follow Harriet on Instagram.Harriet's book Mummin' It.Latchkey Urchins & Friends websiteAudio mastering by Josh Collins.Music by Próxima Parada.

Anne and Alison check-in:what's fun right now (spoiler alert: not much)what we're reading, watching, and listening toStruggle Party: what we're struggling with right nowLatchkey Urchins & Friends websiteAudio mastering by Josh Collins.Music by Próxima Parada.

Anne and Alison interview Cynthia Perez, LCSW, a Chicana therapist, author, public speaker, and Inner Child Hype Woman. We learn how she came to do this work of hyping up our inner child, how to do the work, and why acknowledging our inner child is so important (the pain is not too great! We can do it!). We discuss social justice-informed therapy and healing, the work of feeling self and historical pain, and Cynthia's Chicana identity. Cynthia Perez, is a Chicana therapist and Self Proclaimed "Inner Child Hype Woman". Upon entering motherhood she realized she had a lot of Re-Parenting of herself to do. Cynthia created Rooted in Reflection, a mental health meets social justice space. Cynthia enjoys curating inner child workshops that are creative and joyful! Cynthia is a 1st generation latchkey kid to immigrant parents and a storyteller for the family.Cynthia's website.Cynthia's Instagram.Show notes.Latchkey Urchins & Friends websiteAudio mastering by Josh Collins.Music by Próxima Parada.

Our World Mental Health Day episode is a conversation with Philip Butler, Ph.D., about the future of mental health care: one that puts healing in each person's own hands. We talk about the barriers to accessing healing and mental health care, especially for Black people. Dr. Butler's solution is to put the Internal Family Systems therapy methodology in everyone's hands through his Seekr Bot app so that we can access healing anytime anywhere. "The Seekr Project is part of a larger plan to bring culturally relevant artificial intelligence to smart devices. " Since Black people in the United States have historically been oppressed economically, Dr. Butler went out to create a way for folks to access care no matter their budget. Tune in to hear how artificial intelligence therapy can help us all heal on a massive scale, eliminating gatekeepers, stigma, and labels. Dr. Philip Butler is an interdisciplinary scholar in neuroscience, technology, spirituality, and Blackness. He writes on artificial intelligence, disruptive ethical models, and constructive speculative Black futurisms.His first book, Black Transhuman Liberation theology explores the potential for Black people to integrate technology and spirituality for liberation. He is the editor of the forthcoming volume Critical Black Futures which takes a critical and speculative approach to wildly imagined and critically examined future worlds yet to exist.His interdisciplinary work, deep love for Black communities, and desire to construct digital consciousnesses associated with racial and cultural identities are directed towards making difference normative in emergent technologies and future realities.Seekr Bot Instagram Learn more about The Seekr Project and Seekr Bot App here.Latchkey Urchins & Friends websiteAudio mastering by Josh Collins.Music by Próxima Parada.

We interview Susan Linn about her new book, Who's Raising the Kids: Big Tech, Big Business, and the Lives of Children. It turns out we've all been indoctrinated from a young age to value buying things due to the United States' lax child protection policies for advertising. Susan Linn is a psychologist, award-winning ventriloquist, and world-renowned expert on creative play and the impact of media and commercial marketing on children. She was the Founding  Director of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (now called Fairplay) and is currently a research associate at Boston Children's Hospital and lecturer on psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. The author of Consuming Kids, The Case for Make Believe, and Who's Raising the Kids?  Susan and her work have been featured on the stage of  TED, as well as on “TODAY”, “Good Morning America,” “60 Minutes,” “The Colbert Report,”  “Dateline,” NPR's “Marketplace,” The New York Times, The Washington Post, POLITICO, TIME, The  Boston Globe, The Los Angeles Times, and many other outlets. She lives in Brookline, Massachusetts. Find her at consumingkids.com or on twitter at @drsusanlinn.00:00 IntroAnne and Alison talk about kids and tech these days including Ryan Kaji, "The Boy King of YouTube," and the Wren Eleanor controversy. We talk about "the Britney Spears effect," in which kids are growing up thinking they have to be successful at a very young age. We compare and contrast Madonna's 80's fame with Britney's 90s fame.11:37 Interview with Dr. Susan LinnShow notes.Audio mastering by Josh Collins.Music by Próxima Parada.

Welcome to Latchkey Urchins & Friends podcast!Hosted by Alison Cebulla, who works in child trauma prevention, and Anne Sherry, therapist.Our website.Audio mastered by Josh Collins."One Cloud is Lonely" theme song by Próxima Parada.

Anne and Alison look back on Season 1 of Latchkey Urchins & Friends. 

We talk with the hosts of The Neurodivergent Woman podcast, Dr. Michelle Livock and Monique Mitchelson.What is neurodivergence? How the needs of neurodivergent children can be neglected and the long-term impacts.As always we end with the "Feelings Wheel Game" where we practice naming feelings and feeling them in our bodies. This is a great practice for healing trauma, mindfulness, and body presence. Show NotesThe Neurodivergent Woman podcast websiteLatchkey Urchins & Friends websiteAudio mastering by Josh CollinsTheme music by Próxima Parada

Anne and Alison talk with Kay Gardner, LCPC about her work helping people hand back their legacy burdens to their ancestors where they belong. Not all of the trauma we carry around is ours to carry. Learn about Kay's healing work helping us unburden our trauma. Kay Gardner has over 40 years of clinical experience and 30 years in private practice. She is a senior Lead Trainer for Internal Family Systems (IFS) and has been involved with IFS since 1991.  Prior to her work with IFS, she was a therapist and a teacher of Hakomi Body Centered Psychotherapy.

Anne and Alison talk with Eric Atcheson, ordained pastor in the Christian Church about Millenial faith, social justice, and finding connection through spirituality. We learn about his experience growing up in Kansas with attorney parents and how this shaped his inclusive worldview, which he brings to his ministry. This episode is for anyone searching for meaning and a spiritual practice during these trying times, especially inclusive, open-minded, and connective spirituality.

Thanks so much for listening! Hope you can catch up on past episodes these two weeks.Check out our website, sign up for our monthly newsletter, and send a message about something from the pod you've loved. Follow us on social media!https://latchkeyurchins.com/https://www.facebook.com/latchkeyurchinshttps://www.instagram.com/latchkeyurchins/Check out Próxima Parada's music. They have provided our theme music. The song is "One Cloud is Lonely." https://proximaparadamusic.com/SpotifyAudio mastering by Josh Collins: https://www.podcastaudiodoctor.com/

Anne and Alison interview Adrian Alexander and Juleus Ghunta, community managers of the ACEs Caribbean Community, raising awareness of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), and promoting Protective Factors, Positive Experiences, Hope, and Resilience throughout the Caribbean. They are working to inform and transform their region to see more empowered, trauma-informed, and resilient people, families, communities, organisations, and nations. Adrian and Juleus share about their trauma-informed anti-violence work in the Caribbean, including healing the wounds of boy children, who often are overlooked when we focus on gender-based violence. Juleus shares an excerpt from his recent book and poetry so good that it will capture even those who are thinking "I'm just not into poetry."  Juleus Ghunta is a Chevening Scholar, children's writer, a member of Jamaica's National Task Force on Character Education, and an advocate in the Caribbean's Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) movement. Ghunta holds a BA in Media from The University of the West Indies, Mona, and an MA in Peace Studies from the University of Bradford, UK. His work explores the links between toxic stress and academic underachievement, and the varied effects of false positivity and emotional invalidation on the choices and hopes of survivors of complex trauma. His poems and essays on ACEs have appeared in 30+ journals across 16 countries. His picture book, Tata and the Big Bad Bull, was published by CaribbeanReads in 2018, and he is the co-editor of the December 2019 and March 2020 issues of Interviewing the Caribbean (The UWI Press), focused on children's literature and ACEs in the Caribbean. He is also the co-editor of a special issue of PREE magazine on ACEs and storytelling (Dec. 2021). Ghunta's new book, Rohan Bullkin and the Shadows: A Story About ACEs and Hope, was published by CaribbeanReads on December 31, 2021. His Notebook of Words and Ideas, which features prominently in Rohan Bullkin and the Shadows, will be published by Dreamright in 2022. Adrian Alexander is an ACEs movement community leader based in Trinidad and Tobago.Show notes.

Anne and Alison interview Jon Claytor about his new book, Take the Long Way Home, a story of words and drawings. "In Take the Long Way Home, Claytor explores alcoholism, love, and family through heart-rending vignettes and expressive linework. This is the story of a man who unpacks a difficult past, only to discover that even at his lowest point, he was never truly alone."Jon Claytor is a Maritime-based artist, painter, and writer. He is a co-founder of SappyFest, an independent music and arts festival and was a bartender and co-owner at Thunder & Lightning Ideas Ltd. in Sackville, New Brunswick. Jon is a father to five children and, for him, being a father is the biggest part of being an artist.Jon Claytor's work ranges from oil painting and watercolour to filmmaking, and he recently became a comic-writer. He worked with Ingram Gallery in Toronto and exhibited his paintings in Los Angeles. Jon holds an MFA from York University (2012), attended Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University (1991), and holds a BFA Mount Allison University (1998).The book is out April 22, 2022: https://www.conundrumpress.com/forthcoming/take-the-long-way-home/Jon's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jon_claytor_art/

Anne and Alison interview Ariana Gibson about STIGMA App and documentary films about overcoming childhood trauma and sharing mental health struggles. STIGMA App normalizes conversations about mental health, one story at a time. Ariana Alejandra Gibson is a creative director, researcher, and brand strategist who is building a new kind of mental health app that uses storytelling and reciprocal social connection to reduce loneliness and stigma. She is a documentary filmmaker and mental health advocate working. Her first short film, "STIGMA | Strong", is a film festival semi-finalist and is available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime. Docuseries:https://www.amazon.com/STIGMA-Strong-John-Gibson/dp/B08CRXG88SJoin our community: www.TheSTIGMA.app

Anne and Alison talk with Josh Collins, a California-raised guitarist and songwriter currently based in Idaho. Josh has been working behind the scenes on Latchkey Urchins & Friends as our audio engineer since Ep5. We learn about the chaotic home life he endured in childhood and how he found refuge in music. Josh plays with the band Próxima Parada, from whom we borrow their track "One Cloud is Lonely" as our podcast theme song. We play a song that Josh wrote and recorded with Próxima Parada called "Grateful," about his gratitude for his ability to cope and get through his stressful childhood. Josh adapted to be "the therapist" for his family and suffers some classic "middle child syndrome," as the 2nd of 3 brothers, always mediating conflicts and providing a listening ear. Follow Josh on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joshcollinsguitar/Hire Josh to do the audio on your podcast: https://www.podcastaudiodoctor.com/Check out Próxima Parada: https://www.proximaparadamusic.com/Latchkey Urchins Website: https://www.latchkeyurchins.com/

Anne and Alison share their personal journeys seeking mental health treatment from therapists and psychiatrists. They share what they looked for in a therapist, why they sought treatment, and what their outcomes were. They share how to find a therapist and when to seek one. They also share what you can get out of therapy as well as budget-friendly options.

We welcome back beloved past guest Tamara Hanna, a clinical psychologist based in Asheville, NC (last heard in Ep8). Tamara has been inspired recently by the work of Mia Birdsong's How We Show Up: Reclaiming Family, Friendship, and Community. She shares how to show up for our family, friends, and community, which boundaries to set, and vulnerably shares all the ways showing up and setting boundaries can go wrong, with rich and sometimes comical examples from her own life. We love both the heart and the humor that Tamara brings to community care, inspiring us to show up for the people we care about, and build bridges with the people with whom we can't quite seem to see eye to eye.

In this episode, Anne and Alison talk to Leslie Petruk, LPCS, NCC, BCC, Charlotte, NC-based therapist and Founder and Director of The Stone Center For Counseling & Leadership. We learn about Leslie's journey to discovering her own ADHD after serving this population professionally for years, her inner healing work for the sake of herself and her kids, and her work to help parents see that they must do the same. She currently provides services online, teaches and conducts workshops.  She also serves as an Assistant Trainer with the Internal Family Systems Institute.  You can learn more about Leslie on her counseling center website:  www.thestonecenternc.com.

This week Anne and Alison talk with Evan Cudworth, The World's 1st Party Coach, about his mission to help people party with intention. We hear his personal story about growing up in small-town, Christian, Illinois and then joining a fraternity in college and coming out as gay. We hear about the careers he tried before realizing and inventing his dream job. Evan shares with us the benefits of different types and levels of sobriety and all the benefits of enjoying a strong social life through parties, raves, and other social gatherings—especially when done as a way to connect rather than escape.EVAN PAUL CUDWORTH is a musician who believes that a great "party" is a tribal event: a portal to human connection we can only achieve together as a group. But after spending practically every weekend of the last 15 year at a bar, concert, festival, or nightclub, Evan experienced the extreme highs and lows that alcohol and drugs contribute to our social scene. He's now on a mission to inspire people to take a closer look at WHY we really “party," and teaches anyone how to experience & enjoy "short-term-sobriety" (1 - 3 months) and regain their natural confidence while connecting without anxiety. In this space of clarity, you can set clear intentions for WHY they party: Escape? Find a lover? Network for your career? Inside these intentions are the healthy habits and freedom to then sustainably reintegrate alcohol/substances in a way that leaves you and your social circle feeling fulfilled and connected. Find Evan on Instagram: @evan_cudworth Subscribe to the VIBE CURATOR newsletter & learn more about "Detoxify your Social Life," a 7 week group coaching course in short term sobriety: https://hoo.be/evancudworthShow notes.Latchkey Urchins & Friends Website.Audio engineering by Josh Collins.Episode music: "One Cloud is Lonely"  by Proxima Parada.

This week Anne and Alison talk with IFS therapist Madeleine Warren about the parentified child.  We interview Madeleine Warren, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) about parentified children. This is a relationship children have with their parents in which the child takes on the parent's role of emotional caretaking in the absence of the parent doing this for the child. This can result in children being labeled “mature for their age” or “an old soul”. These children often grow up feeling that they may not even have any needs, which Madeleine shares with a  humorous and personal story.  Madeleine Warren has a private practice in Evanston, Illinois where she works with individual adults and couples, many of whom have a trauma history and/or histories of childhood parentification.  She is also an Assistant Trainer for the IFS Institute and runs IFS Consultation Groups for trained IFS therapists.  She has a life partner who is a survivor, and no children, although she has been honored to offer some re-parenting and to facilitate inner-parenting with her clients.00:00 Introduction with Anne and Alison20:00 Interview with MadeleineShow notes.Latchkey Urchins & Friends Website.Audio engineering by Josh Collins.Episode music: "One Cloud is Lonely," "Hannah Hannah," and "Better Now" by Proxima Parada.