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Amy shares her story of enduring nearly three decades of sexual abuse that began when she was just four years old. After her mother married her stepfather, the family moved overseas, where Amy says he began sexually abusing her and trafficking her to other men. As the abuse continued throughout her childhood, Amy struggled to understand what was happening, especially when the adults she depended on repeatedly failed to protect her. Despite telling her mother about the abuse on multiple occasions, Amy was met with denial, threats, and accusations of lying. At 32 years old, now a mother to three young boys, Amy reached a turning point that led her to confront her mother once again and end contact with her stepfather. Amy opens up about the lasting effects of childhood sexual abuse, the complicated relationship she maintained with her mother, and the ways trauma continued to affect her well into adulthood. She discusses her experiences with dissociation, self-harm, and dissociative identity disorder, along with the challenges of navigating relationships and motherhood while carrying the effects of her childhood. Amy also reflects on the difficulty of confronting experiences she had spent much of her life trying to survive, her decision to seek specialized trauma treatment, and the ongoing process of understanding how those experiences have shaped her life. Amy’s Links: https://www.instagram.com/goldielocks_and_brownbear_farm https://www.facebook.com/aim.lynn1 Resources: Suicide and Crisis Lifeline 988 RAINN 24/7 confidential support, online chat & hotline 1-800-656-HOPE Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Childhood SA (CSA), Mental Health, Childhood Trauma, Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Morgan Berry shares her story of becoming a mother to identical twin girls, Bailey Grace and Ally, whose lives would be shaped by an incredibly rare genetic disorder. What began as a seemingly normal pregnancy and the challenges of caring for newborn twins quickly turned into years of unanswered questions as Morgan noticed developmental delays and unusual seizure activity in both daughters. After countless appointments, extensive genetic testing, and a search for answers that eventually led them to the National Institutes of Health, the girls were diagnosed with HECW2, a disorder so rare that very little was known about what their futures might look like. As their medical needs became increasingly complex, Morgan found herself navigating around-the-clock care, difficult decisions about their quality of life, and the constant uncertainty of what might come next. Morgan opens up about the emotional and physical toll of caring for her daughters, the complicated role her faith played throughout their illnesses, and the experience of adopting her son, James, from China while navigating an already overwhelming chapter of motherhood. She also reflects on being sexually assaulted during college, how that experience shaped her understanding of safety, intimacy, and relationships, and the ways unresolved trauma influenced the years that followed. Morgan discusses the pressure she felt to remain strong through her daughters' suffering, the difficult realities of making end-of-life decisions, and how years of living in survival mode affected her sense of identity. She also shares how her experiences with grief, trauma, and major changes in her personal life eventually led her to reevaluate what she believed about herself, her faith, and the life she wanted moving forward. Morgan’s Links: https://www.instagram.com/seedsandleaven https://www.allymorganb.com https://seedsandleaven.substack.com Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Child Loss and Grief, Rare Genetic Disorders, SA, Medical Trauma, Healing After Loss, Childhood Disability and Chronic Illness, Motherhood If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alicia shares her story of growing up in a close-knit Christian family, building a successful career in real estate, and entering a marriage that eventually left her feeling more like a roommate than a wife. After losing two of her closest friends and becoming estranged from the church community she had been part of for years, Alicia developed a friendship with an older, married man through their shared involvement in the horse racing industry. What began as a business partnership eventually turned into a four-year affair that left her struggling with secrecy, emotional dependence, and thoughts of suicide. Despite repeatedly trying to end the relationship, Alicia found herself caught between the man she had fallen in love with and the life she knew she could never openly have with him. Alicia opens up about the emotional toll of being the other woman, the guilt she carries for the people affected by the affair, and the years it took to finally break free. She discusses the turning point that led her to confide in her sister, seek counseling, and begin confronting the grief and shame she had been carrying in silence. Now the author of More Than a Secret: How a Mistress Broke Free from Her Affair, Alicia is sharing a perspective that is often left out of conversations about infidelity, while taking responsibility for her own decisions and acknowledging the pain they caused. Through her story, she hopes to reach others who feel trapped in similar relationships and show that it is possible to walk away, seek help, and rebuild a life beyond secrecy. Alicia’s Links: https://www.instagram.com/aliciabarrauthor https://www.facebook.com/people/Alicia-Barr-Author https://aliciabarrauthor.substack.com https://aliciabarr.com Alicia’s Book - More Than a Secret: How a Mistress Broke Free from Her Affair https://a.co/d/01gIZFgp Resources: Suicide and Crisis Lifeline 988 Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Shame and Guilt, Emotional Dependency, Infidelity, Extramarital Affairs, Toxic Relationships If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Matt Griffin shares his story of spending more than two decades in the U.S. Navy and law enforcement and the experiences that would eventually change the course of his life. Early in his career as a police officer, Matt responded to the accidental death of his friend’s two-year-old son and was left carrying guilt over the belief that he should have gotten there sooner. As he continued his career, he became an undercover officer during the height of the opioid epidemic, immersing himself in a world that became increasingly difficult to separate from his life at home. Years of unprocessed trauma, drinking, the breakdown of his marriage, and the loss of a fellow officer and close friend to suicide eventually brought Matt to a point where he no longer wanted to live. On March 17, 2017, Matt wrote a suicide note and planned to take his own life at midnight. Less than an hour before, an unexpected phone call from a friend changed what happened that night, and Matt began making the decision to get through life one day at a time. He opens up about rebuilding after divorce, homelessness, and suicidal thoughts, his complicated relationship with alcohol, and the years he spent trying to become the person he was before everything happened. More recently, Matt traveled to Mexico for Ibogaine treatment as part of his continued search for healing and shares what that experience was like, why he no longer believes healing means getting his old self back, and how he is learning to build a life where what happened to him is part of his story without becoming all of it. Matt’s Links: https://www.instagram.com/authormatthewgriffin https://www.matthewagriffin.com Matt’s Book - The Journey to Midnight https://a.co/d/0aU4gl7R Resources: Suicide and Crisis Lifeline 988 Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Undercover Police, Law Enforcement, PTSD, Opioid Epidemic, Mental Health, Loss & Grief If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah Hayes shares her story of growing up in a family where sexual abuse began at an incredibly young age and continued for years at the hands of her older brother. With the adults around her repeatedly failing to intervene, Sarah was left to grow up alongside abuse while also taking on a caregiving role with her youngest sister, Dani, who she describes as being like her own baby. Years later, Sarah would become Dani’s legal guardian while still trying to navigate the effects of her own childhood. What followed would leave Sarah carrying a devastating loss alongside the trauma she had already spent much of her life trying to understand. Years later, Sarah began writing about her experiences as a way to process what had happened, never expecting those pages to eventually become her book, Invisible Monster. She opens up about what ultimately pushed her to put her name and story behind it, the complicated reality of speaking publicly about abuse within your own family, and the emotional toll that came with telling her story. Today, Sarah is using what she survived to work with children who have experienced trauma, hoping to give them the encouragement and support she and her sisters needed when they were young. Sarah’s Links: Sarah’s Book - Invisible Monster https://a.co/d/06wxNaIi Invisible Monster Etsy Shop https://share.google/3rCBnchGRcq2TjIjh Resources: Suicide and Crisis Lifeline 988 RAINN 24/7 confidential support, online chat & hotline 1-800-656-HOPE Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Childhood SA (CSA), Suicide Loss, Childhood Trauma, Complex PTSD, Loss & Grief, SSA If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sonny Von Cleveland shares his story of being trafficked by his mother from the time he was three until he was twelve, surviving years of abuse, and growing up without the intervention or support he needed. As a child, getting into trouble became an unexpected form of safety, eventually leading him into the juvenile justice system and then prison at sixteen, where he was SAed during his first week. In the years that followed, Sonny became involved in gangs and violence, returned to prison with fifteen additional felonies, and eventually found himself facing years in solitary confinement. It was there that an unlikely friendship with a man in the cell across from him forced Sonny to confront the anger, trauma, and harm that had shaped so much of his life. Through that relationship, Sonny began taking responsibility for the pain he had caused while finding a way to give purpose to the pain he had survived. After spending a total of eighteen years incarcerated, he rebuilt his life through music, storytelling, advocacy, and a commitment to helping others. Today, Sonny works in the fight against child trafficking and exploitation, using both his lived experience and his voice to educate families, support survivors, and help protect the children he says deserve the intervention he never had. Sonny’s Links: https://www.instagram.com/sonnyvonclevelandofficial https://www.tiktok.com/@sonnyvoncleveland https://www.youtube.com/@sonnyvonclevelandofficial https://www.sonnyvoncleveland.com https://linktr.ee/sonnyvonclevelandofficial Sonny’s Book - Hey White Boy: Conversations of Redemption https://a.co/d/0iVuFHs6 Our Rescue https://ourrescue.org Sonny’s Podcast - Unlikely Allies: Inside Our Fight - Coming Soon! https://ourrescue.org/unlikelyallies Resources: National Grooming Prevention Hotline https://www.ngph.org 623-688-3214 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline 988 RAINN 24/7 confidential support, online chat & hotline 1-800-656-HOPE Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Fight Against Child Trafficking, Human Trafficking, Childhood Trauma, Prison Trauma, CSA, Child Exploitation Prevention If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For our 100th episode and Suicide Prevention & Awareness Month, Chell shares one of the most difficult and personal stories she has ever told: losing her friend David to suicide. David was a successful businessman and philanthropist who was known for his generosity, but behind the life people saw, he was struggling with drugs, alcohol, and his mental health. When David reached out to Chell during a crisis in November 2017, she spent hours trying to keep him talking and convince him that what he was feeling was temporary. What happened over the course of that night would leave Chell carrying an experience she never could have prepared for. Chell opens up about witnessing her friend’s suicide, the guilt and questions she carried afterward, and the severe depression that followed. Having spent much of her career working in psychiatry and addiction, she struggled with the belief that she should have known what to do and ultimately stepped away from that work after his death. Nearly nine years later, Chell shares what this experience taught her about taking suicidal statements seriously, getting help when someone is in crisis, and the lasting impact suicide can have on the people left behind. More than anything, she shares David’s story in the hope that someone listening will check on the people they love and never assume that a cry for help shouldn’t be taken seriously. Resources: Suicide & Crisis Hotline Call or text 988 Crisis Text Line 741741 Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters  https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters  Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Suicide Prevention, Mental Health, Complex PTSD, Substance Use Disorder, Loss & Grief  If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

LaRon shares his story of growing up in extreme poverty surrounded by addiction, violence, neglect, and abuse before entering the foster care system. After being placed in a foster home where he was starved, tortured, threatened with weapons, and made to eat from dog bowls, LaRon reached a point where he no longer wanted to live. In one of his darkest moments, music interrupted a suicide attempt and became something he could hold onto until he eventually returned to a foster mother who gave him the safety and unconditional love he had never known. LaRon opens up about being adopted, pursuing a career in music, and the ways his childhood trauma continued to follow him into adulthood, marriage, and fatherhood. After his marriage ended and the mother who adopted him unexpectedly died, LaRon found himself struggling again with grief, anger, and suicidal thoughts while trying to rebuild his life and remain present for his children. Today, he is confronting the patterns passed down through his family, navigating an ongoing fight to reunite with his youngest daughter, and using his music and story to turn what he survived into something that might give someone else hope. LaRon’s Links: https://www.instagram.com/iamlaronmusic https://m.youtube.com/stevie3580?ra=m https://beacons.ai/iamlaronmusic LaRon’s Book: From My Test To My Testimony https://a.co/d/0942q33m Resources: Crisis Text Line 741741 RAINN 24/7 confidential support, online chat & hotline  1-800-656-HOPE SAMHSA’s National Helpline  1-800-662-HELP (4357) Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters  https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters  Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Foster care abuse, Child neglect, Childhood trauma, mental health, Generational trauma, Foster care system, Child welfare system If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ariel shares her story of surviving childhood SA, addiction, and years of struggling with her mental health before reaching a point where she attempted to take her own life. After six months of sobriety from alcohol, a difficult night became a breaking point, and Ariel survived a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest, an experience she describes as being followed almost immediately by regret and the realization that she wanted to live. In the years since, Ariel has had to confront not only the trauma that contributed to her attempt, but the physical and emotional aftermath of surviving it. She opens up about the impact on her son and family, her experiences within the mental health system, and the work it took to rebuild her life. Today, Ariel lives and works at Mattersville, a nonprofit wolf dog rescue that works with veterans struggling with PTSD, where caring for the animals and finding purpose within the community became an important part of her healing. Mattersville  https://mattersvillevets.org/ Resources: Crisis Text Line 741741 RAINN 24/7 confidential support, online chat & hotline  1-800-656-HOPE SAMHSA’s National Helpline (mental health and/or substance use) 1-800-662-HELP (4357) Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters  https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters  Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Suicide Attempt Survivor, Mental Health Recovery, CSA, Complex PTSD, Alcohol Addiction, Suicide Prevention If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rhiannon Thoreson was 19 years old and washing her car in broad daylight when a stranger came up behind her, held a knife to her throat, and kidnapped her. He drove her to a remote area, where she was held for hours, repeatedly sexually assaulted, physically assaulted, and threatened with death. What followed was a years-long struggle with severe PTSD, suicidal thoughts, panic attacks, hypervigilance, shame, and the pressure to appear successful on the outside while privately struggling with what had happened to her. Rhiannon opens up about returning to college shortly after the attack, hiding how badly she was struggling from the people around her, and spending years in therapy as she learned how to live with the trauma. She shares how EMDR changed her experience with PTSD, why she stopped expecting herself to one day be completely “healed,” and how surviving the attack ultimately influenced her decision to attend law school and advocate for victims of crime. Rhiannon and Chell also discuss survivor guilt, forgiveness, restorative justice, and the complicated reality that a conviction and courtroom victory can hold someone accountable without necessarily bringing a survivor healing or closure. Rhiannon’s links: https://www.instagram.com/mybeautyfromashes https://linktr.ee/mybeautyfromashes https://rhiannonthoreson.com Rhiannon’s TEDx Talk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSV0IrT8eDA Rhiannon’s book: My Beauty from Ashes  https://rhiannonthoreson.com/books Resources: Crisis Text Line 741741 RAINN 24/7 confidential support, online chat & hotline  1-800-656-HOPE SAMHSA’s National Helpline (mental health and/or substance use) 1-800-662-HELP (4357) Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters  https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters  Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Kidnapping Survivor, SA Survivor, PTSD After Trauma, Trauma Healing, Stranger Abduction, True Crime, Crime Victim Advocacy If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fausto Castellanos shares his story of surviving childhood SA, grooming, addiction, and years of shame that left him questioning himself and searching for acceptance in relationships, substances, and the people around him. After being abused at 7 years old and again by an adult man while struggling with meth addiction at 14, Fausto spent years trying to outrun what happened to him, eventually reaching a point where his substance use, seizures, and suicidal thoughts left him believing he might not survive. Fausto opens up about finally asking for help, finding sobriety, and experiencing unconditional acceptance from a sponsor who helped him begin confronting the trauma he had carried since childhood. He also shares how becoming a counselor and helping others gave his pain a sense of purpose, but eventually forced him to confront another pattern: tying his worth to how much he could do for everyone else. Today, nearly a decade into his healing journey, Fausto has built a life around trauma recovery, addiction advocacy, mental health, and helping others find hope without abandoning himself in the process. Fausto’s Links: https://www.instagram.com/hopedealerfausto https://www.youtube.com/@HopeDealerFausto https://www.tiktok.com/@hopedealerfausto https://www.facebook.com/faustocastellanoss Resources: Crisis Text Line 741741 RAINN 24/7 confidential support, online chat & hotline  1-800-656-HOPE SAMHSA’s National Helpline (mental health and/or substance use) 1-800-662-HELP (4357) Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters  https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters  Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: CSA Survivor, Childhood Trauma, Grooming, Addiction Recovery, Trauma Recovery, Sobriety, Men’s Mental Health If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Suzzette grew up in a family where addiction, mental illness, violence, and instability existed alongside a lot of love. Her father struggled with heroin addiction, her mother battled cancer and dissociative identity disorder, and much of what was happening inside their home became normal to her simply because it was all she knew. As a teenager, things reached a breaking point when her father and older brother were arrested, her mother disappeared, and Suzzette and her younger brother were left behind in a home that had been taken over by strangers. Years later, after losing her father, mother, and eventually her older brother, Suzzette began therapy and started looking back at her childhood with a completely different understanding. She had to untangle the complicated reality of loving her family deeply while also recognizing the ways their choices shaped her anxiety, relationships, coping mechanisms, and sense of what was normal. She opens up about the guilt she still carries over believing her father instead of her mother, the grief of losing so much of her family, and what it has taken to unlearn the patterns she grew up believing were normal. Suzzette’s Links: https://www.instagram.com/suzzettewrites https://msha.ke/suzzettewrites https://substack.com/@suzzettewrites Resources: Crisis Text Line 741741 Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters  https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters  Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), Childhood Trauma, Parental Addiction, Generational Trauma If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Shavon was just 11 years old when she woke up to find her mother and her mother’s ex-boyfriend dead after a murder-suicide that unfolded while she slept in the next room. She shares the trauma of discovering the scene, the warning signs she now recognizes as an adult, and how losing her mother shaped every stage of her life.  Shavon and Chell discuss domestic violence, intimate partner homicide, childhood trauma, grief, PTSD, healing, family support, and the lifelong impact of losing a parent to violence. Shavon reflects on carrying her mother’s memory through adulthood, navigating profound loss after later losing her grandparents, and why sharing stories like hers can help others feel less alone. She also shares the powerful spoken-word poem she wrote about the night her life changed forever, honoring her mother’s memory while encouraging others to speak openly about trauma and survival.  Resources: Crisis Text Line 741741 Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters  https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters  Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: DV, losing a parent, true crime, childhood trauma, grief and loss If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Angela Harger Thompson moved to Los Angeles to pursue her acting dreams, but soon after arriving, she was drugged, SAed, and strangled by a Hollywood producer who had offered her a job. Although she immediately reported the assault, underwent a forensic exam, and fully cooperated with law enforcement, prosecutors declined to file charges, leaving her to navigate the aftermath of SA, trauma, and a criminal justice system that offered no accountability. Hoping for a fresh start, Angela joined a sailing expedition across the Pacific Ocean just before the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world to a standstill. Stranded at sea for nearly 50 days before returning to a world in lockdown, she found herself trapped in an increasingly unhealthy relationship marked by emotional abuse, gaslighting, coercive control, and isolation. What began as an adventure quickly became another fight for her safety as years of harassment, legal battles, and a deeply personal documentary forced her to keep fighting long after reaching shore. Angela’s Links: https://www.instagram.com/messengeroftruth https://linktr.ee/angelaharger https://angelahargerproductions.com Angela’s Book - Worst T**s Ever: https://a.co/d/0ie9HuRB Angela’s Documentary - Quarantine at Sea: Trapped Halfway to Nowhere https://www.amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B0D33BPJMN?ref_=atv_dp_share_cu_r Resources: Crisis Text Line 741741 RAINN 24/7 confidential support, online chat & hotline  1-800-656-HOPE Beyond the Monsters’ Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters/ https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: SA, Coercive Control, Emotional Abuse, Gaslighting If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Brandi Morey-Pols shares the story of her six-year-old son, Rowan, who was murdered by his biological father just days before a custody hearing that she hoped would finally bring him to safety. She recounts years of coercive control, stalking, emotional abuse, repeated warnings that went unheard, and the devastating failures of multiple systems that left Rowan unprotected despite mounting evidence and escalating concerns. Brandi and Chell explore what happens when coercive control is dismissed, warning signs are overlooked, and systems fail to recognize the danger children can face during custody disputes. Brandi also shares how honoring Rowan's life has become her purpose through the Rowan Project and Rowan's Promise, advocating for greater awareness of filicide, stronger protections for children, and legislative change aimed at preventing other families from experiencing the same unimaginable loss. Brandi’s Links: https://www.instagram.com/dollbb55 https://therowanproject.org/ https://www.facebook.com/brandi.brennan.3 Resources: The Rowan Project - List of Resources https://therowanproject.org/?page_id=1989 Crisis Text Line 741741 National Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-7233 National Child Abuse Hotline 1-800-422-4453 – push 1 to talk to a hotline counselor Beyond the Monsters Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemonsters  https://linktr.ee/BeyondtheMonsters  Disclaimer: This podcast shares personal experiences and educational discussion. It is not medical or mental health advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your own care. Topic: filicide, family court failure, coercive control, domestic violence (DV), custody system failure, true crime If you have a story you'd like to share on the podcast, please fill out a form here: https://form.jotform.com/243366933402153 Please contact [email protected] for any business inquiries! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.