51. The Womb Rental Crime

Submission: " I was manipulated, abused, and almost trafficked by a guy from my gym. He removed the battery from my car in an attempt to remain in control over me and harassed and threatened me for months after I finally got the courage to leave. Now I work in a field where I get to help convict abusers like him. "

"I spent five summers working as a tree planter in the rural wilderness of northern British Columbia. It saved my life and almost killed me at the same time. By day, I was doing one of the most physically and emotionally grueling jobs a person can do. Working in the snow, the rain, and the heat, while having scary encounters with bears, wasps, and ATVs, questioning my existence. And by night, I was sitting by bonfires, taking drugs, having sex, and parting my face off with the greatest community of people I've ever met. " This episode is sponsored brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at www.betterhelp.com/PDT and get on your way to being your best self.

Submission: “I accidentally became a financial dominatrix at 17 and I am still currently doing it on and off until now. It started off as a really bad and awkward first date and turned into what it is today.”

TW: SA, Rape Submission: "When I was 16, I was raped by the same person I married about nine months ago. I don't blame him because the school we went to did not teach consent and I froze up so that I couldn't say no out loud. It has made intimacy difficult even to this day and I struggled to find a therapist until recently. " “This episode is sponsored brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at www.betterhelp.com/PDT and get on your way to being your best self.”

Summisoin - "I am a 36 year old travel and wildlife photographer. Who in January of 2023 embarked on a trip around the world. In April of 2023, I found myself in Malaysia, where I started dating a handsome Nigerian man. After returning to Thailand to make plans to move closer to him, I found out I was pregnant. Seeing his odd reaction to the news caused me to do some digging, and I found out that this was part of a new organized crime ring called "Womb Rentals", where men impregnate women for financial gains, citizenship to their country, or even child trafficking. Instead of running back to the States, I decided to buy a one-way ticket return to Malaysia and go after him and everyone involved."

Submission:   "On Friday, June 2012, I was airlifted out of Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee. During this near-death experience, I left my physical body and was able to watch almost as a third party as I was airlifted to the cardiac care unit in Chattanooga, Tennessee on life support. The next day I awoke, and by Sunday, June 10th, I miraculously returned to the festival after refusing to be released to a women's shelter. Nine months after the festival, I ended up having a complete mental breakdown, an existential crisis triggered by that experience that led me to do a series of wild and crazy things, landing me in a mental hospital for a week where I forgot my own name for two days. Believing I actually died June 8th,may sound out there. But it all happened and the event became a launching pad for my now 10 years of sobriety after a three year addiction to heroin and opiates. This is a story about mental health and stigmas around drug addictions and addicts. It's been a long journey and I'm very grateful to still be on this earth."

Trigger Warning: Sexual Assault -- Submission: "I was a victim of military sexual assault while stationed in South Korea and felt like I couldn’t report it and it ruined my career. I want to talk about the amount of times this happens and how much it goes unreported although they pretend to encourage people to come forward. The fear of reprisal and the fear of simply not being able to prove it is too great for some to report. It needs to stop and I’d like to share my perspective. "

Submission: " I'm epileptic and for about six months I had experiences where I would have a seizure and I would see future events that were about to happen. I would tell my wife and some friends and then the events would happen. They are some real crazy stories."

 " During March, 2020, I was 19. My college in California closed down and I moved back in with my parents until I was able to go back. While living with them again. Tension grew high between me and my mom. And a few months into living there, I discovered I was being charged for a life insurance policy through my credit union and a hefty one too. When I called to cancel slash figure out how I was being charged for something I never signed up for in the first place. They informed me that I had filled out a mail document requesting the most premium $350,000 life insurance policy. knowing I did not sign anything of the sorts. I asked for a copy of the document, I opened the document up to see the $350,000 box checked and the sole beneficiary listed was my mom's name, written clearly in her handwriting. What was even more gut-wrenching is that I immediately recognized the signature she forged. It was one of my earliest first learned cursive signatures. I used to sign drawings I'd make for her and used it on all of my schoolwork. Back in the day, I'll always have to wonder if my mom was going to murder me and collect that life insurance policy. It's greatly affected my ability to trust anyone, and I find myself many days racking my brain trying to understand her motives, although I'll never understand how a mother could do something like this to her daughter."

submission: When I was 16 I went to go live with the family I babysat for. (Mine was very dysfunctional). The husband/dad spent 3/4 of the year away for work. The mom needed a friend/help/therapy! I bonded with everyone and fit in. She ended up having an affair and they separated. The husband/dad and I started having sex. This went on for over 2 years. I ended up moving away and eventually contact with all of them ceased. I basically traded one dysfunctional family for another. Working this all out now in my late 30’s but I would love to tell everyone what happened. It wasn’t ok.