Growing Through Distraction

Check out this blast from the past! In honor of Throwback Thursday @ImJustJoslyn finally decided to come on back to the podcast streets, and this time she’s talking about grief! Don’t worry everyone it’s definitely her shortest episode to date, so you won’t be in your feels for too long. This is a special episode with only her talking around grief that she’s experienced personally, as well as breaking down the different stages of grief and loss. So sit back, relax, light some candles and even some sage or palo santo, grab a sip, whatever you need to do in order to tap in to your feelings for a bit! It will be quick don’t worry! Call to Action 1. For this week just have grace with yourselves! I challenge all of you to say 5-7 amazing things about yourself and the grief you have experienced for the next week Monday-Sunday. Even if you’re repeating those 5-7 positives each day that’s okay. Find the good in your grief. 2. Some book recommendations for this episode are: ◦ Grieving While Black: An Antiracist Take On Oppression And Sorrow by Breeshia Wade ◦ Notes on Grief by Chimimanda Ngozi Adichie ◦ The Pain We Carry by Natalie Y Gutierrez 3. Podcast recommendations: ◦ Small Doses “Side Effects of Healing After Loss” (with Maya Jaye) and host Amanda Seales ◦ The Friend Zone ep 375 “The Fifth Member” with hosts HeyFranHey, HeyAssante and Dustin Ross ◦ Can’t Afford Therapy Podcast with hosts Antoinette, Josh, and Savon Music1. Know That You Are Loved by Cleo Sol2. Don’t Hurt Yourself by Beyonce3. If You Let Me by Sinead Harnett4. One Sweet Day by Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men5. W.A.Y.S. by Jhene Aiko Research article credit: The Stages of Grief: How to Understand Your Feelings (healthline.com)

@ImJustJoslyn is back again with another episode, and this time, she sat down with a fan favorite special guest! It’s her wonderful and magnificent MOTHA!!! Rose aka @RosaHiggins4 on IG got real candid about her views on therapy, and how they have evolved overtime. She gives her personal definition of what therapy means to her, talks about the terrorism on the twin towers, and bridges. She even went back down memory lane and recalled that time when a certain professor named Mr. Guns, put her on to a song that goes down in history as one of the most powerful and relevant protest songs of all time! Y’all don’t want to miss this one!!!Call to action:1. Talk to your parents, guardians, or even elders around their views on therapy. Open up the conversation. See what their thoughts are about it and why. This could open their minds to the possibility of considering getting out there and going to therapy! They could even take sessions straight from home. It is merely practicing good mental wellness.2. Podcast recommendation for this week is called “Can’t Afford Therapy” with hosts Antoinette from the podcast Around the way curls, Josh aka “Fazefunk”, and SaVon from the “Need to know Podcast”.3. Book recommendation for this week is called “The Book You wish your parents had read (and your children will be glad that you did) by Philippa Perry.Music:1. “What’s Going On” by Marvin Gaye2. “Love Train” by The O’Jays3. “Grounded” by Ari Lennox

On this episode not only is it @ImJustJoslyn’s birthday, but she is joined for the first time ever by the lambent, lovable, licensed clinical Psychologist Lee Thompson! They talk about what drove her into Psychology as a profession, she explains the difference between a psychiatrist, psychologist, and therapist, and gives her perspective on whether or not racism is a mental illness! Given its mental health awareness month Lee drops gems on how to search for a mental health professional, the different resources you can use to afford it, and how to practice good mental health hygiene. You don’t want to miss this one!  Call to Action Don’t be afraid to take that first step if you haven’t already and get a checkup on your mental. Talk to yourself and loved ones about self-care and best practices in centering yourself and clearing your mind. Check out psychologytoday.com to find your next mental healthcare professional. However you will be able to find the incomparable Clinical Psychologist Lelieth (Lee) Thompson’s decorated profile on the website. I also have a link her profile as followed: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/lelieth-thompson-colorado-springs-co/465415  2. Book recommendations for this episode:  The Color of Hope: People of Color Mental Health Narratives by Iresha Picot M Ed, and Vanessa Hazzard  Invisible Man, Got the Whole World Watching: A Young Black Man's Education by Mychal Denzel Smith  The Fear Fighter Manual: Lessons of a Professional Troublemaker by Luvvie Ajayi Jones  3. Podcast recommendations: NPR Code Switch hosted by journalists of color Therapy for Black Girls hosted by Dr. Joy Harden Bradford a licensed psychologist  The Read hosted by Crissle West and Kid Fury  In Real Life (IRL) hosted by Angie Martinez  the Janelle Monáe interview  Music  Missin You by Tori Kelly  Hey Mickey by Baby Tate  Give it to Me by Miguel  I Like That by Janelle Monáe 

@ImJustJoslyn is FINALLY back with another episode! Life had been doing life for @ImJustJoslyn and she had to handle some things but now she’s back just wanting more for the community! She’s joined again by the ever so perspicacious @ALatinasguidetotennessee where they discuss the mental aspect of self esteem and how it could be tied to the potential individuals see in themselves, and how their cultural backgrounds, familial units, and society can dictate their mindset on just what “wanting more” can look and feel like. Off the heels of last week’s controversial conversation with Iyanla and the follow-up interviews that followed made for a fantastic discussion! It’s a great episode just in time for mental health awareness month so you don’t want to miss this one!Call to Action:1. Challenge yourselves to truly identify what wanting more looks like for yourself. Write it out, speak it aloud, and encourage your loved ones to do the same. Motivate yourself and those you care about to do the passion project or projects, run towards those childhood dreams, and let’s uplift our communities in love and light because beyond the skies is limitless so let’s shoot for the galaxies!2. If you haven’t already, listen to the full interview with Eboni K WIlliams and Iyanla Vanzant on The Grio. Then go on over and listen or watch The Breakfast Club interview with Eboni K Williams where she chimes in on the backlash she received from her “bus driver” comment.3. Book recommendation for this episode is “Act Like a Success Think Like a Success" by Steve Harvey4. Podcast recommendations:• Daughters: An Audio Diary of Daughters Across the World created by Priscilla aka @Alatinasguidetotennessee.• Around The Way Curls hosted by Antoinette Lee and Shanti Mayers• Beyond The Bleachers hosted by The Sophisticated aka Samantha @somecallmesam and Joslyn @ImJustJoslyn• Holding Court hosted by Eboni K WIlliams and Dustin RossMusic:1. Plastic Off the Sofa by Beyoncé2. Kiss of Life by Sade3. BLOOM by Lullanas4. Acróstico by Shakira5. I’m Baby by Ambré

In this episode @ImJustJoslyn is joined by another one of her amazing friends @somecallmesam aka the Smart, Sophisticated, Spectator! They talk about basketball culture in the wake of the NCAA crowning their 2023 women’s basketball champions! LSU has claimed the first title for their program and did it with a lot of swag! However, some people are not celebrating this high-level win for these young ladies and are greeting them with slander and vitriol. The rising star Angel Reece is at the center of the discourse due to her showmanship that was a little too much for fans on the opposing side that were expecting a different outcome to the game!  @Somecallmesam talks about her history with sports, how she became an avid basketball watcher, gives a spectacular analysis on the game leading up to the championship, and lastly sheds her thoughts on what basketball culture means to her as it pertains to women ballers!  Call to Action: Support all women of color that wish to play basketball, and especially to the young girls that might be shying away from the sport. Let them know they can show up as their authentic selves and still become a CHAMPION!  Try adding some books to your list around women athletes not just in basketball, but in all sports. Book recommendations for this episode: “Uphill” by Jamele Hill, “Despite the Height” by Ivory Latta and Charles R. Coffman, and “Zia’s Dream” by Damon Cooke  Try adding this new podcast to your cue! The podcast recommendation for this episode is: Cultivating H.E.R. Space with hosts Terri Lomax and Dr. Dom  Music  So Seductive by Tony Yayo 

@ImJustJoslyn is back with another episode after a 2-week break for personal care and healing. Her special guest this week is a brilliant, proud, humble, cultured, Dominican American woman that is the first guest whom is part of @ImJustJoslyn's chosen family. We have the pleasure of listening to the fascinating and lovely @ALatinasguidetotennessee as she opens up and takes us through what it's like being and identifying as an Afro-Latina. She talks about the stereotypes, the challenges, but most importantly the beauty of being a Dominican woman in America. @ALatinasguidetotennessee also has a personal mission of healing communities and has a call of action of her own! She is calling all female/female identifying daughters across the diaspora to be willing to be interviewed by her in a focused conversation centered around Parentification, Involuntary Responsibility, Intergenerational Trauma, and Familial Pressures. Reach out to move the discussion forward, as you may be spotlighted in her upcoming book! Call to Action Please share your stories and experiences with @ALatinasguidetotennessee by completing the survey at the link below: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeHtTBUc44Ww8M6DzCSn2lqlwza352-oZqJxl6SLjmI1zej-g/viewform 2. Explore the pages of books written by or about Black, Dominican/Latinx authors. Book recommendations for this episode are as follows: The Social Composition of The Dominican Republic by Juan Bosch Blacks, Mulattos, and the Dominican Nation (Classic Knowledge in Dominican Studies) by Franklin J. Franco For Brown Girls with Sharp Edges and Tender Hearts: A Love Letter to Women of Color by Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodgriguez 3. Take a listen to another podcast hosted by the amazing Angie Martinez, who is Cuban, Dominican, and Puerto Rican. Podcast recommendation: Angie Martinez IRL | Podcast Music Sazón by Celia Cruz Rebelión by Joe Arroyo Princess Diana by Ice Spice Déjà Vu (Uptown Baby) by Lord Tariq & Peter Gunz

In this episode @ImJustJoslyn sits down with her first cousin aka twin @HillJ09 to discuss the "racy" photo of Jonathan Majors and Michael B. Jordan that has been circulating the internet for the past couple of weeks. You get a chance to hear @HillJ09's thoughts around the photograph and whether or not he found it sexual or vulnerable. He also talks about his personal relationship with his best friend, and how sometimes holding back tears can be all too much for a strong Black man. Later, you get a chance to hear @HillJ09's definition of what he considers a good Black man to be!  Plan of Action: 1. Open yourselves up and identify Black/Brown boys or men that you confide in or would like to build a relationship with. If you admire them from afar, if your paths cross everyday or from time-to-time, and even if you currently consider them a friend, try sitting down with them an expressing your love for them. Ask them how they are really doing, and let them know how you are really feeling. Most importantly, tell them if you want to start having more real conversations with them, or even if you want to begin a strong relationship. It can all start from a simple compliment, and then just watch how it makes you feel. 2. Find a book centered around Black/Brown boys/men friendships. The book recommendation for this episode is "Boys Don't Cry" by Malorie Blackman.  3. Take a listen to another podcast that dissected their thoughts around the Jonathan Majors and Michael B Jordan photograph. Try adding the podcast "HIGHER LEARNING" with hosts Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsey to your cue!  Music: 1.  Hear Me by NLE Choppa 2. Clique by Big Sean feat. Jay-Z, Kanye West 3. Father Time by Kendrick Lamar 4. Die Hard by Kendrick Lamar

In this episode for 1 hour and 30 minutes, @ImJustJoslyn had the pleasure of finally getting her mother, @RosaHiggins4, to take a break from her busy life, have a seat, and indulge in a conversation around growing through segregation. Please understand it was no easy feat to get @RosaHiggins4 to sit down for this long, because she's always either helping family or friends, cooking for them, or on the phone talking to them, so it was a great treat!  @ImJustJoslyn took last week's homework and actively found time to discuss with her mother, the challenges, fortitude, and resilience she embodied to be able to grow through that time in her life, and they are hoping that the listeners can sit back and take a ride down memory lane to understand not only how amazing @RosaHiggins4 is, but if they find a little time to do just a little digging, they can uncover how amazing their loved ones are too. Plan of Action: 1. Connect with your loved ones around music, it could be a song that brings back happy memories, or an event like a family reunion where music was playing, and everyone got up to do their favorite line dance together. Just take time to revisit gleeful moments with those you care about.  2. Check out a book written by a Black or Brown author. My book recommendation for this episode is called: "BET ON BLACK" by Eboni K. Williams. 3. Try out the socially conscious and entertaining podcast: HIGHER LEARNING with hosts Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay.  Music: 1. Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel by Tavares 2. It Don't Have to Change by John Legend 3. Family Reunion by Jill Scott

In this episode @ImJustJoslyn and @MsLovelyLea discuss their experiences growing up Black. As they spent their summers in a small town in South Carolina, and the remainder of their time in New Jersey, they talk about how their childhood molded them into the women that they are today. Having to grow through different realizations of their blackness, they stand proud in the lessons and the richness of their culture that was mostly rooted in the south. They uncover learning about the Gullah and Geechee communities in which they were immersed, and now have come to appreciate and take pride in the brilliance and resilience of their ancestors.  Plan of Action Ask your elders (parents, guardians, grandparents, etc) in your family about their childhood and your family's roots. Do they have connections in the south, could your ancestors be from the plentiful and beautiful islands of the Caribbean, or have some ties to West Africa? Explore the whereabouts of how your family came to be. Some articles on the Geechee and Gullah people can be found here: https://gullahgeecheecorridor.org/thegullahgeechee/  https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/arts-culture/geechee-and-gullah-culture/ Explore the pages of books focusing on POC coming-of-age stories. My book recommendation this week is called "The Darkest Child" by Delores Phillips Dive deeper into Black History Month and listen to the podcast: Black History Year  a podcast produced by PushBlack Music "Blackberry Molasses" by Mista "Bills, Bills, Bills" by Destiny's Child "Window Seat" by Erykah Badu

Joslyn aka @ImJustJoslyn and Joy aka @MsLovelyLea have a real conversation on how they have been distracted, and discuss ways in which they can get more focused on what really matters.