Volume UP!! featuring Allison Sweet Grant

Author of Lump: A Memoir of Ineloquent Reflections reflects on how writing poetry helped her through cancer Listeners, we are thrilled to be back! Since our last episode in April, O&O has been busy traveling, making connections around the world, and exploring new ways to amplify Philadelphia-area artists, activists, and change makers.We are thrilled to welcome Allison Sweet Grant author of Lump: A Memoir in Ineloquent Reflections. A special shout out to Jean Sachs and Living Beyond Breast Cancer for introducing O&O to Allison.Allison Sweet Grant is a psychiatric nurse practitioner, turned author. She has been published in the New York Times and The Atlantic. She has also written two picture books, Leif and the Fall and The Gift Inside the Box with her husband, Adam Grant. Allison lives with her family just outside of Philadelphia.

Lady Parts fillmmaker shares her experience navigating vulvovaginal healthcare.Bonnie Gross is an award-winning comedy writer, producer, and post-production professional who’s never met a taboo topic she couldn’t turn into a smart, comical, and deeply relatable story. She has a passion for telling authentic narratives about life with chronic vulvovaginal and pelvic pain, stories she believes deserve far more screen time. Originally from Philadelphia and now based in New York City, she earned her B.A. in Media Production from the University of Alabama and completed the UCLA Professional Program in TV Comedy Writing in 2018. Her most recent film Lady Parts, now streaming on Amazon Prime, is an autobiographical comedy inspired by her experience navigating vulvovaginal healthcare. It earned the Special Jury Award for Screenwriting at the Florida Film Festival and the Jury Award for Best Comedy.Bonnie spent several years in post-production at Encore Hollywood and Light Iron working across a range of television and film projects. She now co-owns Brainwomb, a boutique finishing house in NYC where she partners with filmmakers to shape stories throughout post-production. She has also written, produced, and edited comedic content for It’s a Southern Thing. She serves as social media manager and campaign volunteer for Tight Lipped, a grassroots advocacy organization by and for people with chronic vulvovaginal and pelvic pain. All of this is driven by a simple goal: to make people feel seen, understood, and maybe even laugh at a speculum joke along the way."At its core, Lady Parts is a film with a mission: to shatter the stigma around discussions of women's bodies. By addressing the cultural shame and silence surrounding these conversations, the film empowers audiences to embrace openness and honesty about their health and well-being."

Join Philadelphia's Lisa Sonneborn, Katie Samson, Shannon Brooks, and Victoria McGuigan for a candid conversation about cultural access and disability rights.In December 2025, OVERexpressed & OUT conversed with four Philadelphia-area disability rights and cultural access activists. From exploring what “access” means, to asking questions of themselves and others, to imaging Philadelphia’s future, Lisa Sonneborn, Katie Samson, Shannon Brooks, and Victoria McGuigan offer their keen insights and lived experiences.OVERexpressed & OUT depends on its listeners. If you like what you hear, share with a friend.

DivaGirl Tribe's Owner explores her love of books, how to heal from trauma, and what it means to be her full diva self! Maria Majet Reyes, MS, LPC, is an immigrant, former paramedic, and trauma therapist dedicated to providing unconditional positive regard to her clients—primarily first responders, healthcare professionals, creatives, and AANHPI & BIPOC individuals—at her private practice in Old City, Philadelphia.A passionate advocate for global service, Majet has volunteered on medical missions in the Philippines, helped rebuild Puerto Rico in 2018, and has supported women and children in Nepal, Ghana, Peru, India, and the Philippines since 2016 through humanitarian work.She is also the owner of DivaGirl Tribe, a lifestyle community that empowers women through 11 conferences, workshops, and humanitarian trips abroad. Through counseling, community, and consulting, Majet helps people find fulfillment and resilience.Majet is the author of The Shame We Carry Alone: How To Have A Resilient Mind After Traumas which serves as a guide to understanding and healing the impact of trauma in a person’s life.In her free time, she enjoys skiing, surfing, reading, and traveling with her daughter.

LBBC's CEO's 2023 interview sheds light on 2025. Find your voice, be your own best advocate, do your best with the information you have in the moment!Welcome to National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. In honor of the advocates standing up for affordable health care, more funding for metastatic breast and ovarian cancer research, and research based on scientific evidence, OVERexpressed & OUT returned to their 2023 interview with Jean Sachs, Living Beyond Breast Cancer’s CEO. Jean Sachs traces her advocacy work back to when she was 16 years old!Take a listen. Share with a friend. Connect with your communities. Find your voice!Thanks for reading and listening to OVERexpressed & OUT Podcast! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work.

O&O's hosts explore the mind's movements, "the best little glimmers out there," and calming practices for this moment in historyFind O&O playlists on Spotify and Amazon Music.

In Part II, Long charts her journey to nursing. Sign the Save Healthcare Workers’ Act.“You have a voice. Speak your truth,” says Betty Long. Here’s your chance. Sign the petition to Protect Our Nurses! U.S. Senators Angus King (I-ME) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) and Representatives Madeleine Dean (D-PA-04) and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA-01) introduced bipartisan legislation on May 5, 2025, making it a federal crime to assault a hospital staff member on the job.The Save Healthcare Workers Act would help deter and prevent violence against healthcare workers by making it easier to prosecute individuals who commit violence against hospital employees.Sign petition HERE! Share with a friend. Thanks for reading and listening to OVERexpressed & OUT Podcast! This post is public so feel free to share it.ShareShare OVERexpressed & OUT PodcastBREAKING NEWS! U.S. Senators Angus King (I-ME) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) and Representatives Madeleine Dean (D-PA-04) and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA-01) introduced bipartisan legislation on May 5, 2025, making it a federal crime to assault a hospital staff member on the job.The Save Healthcare Workers Act would help deter and prevent violence against healthcare workers by making it easier to prosecute individuals who commit violence against hospital employees.Sign petition HERE! Share with a friend.

In Part I, Founder & CEO of Guardian Nurses shares "glimmers" and how a family medical crisis led her to advocacy.Betty Long, MHA, RN Founder & CEO of Guardian NursesBetty Long began her career in 1986 as a critical care nurse. Over the next 20 years, she gained experience in clinical, management and consulting roles. Long is a nurse always and an entrepreneur since 2003 when she used her knowledge of how the healthcare system works to found a company that makes the system work better for patients and their families. Through her leadership, Guardian Nurses Healthcare Advocates has grown to more than 58 employees and serves business, health and welfare funds, and private clients throughout the United States.A nurse-owned, nurse-run company, Guardian Nurses deploys RNs to provide patient advocacy and high-touch care management services. With the caring concern that is typical of nurses and the clinical knowledge that comes from 20+ years of experience, Long’s nurse advocates drive timely, top-quality care that results in better outcomes for patients. Although Guardian Nurses serves individuals and families, its clients are primarily unions, health & welfare funds, and corporations that self-insure for employee healthcare.Long has won many awards in her career, but the most satisfying was seeing her one-of-a-kind Mobile Care Coordinator program recognized by the prestigious American Academy of Nursing as a 2023 Edge Runner. In 2024, Long received the Mary Ann Garrigan award which is presented annually by the Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center Nursing Archives Associates in Boston, MA.Long has become a nationally recognized expert and speaker on patient advocacy and care coordination, with special expertise in critical care, long-term care and geriatric care management. She is a member of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the Case Management Society of America, the Pennsylvania Organization of Nursing Leadership, as well as the Forum of Executive Women in Philadelphia. Currently, she serves as President of the Board of Trustees for The Nightingale Awards of Pennsylvania.Thanks for reading & Listening to OVERexpressed & OUT Podcast! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work.Betty’s Thought Prompt:Here are three suggestions:Tell me about a moment when a person’s kindness made a difference in your life?Who has been the biggest influence on your life? What lessons did that person or those people teach you?If you could hold on to memories from your life forever, which would they be?Leave a commentTune in next week to hear Part II of Betty Long’s interview.Until then, share OVERexpressed & OUT with a friend.Refer a friend

Welcome to Season Six: Who Cares if We’re Not Invited, We’re Here! of OVERexpressed & OUT.This season, O&O features amazing Philadelphia-area activists, pioneers, artists, and more who have created their own networks, clubs, and systems of support. These women are not waiting to be invited, they’re already here!Listen to a preview of Betty Long’s stirring interview on Apple podcasts. Tune in Friday, September 12, 2025 for the full interview.

As a way to highlight Philadelphia and its unique greatness, O&O offered people a chance to call in and share what Philadelphia means to them. From softball to cheesesteaks, parish to block, “Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection,” these voices paint a picture of Philadelphia. Enjoy!Are you Philly born and raised? We’d love to hear from you!Call O&O at 267-225-0661. Leave your first name. Where you were born and raised. In one-minute or less: What does Philadelphia mean to you?