Natasha Helfer Parker interviews Laurie Mohlman, an LDS therapist and member of the Mormon Mental Health Association, who works with women on parole from the Utah state prison system. They discuss many different topics including how women coming from LDS backgrounds can get involved in activities that lead to doing prison time, the types of themes both in and out of the church that these women struggle with, the types of help the Church offers women as they integrate back into society, and most interestingly the women's perspectives themselves on why on the one hand they report loving the church and the support they feel while at the same time stating they will never return to their home wards. This will also be a helpful podcast for ward and stake leaders who are trying to support members of their congregations who have experienced such hardships.
Laurie currently works as the Clinical Therapist at Orange Street Community Correctional Center, a halfway house in Salt Lake City, providing substance abuse and trauma therapy to women on parole from the Utah State Prison. She also works in private practice in Springville, Utah.
Natasha Helfer Parker interviews Brittny Habibti and Ashley Judd Errington, two Mormon women who participated in the Black Lives Matter protest that took place in Baton Rouge, LA in July 2016. They were part of the protestors who took refuge on the lawn of a woman who gave them permission to be on her private property, and yet the police dressed in riot gear pushed past and arrested many of those present. Brittny and Ashley speak to their experiences, resulting in PTSD symptoms for months to come... as well as to why this movement exists... why this remains such an important dialogue to be having... and the implications for Mormons in particular when it comes to addressing racial issues within our faith community. This is a particularly timely podcast with February being Black History Month.
Natasha Helfer Parker interviews Ruth Halstead, an LDS therapist and member of the Mormon Mental Health Association, whose work helping people who self-injure was featured in an article in the Chicago Tribune last March, 'Cutters' and self-abusers now have support in NWI. Natasha and Ruth cover helpful information that can be used as a resource for those who deal with this issue, as well as their family, friends and ecclesiastical & auxiliary leaders who want to offer support. They also address ways that aspects of Mormon culture/practice can both be assets and problematic in regards to this theme. This podcast is helpful in providing resources for anyone wanting to use March 1st, Self-Injury Awareness Day, as a way of bringing attention and education to this relevant topic.
Note: this podcast was recorded fall of 2016 prior to President Nelson's statements that the policy affecting LGBT members was "revelation."
Cornell University Self Injury and Recovery Research and Resources (SIRRR)
Natasha Helfer Parker interviews a powerhouse panel: Donna Kelly, a Salt Lake City based prosecutor who focuses on sexual assault and domestic violence cases; Kristine Haglund, previous editor for LDS magazine Dialogue and Colleen Payne Dietz, a sexual assault survivor. They discuss the situation that started spring of 2016 when Madi Barney filed a federal complaint against BYU-Provo in regards to how sexual assault cases are handled in regards to Title IV protocol with the Honor Code Department becoming involved with often academic and spiritual consequences doled out to victims who report assault. As a result, BYU did an internal study/investigation and came forward with recommendations that would be implemented immediately. Since then, BYU has made some recent decisions with staff that BYU assault survivors are upset about and claim do not follow the recommendations put forth. A group of them wrote a letter to the BYU president addressing their concerns, which was published in the Salt Lake Tribune. This is an incredibly important topic to keep in the forefront of discussions happening within our LDS culture.
A candid discussion with sex and marriage therapists Natasha Helfer-Parker and Julie de Azevedo-Hanks about Wendy Watson Nelson’s speech at the January 2017 Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults. Host is Gina Colvin and this is a co-production with A Thoughtful Faith.
Nelson’s address garnered some criticism for the unhealthy, purity-centred and confusing expectations that she constructed around sex. She argued that Four Truths (below) should govern and inform marital sex. Helfer-Parker and de Azevedo-Hanks provide a frank critique of this advice.
WARNING: There is explicit content and language in this episode.
A candid discussion with sex and marriage therapists Natasha Helfer-Parker and Julie de Azevedo-Hanks about Wendy Watson Nelson’s speech at the January 2017 Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults. Host is Gina Colvin and this is a co-production with A Thoughtful Faith.
Nelson’s address garnered some criticism for the unhealthy, purity-centred and confusing expectations that she constructed around sex. She argued that Four Truths (below) should govern and inform marital sex. Helfer-Parker and de Azevedo-Hanks provide a frank critique of this advice.
WARNING: There is explicit content and language in this episode.