Joslyn talks to us about growing up in foster care, running away frequently and the rape that resulted in her daughter. Her bubbly personality is infectious despite all the trauma she has experienced.

Brandon - Living with HIV, substance use disorder and growing up in foster care

Jan 31st, 2020 25m 39s

Brandon is a 31 year old white man who talks to us about living with HIV, recovery from substance use disorder and his incredibly difficult childhood in foster care where he experienced abuse.

Eddie Revisited - Suicide attempts, bipolar disorder and mental health challenges

Jan 24th, 2020 30m 58s

We sit down and chat with Eddie again, today we chat to him about his mental health and suicide attempts. He discusses how his struggles with his sexual orientation caused his first suicide attempt when he was 11 years old. *Explicit language*

Shelly - Living with HIV, abusive relationships and recovery

Jan 17th, 2020 27m 58s

Shelly is a 54 year old black woman from Newark, New Jersey. She is a wonderful role model to many. She lives with HIV, has 15 years in recovery from drug use and now works helping people who are newly diagnosed with HIV come to terms with that

Erin - Living in a shelter, disability and the future

Jan 10th, 2020 24m 27s

Erin is from Mexico, NY and currently lives in a local homeless shelter. She's trying hard to get back on her feet but continues to struggle to find housing. We talk through her life and discuss her plans to get married in December 2020. Donati

Mateo: law school, growing up in a conservative family and being transgender

Jan 3rd, 2020 47m 38s

Mateo is a 24 year old transgender man from California. He's in his first year of law school but its taken an incredible journey to get there. Born into a highly conservative family with a pastor for a father, he grew up in a homophobic and tra

Emily: escaping an abusive marriage, sex work and trauma

Dec 27th, 2019 23m 41s

Emily chats to us about the sexual abuse she experienced as a teen, her abusive marriage and her goals for the future.

Amber: Dating as a trans-woman, sex trafficking and church

Dec 20th, 2019 16m 42s

Amber is a 20 year old trans woman. She was "pimped out" when she was only 11 years old and tells us about her experiences. She explain the loneliness associated with being transgender and the challenges dating.

Clifford: Preventing violence, gangs and the death of his 17 year old son

Dec 13th, 2019 26m 48s

Cliff explains to us the work he does now to prevent violence after he lost his 17 year old son in a shooting several years ago. Cliff literally walks the streets with the goal of intercepting violence. We discuss the loss of his son and how he

Ana'lise: Sexual abuse, marriage at 18 and mental health challenges

Dec 6th, 2019 12m 59s

Ana'lise talks about her experiences with sexual abuse when she was 9 years old, we discuss the longer term mental health implications and how she's found love in her 3 year marriage to her wife.

Bonus

Lanika: Losing her parents to AIDS and honoring their legacy - World AIDS Day Special

Dec 1st, 2019 28m 30s

Lanika is a 45 year old black woman from Syracuse, New York. She lost both her parents to the HIV epidemic. We talk about her mother's life and legacy, while exploring why people of color are more affected by HIV/AIDS and still face significant

Henry: Codependency and loving someone using heroin

Nov 29th, 2019 24m 45s

Henry has never used drugs but he fell for a woman who did. He talks to us about how he got sucked into helping her get drugs, her using in his car and the codependency he developed as the relationship progressed.

Miguel: Life after prison, Latin Kings gang affiliation, and avoiding drugs

Nov 22nd, 2019 13m 59s

Miguel explains what it was like to come out of prison after 18 years. He talks about his long affiliation with the Latin Kings gang and the importance of respect on the streets and in prison.

Kim: Growing up transgender, passing and coming out

Nov 15th, 2019 19m 42s

"Kim" is a young, bi-racial, transgender woman from Geneva, NY. She talks to us about realizing that she was transgender when she was around 4 years old and how she dealt with her family's negative reaction to her gender identity. We talk about

Cody: Juvenile detention, bloods affiliation & childhood abuse

Nov 8th, 2019 12m 38s

"Cody" is 21 years old and he's already spent 9 years in juvenile detention and prison. We explore his childhood and what led to an aggravated assault charge at 11 years old.

Bonus

Hector: Heroin, ADHD and recovery challenges

Nov 5th, 2019 8m 59s

"Hector" is a 56 year old man from the Bronx currently using heroin. In this short episode we talk through his challenges with drug use, but his resolve to keep picking himself up and making another go at recovery.

Karen - Part 2: HIV and preventing youth gang involvement

Nov 1st, 2019 19m 29s

"Karen" explains her journey from using crack cocaine, being in prison and being diagnosed with HIV to now working on her MBA. In this episode she talks more about living with HIV and her work with young people to keep them from making the mist

Karen - Part 1: Crack cocaine, prison and HIV

Oct 31st, 2019 23m 13s

Karen talks about her experiences growing up in Syracuse, NY. Running away from home when she was 18 and then being pinned down by a boyfriend and injected with a heroin substitute. She explains the drug dependence that followed and her time in

Kittie: Sex work, heroin and pornography

Oct 25th, 2019 20m 56s

"Kittie" is a local woman from Canandaigua, NY. She talks about her experiences with early drug use, law school, and sex work. She helps us to understand her poly relationship model and how it works for her and her husband.

Kristen: Heroin, harm reduction and substance use disorder

Oct 18th, 2019 22m 45s

Kristen talks about her experiences using prescription opioids and eventually heroin. She explains her journey away from heroin use and how she now uses her experience to help keep other people using drugs alive.

Fly Girl: Escorting, drug use and being transgender

Oct 11th, 2019 21m 14s

"Fly girl" is a 29 year old trans woman from Auburn, NY. She talks about her experiences as a black trans woman, her battle to stay away from crack cocaine and her constant fear for her safety.

Alexis: Crack cocaine, homelessness and poverty

Oct 4th, 2019 18m 16s

We talk to "Alexis", a 44 year old black woman from Upstate NY. She explains her struggles with crack cocaine, homelessness and sex work. We explore how she doesn't see a way out of the cycle of poverty.

Eddie: Coming out, sexual health and sex work

Sep 27th, 2019 17m 31s

We talk to "Eddie", a 30 year old black, gay man about his experiences safeguarding his health with HIV prevention medication PrEP. We get to chat about his experiences with sex work and explore his thoughts on sexual health.