On the morning of September 27, 2006, at Platte Canyon High School in the small town of Bailey, Colorado, everything was going as usual. Taylor Fraser, then 15-years-old and a sophomore, went to school, passed her mother at the front desk, and walked to class just like every other morning before that day. No one could ever have guessed that later t…

Abuse within faith communities is something we hear from our community about a lot. In particular, how abuse and sexual assault in faith communities complicate recovery because our spiritual life becomes tied to the most intimate and terrifying experience of our lives. Where can we find sanctuary following compounded abuse? This episode is a panel …

In this episode, we are joined by one of our good friends and fellow entrepreneur, Nikki Innocent. Nikki is a 2-time TEDx speaker, certified women's leadership coach, diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI) strategist, and the host of "Checkbox Other". Nikki shares with us how she's learned to trust herself enough to take the leap from her corporate ca…

The first obstacle we have to overcome as a survivor is understanding what we're surviving. Jessica Dailey's earliest memories are with her father, but it wasn't until she was in middle school that she realized those memories were sexual abuse. In this episode, Jessica shares how she's healing from her abuse, how to break cycles of intergenerationa…

By the time Chanel Dokun was in her mid-20s, she had reached nearly the top of her field, but, like most things, it wasn't without risk and grief. Chanel's parents were older when she was born and suffered from poor health in her teens. This made the priority of Chanel's childhood caring for her parents, so by the time college rolled around, she fa…

Welcome to I’ll Go First Season 2! We are so happy you’re here! To kick us off this season I’m finally sharing my personal story and how I’ll Go First was born. My BFF AnnaLynne McCord is a big part of why this community is called “I’ll Go First” so she interviewed me on this episode! (Real talk, I love celebrating other people’s stories, but it wa…

In this episode, AnnaLynne McCord joins us. She is an actress, humanitarian, writer, director, and producer. You may recognize her from 90210, Nip/Tuck, and Power. Oh, and she happens to be my BFF. Our goal on this podcast is to normalize the conversation around topics often stigmatized and silenced in shame and help you take those little steps tow…

Megan Evans is a personal stylist, image consultant, wife, adventurer, and invisible illnesses champion. At the tender age of 24 years old and on her way up the ladder as a celebrity stylist in New York City, she was diagnosed with MS. Now, 16 years later, Megan shares how she came to grips with her diagnosis, how she's balancing pursuing her caree…

In honor of Domestic Violence Month, this episode is a recording of a panel I moderated on “Domestic violence in a time of COVID” with the nonprofit Reveal Beauty. We talked about the definition of domestic violence, how to know if you’re in a situation of intimate partner violence, misconceptions, how to support a loved one who may be a victim of …

Psychotherapist, poet, and writer Minaa B started her Instagram account as a way to share her poetry and musings. As someone who has overcome bullying, self-harm, suicidality, and depression, she wanted to help others heal too. That was before COVID. In the months following the global pandemic, Minaa’s Instagram presence and community have exploded…

When Ben Ayers was 20 years old, he took $300 and moved from Maine to a remote village in Nepal. He did not know the language but he knew he wanted to support the porters who carry trekker’s climbing gear up and down Mt Everest. That was 23 years ago. Now, at 43, Ben is discovering the next evolution of his purpose, knowing himself. I met Ben when …

Listening to Reverend Vahisha Hasan one can’t help but believe we can be more and do more. We know the conversation around race is fragile and charged. In this episode, Reverend Hasan helps us understand how to approach these conversations with grace and strength. She also shares how she found her faith and how faith is the core of social action an…

Cynthia Hellen is the definition of a boss. She’s a serial social entrepreneur. She’s inspirational, ambitious, and stunning. She’s easy to love. On her way to building a future, her fiancé, Ryan, found out he had advanced liver disease. Ryan fought for over 18 months to overcome his diagnosis but it wasn’t enough. At the young age of 30, he passed…

We have all struggled to answer the questions, “Who am I?” and “What do I want?” Those ‘simple’ questions can feel overwhelming, especially if you come from a culture or home where asking those questions was against the rules. Imani Movva is a psychotherapist and executive and business coach. She joins us in this episode to talk about how she forge…

Do you know what makes you happy? Have you ever felt overwhelmed choosing where to eat dinner with friends? What do you want to do with your life? All of these questions have one thing in common - decision making. Little choices like where to eat and big ones like, what makes you happy can be stressful. If this has ever been you, we have good news.…

Erine Gray, Founder of Aunt Bertha, was 17-years-old when his mom suffered an acute neurological illness that left her requiring around the clock care. Ten years later, just as Erine was starting his career, he took on full legal guardianship of her. Rather than being resentful of these new responsibilities, Erine found his purpose; to bring dignit…

Dr. Colleen Batchelder is an outspoken advocate against racism and discrimination in the American Church. Her dissertation, “Exvangelical: Why Millennials and Generation Z are Leaving the Constraints of White Evangelicalism” not only raised eyebrows but elicited hate mail from her seminary and community. In this episode we talk about how to cultiva…

Obbie West is a 20 veteran of the United States Army, an outspoken sexual violence prevention advocate, an International Spoken Word Artist, and author of a book of poems entitled, “Blossom”. Obbie grew up in a home witnessing his mother endure domestic violence. In this episode, he shares with us how he became who he is today, how he’s learned to …

Merci McKinley is a Veteran Advocate, Military Sexual Trauma, and Dometic Violence Survivor, author, and poet. She speaks candidly about her experience of military sexual assault and domestic violence, fighting for justice against her perpetrators, advocating for justice reform, and what healing has looked like for her. She is a powerful voice for …

Kevin Adler, Founder and CEO of Miracle Messages, a nonprofit reunion service that reconnects people experiencing homelessness with their loved ones. In this episode, he shares the lessons he’s learned from helping over 300 people reconnect with their loved ones, often for the first time in 20 years. He offers step-by-step insights on where to star…

Tiffany Yu, Founder of Diversability, was only 9 years old when she was involved in a deadly accident that claimed her father’s life and left her partially paralyzed. In this episode, she shares how she’s worked through past shames, brought silence and judgment out of the shadows, learned how to forgive herself and what it means to be proud of who …

Chris Anderson is a childhood sexual abuse survivor. His story is all too common but not talked about enough. When people think of sexual trauma, they often don’t associate it with males, and yet statistics show that around half of all childhood sexual abuse survivors are boys. Chris courageously shares his journey of healing, what grooming and man…

Spiritual trauma can cut us to our core. In this episode, Tara-Leigh Cobble joins us. You may recognize her as the Founder and President of D Group, an international faith-based community, and "The Bible Recap Podcast" (20 million downloads and counting!) She shares with us how she's recovered from spiritual trauma, grief, and multiple heart surger…

Rasheeda Winfield is a producer and casting director. At 25, she accomplished what most people can only dream of, working at NBC Universal, 30 Rock (Yup, that one.) In this episode, she shows us how she made her dreams come true, how discovering what success actually is surprised her, and how she gave herself permission to let her dreams evolve as …

Jordan Wexler is a serial entrepreneur. He sold his first company at 24-years-old, became the COO of Agility.io at 28, and is just launched his second company, Early Bird, all before the age of 30. It sounds like a true American success story, young, accomplished, well-traveled. Just around the corner, however, and within two years, his dad suddenl…

Nicky Yates’ story seems like it’s straight out of a fiction novel and yet it’s true. As a professional, Nicky is a forensic traumatologist and researcher on the nature of healing from trauma and domestic violence. She is a humanitarian and uses her expertise to lift communities out of poverty in low-income countries throughout the world (26 countr…

Ivelyse Andino is an Afro-Latina health equity innovator born and raised in The Bronx. She is the founder and CEO of Radical Health and a Commissioner on the New York City Commission on Gender Equity. Ivelyse enjoyed a fledgling career in health tech, pioneering some of its first digital health solutions, including bringing the first mobile app pre…

Aaron Rodwin, LMSW, is a researcher on the use of hip hop and music to support empowerment and mental health. In this episode, he shares his journey of how his love for hip hop music started his career in mental health. Aaron walks us through his research on the use of hip hop and music to support mental health, explains the different types of trau…

Jennifer Haron, child sexual abuse and incest survivor advocate, shares her personal story of escaping a house full of terror and sorrow. She walks us through what healing has looked like for her as an adult. Jennifer also shows us how she has overcome painful narratives and how she has cultivated radical self-care. We talk about how self-advocate …

Raleigh Sadler, president and founder of Let My People Go, makes the case that anyone can fight human trafficking by focusing on those who are most often targeted. In this episode, we discuss our role in the problem of human trafficking, but more importantly, our role in the solution. Goodies from this Episode: Learn more about Let My People Go: ht…

For many of us, our early 20s are a time to find ourselves and figure out where we fit in this world. But Jennifer and Kevin Saunders didn’t have that chance. At age 23 years old, Jennifer gave birth to her first son, Isaiah, at 23 weeks - four months preterm. This meant she and her husband, Kevin, Founder of KS4Inspiration, spent the first three y…

Matthew Zachary, Founder of Stupid Cancer, and Off Scrip Media, was only 21-years old when he was diagnosed with a rare brain cancer. Matthew walks us through his journey of how his life changed after his diagnosis, how he started the largest young adult cancer organization, Stupid Cancer, and how having no control over our lives gives us the persp…

In this episode, Michelle Ross, Founder of One Worry Less, speaks honestly and candidly about her experience of surviving childhood sexual abuse. She shares how she’s found healing, made meaning of her story and how we can see the signs and keep our children safe. This is a hard conversation so please be advised, while we don’t go into detail, we s…

Depression can be overwhelming, and all-consuming. But it’s not the end of our stories. J Caleb Perkins, Founder of the Remedy Network, sits down with us to discuss his journey from college graduation, through depression to ultimately finding his purpose in criminal justice reform. After learning about Kalief Browder’s story Perkins realized how po…

How do we care for ourselves while caring for others? Ruth Reader is a journalist for Fast Company and a NY Times published author. She grew up in a household of addiction and alcoholism. As soon as Ruth began her career, the unexpected happened. Her mother was dying from cancer. She takes us on her journey of caring for her abusive mother in her f…

Think back to the moment that changed everything for you. What was it like? And what happened after? Kyle Mengelkamp is a brain aneurysm survivor. He’s also the Founder of the Brain Bar and Share Your Stroke of Genius. On this episode, he joins us to talk about how his stroke gave him a new life and how you can find your moment of triumph. Goodies …

Who would shut down your online dating profile if you died today? After losing her father to cancer when she was nine, Liz cultivated a unique ability to talk about taboo topics with ease. Founder of Lantern, an end-of-life planning tool, Liz shares with us how to heal from loss and plan for death. Books mentioned in this episode: When Breath Becom…

Hip Hop Therapy? Yup, it's a real thing! In this episode, clinical psychologist, Elliot Gann, Psy.D joins us. He the Founder of Today's Future Sound which provides beat-making trauma therapy. We talk about how hip hop therapy works, what led him into the field of psychology and what the future holds for alternative modalities for trauma care. Conne…

Amanda Burrill was told she was suffering from depression and anxiety for over a decade. What she was really suffering from was a misdiagnosis. In this episode, Amanda, a veteran Navy officer, and professional endurance athlete, teaches us the importance of fighting for your right to live a healthy life. We discuss what to do when we are told our s…

Welcome to I’ll Go First! We are so excited to have Derrick Reyes joining us for our very first episode! They are the Founder of Queerly Health, a New York City-based digital health startup on a mission to democratize access to LGBTQ health and wellness care. Today’s conversation is vulnerable and inspiring. Derrick shares what finding their identi…

Introducing the I'll Go First Podcast with Jessica Minhas. In this podcast, we talk about all things mental health, hope, healing, and freedom. We introduce you to inspiring guests who teach us how they've gone first in their journeys of healing and finding their purpose. We cannot wait to join you on your path. Say hi at http://www.illgofirst.com …