Aware And Prepared
Hello! This is the Aware and Prepared podcast. I'm your host, Mandi Pratt, a trained domestic violence advocate. I teach women and vulnerable populations how to be street smart. I'm a mom with a gnarly backstory from almost two decades ago. The FBI showed up at my door one day to alert me that my abusive ex had become wanted for multiple bank robberies. Our story was in the news (a few times). I was tired of feeling vulnerable and learned how to keep myself and my son safer. I wish when I was a young woman I'd known about red flags to watch for in relationships, and had learned how to be street smart. This podcast is for 15-year-old me and is meant for families and community groups to listen to together. After all, women's safety is a community issue. I'll share with you stories like mine and interview detectives, psychologists and many other experts to NOT only hear their jaw-dropping stories, but also what we learn from them to prevent harm for our every youth and grown up listening. I don't want anyone else to have to go through what I did - scared, vulnerable and needing decades of counseling and healthcare to heal. I want you to feel safer with less fear and more power!
You can find more from me at my website or my Instagram:
WEB: https://womenawareandprepared.com/podcast/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/womenawareandprepared/
Episodes
141 episodes
From Burnout to Hope: A Leader's Journey Out of Hypervigilence
Dr. Brandi Kelly shares her journey as a high-achieving leader when her body and mind finally say "enough" from the stress of leadership. She didn't just survive, she built a system to help others do the same: hope and purpose through faith, re...
What Students Reflected on Victim Blaming and Boundaries
We have to stop teaching only potential victims and start asking what we're doing to prevent harm from being caused at all. In this episode, Mandi Pratt returns from delivering her keynote "End Victim Blaming: Creating Safer Communities" at two...
Sexual Assault Awareness: Ending Victim Blaming and Building Safer Communities
In this episode Mandi Pratt breaks down why victim-blaming culture persists, where it comes from, and most importantly what we can ALL do to dismantle it: one conversation, one word choice, one moment of showing up at a time. Drawin...
How to Cope With Grief From Divorce to Pet Loss and More With Thanatologist Karen Omand
What if the grief you're carrying doesn't have a name BUT it's still very real?Most of us know grief as something that follows death. But what about the loss of your identity after divorce? The quiet grief of watching the world ch...
Use Your Senses to Find Joy in Chaos | Simple Steps to Feel More Joy
SUMMARYDiscover practical ways to foster joy, especially when the world feels chaotic. Helen Thompson, a seasoned life coach, shares actionable tips on using your senses, managing feelings, and cultivating more joy regardless of external...
Beyond Calm: How to Heal Anxiety by Building True Safety in Your Body
True anxiety relief isn't about calm, it's about safety. We explore what it actually means for your nervous system to feel safe, how small, repeatable daily actions build that safety over time, and why your body may still feel on al...
Understanding Panic Attacks: Tools for Relief and What NOT to Say to Someone Struggling
Hear real tools that actually help during a panic attack AND find out what NOT to say to someone who's struggling.In this episode, I sit down with certified life coach and author Tom Seaman to talk about what really happens in the brain ...
When to Call 911 vs. the Non-Emergency Line: Tips from a Real Dispatcher
Listen to Dispatch Supervisor, Glenna, inform us on:- When to call 911 versus the non-emergency line- Handling suspicious situations- Providing tips for effective communication with law enforcementGlenna e...
Bystander Intervention: Empowering Bystanders to Make a Difference
Learn how to safely intervene as a bystander and hear Kelly Pfleider's, founder of Pure Praxis, innovative approaches to sexual assault prevention training. They discuss the importance of engaging student leaders, and empowering individuals to ...
The Invisible Cage: Tactics of Coercive Control Every Person Needs to Know
Coercive control = any intentional pattern of behavior designed to control or dominate another person and is the umbrella over all forms of abuse. Bethany Jantzi, DPC, MSc. explains why intelligent, strong people fall victim to it, and the earl...
Signs of a Healthy Relationship Most People Have Never Been Taught: More Than Green Flags
Why do healthy relationships feel uncomfortable at first? If you've ever come out of a toxic or abusive relationship and wondered whether you'd even recognize a healthy one, this episode is for you.Most of us know what a red f...
Modern Dating Survival Guide: Psychologist Reveals Her Experience with "Are We Dating the Same Guy?", ENM, and Dating Apps
Ever wondered if the person you're dating is seeing someone else behind your back? With over 8 million women across 200+ cities, "Are We Dating the Same Guy?" has become a global movement helping women navigate the murky waters of modern dating...
Depression as a Trauma Response: How to Support Yourself & Others (Part 2)
In this continuation episode, forensic psychologist Ashley Wasserburger explores the depressive face of trauma, the final of four trauma responses discussed in this series. Ashley breaks down how depression manifests as a trauma res...
Collective Harm in America: Trauma, Grief, Anger, and Finding Safety Together
How do we take care of ourselves when we are seeing violence, heartbreak, and fear unfold across the United States every day? It feels helpless! Hear Mandi and Dr. Keean talk honestly about collective harm in America and how it impacts o...
Trauma Responses Explained: Understanding Perfectionism, People-Pleasing and Anger
Mandi and Forensic Psychologist, Ashley Wasserburger, explain how behaviors like perfectionism, anger, and people-pleasing are often trauma responses, not personality flaws. They break down the different “faces of trauma” and share why curiosit...
Designing Your Home for Peace: Trauma-Informed Design and the Nervous System
Is your home helping or harming your nervous system? Mandi sits down with trauma-informed interior designer and author, Sarah Trop, to explore how our environments impact emotional safety, regulation, and peace. How can small, thoughtful change...
Home Safety Tip: Trust Your Intuition and Act On It
A loud knock at the door. Early morning. Something feels off. What you do in that moment matters more than you think.In this short but powerful episode, Mandi shares a recent real-life moment that highlights why intuition is one of our m...
14 Simple Ways to Calm Your Nervous System When Stressed (Perfect for the Holiday Season)
Hear 14 simple, practical ways to calm your nervous system when you feel stuck in fight-or-flight like during the holidays! These are the same tools Mandi learned while healing from years of hypervigilance and complex trauma. These are research...
Holiday Shopping Safety Tips: How to Protect Your Belongings and Spot Tracking Devices - Part 2
Welcome to Holiday Safety Series Part 2! Mandi shares practical street-smart habits to help you protect your belongings, stay alert in busy places, and avoid distraction-based thefts like purse snatching in stores. She also breaks d...
Holiday Shopping Safety Tips: How To Avoid Jugging and Stay Safer in Parking Lots
How do I stay safer while out and about this holiday season or any season? In part one of the Holiday Safety Series, Mandi breaks down two key topics: jugging and parking lot safety, so you can move through the holidays...
Hidden Signs of Child Trafficking: What Every Parent and Advocate Should Know (Part 2)
Many kids and teens won’t say “I’m being trafficked” BUT they will show signs. In Part 2 of this conversation, Mandi and Erin with Love146 answer real concerns from parents, teachers, and teens about how to recognize traffi...
Hidden Signs of Child Trafficking: What Every Parent And Educator Should Know
Human trafficking isn’t just “out there.” It’s happening closer to home than most people realize and many children and teens don’t even know it’s happening to them.In this episode, Mandi and Erin from Love146 break down the hidd...
Cyber Trauma and Digital Safety Plans: What Every Parent and Educator Should Know
How do we really keep kids safe online? What are the signs a child might be silently struggling with digital stress? And how can parents or educators build a realistic, compassionate digital safety plan that actually works?
How to Leave Abuse Without Leaving Your Pet Behind
How many pet parents do we have here? Don’t our pets provide so much unconditional love and help us heal through heartbreaks and difficult times?Mandi shares an important update about RedRover and their Purple Leash Project, a partnershi...
True Tales - Why Victims Stay: Hidden Barriers to Leaving an Abusive Relationship
Have you ever wondered why someone doesn’t just leave an abusive relationship? We pull back the curtain on what domestic violence really looks like and the complicated reasons survivors often stay. From fear and finances to faith and t...
