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
159 episodes
The Cornell Seven: 4 Patterns Behind Campus Sexual Assault
The Cornell Seven didn’t come out of nowhere. Situations like this are built, and the patterns behind them show up on campuses again and again. Mandi, certified victim advocate, breaks down the four patterns that build it. Drawing o...
Co-Parenting Apps and AI Platform That Helps Document Post-Separation Abuse
GREAT platform for navigating relational harm and for survivors navigating co-parenting after abuse. Anne shares how Aimee Says (AI platform) can help spot coercive control, document patterns for legal and custody proceedings, and lighten the m...
How to Ask Someone If They're Thinking About Suicide
How do you know if someone you love is thinking about suicide, and what do you actually say if they are? For Suicide Awareness Month, Mandi welcomes back returning guest Diane Andre Acuna, a speaker and burnout prevention specialist trained in ...
What Does It Actually Take to Get Out of Hypervigilance?
In this follow-up to last week's episode on Complex PTSD vs PTSD, Mandi breaks down what's actually happening in the brain during hypervigilance, and more importantly, what to do about it.Pulled from a keynote Mandi recently delivered to...
What's the Real Difference Between PTSD and Complex PTSD?
What is complex PTSD, and how is it different from PTSD? As a complex PTSD survivor herself, Mandi breaks down the real distinction in this episode, timed around Complex PTSD Awareness Day (September 2nd). Mandi shares what invisibl...
22 Safety Tips Every College Freshman Needs to Know Especially During The "Red Zone"
I can't tell you how many people disclose past assaults to me once they hear what I do for a living. EVERY SINGLE TIME it was someone they knew. In this episode, Mandi breaks down the "red zone," the stretch from move-in day through Thanksgivin...
A Mother's Worst Nightmare Became Her Mission: Making Sexual Assault Reporting Less Traumatic
What if the room a survivor is asked to sit in after a sexual assault could make the difference between being believed and being dismissed? Mandi sits down with Tracy Matheson, founder of Project Beloved, to talk about the soft inte...
Teaching Kids Boundaries: Prevention Skills That Start Early
What if the best time to prevent abuse and assault isn't high school, but preschool? Lacey and Sydney from the Arkansas Coalition Against Sexual Assault join the show to talk about the Butterfly Effect Program, a curriculum built for kids as yo...
How to Set Boundaries Without Guilt: A Guide for People Pleasers
What happens when you say no and someone doesn't like it? Psychotherapist and "Queen of Boundaries" Dana Skaggs joins Mandi to break down why boundary setting feels so scary, especially for survivors and recovering people pleasers, and what to ...
Is Resilience Something You're Born With, or Something You Build?
Is resilience something you're born with, or something you build? Kelly Edmondson, has spent 25 years as a nurse watching patients face unthinkable trauma, and then lived it herself after losing her son. In this episode, she breaks down what ac...
Resilience Isn't a Personality Trait: It's a Skill You Can Build Through Nervous System Work
What if resilience isn't something you're born with, but something you can actually build, one small habit at a time? In this episode, Mandi shares what she learned from trauma specialist Ruby Jo Walker, LCSW, at the Conference on Crimes Agains...
Why EMDR Works: What It Is and How It Helps Trauma Survivors Heal
Why has EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) been one of the most effective tools in the shortest time for trauma survivors? In this episode, Mandi breaks down what she learned at the Conference on Crimes Against Women about EMD...
AI Companion Helping Abuse Survivors Heal and Prepare for Court: AIMEE Says
What if the tool that could finally help you organize your story, prepare for court, and feel less alone was available for free, right now? In this episode, Mandi sits down with Anne, co-founder and CEO of AIMEE, an AI-powered companion built s...
What's Available to You Through This Community
Mandi, the host, takes a second to remind you what's available through this community. First, the free podcast and a weekly companion email that goes along with it and brings the episode link straight to your inboxSecond, Man...
How to Spot the Warning Signs of Stalking Before It Escalates
Hear why most Gen Z survivors don't even recognize they're being stalked, the chilling phrase that signals real danger in a relationship, lethality risk factors backed by research, and a true case study showing how stalking escalates when it's ...
How to Keep Your Kid Safer at College, Sexual Assault Laws and Prevention
Mandi breaks down campus safety from a legal and prevention standpoint, sharing key legislation every parent and student should know before orientation day.From the Jeanne Clery Act to Texas' new Summer Willis Act, Mandi covers the laws ...
The Hidden Health Toll of Abuse: HPV, Cancer, and What No One Told You
What if the trauma you survived years ago is still quietly affecting your body today? Most people don't realize how deeply the emotions and body are connected, and for survivors of abuse and assault, the post-traumatic health effects on the bod...
Mastering Self-Care: Practical Tips for Burnout Prevention & Healing
What if the key to preventing burnout wasn't a weekend retreat or a complete life overhaul, but a 30-second reset in the middle of your day? Dianne Andree, professional speaker, former school counselor supervisor, and self-compassion advocate, ...
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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 ...
