![Quantcast](http://pixel.quantserve.com/pixel/p-GS-HF4BKvzCmv.gif)
![10 Black Podcasts About Healing You Should Be Listening To Now](https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yOTQ3MjEwNS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTcyNDY1MzMxOX0.XPbJCKAKy2ggsR8QbwZHH8R79w3tsgBjnpr072RyrD4/img.jpg?width=1200&height=600&quality=90&coordinates=0%2C0%2C0%2C354)
10 Black Podcasts About Healing You Should Be Listening To Now
With an ever-growing list of to-dos, responsibilities that have no chill, and personal obligations, it’s no wonder so many of us are looking for ways to cultivate calm in our daily lives. That goes double for me. In the pursuit of inner work and inner peace, I have found myself gravitating to podcasts that exude self-improvement, self-development, and most importantly, self-care. Listening to podcasts has become a daily ritual and instantly makes me feel as though I am actively pouring into my own cup.
If you are looking for podcasts to help you on your healing journey, look no further. Keep scrolling for podcasts about healing by Black people that absolutely need to be in your rotation.
1.Sensual Self with Ev’Yan Whitney
Sensual Self
Previously titled "The Sexually Liberated Woman," Ev’Yan Whitney’s beloved podcast has since evolved to make space for their new identity and is now called Sensual Self with Ev'Yan Whitney. As a nonbinary sexuality doula, Ev’Yan prides themselves with helping all people to thrive in the message that sensuality is an innate part of their being. You just have to dare to put in the work for self-pleasure and your self-relationship. One of the cornerstones of their work is the question, “What do I need in this moment in order to feel good?” It’s a question of self-reflection we could all afford to ask ourselves a little more.
Start here:“47. Pleasure-Centered and Unfuckwithable”
2.Black Girls Heal
Host Shena Lashey acts as the trauma-whisperer in her Black Girls Heal podcast, addressing topics like self-worth issues, healthy and unhealthy attachments, and intimacy. Her goal is to give Black women the tools they need to seek and thrive in connections that truly serve them. She does this by providing women with the tools they need to understand what they are worthy of and what is beneath them.
Start here:“93. Healing Your Mother Wound”
3.Balanced Black Girl
Balanced Black Girl
For a weekly dose of wellness, this one is a tried-and-true personal favorite. Hosted by Les, Balanced Black Girl is a podcast centered on approachable health, self-care, self-improvement, and holistic—sometimes imperfect—wellness. A force on her own, she also invites guests from time to time who are industry experts on various topics rooted in Black self-care and Black wellness. Through her podcast, Les makes it clear that wellness can look different to different people, but we can live well and thrive all the same.
Start here:“68. Setting Boundaries and Protecting Your Energy”
4.Black Girl Burn Out
Licensed therapist Kelly Bonner is the host of Black Girl Burn Out, a podcast dedicated to helping Black women navigate the stress of day-to-day life. Feeling overworked and undervalued is something many Black women experience in life, in work, and in love. Years of internalizing being everything to everyone can do that to you. Episodes either focus on a pain point or on something to either “opt into” or “opt out of” that can help usher in a more healed version of yourself. Black Girl Burn Out provides a 15-minute reset of how to heal from the various forms of burnout we can encounter.
Start here: “Opt-Into Living A Full Life”
5.The Self-Love Fix
The Self-Love Fix
The Self-Love Fix is a popular podcast catering to women of color and helping them tap into their highest selves. Through a combination of expert guests and personal experiences, host Beatrice Kamau offers a relatable and resonating take on all things personal development, self-love, self-care, and self-worth. Be it mental health, relationships, friendship, astrology, worthiness, or self-doubt, Beatrice offers a weekly dose of insight that is absolutely what the doctor ordered.
Start here: “72. Embodying Your Worth”
6.Black Girl Existing
Black Girl Existing is a space where Black women can come to heal themselves. The mission is clear: to remind Black women of their power in a world that seeks to shrink them and make them feel like they are not enough. BGE is a podcast that fuels its listeners mentally, spiritually, and emotionally while ensuring that they instill them with a framework for healthy self-care.
7.Manifest Daily
Manifest Daily
A spiritual and lifestyle podcast, Manifest Daily is hosted by content creator Dheandra Nicolette. In it, Dheandra talks about affirmation, self-love, self-care, and of course manifestation. As with other podcasts mentioned on this list, I love Dheandra’s personal takes on different pain points she has encountered in her growth journey, how discipline plays a role in her relationship with her higher self, and the different manifestation techniques she has tried and found success in. Her podcast is most definitely a must-listen.
Start here: “S7 Ep145: IMPOSTER WHO // Addressing Imposter Syndrome In Your Life + Career”
8.Self Care and Chill With Maui
The girlfriend in your head that you didn’t know you needed, the Self Care and Chill With Maui podcast is all about the kiki while revealing to you the real. Always a breath of fresh air, Amirah Morris’ candid talks about love, sex, and self-love offer a more down-to-earth approach to healing conversations. From co-parenting dialogue with her former partner to reminders to listeners that they are indeed the table, there is an episode for everyone.
Start here:“Loving Yourself Is Boring EP:37”
9.Self Care IRL
Self Care IRL
If self-care was a person, it would be best-selling author and blogger Ty Alexander, the host of the popular podcast, Self Care IRL. In each episode, Ty blesses listeners with strategies that have helped her evolve into a better person and the wellness gems she has collected along the way. Despite the cards that life may have dealt you, there is power in knowing that you are ultimately the architect of your world. Ty provides ways to cope and coexist with trauma, circumstances, and grief while laying down the building blocks of living your best life as you see fit.
Start here:“8. Listen to This When Life Gets Heavy”
10.Brown Girl Self-Care
How could you not tune into a podcast hosted by a self-proclaimed “Self-Care Pusher”? I’ll wait. Through her work with Brown Girl Self-Care, Bre uses her experiences to be a guiding light for listeners who are on their own self-care journeys to a place of healing and wholeness. The Cali native is all about helping you elevate physically, spiritually, and emotionally and equips you with the health and wellness tools to do so. Self-care is a must—not an option—and she wants to empower her listeners to know that, too.
Start here:“You Don’t Owe Anyone Your Essence 24/7/365”
Featured image by Getty Images
This article is sponsored by Hulu.
UnPrisonedhas returned for its highly anticipated second season, delving deeper into the complex dynamics of the Alexander family.
The series premiere comes a year after its debut season garnered rave reviews from fans and critics and earned record-breaking ratings for Hulu's Onyx Collective brand. UnPrisoned's success can be attributed to its raw, relatable themes and comedic appeal.
Inspired by creator Tracy McMillan's life, the show follows Paige (Kerry Washington), a therapist and single mother whose life takes an unexpected turn when her father, Edwin (Delroy Lindo) --who was released from prison-- moves in with her and her teenage son, Finn (Faly Rakotohavana).
Throughout UnPrisoned's first season, viewers witnessed how Edwin's incarceration deeply affected Paige's life and relationships. In the series, Paige unpacks her trauma through interactions with her inner child and her online followers. Meanwhile, Edwin is overcoming specific struggles with his own past that led to his life of crime, including a dysfunctional upbringing and his mother's arrest. As the Alexanders attempt to reconcile, new challenges arise.
This new season promises to further explore their unconventional family dynamic. Here are several compelling reasons why season two of UnPrisoned should be on everyone's watchlist.
The Alexander Family Life Is Still In Shambles
UnPrisoned's second season resumes where the series left off, with Paige grappling with the fallout from her troubled therapy practice and Edwin navigating life independently after moving out. Meanwhile, Finn faces his own challenges. The teenager is battling anxiety and seeking information about his father—a topic Paige avoids discussing.
The Alexander Family Are Attending Therapy To Resolve Their Underlying Issues
Amid the chaos in their lives, the Alexander family decides to mend their bond by confronting their past traumas. They seek professional help and attend therapy sessions with a “family radical healing coach,” played by John Stamos, a new cast member. This collective effort aims to unravel the complexities of their shared history and strengthen their relationships.
The process of unraveling each character's internal conflicts and their potential impact on future relationships may clash with Paige's textbook therapy approach. While Paige is used to being in the therapist's seat in both career and family, this forces her into the unfamiliar role of a patient during therapy sessions. This shift would compel her to look in the mirror and try a radically different approach.
The Alexander Family Learned A Big Lesson During A Therapy Session
In therapy, the Alexanders are tasked with addressing their individual traumas to salvage their remaining relationships. One of the family therapist’s eccentric suggestions was an exercise involving a family wrestling match. During this session, Paige faces tough questions about her refusal to share information about Finn's father.
While it's unclear whether this scene is reality or fantasy, the image of the family duking it out in the ring certainly makes for hilarious yet compelling television.
Paige Tries Dating Again Following Failed Relationships
Amid her life's chaos, Paige decides to step back into the dating field. However, her many attempts have left her with mixed results. The dating apps have turned out to be a fail, and an outing with her ex Mal (Marque Richardson), who is also her father's parole officer, doesn’t go quite as expected after he brings an unexpected guest – his new girlfriend.
The situation takes an awkward turn when Mal's new partner learns why the former couple split, partly due to Paige's self-sabotage.
UnPrisoned Is A Perfect Balance Of Comedy And Drama
As a dramedy, UnPrisoned takes a comedic approach to its heavy subjects. The show takes us on a ride with Paige's dating misadventures and navigating a friendship with her ex.
Other lighthearted moments include Edwin's attempts at CPR based on online videos and, of course, the antics of the Alexander family's unconventional new healing coach.
The second season of UnPrisoned is now available on Hulu.
UnPrisoned | Season 2 Trailer | Hulu
Feature image courtesy
These Tips Will Keep Foreplay From Becoming Boring AF (No Pun Intended)
As a writer, I happen to like quotes A LOT. When it comes to the topic of sex, specifically, there used to be a page on Twitter (it’s always gonna be Twitter to me, chile) calledKinky Quotes that I would enjoy checking out from time to time. The reason why is it was good forshowcasing content like “Foreplay. Don’t rush it. Enjoy it.”
INDEED.
Okay, but what if you’ve been in a relationship for a while now, and although the foreplay is still pretty good, the real issue is that it’s also become a bit, well, boring? What do you do? First, don’t overthink it; you’re not in a position that is strange, rare, or anything to be overly concerned about. Second, there are a few things that you and your partner can do to bring a bit more spice back into the foreplay aspect of your sex life.
1. Build Up Anticipation
I’ve been working with long-term couples for a really long time now — and if there’s one thing that can tank the sex life of people who’ve been having sex for years, it’s not doing what builds up anticipation. At the end of the day, anticipation is all about giving your partner something to look forward to. Sexting does this. Sending your partner an email with a hotel reservation or some out-of-the-blue sexcation plans does this. Calling them to share something that you want to check off of your sex-themed bucket list does this.
Pretty much doing anything that lets them know that you want them to get into the headspace of getting super excited about what you have in store for them, on the sexual tip — that is some of the best foreplay that there is, y’all. So, when’s the last time that you gave your man a preview of what is to come? Hmm…
2. Get Creative with Your Nudity
Unfortunately, our culture can be so…imbalanced (let’s go with that word) when it comes to sex that many people think it’s impossible to engage in intimacy with someone for years (even decades) on end and still find it to be an absolutely wonderful and fulfilling experience. Meanwhile, there areplenty of studies to support that sex actually gets better, the longer that you are with someone (one study says that it’s around the 15-year mark when things really start to soar!). The thing that you should avoid is falling into a rut — being lazy about intimacy, looking crazy while going to bed (y’all know what I am talking about), and not “dressing up” the gift sometimes.
I can’t tell you how many husbands I have worked with who have told me that they never get tired of their wife’s body (like…ever); what they do get sick of is no lingerie or creativity when it comes to her “sexual presentation.” Date night with no drawers on. Watching television in a sheer baby doll get-up. Celebrating a goal that he’s reached with nothing but a bow on when you come to bed. You get what I mean, right? He chose you. He wants you. Get creative with your body when it comes to intimacy sometimes, though. That way, he’ll never see you coming (well…until…you know. LOL!).
3. Leave Touch Out of It (Initially)
While once reading an article on Bustle’s site about where the term “blow job” came from (it’s a semi-long explanation; you can check it outhere), there’s a sentence that says, “The roots of the term ‘blow job’ began a bit earlier than this, however — in the 17th century, to be exact, when to ‘blow’ meant to bring someone to orgasm.” One definition of blow speaks to what we do with our breath whether it’s whistling, breathing hard, or creating a steady stream of air out of our mouth.
If you do this on your partner’s erogenous zones, it can provide a very flirty yet arousing level of stimulation to where they will want you to touch them as soon as possible. Oh, and if you add some dirty words into the mix, they will damn near be ready to climax the moment even your finger touches their body. Hey, try it. I’m absolutely not exaggerating.
4. Kiss Everywhere…BUT the Mouth (Again, Initially)
Even though some people don’t like to kiss (check out “Umm, What's Up With These People Who Hate Kissing?”), the rest of us? We want it as much as possible! There isa scientific reason for why that is the case too. When you kiss someone (especially in the mouth), it releases feel-good and bonding hormones and chemicals including dopamine, oxytocin, and serotonin; not to mention the fact that it can also help to reduce stress. And while kissing does feel absolutely amazing, remember that the focus here is to “pregame” stimulation.
So, if you really want to get your man riled up, avoid his mouth (at first) and even his penis and opt for turn-on spots instead.The wetness of your mouth, the softness of your lips, and the texture of your tongue along his neck, around his ears or gently grazing his back? Girl, I’m getting a little hot ‘n bothered just talking — well, writing — about it.
5. Stay Out of the Bed
If there are two things that couples can find themselves getting really lazy about (if they’re not careful), it’s when they have sex and where. As far as the “when” goes,although reportedly, guys tend to prefer it in the morning (I mean, morning wood…makes sense) and women do late at night, most couples will admit that there is usually a time when they have it the most (especially if they’ve got young children — check out “How To Make Sex Easier (& More Fun) When You've Got Kids”) as a way of “meeting in the middle.” For example, if for you and your man,that’s 10 p.m. and it’s pretty much that way, every time, that can get to become boring, simply because no anticipation is necessary; you know what’s coming.
Same thing goes for always having sex in the bed. Even though it’s comfortable and accommodating to most sex positions, trying other places (at least for foreplay) can cultivate a feeling of newness and excitement. Whether it’s on the kitchen floor, in your car (when it’s in the garage), in the shower (check out “So, This Is How To Make Shower Sex So Much Better”), in your closet (some people really like the closeness of it) or, what appears to be most folks’ favorite spot,the living room sofa (go figure, chile) — get out of the bed sometimes. The bed is comfy, no doubt. It’s also predictable as hell.
6. Have a Foreplay Staycation
It honestly floors me, just how many married couples I know who either haven’t taken a romantic vacation in years or (what in the world?!) haven’t done it since their honeymoon. To that, I’ll just say this: there was once a study conducted of 2,000 couples. It was revealed that of those who felt like their relationship had lost its spark, 42 percent of them were able to get it back by spending some quality time together while taking a leisure trip (without the kids). To me, this makes all of the sense in the world because romantic vacations are designed to “get off of the grid” and focus, solely, on you and your partner’s needs.
So, if you are one of those couples who doesn’t have a trip, just for you and your man, on the docket for some time this year, here’s your sign that you need to figure something out — ASAP. And what if your money is tight? What should you do in the meantime? How about a foreplay staycation? Plan 24-48 hours where you and your man do nothing but kiss, lick, and touch without any penetration involved. Play sex games. Dance naked. Come up with (new) safe words. After a day or two of nothing but this, you will be ready to explode once it’s time to actually have sex with each other!
7. Play Your Own Version of “Hot, Warm, Cold”
Temperature play plays a solid role in sexual pleasure; that’s why I’ve written articles like “Hot Sex: 10 Super Sultry Reasons To Bring Wax Play Into Your Bedroom” for the platform. Anyway, aside from the fact thatit’s pretty damn hilarious that 69 degrees is the ideal room temperature for intimacy (umm, if you catch my drift), a big part of the reason why playing around with hot, warm, and cold temps is so effective is because your nerves respond,sometimes drastically so, to variations in them.
I mean, when you stop to consider that there are8,000 nerves in a clitoris and 4,000 in a penis, imagine what some ice would do during oral sex. Or, how about heating up a sex toy that’s made out of glass or metal in some boiling water, letting it cool just a bit, and running that up and down each other’s erogenous zones? If you do this while being blindfolded, there really is no telling where the peak levels of stimulation could take you!
8. Focus on Upping the Ante on Your Partner’s Stimulation (As They Do the Same for You)
I’ve already referenced the word “stimulation” a few times. To stimulate is “to rouse to action or effort, as by encouragement or pressure; incite.” Some synonyms include arouse, inspire, spark, activate, energize, enflame, support, urge — and motivate (cue Kelly Rowland’s song, "Motivation"). And so, keeping all of this in mind, when it comes to foreplay with your partner, how much effort do you put into stimulating him — into inspiring him, energizing him, motivating him…yes, sexually?
Something that I am a big-time believer of is, it’s hard to fall into a sexual rut, if the goal that BOTH PEOPLE have is to always outdo themselves, damn near every time that they come together. That said, how can you “out-inspire” him with your compliments? How can you “out-energize” him with a creative meal that’sfilled with aphrodisiacs? How can you “out-motivate” him with some new ideas that you’ve researched while you were at work?
When it comes to both foreplay and sex, “applying pressure” can be a ton of fun — when you see yourself as your own competition as far as taking your partner to new heights in the stimulation department.
9. Be Unpredictable
Unpredictable can go a lot of ways. In the context of what I’m referring to, I’m not talking about being fickle, erratic, and unreliable. Nah, what I mean is, be intentional about having a few tricks up your sleeve that your partner would never see coming.
An example of this comes from a song from a local legend here, Shannon Sanders (if you know, you know). He once wrote a song entitled “Interstate” and the intro starts off with him saying, “What you doin’? Not you. Didn’t think you were the type.” Yeah, you can read between the lines (or click on the hyperlink to the title) to get what he’s talking about yet I’m pretty sure that what made the experience, 50 times greater, is she did something that was outside of the norm. When it comes to foreplay and sex — that is typically the case. #wink
10. Switch the Energy Up
Foreplay can — and should — have different themes from time to time. One time, focus on being romantic (rose petals and toasting each other). Another time, lean into being kinky (where are your handcuffs and bondage rope?). Still, another time, discuss a fantasy that you each want to fulfill. Then play dress-up as you role play. Record (the audio) of yourselves having sex one day; then play it another day — during foreplay.
Spoon naked and talk about all of the things that you adore about each other’s bodies. Get some oral sex dice (like thesehere) and see where throwing the dice will take you. Y’all, energy is such a big part of foreplay and sex, and the more you master switching it up, the more you and your partner will look forward to coming — and cumming — together for years to come. No doubt about it, sis.
Let’s make things inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter for love, wellness, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Featured image by Giphy