Aware And Prepared

Ever had that nightmare where your fingers just cannot dial 911? Listen to the host and her guest, an expert security consultant, discuss fine motor movement impairment and 4 other stress reactions we get during a stressful and / or dangerous situation. What happens if you freeze?   LESSONS Lesson 1 = Practice with your family and talk about different scenarios Lesson 2 = Practice deploying whatev...

What happens when you're not able to listen to your intuition? Intuition is a survival mechanism. Listen to Mandi talk about  What intuition is What to do with what your intuition is telling you What impedes your intuition from working well LESSONS Lesson 1 = Intuition is our subconscious collecting clues that alert us to danger.  Lesson 2 = If you've experienced trauma, your body may be...

Mandi pulls together a few different interviews for a panel discussion on teen dating. They discuss some things that most aren’t willing to talk about. Special Guests for panel discussion: Caleb (Mandi’s son) and his fiance, Amanda Veronica, Education Outreach Dept. Manager at Laura’s House LESSONS Lesson 1 = Check the person's reputation before you start dating them.  Lesson 2 = Remember to...

Mandi pulls together a few different interviews for a panel discussion on social media safety, especially for teens, especially given the recent announcement from our Surgeon General that social media can have a profound risk of harm to the mental health and wellbeing of children  and adolescents. About 95% of teens today use some sort of social media. And one third of them said that they use it “...

Today, Mandi gives you a chance to catch up and thanks you for listening!  She gives a quick overview of past episodes so you can make sure you didn't miss anything.  Most Popular Episodes: 1. Mandi’s Story shared in the very beginning. (Part 1 = overview / Part 2 = Detective Ryan) 2. Most Asked Women's Self Defense Q’s with A’s. (Guest is Mandi’s mentor, Joe) 3. Where Are Our Children D...

SUMMARY Veronica, from our local domestic violence shelter Laura's house, joins the host of Women Aware and Prepared, Mandi. They discuss some of the myths about domestic violence shelters, such as: 1 = You have to live at the shelter to receive services 2 = Domestic Violence (DV) shelters ask you to leave your abuser  3 = DV shelters only offer services to female victims 4 = Children are not...

Cyndi from the San Bernardino District Attorney Office and Detective Roberts from the Chino Police Department join Mandi, the host, in discussing restraining orders.  Mandi shares her own story of getting a restraining order and learning what it did and did NOT do. They discuss what a restraining order is, what it does and does not do, the different types of orders, important things to know about...

Detective Roberts from the Chino Police Department and Cyndi A. from the San Bernardino District Attorney Office join Mandi, the host of the Women Aware and Prepared Podcast, today. They discuss the many victim resources available in their county and many others across the United States. LESSONS 1. We have some AMAZING resources available to us! Who knew!? Check with your local DA or police office...

The Women Aware and Prepared host, Mandi, wraps up a mini series on self defense tools. Today she shares about tactical flashlights, pens and pencils: What are they Why her students prefer them The brands she trusts And much more LESSONS LEARNED 1. You can use an everyday item as a weapon . You can use a flashlight, you can use a pen, you can use a pencil if they are made with that very durable al...

The Women Aware and Prepared host, Mandi, continues a mini series on self defense tools. Today she resumes the mini-series on self-defense tools and wraps up pepper spray, moving on to stun guns and personal alarms. She shares a real life story of a stun gun that saves a 16 year old from being kidnapped and sexually assaulted. For those who live in the areas of the world that don’t allow these sel...

The host, Mandi, shares her story of being alerted that an Apple Air Tag was tracking her. Everyone needs to know about AirTags and their capability for stalking. Please sign up for Mandi’s weekly Tuesday Tip emails (at the bottom of her website ) if you want the AirTag Guide she is drafting up. It’s not easy today to find help with preventing tracking and what to do after you find an AirTag, but...

The Women Aware and Prepared host, Mandi, continues a mini series on self defense tools. Today she talks about pepper spray: what it’s purpose is, how to carry it and the importance of keeping the element of surprise, knowing the tool, practicing with it and knowing its limits. LESSONS LEARNED 1. Reminder to keep the tool concealed, carry it in the same place, practice with it, keep the element of...

The Women Aware and Prepared host, Mandi, begins a mini series on self defense tools. Today she talks about pepper spray: what it’s purpose is, how to carry it and the importance of keeping the element of surprise, knowing the tool, practicing with it and knowing its limits. Next week she will continue teaching about pepper spray: which brand she trusts, different types of sprays, where it’s legal...

Annette is the founder of the Mend Project, a nonprofit organization that provides clarity and education to victims and survivors of emotional abuse. Through free monthly trainings the Mend Project strives to provide resources for victims, responders, therapists, and faith leaders.  This conversation between Annette and host, Mandi, focuses on two topics: covert emotional abuse and also teen relat...

The Women Aware and Prepared host reads Kelly's story from the book, The Gift of Fear. We listen as Kelly is manipulated into letting a charming stranger into her home to "help" her with her groceries. We learn how Kelly, a 27 year old woman, listened to her own intuition and saved her life after this Good Samaritan-appearing stranger sexually assaulted her and was planning to come...

The Women Aware and Prepared Podcast Host, Mandi, shares a story in the news of a young woman attacked after being kind and giving her attacker the benefit of the doubt.  LESSONS LEARNED RECAP Lesson 1 = The goal is to escape an attack. We use a moment of distraction to get away. Mandi discusses this further in the book she wrote: “ Two Things To Know About Pepper Spray: Do This First .” Lesson 2...

The Women Aware and Prepared Podcast Host, Mandi, shares a summary of encouraging life lessons learned from the first few episodes.  LESSONS LEARNED RECAP Lesson 1 = If something bad happened to you, you’re not a bad person. Lesson 2 = If you were a victim of abuse, it's not your fault.  Lesson 3 = One of the greatest decisions we make in life is whether we will be a victim or a thriver. Less...

Joe, Mandi’s mentor, is a retired Marine with 20+ years of experience in training law enforcement and civilians in situational awareness, self defense, and firearms training. He is highly experienced and has been teaching others how to be safe and protect themselves.  Joe and Mandi discuss some of the top questions women ask about self defense.  They talk about how to prevent predators from follow...

Mandi Pratt, a trained domestic violence victim advocate, hosts the Women Aware and Prepared podcast.  On this episode, she is joined by Andrea, a talented musician and ambassador for the US Institute Against Human Trafficking. Andrea is passionate about human trafficking awareness and gives talks to organizations like church staff, first responders and high school groups to help educate them on h...

Former Detective Ryan, shares his story of a bank robbing fugitive (my former husband). Ryan describes all the many twists and turns during the 3 years it took to finally apprehend him. The Women Aware and Prepared podcast continues in a discussion with Ryan, who was a detective working on the case involving the podcast host’s former husband. We pick up the story from Episode I. Ryan explains that...

My Story Part I Summary I share my own crazy life story to raise awareness about the importance of recognizing signs of abuse and getting out of an unhealthy relationship as soon as possible. My story began when I was 15 - 16 and decades later, ended up being on the evening news.  Stay tuned for part 2 of my story when, in an upcoming episode, the detective on our case joins me to share the second...

Hello! This is the Women 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 (...