Beyond Beautiful: Disability, Liberation, Love

What if accessibility extended all the way to the dinner table? In this episode of Beyond Beautiful: Disability, Liberation, Love , Mandi sits down with Nina Blake , The Grain-Free Lifestyle Coach, to explore how food, creativity, and inclusion intersect. After being faced with eliminating grains and numerous allergens from her diet, Nina refused to accept that she had to give up the foods and tra...

In this personal solo episode, Mandi explores the hierarchy of disability, the ways ableism operates as a system, and how internalized and lateral ableism can shape our relationships with ourselves and other disabled people. Drawing from her own experiences growing up as a physically disabled person, Mandi reflects on the pressure to distinguish herself from people with intellectual, developmental...

What happens when people decide what you're capable of before you've had the chance to prove them wrong? In this episode of Beyond Beautiful , Mandi sits down with Michelle Steiner, a writer, advocate, paraeducator, and photographer who lives with an invisible disability. Throughout her life, Michelle was told she wouldn't be able to attend college, earn a degree, get published, or pursue the care...

In this deeply personal kick-off to LGBTQIA+ Pride Month episode, Mandi shares her coming out story—from childhood clues and early experiences of attraction to navigating divorce, faith deconstruction, church hurt, and finding love. Through stories of grief, authenticity, and transformation, Mandi reflects on growing up as a disabled Latina in a culturally Catholic family, the challenges of reconc...

In this episode of Beyond Beautiful: Disability, Liberation, Love , Mandi sits down with podcaster, entrepreneur, speaker, and autism advocate Sam Mitchell, host of Autism Rocks and Rolls . Together, they explore autism, identity, bullying, masking, authenticity, advocacy, and what it means to reject the idea that disabled people need to be “fixed” in order to belong. Sam shares his journey of bui...

In this deeply personal solo episode, Mandi explores the reality that transformation often requires surrender. But surrender isn’t always soft, peaceful, or aesthetically pleasing—it can involve grief, endings, and releasing things that once felt safe. Mandi opens up about letting go of harmful theology, navigating the loss of relationships that required self-betrayal, surrendering people-pleasing...

In this week’s episode of Beyond Beautiful: Disability, Liberation, Love , Mandi sits down with recovery expert Dr. Robb Kelly for a powerful and honest conversation about addiction, trauma, neuroscience, and healing. Dr. Robb shares his personal journey with alcoholism, recovery, and rebuilding his life, while also unpacking how trauma impacts the brain and why treating root causes—not just sympt...

Season 3 of Beyond Beautiful: Disability, Liberation, Love begins with a deeply personal solo reflection on what transformation truly means. Mandi challenges society's traditional idea of transformation as changing yourself to become more acceptable - and instead explores what it means to become more fully who you already are. Through reflections on disability identity, internalized ableism, butte...

In the season 2 finale, Mandi reflects on transformation through a disability justice lens. Released on Easter Sunday 2026, this episode explores renewal, faith, and identity as a Queer, Disabled Christian, including how the image of Jesus rising with visible wounds reshapes her understanding of disability, wholeness, and theology. Mandi shares her ongoing journey of unlearning internalized ableis...

As Season 2 of Beyond Beautiful: Disability, Liberation, Love comes to a close, this episode offers a moment to pause, reflect, and connect the threads woven throughout this season. Over the past several episodes, we've explored a wide range of topics - including parenthood, employment, culture, sexual health and access, the law, communication, capacity, and boundaries - all through a disability j...

In this deeply personal episode of Beyond Beautiful, Mandi is joined by her sons, Xavier and Ezra, for an honest and heartfelt conversation about family, identity, and love. Together, they explore what it’s like growing up with a queer, disabled parent and being part of a blended family with three parents. Through their perspectives, this episode centers brotherhood, interdependence, and the many...

This special episode is part of Podcasthon, a global movement where podcasters dedicate an episode to uplifting a nonprofit organization they care about. Mandi highlights KEEN New York (Kids Enjoy Exercise Now) - a nonprofit that provides free recreational programs for disabled youth. Through sports, movement, and community-building activities, KEEN creates inclusive spaces where disabled youth ca...

In this episode, Mandi talks with Bryanna Copeland — a mom, Master of Social Work student, participant in the 2026 Miss Wheelchair New York competition, disability advocate navigating motherhood, higher education, and public spaces as a wheelchair user. Bryanna shares her experience as a Black disabled single mom, including the barriers she faced with a local transportation company that led her to...

What does it mean to truly listen beyond the pace and patterns we’re used to? In this episode, I sit down with Ceslie Martinico, a 30-year-old blogger living with Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type I, diagnosed at just six months old. Ceslie shares her life, her advocacy, and her deep love for all things Disney — especially Disney Princesses — while offering us a powerful lesson in communication, patien...

In this episode, Mandi is joined by Stephanie Garrett — a gamer, creative, and longtime chronic illness warrior — for a powerful conversation about non-apparent disabilities and the intersection with grief. Diagnosed with hypothyroidism at 14 and later with hypopituitarism and adrenal insufficiency at 16, Stephanie has been navigating autoimmune and endocrine conditions since her teens. Now 35, sh...

In this episode, we’re going Beyond the Capacity Myth — the harmful belief that a person’s worth is tied to productivity, independence, or output. I’m joined by Preston Burger, a neurodivergent self-advocate and multi-hyphenate leader whose work spans higher education, the arts, nonprofit leadership, and disability advocacy. Preston previously served as a CUNY LEADS Advisor at Bronx Community Coll...

What does it mean to belong when you’re constantly navigating multiple cultures, identities, and expectations? In Beyond Culture , I’m joined by Urmi Hossain—author, speaker, podcast host, and finance professional—for a rich conversation about identity, third-culture experiences, and the quiet labor of self-definition. Drawing from her book Discovering Your Identity: A Rebirth from Interracial Str...

Beyond Employment challenges traditional narratives about work and disability. In this episode, host Mandi is joined by disability employment advocate and employment specialist Steven Robles to explore what meaningful, accessible employment truly looks like for disabled people. Together, they unpack harmful myths about productivity, examine systemic barriers in hiring and retention, and reimagine...

In Beyond Boundaries, Mandi sits down with Jasmine “Jazzy” Ramos—an advocate, community builder, and social work student whose work is rooted in the belief that liberation begins with sincere belonging. Living with a genetic progressive condition, Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Jasmine brings a powerful perspective on what it means to honor disability rather than frame it as something to overcome. Beyon...

In Beyond Parenthood , Mandi sits down with Charlianne Alexander, a disabled mother of two, for an honest and deeply human conversation about parenting through a disability justice lens. Charlianne shares the unique challenges she has faced—and continues to navigate—as a disabled mom, from societal assumptions and access barriers to the emotional labor of protecting her family while advocating for...

Season 2 of Beyond Beautiful: Disability, Liberation, Love begins with a powerful conversation between host Mandi and guest Amar Sharif,a disabled social worker who served as Ms. Wheelchair New York 2024, and works at the intersection of disability, sexuality, and justice. Together, Mandi and Amar explore disabled people as sexual beings, the systemic barriers that limit access to affirming sexual...

As Season 1 of Beyond Beautiful comes to a close, Mandi invites listeners to rethink everything we’ve been taught about New Year’s resolutions. In this reflective season finale, Mandi explores what it means to approach resolutions through a disability justice lens—one that prioritizes care, access, and sustainability over hustle and self-erasure. She shares personal reflections on body image, weig...

In Episode 12 of Beyond Beautiful: Disability, Liberation, Love , Mandi reflects on faith, disability, and liberation as Christmas approaches. Drawing from her own journey as a queer, Christian, disabled woman, she explores disabled theology, the distinction between healing and curing, and how encountering The Disabled God reshaped her understanding of Christ. This episode invites listeners to con...

In Episode 11 of Beyond Beautiful: Disability, Liberation, Love , Mandi explores the power of our collective voice beyond election season. Reflecting on her policy work and the impact of harmful rhetoric from our leaders, she reminds us how language shapes culture, access, and our futures—and why public participation still matters. Music Credit: "Basic Implosion" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Li...

The holidays aren’t joyful for everyone—and for many disabled people and caregivers, this season brings unique challenges that often go unseen. In this episode, we look beyond the glitter and celebration to talk honestly about access barriers, financial strain, family dynamics, ableism, and the emotional weight the season can carry. We also explore practical ways to create a more inclusive, compas...