Built From Broken

The next four episodes will look a little different. I have a special guest joining me, Gracie. You may remember her being mentioned during my time with Monica and Steve at the Cedarwood House. In this first part, we talk about why she chose to keep her real name private, how she became “Gracie” in my story, and her brief experience being present at court. She also shares how she recognized Monica...

The last couple of weeks were quiet here, and that pause had purpose. This was my first real pause since starting the podcast. I also want to acknowledge my absence and say thank you for your patience these last couple of weeks. In this episode, I share why I stepped back, what’s been unfolding behind the scenes, and that there is now a new release day for episodes on Sundays. Finishing court with...

This episode continues my story during junior year, a season where life felt both fast and blurry. I talk about reconnecting with old friends, working to support myself while in foster care, and the sting of being treated differently from a biological child. Those differences felt especially heavy during the holidays, when it became impossible not to notice what was missing. I also open up about h...

In this episode, I return to The Dayridge House — the place that, for a while, felt like home again. This chapter is about coming back to familiar walls, old friendships, and the quiet moments that offered me a sense of belonging after so much chaos. It’s about the hope I held onto at 17… even when the story didn’t unfold the way I once imagined. As we near the end of Season One, I want to make sp...

Before I return to the Dayridge House in the next chapter of my foster care story, I wanted to pause and reflect with you. In this episode, I share what it means to be in the final stretch of my story, some incredible milestones this podcast has reached, and what is coming next: Q&A episodes with your questions, a “Listen When You Feel…” reflection mini-series, and present-day conversations ab...

⚠️ Trigger warning: This episode contains discussion of self-harm and assault. In this episode, I close the chapter on my time at the Cedarwood House — a group home that tested me in ways I never expected. I share the story of meeting Paul, the turmoil of living with a new roommate who targeted me, and the day I had to stand before a judge at sixteen years old to ask for safety after being assault...

This episode continues with my time at the group home, where I became tangled up in relationships with two boys while also forming a new friendship that brought some light into a heavy season. Not long after, I was able to bring more of my belongings from Monica and Steve’s, small pieces of familiarity in an unfamiliar place. In the middle of all of this, there was a consistent adult male who beca...

This episode continues my story at the group home, a time when so many changes hit all at once. I share about starting at a new school, trying to find my place, and even making changes to my hair as I searched for a sense of identity. I open up about losing my virginity during a season when I was craving love and security but didn’t yet understand what I was truly needing. I also talk about the ar...

In this episode of Built From Broken , I begin sharing one of the hardest chapters of my story, not because of what others did to me, but because of the choices I made and the way I lost sight of myself. At sixteen, I was placed at Cedarwood House, a group home that would become the setting for one of the darkest seasons of my life. I open up about the uncertainty of how and why I ended up there,...

This episode marks the final chapter of my time with Monica and Steve. It lasted less than a year but left a lifetime of impact. I share the realities of those final months: the way Monica pushed to have me diagnosed with something I didn’t have, the humiliation of my sixteenth birthday, the loss of independence when even my job was taken away, and the toll of living under constant stress until my...

In this episode of Built From Broken , I continue my story at the Hillcrest House during my 9th grade year. This chapter covers my very first job at McDonald’s, the lessons and small joys that came with it, and the growing control and isolation I faced at home with Steve and Monica. I share the push-and-pull of that time — moments of independence, new friendships, and staying busy with work, volun...

After leaving the Dayridge House during winter break of my ninth-grade year, I found myself starting over once again. Steve picked me up in a U-Haul, and before heading to my new home, we stopped at a storage unit filled with my mom’s things. Not long after arriving at Monica and Steve’s, I experienced my first panic attack and was diagnosed with anxiety. I’ll never forget the emotions that came w...

At the start of ninth grade, things felt steady. My friendships were consistent, the routine at the Dayridge House remained familiar, and nothing seemed out of place. Then everything changed. In this episode, I share the moment that shifted the course of that year. It was an experience that changed everything, leading to my removal from the home and placement with family friends. I also reflect on...

Eighth grade at the Dayridge House held a mix of comfort, confusion, and change. In this episode, I share more memories from that time, including morning coffee in the Florida room, movie nights with my foster family, visits with my mom, new friendships, and meaningful moments with my dad that reminded me I was still deeply loved. But it wasn’t all easy. There were experiences that challenged my s...

This is the first episode where I begin sharing my experiences from eighth grade, a year that brought both new beginnings and emotional turning points. In this chapter, I talk about how my dad initiated contact for the first time, the moment I officially became a ward of the state, and how it felt to be photographed and listed for adoption online. I also open up about a humiliating incident tied t...

Life at the Dayridge House looked stable from the outside, but behind the routines and family dinners were emotions I didn’t fully understand yet. In this episode, I share more of what seventh grade looked like from inside foster care: the supervised visits, the quiet moments that stuck with me, and the small things that felt like love. I also explain how the foster system worked behind the scenes...

New school. New routine. Same foster home… but this time, everything felt different. In this episode, I begin seventh grade while continuing life at the Dayridge House — the foster home where I was placed after my grandparents returned me. I share what it was like adjusting to a new school district, navigating early friendships, and settling into a home that looked and felt more stable than what I...

After a brief return to familiarity, I found myself right back where it all started — the same foster home, the same once-unfamiliar faces, and a slightly different perspective. In this episode, I reflect on the summer that followed… the quiet distractions, the small comforts, and what it felt like to settle into someone else’s version of normal. Not everything made sense — but for a little while,...

This episode wasn’t part of the original plan — but life has a way of calling for a pause when the weight gets heavy. Instead of continuing the next chapter of my story, I’m opening up about the emotional space I’ve found myself in lately. When the noise gets loud and the doubts creep in, sometimes the most honest thing we can do is just show up as we are. This isn’t a breakdown. It’s a check-in....

Why do kids act out? Why did I act out? And what happens when no one asks that question until years later? In this episode, I’m not just telling you that I was labeled difficult — I’m unpacking the reasons behind the behavior people judged so harshly. I talk about the silent pain, the chaos I absorbed, and how my environment shaped the choices I made as a child. This is about understanding the roo...

After spending over a week in my first foster home, my grandparents picked me up — just before my 13th birthday. I thought maybe this was it. Maybe I was home for good. But just a few weeks later, everything shifted again… and I was sent back. In this episode, I’m sharing what it felt like to go from hope to heartbreak — and the weight of being returned by the very people who had helped raise me....

Have you ever felt misjudged or misunderstood? Like someone took pieces of your story and twisted them into something unrecognizable? In this episode, I open up about what it feels like to be painted in a false light — and how to rise above the narratives others create about you. We explore the emotional toll of being mislabeled, the psychology behind projection, gaslighting, and character attacks...

They say your home reflects your mind — and for me, that’s always rung true. In this episode, I open up about the environments that shaped me: the chaos of living with my mom, the calm of my grandparents’ house, and how those early experiences shaped the way I live and parent now. From fast food wrappers to messy apartments and neglected spaces — the physical mess mirrored something deeper, someth...

This episode takes you into the unraveling—when love, instability, and mental illness collided in a way that changed my life forever. It’s the chapter where my childhood started slipping through my fingers… and I realized no one was coming to save me. And if it resonates—please follow, leave a review, or share. It means the world. As always… Keep building.

Before the unraveling, there was shame. In this deeply personal episode, I pause the timeline to reflect on something I've carried quietly for years - the parts of my childhood that bring guilt, confusion, and pain. From behaviors I now know weren't okay, to moments rooted in curiosity and unmet emotional needs, this is a vulnerable look at the ways children act out when they don't know how else t...