BYOB: Bring Your Own Baggage

hi duffels, this is a topic that I hold very close to my heart, so buckle up! Today I am joined by Paul Andrews to talk about his carry-on story of coming out to his religious parents. We discuss religion and sexuality, our experiences coming out to our parents, finding support after coming out, and more... enjoy! Resources: The Trevor Project: https://www.thetrevorproject.org/get-help/#sm.000014n...

happy Monday, duffels!! If you have been looking for a sign to start your fitness journey, consider this it. Today I am joined by Anna Michaud to talk about her careers in the fitness industry as a SPENGA instructor and Athletic Training Student, how she creates boundaries between fitness for work vs. enjoyment, finding motivation to teach on hard days, and more... enjoy!

duffels, this is one of my favorite episodes to date because I am joined by my absolute role model, Meghan Costello. We discuss how taking a semester off in undergrad changed the course of her career (she's almost done getting her PhD in clinical psych now!!), her research regarding emotional support, how to be a better friend and more... enjoy! 

I've got another 2 for 1 episode for you today, duffels! In this episode, I am joined by Lucy Coulson & Logan Jones-Wilkins to discuss how they've carried on as friends after dating for ~3 years. We discuss how they developed a healthy friendship post-breakup, jealousy, boundaries in their friendship, and more... enjoy! PS: do you guys think honey or maple syrup is better??? Serious...

hi duffels! Today I am joined by the one and only Deric Childress Jr. to discuss a time where he's carried on. We discuss how he navigated being a first gen student at UVA, his experience as a Black man at a PWI, the mental health struggles he's faced associated with feeling misunderstood and being hesitant to open up, and plug UVA TimelyCare... enjoy! PS: who else thinks Deric needs to...

happy Monday, duffels!! Today I am joined by Julia Paraiso (someone I've had a friend crush on since literally first year so past Justine would be proud) to discuss her work with UVA Body Positive. We talk about the mission of UVA Body Positive, the importance of having an org dedicated to educating students on developing healthy body image, Julia's journey with body image, body positivi...

happy monday, duffels! Today I am joined by the Green Bandana Project @ UVA (GBP) President, Tyler Kimble, to discuss how GBP has helped him carry on! We talk about GBP's mission, destigmatizing mental illness at UVA, how students can facilitate healthy dialogue surrounding mental health on college campuses, and more.. enjoy!

hi duffels! Today I am joined by the very lovely May Gong to discuss how she's carried on as an international student! We cover what it was like adjusting to life in the US, finding her identity, friendship advice, and more... enjoy! Link to May's podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/6YdctmMDJEj1lhkeoqLnm8?si=AVGuDMnjSt6JPBdTn1wuUg

*TW: eating disorder* Happy New Year, duffels! We are back and better than ever today with an episode featuring "If You're Reading This" (IYRT) president, Betsy Macdonnell. We discuss IYRT's mission, Betsy's journey with an eating disorder, how hard it is to be a 4th-year (spoiler: very), not belonging at UVA, and so much more... enjoy! IYRT website: http://www.ifyoureread...

duffels! This is an episode that has been in the works for quite some time, and I am so excited to share it with you all. Today I am joined by professional athlete/philanthropist/just a role model in general, Eddie Opoku, to discuss how he's carried on. We talk about his journey to the US from Ghana to play soccer, the downsides of being a public figure/how social media is fake, finding famil...

long time no see, duffels!! Today I am back and better than ever with everyone's fitspiration, Georgia Daniels. Over the past year and a half, Georgia has amassed over 30k followers on Instagram and over 90k on Tik Tok posting pictures and videos of her fitness journey as a bikini competitor. We talk about how she got into bikini competitions, what it's like being a social media influenc...

duffels, I have been WAITING for this one!!! Today I am joined by ACC Offensive Player of the Year (and general soccer superstar), Diana Ordoñez, to discuss how she's carried on as a student athlete. We cover sneakers, the pressure of being in the spotlight, burnout, her favorite memory with her team and much more... enjoy! ESPN article mentioned: https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/i...

*TW: sexual and domestic violence* hello duffels!! Today I am joined by a true ray of sunshine... the one and only... Natalie Abbey, to discuss how she's carried on. We recap her 22nd birthday party, talk about building confidence, explore how to empower survivors of sexual and domestic violence, highlight the importance of being trauma-informed and more... enjoy!  National Sexual Assault hot...

reporting live from the UVA Board of Visitors office, this episode is a trip!! Today I am joined by the hilarious (and insanely accomplished) Sarita Mehta to discuss how she's carried on. We talk about her role as the student member of the BOV, how she's dealt with navigating identity in Greek life, building confidence, and more... enjoy!

Welcome back, duffels! I have formally ditched the previous "carry-on" style of episode and we are now winging it. Hence this episode being much longer than 30 min. And chaotic. Life's all about being flexible, right?? Anyways, today I am joined by the man, the myth, the absolute legend, Malcolm Stewart to discuss how he carried on during his time at UVA. We cover a lot in this epis...

it's Tuesday, I know, I'm sorry! I promise today's episode is worth the wait though! Today I am joined by the wonderful Ned Flanagan to learn about how he's carried on as a gap year student and the leader of a million UVA orgs. We discuss the work he did with the Kino Border Initiative (ex: preventing PTSD in migrant populations, building trust with vulnerable groups, the toll...

hello duffels!! Today I am joined by soccer superstar, Cabrel Happi, to discuss how he's carried on as a student athlete at UVA. We discuss comparison among teammates, the student athlete image, how he performs under pressure and more... enjoy! PS: everyone wish Cabrel happy birthday on Wednesday  PPS: Kenton, if you're seeing this please bake Cabrel a special dessert for his birthday

ummm happy ~Tuesday~ duffels! I will be blaming the delay in this episode on the fact that Instagram was down yesterday... no further questions please. Anyways, today I am joined by the insanely talented, Elie Bashkow, to talk about the effect that music has on his life. We discuss his performance mindset, how to avoid comparison in the music industry, the next greatest mashup of all time, tips an...

HELLO DUFFELS! BIG DAY TODAY! It is BYOB's first birthday, and I wanted to thank all of you for your support over this past year. I am so grateful for the love that BYOB has received and that my little passion project has turned into a legit podcast (???). Special shoutout to all of the guests who have come on BYOB - I literally wouldn't be here without you<3 In today's episode w...

hey duffels! Today I am joined by a psych ICON, Jake Greenberg, to discuss a time where they have carried on. We cover a lot of things in this episode - from PsyD 101 (why Jake chose psych, what their crazy busy day to day looks like, managing burnout, etc.) to their journey with gender and sexual identity (how they identify, negative responses to them coming out, what being queer means to them, e...

hellooooo duffels! Today I am joined with one of the sweetest humans alive, Emma Keller, to hear her carry-on story. We talk about an article she wrote on emotionally adjusting to living on the Lawn and the importance of physical spaces, what it's like to live in the most visible place on Grounds, the deal with the bathrooms (highly requested), and LOTS more... enjoy!

*TW: anorexia* happy Monday, duffels! Today I am joined with the wonderful, Carter Leach, to hear about a time where he has carried on. Carter discusses his struggle with anorexia, and we talk about setting healthy fitness goals, how he's developing a healthy relationship with eating, how the lack of acknowledgement in the media that men struggle with eating disorders too affected him, and mo...

duffels, you guys won't believe this one. Today I am joined by a true power couple, Caroline Biondo and Tory Key (just embracing my role as a third wheel). Caroline and Tory discuss what it's like to be in an interracial relationship, in particular, conversations about race between them, judgment regarding their relationship, what they've learned from each other, and more! This epis...

*TW: suicide* welcome back, duffels! Today we are carrying on with one of my favorite people in the entire world, Mary Isaac Cargill. Mary Isaac discusses her journey with grief after losing a loved one to suicide. We discuss what it's like to grieve, resilience, and the lessons this loved one taught her... enjoy the wisdom Mary Isaac (our soon to be therapist) has to offer:)

Duffels!! Welcome back! Today we are carrying on with the insanely talented, Ella Bllue Tomko. Ella discusses her journey navigating meds, numbness related to antidepressants, side effects of different meds, what happens when you quit cold turkey (spoiler: DON’T), and more... enjoy!  *DISCLAIMER: all opinions about meds are our own, we are obviously not medical professionals and everyone is differ...