The Female Veterans Podcast

I am joined to discuss the benefits of micro-dosing as a therapy to treat PTSD, anxiety and depression. Donna of The Portland Psychedelic Society. We discuss what micro-dosing is, how it can help you, and how to begin. Donna shares her story, I share some of mine and we offer many resources to educate yourself, including how to join the veterans discourse online with the Portland Psychedelic Socie...

My guest Kellie’s story is a little different than many of my episodes. She served in the Public Health Service, one of the uniformed services of the United States although it is not an armed service. Trained military style and deployed to serve, Kellie shares her experience, both the joys of serving and the difficulties of serving in this branch. Kellie explains her training, how it differs from...

This episode is all about the work the The Barbara Giordano Foundation does to help female veterans. I am joined by Virginia Giordano, the CEO of the organization, for another chat about how the foundation has expanded to help female veterans from around the world. We talk about specific ways you can benefit from their services. Virginia shares what workshops they have and how to participate. We t...

This is the first episode in a limited series in partnership with the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA). Captain Pat Williams may have had the most amazing military career of any of my guests. Pat spent 35 years in the Navy. We discuss her experience being enlisted, her move to becoming an officer and the contrast of each type of experience. We discuss why she never deployed on a shi...

Marine veteran Esaia and I talk about the "drinking culture" that can be part of being in the military. We discuss how many who serve are young and not educated in the dangers of drinking or how to manage alcohol intake in a responsible way. Esaia shares the story of what happened when her drinking got her into trouble early in her career. We discuss what led her to spiral out of control and how r...

How are you feeling about what is happening in the Ukraine? As veterans I think we often have very strong opinions about war. Today I was triggered so I thought maybe many of us are. In this mini-episode solocast, I discuss what's lies ahead for the podcast, as well as how this invasion is affecting me and  some of the things I have seen in the news and social media. Don't forget to check out...

Theresa grew up in a military environment. She knew from a very young age that her future was in the Navy. But what she didn't foresee was that she would be a finalist in Ms. Veteran America! Theresa and I chat about her experiences in the Navy, including her dream of being stationed at the former NAS Miramar. We talk about what is was like serving in 1980, and how she believed (what was then) the...

Caroline is the author of "Fairly Smooth Operator, My Life Occasionally At The Tip Of A Spear" and her story is an interesting one. As a Coast Guard veteran she shares her experience of being a female in a branch that is still almost entirely male. We share and contrast our experiences serving in the two branches of the military that dominate the water. She speaks of the difficulties of having ord...

This is a short solo episode. More than ever I hear "thank you for your service" My question is how do you answer that? I'll tell you how I answer it! I also discuss veteran owned businesses and my opinion on how we can better support each other. Find out what www.gruntstyle.com is and all about the work they are doing in the veteran community. Don't forget to follow me on Instagram @thefemalevete...

VR Smalls served during the 1980's as a Navy Hospital Corpsman. This is a story that is absolutely heartbreaking to me, as well as inspirational. We talk about how VR decided to end her career after being stationed at a command where the commanding officer seemed to develop a particular type of interest in her career. VR also endured sexual harassment, denial of her pursuit to become an officer an...

On a  very special Veterans Day episode author Lani Hankins, host of the podcast Kruse Corner joins me to share her experience. While serving in the Army she endured so much during her time on active duty. From being labeled as stuck up to being stationed in a toxic "dog eat dog" environment, we talk about the challenges she faced. We talk about how she used humor to cope but the reality was...

I had such a great time chatting with Jessica a veteran Marine Corps officer, and expert shooter. We talk about how hard it was for her even to be selected to go to OCS,  and the training including the use of sleep deprivation. We discuss the importance of good leadership and the impact it has. I learn about how physically damaging service was for Jessica, and what caused her to leave active...

After growing up in a military family it was an easy choice for Jillian to join. After attending a private military university she joined the Navy as a Seabee. We share stories about experiencing both favoritism and some not so good situations. Jillian tells me all about her "wild child" ways and how alcoholism affected her, and why the military wasn't a place for her to get the help she needed. J...

It's my birthday so what better day to launch Season 7! This is a big episode, I know. But when you hear Taniki's story you'll understand. Taniki is marine veteran, a co-founder of JT Inspire, an author, poet, speaker and podcast host of "Pursuance: Straight Out Of The Box. She is also affiliated with the Wounded Warrior Project. After a night mission in Iraq goes awry the trauma of the incident b...

This very special episode is with Liz Helm Frazier an advocate for the legendary WWII unit The 6888. Not only are we discussing Liz's long career and transition out of the military, we dive into her newest mission the goal of having this unit be awarded The Congressional Gold Medal. If you don't know about these historic female veterans, you've got to hear this! This unit helped pave the way for a...

This unique episode is with Corinne Devin who is still on active duty. A commander in the Navy and International Ms. for 2020, she has managed to live a dual life of service dedicated to inspiring and serving others. We discuss her military and the obstacles she has faced and overcome every step of the way. We talk about the impact of being stationed in Italy during the early days of the Covid qua...

I am joined by Mindy Dougherty who is a humanitarian and author of “A Resilient Warrior”. Mindy served as an Army combat medic in Bosnia where she became sick, suffering from appendicitis and pancreatitis at the same time. We discuss her active duty experience followed by the trauma she received from the VA healthcare system. Listen to how she unravels the worst nightmare you could imagine after b...

Teia of Her Hair RX tells me the story of her veteran aunt who suffers from alopecia. We talk about the hair pieces she made for her and how that evolved into a thriving business providing wigs to female veterans who have any type of hair loss. She explains everything you need to know about wearing wigs! Including how to utilize your VA benefits to get a high quality custom wig if you have cancer,...

I am joined by Pamela Heal, Founder of The Heal Network. We chat about her experience while serving in the Navy. Appearance can be a huge problem for a woman while serving. Too much attention by men can lead to negative relationships with other females and can endanger you with the males. In this case it led to a lot of unfortunate experiences. This is a very big story of the cause of trauma that...

An unlikely friendship formed between Johnna and I while stationed in Great Lakes, IL. Though we spoke often before I got out of the military, I never really knew her whole story prior to her arrival at my duty station. And I didn't know what horrible events were to take take place after I discharged. In this episode I learn all about the harassment she endured beginning at MEPS. I learn about tri...

As a young single mother Kerri interviewed for a well paying government job. After a fantastic interview she was informed that the job was hers if she joined The Army National Guard. On this episode we discuss her experiences as an officer, and young woman with a large family blazing a trail in her career. She shares the ups and downs of moving her family around, and her struggles as a leader. We...

On this episode, I chat with Olympia an Army veterans doing charity work in Arkansas. We talk about her feelings of frustration regarding being unable to use the skills she learned in the military after transitioning to civilian life.  She shares a favorite story from boot camp and we reminisce about A school in the Navy and  AIT for the Army. We discuss her decision to start a new caree...

Honor thought boot camp was a summer camp. Then active duty happened. After being persuaded by a recruiter to join the Navy instead of going into the Air Force as an officer, Honor faces harsh reality as an undesignated sailor. We talk about Honor's experience, life on ship, multiple assaults and how she gained the strength to heal, share her story and release her pain. I learn about Honor's trans...

This is a BIG episode! A full length double interview with two incredible female veterans. I chat with both the editor in chief and publisher of AVOW Magazine, a publication made by female veterans for female veterans. Much like this podcast. I am so pleased to be featured in the Winter 2020/2021 issue. I speak with Christina and Sheila about each of their active duty stories. I learn about the bl...

In the summer of 2020 Lucy Del Gaudio found herself preparing to testify on Capitol Hill before Congress in the wake of Vanessa Guillen's murder at Fort Hood. We talk about how we learned of Vanessa's story and all the criminal activity taking place at that base. Lucy shares her story of feeling uneasy displaying femininity early in her career and the assault that ultimately derailed her. We talk...