Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Atonement & the American Criminal Justice System [Part III of IV] Welcome to this episode where Valerie and special guest Fiona Givens dive deep into each of their favorite topics: neuroscience & trauma (looking at you Valerie!) & healthy atonement theology (now looking at you Fiona!). A significant portion of the discussion focuses on the impact of trauma on individuals, especially those within the criminal justice system. Fiona brings insigh...
Jul 08, 2024•1 hr 17 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Atonement & the American Criminal Justice System [Part I of IV] Welcome to a podcast series that has been months in the making and one that you will NOT want to miss if you desire to find health and healing in your relationship with God, atonement, hope, and healing. In this four part series, Valerie welcomes return guest and gifted LDS theologian Fiona Givens. Together they delve deeply into the development of various atonement theologies and their i...
Jul 01, 2024•1 hr 1 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Exposing the Near Enemy [Part III of IV] In this episode Val and Nathan continue their deep dive into applications of the Buddhist concept of the near enemy, shining a light on how this concept might apply to how the LDS and surrounding community might grow in light and truth as these ideas are understood and embraced. They focus on how behaviors like self-aggrandizing, pity, and clinging subtly undermine virtues such as charity, compassion, and love, oft...
Jun 24, 2024•49 min•Ep. 237
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Exposing the Near Enemy [Part I of IV] In this opening episode of this new series Valerie and Nathan delve into the profound concept of the "Near Enemy," highlighting how certain behaviors that superficially resemble virtues actually hinder personal growth and damage interpersonal relationships. Drawing from Buddhist wisdom and Brené Brown's integrative work, they discuss how the near enemy behaviors can creep into all individual and systemic relationship...
Jun 17, 2024•34 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Healing from Spiritual Scrupulosity [Part III of IV] In this episode Valerie welcomes fellow therapist colleague Brannon Patrick for a discussion highlighting the profound impact of OCD scrupulosity on individuals within the LDS community. In an unexpected turn of events, both Val and Brannon realize that they each struggled in their adolescence with the same unnamed fear of God's disappointment accompanied by attempts to mitigate these fears with scrupul...
Jun 10, 2024•49 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Healing from Spiritual Scrupulosity [Part I of IV] In this opening episode focused on OCD spiritual scrupulosity in the context of the LDS church, Valerie begins by interviewing Taylor Kerby, author the the book "Scrupulous: My Obsessive Compulsion for God". In this episode Taylor shares his journey with spiritual scrupulosity, explaining how these conditions manifested as compulsive religious behaviors fueled by some of the doctrine and practices connect...
Jun 03, 2024•55 min•Ep. 231
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Exploration of Camille Johnson’s Address about Modern Mormon Motherhood [Part II of II] In preparation for Friday's sensitive-content exclusive episode 230, Valerie offers a detailed overview of the entirety of General Relief Society President Camille Johnson's recent address given at the 2024 BYU Women's Conference. This address was both intriguing and concerning, focusing concurrently on both following the specific directions of outside authority as the...
May 27, 2024•46 min•Ep. 229
Send us a Positive Review! Big News! Listen in and rest assured that more info is coming! Thanks for being here on our mutual faith expansion journey! Support the show Listen, Share, Rate & Review EPISODES Friday Episodes Annual Subscription $89 Friday Episodes Monthly Subscription $10 Valerie’s Support & Processing Groups Donate: Venmo or Patreon Visit our Website...
May 26, 2024•4 min
Send us a Positive Review! In this thought-provoking episode Valerie is the guest on the fabulous podcast "At Last She Said It" with hosts Cynthia Winward and Susan Hinckley. In this conversation this dynamic trio dives deep into the challenging concept of "good hard" vs. "bad hard" within the LDS community. They highlight the crucial difference between actions driven by fear and shame versus those fueled by love and personal choice. Through heartfelt personal experiences and some critical refle...
May 20, 2024•1 hr 5 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: The Feminine Divine, Nature, & Radical Healing [Part III of IV] In this enlightening conversation, Valerie and special guest author Kathryn Sonntag delve deeper into the enriching concepts presented in "The Mother Tree: Discovering the Love and Wisdom of Our Divine Mother." In this episode they continue using the metaphor of a tree to help us understand how to find personal wholeness through the integration of the masculine and the feminine. Kathryn r...
May 13, 2024•47 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: The Feminine Divine, Nature, & Radical Healing [Part I of IV] In this enlightening part one of this new series Valerie welcomes author and feminist scholar Kathryn Knight Sonntag to explore the themes of growth, development, and spiritual connection through Kathryn's book, "The Mother Tree." Their discussion encompasses the significance of trees in various spiritual traditions, their representation of sacred spaces, and their role in depicting the int...
May 08, 2024•41 min
Send us a Positive Review! In this episode Valerie is joined by friend and colleague Dr. Julie Hanks, where they discuss the emotional and psychological complexities of stepping away from the LDS faith for those who feel called to do so. They emphasize the importance of making this transition in a psychologically healthy manner, and how challenging this is to do in a climate where not a lot of resources are available and this decision is fraught with so much distress and loneliness. The discussi...
Apr 29, 2024•31 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: A Deeper Look at the Sacrament [Part III of IV] In this profound episode 3 [of a four-part series] Valerie and Nathan engage in a crucial discussion on the implications of withholding the sacrament for any reason within the LDS Church. They challenge the harmful practice of using the sacrament as a disciplinary measure, which can reinforce feelings of both public and internalized shame and unworthiness. They emphasize the importance of inclusivity in all ...
Apr 22, 2024•49 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: A Deeper Look at the Sacrament [Part I of IV] In this thought-provoking opening of a new series, Val and Nathan engage in a deep exploration of the sacrament's significance in Christian practice and how it might sometimes diverge from the inclusive message of Jesus Christ. They set this series up by comparing and contrasting the history and diverse practices of sacrament across various denominations. Val then dons her "therapist hat" and discusses why and...
Apr 15, 2024•32 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Some Complexities of the BYU Experience in 2024 [Part I of II] In this episode Valerie welcomes special guest Brian Dille, a BYU alumnus and member of a professional organization responsible for accrediting institutions of higher learning in the USA. This series tackles the complex and pressing issue of academic freedom at Brigham Young University, especially in light of recent curriculum changes where the “musket” talk was made required reading for all i...
Apr 08, 2024•45 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: The Impact of Gender Inequality in the LDS Faith [Part III of IV] In this conversation Valerie and Nathan explore words—because words matter. They talk about the expanding use of the words "authority" and "power" connected to females and priesthood, thereby encouraging LDS women to understand their already-existing status in the church, while (significantly) never ever connecting women's roles and responsibilities to priesthood "keys". Val and Nathan disc...
Apr 01, 2024•46 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: The Impact of Gender Inequality in the LDS Faith [Part I of IV] Join Valerie as she explores a variety of topics connected to the 2024 rebirth of the Law of Common Consent demonstrated by LDS women throughout the world who recently voted "opposed" to claims that women in the LDS church have more authority than women of other church's worldwide. In this episode, Valerie processes a variety of topics including: ** Several reasons why the LDS church has chro...
Mar 25, 2024•1 hr 30 min
Send us a Positive Review! Healing from LDS Faith Crisis: The Personal Journey of Nick [Part I of II] In this heartfelt episode, Valerie and special guest Nick take an intimate look into the personal journey his healing and self-discovery. They dive deep into Nick's past, discussing the challenges of reconciling his relationship with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while confronting lifelong negative beliefs about himself. Nick candidly shares his experiences with loneliness, sex...
Mar 18, 2024•1 hr 2 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Expanding our Theology [Part I of II] This week Valerie and Nathan tackle two fundamental aspects of LDS observance--scriptures and prayer--and walk you through ways in which each of these concepts can be either helpful to our spiritual journeys are harmful to our spiritual growth experiences. Episode 207 reflects on the complexities of scripture, tackling the risks associated with misusing scriptures as tools of oppression and highlighting the damage cau...
Mar 11, 2024•49 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Exploring Family Challenges when LDS Young Adults Disaffiliate [Part III of IV] In this part three of this series, Valerie and her therapist colleague Liz Macdonald delve further into the complexities of navigating faith disaffiliation among young adults in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Their conversation today focuses on the unique challenges faced in families who belong to "covenantal religions", including the anxiety and isolation th...
Mar 04, 2024•1 hr 13 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Exploring Family Challenges when LDS Young Adults Disaffiliate [Part I of IV] In this episode one of a mind-expanding four-part series, Valerie and special guest and fellow therapist Liz Macdonald delve into the delicate nature of the relationship between a certain type of Latter-Day Saint parent and their young adult children who navigate different paths regarding their faith. In this episode, Liz offers and overview of an in-depth research project she d...
Feb 26, 2024•1 hr 5 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Father Richard Rohr’s Influence on LDS Faith Crisis Healing [Part III of IV] In this part three of their series celebrating some of the most significant spiritual work of Father Richard Rohr, Valerie and Nathan dive deep into the sin of exclusion which, ironically, is a serious issue within most religious systems. This episode highlights how religious systems in general struggle with marginalizing other religious systems *and* create margins within their ...
Feb 19, 2024•43 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Father Richard Rohr’s Influence on LDS Faith Crisis Healing [Part I of IV] In this profound four-part series, Nathan and Valerie delve into some of the most formative ideas that they have learned on their faith reconstruction journey with the help of Father Richard Rohr. In this episode they talk about the nature of God and how this basic concept impacts EVERYTHING else in one's spiritual journey. They riff on ideas from Julian of Norwich, Richard Rohr, J...
Feb 12, 2024•47 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Conversations with Mormon Mystics & Graduates of Fr. Richard Rohr’s ‘Living School’ [Part III of IV] In this episode, Valerie is joined by Dan Wotherspoon, a beloved voice in our Latter-day Saint progressive community, who shares his poignant personal history, detailing a journey from early rebellion, through an LDS mission, a higher-education-induced faith crisis, and finally a profound spiritual awakening that led to his enduring realization that lo...
Feb 05, 2024•1 hr 2 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Conversations with Mormon Mystics & Graduates of Fr. Richard Rohr’s ‘Living School’ [Part I of IV] In today's opening episode of a beautiful new series exploring Mormonism's own modern mystics, Valerie sits down with the insightful Jana Spangler to chat about her first-hand spiritual growth as a student of Father Richard Rohr. Jana walks us through the overarching teachings of the Living School's teachers, especially what she learned personally from F...
Jan 29, 2024•47 min
Send us a Positive Review! In today's episode, Valerie and her friend and colleague Dr. Julie Hanks delve into the complex emotional landscape of staying somehow connected to the LDS Church. They explore the importance of self-definition and psychological health, advocating for boundary-setting and personal spiritual responsibility and reflect on the intricate dynamics of faith, community, and individual well-being in the context of the LDS faith. Because they have found THIS TOPIC to be so heav...
Jan 22, 2024•56 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Historical Exploration of LDS Temple Admission Process [Part III of IV] Welcome to episode three in this four-part series on the history of the LDS temple recommend interview! Today, Valerie and Nathan continue this conversation by focusing on the evolution of temple admission from no process at all, to a vague, self-reflective process, to a process governed by adherence of specific theological beliefs and practices which changed depending a variety of fa...
Jan 15, 2024•38 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: Historical Exploration of LDS Temple Admission Process [Part I of IV] In this profoundly enlightening four-part series, Valerie and Nathan explore the complex issues surrounding worthiness and temple recommend interviews within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They delve into the hurtful misinterpretations of unworthiness, the struggle for direct spirituality versus patriarchal intermediaries, and they make sense of the discomfort and anxi...
Jan 08, 2024•1 hr 3 min
Send us a Positive Review! Series Title: A Sweeping Conversation on the New Mormon History, Hierarchy, & Social Justice [Part III of IV] In today's part III of Valerie's series with Greg Prince they delve into an era that Greg claims we should all better understand as we navigate our 21st century LDS faith. This episode casts a spotlight on the leadership of David O. McKay, with a special focus on his complex relationship to the eventual lifting of the temple/priesthood ban, his handling of ...
Jan 01, 2024•57 min
Send us a Positive Review! Hello Latter Day Struggles friends! In this bonus episode, I share the details of many of the ways that I am supporting your LDS (and surrounding) faith expansion journeys. As a psychotherapist trained in intimate and family relationships, trauma, and group-work, I could never have guessed that my specific course-work would lead me to LDS faith crisis because when I was in this intensive training process, I didn't even know what faith crisis was and had not experienced...
Dec 31, 2023•37 min
