What happens when "toxic" isn't just a trendy buzzword, but your daily reality? Behind closed doors, toxic relationships rarely announce themselves with obvious red flags. Instead, they slowly erode your sense of self through quiet patterns that make you question your reality and shrink your existence.

This deep dive explores what actually makes a relationship toxic—from the subtle gaslighting that makes you doubt your sanity to the trauma bonds that keep you chemically addicted to harmful cycles. Using insights from attachment theory, polyvagal theory, and the Gottman Method, we unpack why intelligent, capable people stay in relationships that hurt them, and why leaving feels like withdrawal rather than relief.

The numbers are staggering: 84% of women and 75% of men report experiencing toxic friendships, while globally, one in three women faces intimate partner violence. These aren't just statistics—they represent millions of everyday people who've normalized relationship pain as the cost of connection.

Whether you're questioning your current relationship, healing from a past one, or supporting someone caught in toxic patterns, this episode offers clarity without judgment. You'll learn the psychological mechanisms behind toxic love, practical boundary scripts that protect your peace, and how to distinguish between relationships worth repairing and those that require the courage to walk away.

Most importantly, you'll discover that your worth was never dependent on someone else choosing you—it's in how you choose yourself. If communication has become warfare, if your needs are consistently dismissed, or if you no longer recognize who you are in the relationship, this is your permission slip to trust your gut and reclaim the self you've been taught to silence.

You deserve more than survival in love. Share this episode with someone who needs to hear they're not crazy—they're just healing.

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© 2025 Licensed and Unfiltered. All rights reserved.
This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for therapy or mental health treatment.

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Sex. Just reading that word might make your palms sweat or trigger your inner middle schooler to blush. But why? In a world saturated with sexualized images, why do so many women still feel profound shame about their desires, bodies, and pleasure?

This episode tears down the walls of sexual shame, exposing the systems that taught us to silence our needs, question our worth, and disconnect from our bodies. We unpack how inadequate sex education, religious purity culture, and the Madonna-Whore Complex work together to create a perfect storm of confusion and guilt around female sexuality. These aren't just abstract concepts—they're the root causes behind why 60% of women under 35 feel embarrassed about their sexual desires.

We dive deep into the pleasure gap (men orgasm 95% of the time in heterosexual encounters while women reach climax only 65% of the time), the myth of "low libido" women (who often just experience desire differently), and how trauma, childbirth, and relationship dynamics affect our relationship with sex. Through therapeutic frameworks and practical advice, we explore how to close these gaps, communicate needs, and reclaim pleasure without performance pressure.

Whether you're struggling with disconnection from your body, confusion about your desires, or shame about your sexual history, this episode offers something revolutionary: permission. Permission to want, to not want, to explore, to heal, and to come home to your body at your own pace. Because you weren't born feeling shame about sex—you were taught it. And what's learned can be unlearned.

Ready to shake off the shame and reclaim your sexuality on your own terms? Listen now, and remember: your body isn't broken. The system is.

Support the show

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💬 Liked this episode?
Leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify — it helps more people find Licensed and Unfiltered and keeps the conversations going.

🌐 Explore more:
Head to licensedandunfiltered.com for tools, extras, and all the behind-the-scenes stuff.

📲 follow us @licensnedaunfiltered

📩 Have a question or topic you’d love to hear covered?
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© 2025 Licensed and Unfiltered. All rights reserved.
This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for therapy or mental health treatment.

Sponsored by Northern Arizona Digital Marketing and Therapedia

🎙️ Episode Title: Are you being lied to about having a successful relationship with someone with an addiction?

📝 Episode Description:

This episode of Licensed and Unfiltered dives into the raw and rarely spoken realities of addiction — from the pain and confusion it brings to the people we love, to the internal battles we often hide.

Lina shares personal and clinical reflections on addiction, healing, and what it means to hold space for others while honoring your own mental health. Whether you're a clinician, a loved one, or someone in the thick of recovery, this conversation is for you.

Want to share your story live on the show?
Submit your story or therapy question here:
https://share.hsforms.com/1mooej1eBTlSit-tcWqNT-Qdhorz

💙 Resources for Addiction Support

Veteran-Specific Resources:

• Veterans Crisis Line (24/7): Dial 988, then press 1
  Website: https://www.veteranscrisisline.net/
• VA Substance Use Treatment Programs: https://www.va.gov/health-care/health-needs-conditions/substance-use-problems/
• Vet Center Programs (free counseling for combat veterans & families): https://www.vetcenter.va.gov/

Civilian Addiction & Recovery Resources:

• SAMHSA National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357)
  Website: https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline
• Al-Anon Family Groups (support for loved ones of those with addiction): https://al-anon.org/
• SMART Recovery (science-based addiction support): https://www.smartrecovery.org/
• Recovery.org (rehab locator and resources): https://www.recovery.org/

⚡ Powered by Northern Arizona Digital Marketing (NADM)
Website: https://nazdm.com

Special thanks to our sponsor, Therapedia, for making this podcast possible.

Support the show

🎙️ Episode Footer

💬 Liked this episode?
Leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify — it helps more people find Licensed and Unfiltered and keeps the conversations going.

🌐 Explore more:
Head to licensedandunfiltered.com for tools, extras, and all the behind-the-scenes stuff.

📲 follow us @licensnedaunfiltered

📩 Have a question or topic you’d love to hear covered?
Submit it anonymously or send us a DM or submit them here — you just might hear it on a future episode.

—

© 2025 Licensed and Unfiltered. All rights reserved.
This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for therapy or mental health treatment.

Sponsored by Northern Arizona Digital Marketing and Therapedia