✨ What if your grad school journey doesn't go according to plan?

Maybe you've thought about changing programs. Taking a leave of absence. Starting over. Or maybe life forced you to make a pivot you never expected.

This week on the Grad Girl Wellness Podcast, I'm joined by Valisha Edwards, a PhD student in Integrated Life Sciences with a concentration in Forensic Toxicology. Before beginning her doctoral journey, Valisha built a career as a forensic scientist/criminalist—giving her a unique perspective on what it means to leave the working world and step back into life as a graduate student.

We discuss:

🌱 Navigating the shame and insecurity that can come with unexpected detours

📚 How to choose a graduate program and advisor that truly fit your goals and needs

✨ Finding your identity beyond your degree when the title of "student" is no longer yours

🔍 Why curiosity—not fear—can be your greatest guide during a season of change

Your path doesn't have to be linear to be meaningful. Sometimes the bravest thing you can do is ask a different question, choose a different direction, or redefine what success looks like for you.

If you're in a season of uncertainty, this conversation is for you.

💬 Connect with the future Dr. Edwards on LinkedIn

#GradGirlWellness #GradSchool #GraduateStudent #PhDLife #MastersStudent #AcademicJourney #HigherEducation #WomenInAcademia #GradSchoolLife #AcademicWellness #CareerPivot #GraduateSchool #PersonalGrowth #StudentSuccess #MentalHealthMatters

✨ On the heels of Black Maternal Health Week, this conversation is one you don’t want to miss.

We sat down with Dr. Michele Mayne 🎓—a newly minted PhD in Sociology (with a focus on medical sociology + community health & well-being)—who navigated the journey of unexpectedly becoming a mom during her doctoral program 🤱🏾📚

From challenges to triumphs, Dr. Mayne kept going… and her story is both real and inspiring 💫

In this episode, we dive into:

💭 How to decide if, when, and with whom to share your pregnancy

🧠 Strategies for navigating motherhood while staying on track academically

🌍 Building community as a woman of color and international student

🔥 Using motherhood as motivation—not limitation

🗂️ Creating structure while juggling coursework, teaching, adjuncting, and childcare

This episode is a powerful reminder that your path doesn’t have to look traditional to be successful 💪🏾✨ To get in touch with her, email dr.michelesmayne@gmail.com

🎧 Tune in now + share with a grad girl who needs this! 💕

Struggling to actually remember what you study? 🤯📚

On this episode of the Grad Girl Wellness Podcast, we’re joined by Dr. Rachel Slaughter—an expert on how the brain learns and retains information 🧠✨

She breaks down practical, research-backed strategies you can start using right now:

🔑 Effective study techniques (chunking, highlighting, annotation, and more)

🧘🏾‍♀️ Why breaks + intentional reading are essential for brain recovery

🔗 How to make your reading relevant (so it actually sticks!)

📝 Test-taking strategies that help you show up with confidence and ease

If you’re tired of rereading the same page over and over, this episode is for YOU 💡

Learn more about her work at drrachelslaughter.com and follow her across social media for more gems 💻🌱

The dissertation is done—but the writing isn’t over. 📝 In this solo episode with Grad Girl Wellness creator, Dr. Angela, she shares some big news related to her dissertation! She reflects on what it’s really like to turn a dissertation into a book, juggling time, expectations, and uncertainty.

If you’re a grad student or postdoc in the “what now?” stage, this one’s for you 💛

On this episode of the Grad Girl Wellness Podcast, we’re diving into all things leadership + higher education with the brilliant Dr. Nicole Rayfield. 🎓💛

She holds a PhD in Organizational Leadership with a focus on organizational citizenship behavior in Black women in academic spaces—aka all the extra labor we do that often goes unrecognized. 🙃✨

Get your notebooks ready, because she drops so many gems, including:

1️⃣ How to identify your “strategic yes” and decide if a leadership role is truly for you

2️⃣ How to step away from positions that no longer serve your growth 🙅🏽‍♀️✨

3️⃣ How to spot your everyday leadership abilities (yes, you have them!) 💪🏽

4️⃣ How to quiet self-doubt and trust your leadership power 💭➡️✨

To learn more about Dr. Rayfield and her entrepreneurial brilliance, follow her on IG:

👉🏽 @officialdrnicolerayfield

👉🏽 @polishmeunbothered

or visit www.polishmeunbothered.com 💌

Tune in, take notes, and step into your leadership era, Grad Girl. 💛🎧✨

Awwww S.N.A.P.! 🎙️

On this episode, we sit down with Dr. Pearis Jean — psychologist, assistant professor, healer, and author. In her final year of graduate school, Dr. Jean developed a powerful model for Strategically Navigating Anti-Black Racism in Professional Spaces (S.N.A.P.) which is now a book! 📚

In this conversation, Dr. Jean shares insights on:

✨ Understanding and addressing anti-Black racism

🤝 Building peer support across graduate student cohorts

🧭 Using the S.N.A.P. decision-making model to prepare for, respond to and reflect on anti-Black racism

💡 Bonus: How a conference presentation turned into a book opportunity!

🌐 Connect with Dr. Jean:

Website: www.drpearisjean.com

Instagram: @pearisjeanphd

LinkedIn: Pearis Jean

📘 Check out the book:

Strategically Navigating Anti-Black Racism in Professional Spaces: A Practical Guide for Black People Responding to Racism in the Workplace — available wherever you buy books.

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Destiny Williams-Dobosz, a postdoctoral fellow in Educational Psychology. Drawing from her own journey, Dr. Williams-Dobosz shares how personal experience became a doorway into her research on help-seeking among Black women in STEM and first-generation college students.

Our conversation explores:

• The resilience and vulnerability paradigm
• Redefining success in toxic environments
• Strategies for asking for help in college settings
• Ways to foster and support help-seeking behaviors in others

You can dive deeper into her work by reading her recent publication:

Williams-Dobosz, D. (2025). Storytelling as praxis: Leveraging a Black woman’s critical autoethnography as a first-generation college student to explore inequities and possibilities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education.

🎓 You don’t have to do grad school alone! 💫

On this episode of the Grad Girl Wellness podcast, we sit down with Darrien Johnson, founder and CEO of The Community Curator — a social-impact consultancy supporting grassroots organizations across Philadelphia 🌆💼

With a Master’s in Non-Profit Organizational Management, Darrien shares her powerful journey of leaning into community to navigate grad school and build lasting impact.

Tune in to hear:

🤝 How to find community in unexpected places

🏡 The importance of leaning on your home base during academic challenges

🌱 Tips for building sustainable and intentional community

Want to learn more about Darrien and her incredible work? Follow her on LinkedIn to stay connected and inspired!

#GradGirlWellness #CommunityBuilding #BlackWomenInNonProfits #GradSchoolJourney

🎙️ On this episode of the Grad Girl Wellness podcast, we chat with designer, advocate, and creative visionary Diona Nicole! With a Master’s in User Experience and Interaction Design, Diona channeled her passion into founding Barren Fruit, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting those navigating infertility and reproductive health challenges 💛🌱

Tune in to hear:

✨ How Diona transformed an adjunct role into an opportunity for self-growth

🎓 How she used her master’s thesis to visualize the “silent” pain of women’s reproductive health

🤝 Practical ways to support someone experiencing reproductive health concerns

To learn more about Barren Fruit and the inspiring work Diona does to birth new ideas, visit Barrenfruit.org or follow her on IG at @Diona.Nicole 💫

#GradGirlWellness #ReproductiveHealth #InfertilityAwareness #WellnessJourney

Let's talk! On this episode of the podcast, we sit down with health advocate and doctoral student Shay Webb who is currently pursuing a PhD in Health Science. As someone diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and Rheumatoid Arthritis, she uses her passion for health equity to fuel her research and work in the legislative policy space. On this episode, you'll learn about:

• How and when to ask for accommodations
• The importance of building community
• How to manage advocacy work with pursuing a graduate work

To follow Shay's work you can subscribe to her newsletter "Webb of Diabetes", connect with her on LinkedIn, and follow on Instagram @shayd1t

Have you ever considered adjuncting as a side hustle or as a way to getting teaching experience on your CV? If so, this podcast is for you. On episode 36, we chat with Dr. Mecca Terry the originator of the "From Grad School to Adjunct" masterclass, which she developed based on10 years of working in an adjunct position. You'll learn the following just by tuning in:

-How to leverage an adjunct position for future job prospects 

-How to determine if an adjunct position is right for you

-Ways to begin your adjunct job search 

-The importance of wellness while adjuncting

-How to be ok with being told "no"

Dr. Terry will be hosting her "From Grad School to Adjunct" masterclass on Wednesday, January 29 from 6-7:30 pm EST. Go to drmeccaterry.com to register!

Remember that admission for graduate students is FREE!

While we wait for a graduate student edition of Pop the Balloon, here's our newest episode all about dating. Here, we chat with Dr. Dalesa Martinez Rueda (@docdalesa) who is a marriage and family therapist and owner of Inspired and Free (@inspiredandfreelife), an online therapy practice for children, adolescents, individuals, and groups in 10 states! Listen in for answers to the following questions:

• How to not measure our journeys by societal expectations?
• How to turn down the tendency to compare?
• What work should you do prior to getting on the dating scene?
• What are helpful resources you could rely on while dating in graduate school?

If you like what you hear, be sure to sign up for your free consultation at www.inspiredandfree.com!

This is a solo episode with Angela where she offers her five keys to gift giving as a graduate student.

On this episode, she not only tells you how to make the most of your limited grad school coins and where to look for deals, but she also takes the time to think through what it feels like to budget on a grad school stipend.

If you're on the market to buy something for yourself or a graduate student in your life, check out the GGW Etsy store which has lots of goodies--stickers, mugs, care packages and more!

If you missed the live recording of the Postdoc Perspective webinar earlier this year, this is your chance to catch the playback. On this episode, you’ll hear from three postdocs, Dr. Angela (Education), Dr. Reka (Education) and Dr. Christine (Microbiology), as they discuss all things postdoc. Some of the topics they discuss include; 

1. Why they chose a postdoc
2. How they knew their postdoc was a good fit
3. The best and worst parts of their positions
4. Ways to make additional money as a postdoc 

If you’ve ever considered a postdoc or don’t even know what it is, this recorded session is certainly for you! 

In 2024, GGW is standing on business, and that's what our guest, Dr. Emmanuela Stanislaus, is all about. As a multi-passionate professional, serial entrepreneur, and daughter of immigrants, she leverages her depth of experiences as a consultant and coach for women of color in graduate school. In this episode you'll learn:

• Advice for starting your own business
• Determining when it's time to begin or end an entrepreneurial endeavor
• How your research can inform your approach to business

Dr. Emmanuela offers great resources on her website (https://www.dremmanuelaconsulting.com), which includes sign up links for coaching/consulting, her Writing on my Mind podcast, and even her e-book "Taking Charge: A Career Guide for Graduate Students." Be sure to listen and start the year off on the right foot!

On this episode of the GGW podcast, we chat with Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership and Founder of Black Womnyn Professoriate, Dr. Keneisha Harrington. As a key component of wellness, W\we talk all things community in grad school and on the tenure track. Some topics include:

• Using graduate school to explore the types of wellness activities that work best for you
• A wellness toolbox
• Different ways and spaces to build community
• The BE Well writing retreat (claim the remaining spot ASAP)

This episode is sure to be helpful for anyone looking for ways to build community but might be too scared to know where to start.

Connect with Dr. Harriington here:

Instagram: blackwomynprofessoriate

Twitter:@blackwomynprof

Website: www.blackwomynprofessoriate.com

Self care is important but we can't do it all on our own. This episode of the Grad Girl Wellness podcast features, Dra. Yvette Martínez-Vu, a first generation, Chicana, mother scholar and academic coach. She shares how her experiences as a graduate student inspired her to be a resource for first generation students of color as they navigate the graduate school application process and beyond! On this episode you'll hear:

• The importance of finding the right type of mentor for you
• Tips on how to find a femtor
• Insight on Dra. Yvette's forthcoming co-authored book "The Grad School Femtoring Guide"

To learn more about Grad School Femtoring visit www.gradschoolfemtoring.com, @gradschoolfemtoring (IG & Facebook), @gradfemtoring (Twitter)

On this special Wellness Reset edition of the Grad Girl Wellness podcast, we sit down with Dr. Jennifer Bourgeois who will be a featured panelist and the yoga instructor for the retreat happening October 8 at 12 pm EST. Dr. Bourgeois is a "Pandemic PhD" who earned her doctorate in Administration of Justice in 2021. She is currently a professor, postdoctoral fellow and yoga instructor. Through her work with Pages & Poses LLC., she melds her passions for wellness and supporting individuals impacted by the criminal legal system. On this episode we discuss:

• The parallels between a wellness and academic journey
• The difference between being a PhD student and a postdoc
• Gaining real-world experience prior to pursuing a PhD

To find out more about Dr. Bourgeois you can follow her on Instagram @jennwith2ns_yogi and on her website www.pagesandposes.com

What happens when dissertation writing and romance collide? On this episode of the Grad Girl Wellness podcast, we continue our conversation about romantic relationships. Wynta, our featured guest, is currently a first year PhD student in clinical psychology but has been known to wear many hats as a researcher, lecturer and, stress coach. Some key points she shares about relationships as a grad student include:

• Time management while in a relationship
• Co-habitation and working from home during the pandemic
• The emotional impact of a breakup while trying to finish your degree

Wynta's transparency on this episode is truly invaluable for anyone listening no matter their relationship status. Feel free to give her a follow on Instagram at @wyntaworthwhile

Love is in the air. On this episode, we talk to Dr. Christina, a recently minted PhD in American studies. She shares her reflections and authentic advice on what it's like to date while in graduate school. Some of the topics we cover include:

• identifying the place of romantic relationships in our life and how the prioritization of relationships changes throughout grad school
• the pros and cons of dating someone who is also a student
• the importance of therapy in helping you to conceptualize how to date and why you approach dating the way you do
• grieving while also attending to academic commitments 

All in all, this episode is a reminder for folks to seriously consider therapy as a way to help you make sense of your dating approach. Dr. Christina suggests the directory provided by therapyforblackgirls.com to help you find a provider.

To stay connected, you can find Dr. Christina at csessoms3 on Instagram and Christina Sessoms on Linked In