Recognizing Red Flags: Personal Safety and Empowerment with Gabi Garland

In this powerful kickoff episode of the Pass the Mic podcast, host Kimberly Taylor Judy interviews Gabi Garland, founder of Resilient Voice Media and domestic violence survivor. With candid vulnerability, Gabi shares her personal journey through domestic violence, the red flags she missed, and how that experience shaped her approach to personal safety and raising her children. Together, they discuss the importance of recognizing warning signs in relationships, trusting your instincts, and teaching children age-appropriate awareness skills. This conversation offers valuable insights for anyone who has experienced abuse or wants to protect themselves and their loved ones in an increasingly unpredictable world.

Gabi Garland is the founder of Resilient Voice Media, a global podcast network and production company dedicated to amplifying the voices of extraordinary people. As a survivor of domestic violence and single mother for over 15 years, Gabi brings personal experience to her work empowering others to share their stories. Through her company, she created the Pass the Mic podcast, which features a new expert each month sharing their zone of genius and the "why" behind their work. Gabi's mission is to help people shine in the lane built to share their story and magic, particularly uplifting those who have overcome significant challenges. Her own journey from domestic violence survivor to successful entrepreneur and advocate informs her passionate approach to personal safety and empowerment.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Recognizing Red Flags in Relationships: How Gabi missed warning signs and what she learned from that experience
• The Isolation Pattern of Abuse: How abusers systematically cut victims off from support networks
• The Addiction Cycle of Abuse: Why leaving abusive relationships is difficult and how our bodies become conditioned to volatility
• Trust Issues After Abuse: Gabi's perspective on how abuse survivors often find safety uncomfortable
• Raising Children with Safety Awareness: How Gabi taught her daughter to protect herself
• Personal Safety Practices: Practical approaches to situational awareness and self-defense
• Finding Safe People and Places: The importance of having escape plans and trusted confidants
• From Survivor to Advocate: How Gabi's experiences informed her mission to help others

Key Topics Discussed:

• Recognizing Red Flags in Relationships: How Gabi missed warning signs and what she learned from that experience
• The Isolation Pattern of Abuse: How abusers systematically cut victims off from support networks
• The Addiction Cycle of Abuse: Why leaving abusive relationships is difficult and how our bodies become conditioned to volatility
• Trust Issues After Abuse: Gabi's perspective on how abuse survivors often find safety uncomfortable
• Raising Children with Safety Awareness: How Gabi taught her daughter to protect herself
• Personal Safety Practices: Practical approaches to situational awareness and self-defense
• Finding Safe People and Places: The importance of having escape plans and trusted confidants
• From Survivor to Advocate: How Gabi's experiences informed her mission to help others

Powerful Quotes from the Episode

"I think too often, especially if you've been through any sort of trauma or life circumstances, you don't always naturally trust yourself as much as you should or don't lean into it as much as you should. And I think that intuition is what will save your life."

"I talked about it on my episode about my domestic violence story... all those moments that I missed, whereas, you know, the isolation and the 'oh, don't go hang out over there because I miss you.' And so you start moving away from or getting out of those social circles that you're accustomed to."

"That is like a red flag for me that I feel like that's one of the earliest ones because it's the love bomb of like, 'I love you so much. I just want you to talk to me all the time.' And then what? And then now I've started to isolate you from the people that could help you in this environment."

"It wasn't that I didn't meet other good guys after I had been out of a domestic marriage relationship. It's just good guys didn't feel safe because I had spent so many years being abused emotionally, physically, sexually, all of the things."

"If you were safe, I was like, that was a red flag for me. And that is weird, and I don't think that we talk about that enough because we don't necessarily know to trust, one, to trust ourselves, but to trust our nervous system in safe spaces."

"I think playing small does nobody any favors. And you need to be safe and protect yourself so that you don't have to worry when things happen."

"I got in one fist fight in fourth grade and that was it over a peanut butter sandwich. I didn't realize not everybody got in fights all the time. I was that."

"I love that you do this work. I think it's really powerful. I think it's really important."

Resources

CONNECT WITH Kimberly Taylor Judy

KIMBERLY'S BUSINESS: Move With Purpose Firearms and Defense Training - For those interested in personal safety training

Facebook and Instagram Links

A Resilient Voice Media Production 

• To work with us submit inquiry at www.resilientvoicemedia.com
• Gabi Garland CEO of Resilient Voice Media
• CONNECT WITH GABI: Instagram and Facebook
• FOLLOW THE PODCAST: Pass the Mic podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify

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