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Self-Taught: The podcast

Former Foster Youth on Sex, Health, and Life

Welcome to Self-Taught, a podcast from foster youth, for foster youth, with unfiltered conversations about sex, health and life. These are the conversations about puberty, relationships, sexual health, identity and much more that we wish were part of our upbringing. 

When you are in foster care, there aren’t always people to answer the big questions or to make it easy to open up about sensitive stuff. That’s why we’re bringing these conversations to you. We hope these episodes spark questions and provide resources for you, to find answers, feel empowered, and have community. 

Self-Taught is hosted by the youth advisory board of the Reproductive Health Equity Project at the National Center for Youth Law and supported through a grant to the National Center for Youth Law from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.

Please subscribe to our newsletter to get notified of future episodes.

Thank you to our Youth Advisory Board for the inspiration and content; John Freret for music; Mezclao Studio, cover art; Melissa Russom, podcast producing; and the National Center for Youth Law for sponsorship!

Season 2

Self-Taught S2 Episode 1

What Are Foster Youth s Rights To Healthcare In this Episode Tamar and Alexis sit down with Rebecca Gudeman to highlight many of these rights for youth in California and to talk about what often gets in the way of youth in care being able to fully benefit from them

Watch here »
Self-Taught S2 Episode 2

How Can Foster Youth Use Birth Control on Their Terms In this episode Kat and Brandy talk about their personal experiences with birth control and provide an overview of the variety of birth control methods available

Watch here »
Self-Taught S2 Episode 3

Former Foster Youth On Preventing Sexually Transmitted Infections STIs In this episode we discuss methods for safe sex relatable accounts of what it s like to navigate the healthcare system with an STI shaking off stigma being open and feeling safe with partners and more

Watch here »
Self-Taught S2 Episode 4

What foster youth need to know about prenatal care In this episode Kat Cody Phillisha and Sarah talk about getting the care you need leading up to birth which is known as prenatal care

Watch here »
Self-Taught S2 Episode 6

It s Complicated Mental Health and Foster Care In this episode Kat Elyzabeth Alexis and Esme talk about the unique challenges former foster youth face when accessing the mental healthcare services they need

Watch here »

Season 1

Self-Taught Episode 1

Nobody Taught Me About Sexual And Reproductive Health​ In this episode we discuss the talk puberty birth control and finding the right doctor while growing up in foster care

Watch here »
Self-Taught Episode 5

Mixed Diaspora 8221 and finding a sense of belonging In this episode Kat and Alexis talk about how they have found a sense of belonging throughout various parts of their lives

Watch here »
Self-Taught Episode 6

Reparenting In this Episode Phillisha and Tamar talk about how they each actively sought to reparent themselves 8211 filling in gaps from their own development 8211 in order to be the best parent for their child

Watch here »

Season 2

Self-Taught S2 Episode 1

What Are Foster Youth s Rights To Healthcare In this Episode Tamar and Alexis sit down with Rebecca Gudeman to highlight many of these rights for youth in California and to talk about what often gets in the way of youth in care being able to fully benefit from them

Watch here »
Self-Taught S2 Episode 2

How Can Foster Youth Use Birth Control on Their Terms In this episode Kat and Brandy talk about their personal experiences with birth control and provide an overview of the variety of birth control methods available

Watch here »
Self-Taught S2 Episode 3

Former Foster Youth On Preventing Sexually Transmitted Infections STIs In this episode we discuss methods for safe sex relatable accounts of what it s like to navigate the healthcare system with an STI shaking off stigma being open and feeling safe with partners and more

Watch here »
Self-Taught S2 Episode 4

What foster youth need to know about prenatal care In this episode Kat Cody Phillisha and Sarah talk about getting the care you need leading up to birth which is known as prenatal care

Watch here »
Self-Taught S2 Episode 6

It s Complicated Mental Health and Foster Care In this episode Kat Elyzabeth Alexis and Esme talk about the unique challenges former foster youth face when accessing the mental healthcare services they need

Watch here »

Season 1

Self-Taught Episode 1

Nobody Taught Me About Sexual And Reproductive Health​ In this episode we discuss the talk puberty birth control and finding the right doctor while growing up in foster care

Watch here »
Self-Taught Episode 5

Mixed Diaspora 8221 and finding a sense of belonging In this episode Kat and Alexis talk about how they have found a sense of belonging throughout various parts of their lives

Watch here »
Self-Taught Episode 6

Reparenting In this Episode Phillisha and Tamar talk about how they each actively sought to reparent themselves 8211 filling in gaps from their own development 8211 in order to be the best parent for their child

Watch here »

Self-Taught is fully supported by a grant to the National Center for Youth Law from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. We are very grateful for their support. Contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Hilton Foundation.

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