Podcast
Something Positive for Positive People
Hosted by Courtney W. Brame - Something Positive for Positive People (SPFPP.org) · EN
Hosted by Courtney W. Brame, Something Positive for Positive People is a 501c3 nonprofit organization supporting people navigating herpes stigma. We offer 1-1 support calls for people who need help with sharing their status with potential partners. We offer virtual events, support groups, and advocate in mental health and sexual health spaces for the minimization of stigma through the stories shared. On this podcast, we interview people living with herpes and who work in the field of sexual health, mental health, and public health to neutralize stigma's impacts.
62episodes
Episodes
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SPFPP 411: Access Points for Exploration - with Kiki Maree
5d ago01:06:55Summary readyHow does our understanding of "cleanliness" perpetuate STI stigma? This week on Something Positive for Positive People, Courtney Brame is joined by Australian sexologist Kiki Maree for a transparent conversation about neutralizing the shame surrounding sexual health.Kiki opens up about her childhood experience of oral herpes being completely normalized within her family, contrasting it with the intense stigma society places on genital herpes. Together, Courtney and Kiki explore the confusing journey of being diagnosed with Ureaplasma and Bacterial Vaginosis (BV), and how hyper-vigilance around "smell" and "cleanliness" can destroy intimacy. Kiki also explains how physical setbacks—whether it's an STI diagnosis, erectile disappointment, or a boundary violation—can actually serve as powerful access points to a deeper, more authentic connection with your own sexuality.Links & Resources Mentioned:Follow Kiki Maree on Instagram: @yoniclicious or @kiki.mareeVisit Kiki’s Website for Free Resources: yoniclicious.com.auGet Tickets for the NYC Expo (Aug 29): spfpp.org/expoSubscribe to the SPFPP Newsletter: spfpp.org/herpes-newsletterSelf Yoni Love: https://www.yonilicious.com.au/access-pleasure-portalNavigating sexuaqlity while living alongside chronic pain and/or illness: https://www.yonilicious.com.au/navigating-pain-and-illness-masterclassBody Image & Sexuality: https://www.yonilicious.com.au/body-image-neutrality-masterclass
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SPFPP 410: The Undercurrent of Communication - No Means No
2w ago01:25:09Summary readySPFPP 410: The Undercurrent of Communication - No Means NoAre you telling yourself "no" before giving anyone else the chance to say yes? This week on Something Positive for Positive People, Courtney Brame is talking about dating, initiation, and overcoming the fear of success.After being called out by the women's support group for avoiding dating initiation, Courtney realized his lack of confidence wasn't a fear of rejection—it was a fear of getting exactly what he wanted. Drawing powerful parallels from Brazilian Zouk dancing, Courtney breaks down the importance of congruent communication, how to read subtle hints, and why we need to stop attaching our identities to a "no." Tune in to learn how to view dating as an invitation to "play," the importance of aligning your beliefs with your behaviors, and major updates on the upcoming NYC Herpes Stigma Expo.Links & Resources Mentioned:Subscribe to the SPFPP Newsletter: spfpp.org/herpes-newsletterGet Tickets for the NYC Expo (Aug 29): spfpp.org/expoRequest a Donation-Based Support Call: spfpp.org
SummarySPFPP 409: What We Don't Metabolize Will Metastasize
Jul 1300:47:52Summary readyIf you don't metabolize your trauma, it will metastasize into your life. This week on Something Positive for Positive People, Courtney Brame returns for a deeply personal, unapologetic solo episode. Reflecting on his own year-and-a-half journey of suppressed grief following the end of a relationship, Courtney explains how the emotions we refuse to process—whether it's heartbreak or the trauma of an STI diagnosis—operate just like a cancer, spreading into our confidence, our communication, and our identity.In this episode, Courtney explores the "suicide of self-identification" that happens when we let stigma invalidate who we are. Using powerful analogies—from somatic release in deep tissue massages to the conversation of Brazilian Zouk dancing—Courtney breaks down why pure, unfiltered authenticity is the ultimate "chemo" for internalized stigma. Tune in to learn why your environment dictates your healing, why it's time to stop dimming your light, and how to consciously channel your energy to attract the connections you actually deserve.Links & Resources Mentioned:Take the Herpes Stigma Survey: spfpp.org/herpes-surveyGet Tickets for the NYC Expo (Aug 29): spfpp.org/expoLearn more about "Letting Go" of Herpes Stigma: spfpp.org/yoga
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SPFPP 408: Safe Sex is Communicative Sex - with Tamar Weir
Jun 1000:50:54Summary readySPFPP 408: Safe Sex is Communicative Sex - with Tamar WeirWhat happens when you find out you've been exposed to an STI you've never even heard of? This week on Something Positive for Positive People, Courtney Brame sits down with Tamar Weir (founder of Pomegranate Pleasure) to unpack a real-life scenario: Tamar's recent Ureaplasma diagnosis and how she communicated the exposure to Courtney.Courtney and Tamar explore the nuances of Ureaplasma as a commensal bacteria, the intense frustration of navigating confusing and unhelpful medical providers, and how the stigma surrounding "cleanliness" makes these infections harder to talk about. Tamar also shares her tips for building your own personalized sexual health "script," while Courtney breaks down why it's time to shift from a high-pressure "confession" to a co-created "discussion." Tune in to learn why having conversations about sexual health doesn't have to ruin the mood—it can actually make intimacy sexier.Links & Resources Mentioned:Follow Tamar Weir on Instagram: @pomegranatepleasureRead Tamar's Blog: Everything Juicy (Link via IG)Subscribe to the SPFPP Newsletter: spfpp.org/herpes-newsletterGet Tickets for the NYC Expo (Aug 29): spfpp.org/expo
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SPFPP 407: Presence Over Performance
Jun 101:01:35Summary readyI had a support call go sideways and was hung up on for the first time since I started doing this work in 2017 supporting people living with herpes. I had to learn for myself real quick that my authenticity is more important than anybody else's discomfort. I can't coddle folks into healing.
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SPFPP 406: Right Use of Energy - Brahmacharya in Action
May 101:38:17Summary readyAre you bleeding energy into things that don't serve your highest self? This week, Courtney is back with a massive life update and a profound shift in the podcast's direction. Transitioning to a once-a-month format, Courtney dives deep into the yogic principle of Brahmacharya—the right use of energy.Listen in as I share how removing social media distractions and enforcing strict personal boundaries led to necessary changes. From transmuting unspent sexual energy into writing the first draft of the SPFPP book, to transforming my physical health through Ayurveda, to processing relationship trauma on the Zouk dance floor, this episode is about vertical growth over horizontal distraction. I also also break down the main differences between the men's and women's support groups, share my upcoming travel itinerary, and explains why true authenticity is the ultimate friction-remover.Links & Resources Mentioned:Subscribe to the SPFPP Newsletter: spfpp.org/herpes-newsletterRead the SPFPP Blog: spfpp.org/herpes-blogRequest a Donation-Based Support Call: spfpp.org/herpes-support-call
SummarySPFPP 405: You're Entitled to Compensation
Apr 600:57:13Summary readyA herpes diagnosis can make you feel taken from, or like God took away your ability to have sex. What exactly was taken from you? Reality is that you are still capable of sex, and nothing was 'taken' necessarily except for the identification we had with ourselves leading up to the diagnosis. If in fact God did take away your ability to have sex, then by God's Law of compensation, you're entitled to something of equal or greater value in return. I speak about the laws of Thermodynamics to hopefully give an idea of the energetics/physics of what to do with a herpes diagnosis.
SummarySPFPP 404: How to Communicate an STI Exposure
Apr 200:32:06Summary readyThere's a statement phrase that goes, "Can't do, teach" and I don't know the punctuation exactly, but it means those who don't have the bravery to have the experience become people who just teach because they can't do the thing they teach. Here, you'll hear me share my own personal experience which highlights the importance of why those who do NEED to teach. This is why teaching from experience is necessary.
SummarySPFPP 403: Courtney's 13 Year Herpes Anniversary
Mar 2300:17:36Summary readyIt was March 23, 2013 I woke up and had my first herpes outbreak. It was a whole 13 years now of living with herpes. The past 9 years of running SPFPP and the podcast, I have hidden behind the experiences of my guests, and now I'm very challenged with what it looks like to maintain this consistency of sharing experiences of people living with herpes and it's become much harder to find guests. I now have accepted that I gotta quit being a lil' baby about not sharing my own lived experiences with herpes. I've been afraid of criticism, the fact that things change over time, the fact that it's the internet and anything I say can be brought up and used against me somehow. Wild to say, but I'm working through that barrier and hopefully that transparency brings in more guests as well. But here's a recap of how I celebrated my 13 year herpes anniversary with the community!
SummarySPFPP 402: Herpes is the End of the World
Mar 1100:37:21Summary readyA few times this past week, people on support calls have shared that when they talked to their therapist, a friend, or even the suicide lifeline, that they were met with, "It's not the end of the world". The reality is, it is. And telling someone whose whole world as they know it is being torn apart is invalidating to their experience. We've been learning since 2017 that the consistent reason for suicidality after a herpes diagnosis is an invalidation of identity. A person's beliefs are not to be invalidated, but interrogated with curiosity. I probably shouldn't say that in writing, because there's a fine line between curiosity and being nosey, and not everyone can navigate that with someone seeking support. My intention this episode is to share and validate that yes, herpes is the end of the world, as is that first heart break, first job loss, first encounter with losing a loved one, only for us to take the remnants of the ending and incorporate it into our identity. To nurture our nature is to integrate the essence of our previously ended worlds to come to create a new one for ourselves from it.
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