Ep. 17: Fen Sturniolo & the Journey From Repression to Liberation

This week's guest is librarian and mental health advocate, Fen Sturniolo (they/them). Before this conversation I knew librarians were incredible but, holy moly, I truly think its going to be queer librarians who are going to save this world because I felt so inspired and invigorated by Fen and the work they do as a teen librarian, first working in schools and now working in the public library. In addition to sharing about their work, Fen invites us all into their journey - their queer journey and their mental health journey. As with many queer people who come out in adulthood, Fen had an experience of having their authentic identity be resisted and repressed for so much of their life. It wasn't until recent years that space was created to embrace the fullness of who they are. Fen shares with us about this and about the liberation that has come with existing as they are now. Their story is so powerful and they were so generous with it by inviting us all in.  Note for the listener: the topics of suicidal ideation and self harm are components of todays conversation so feel free to do what ever you need to care for yourself with this heads up. About the guest:Fen (They/Them) is a librarian, passionate about representation in literature and breaking mental health stigma. You can follow them and their work on IG at @fenwickerbasketFor more, visit www.secondadolescencepod.com or @secondadolescencepodDownload the episode transcript here.