They Took Me to Court to Take My Baby": Karen Carrington on Owning Your Story Before Someone Else Does | EP 36| The Blueprint

*She was 17, homeless, and fighting to keep her premature baby. Today, she's helping the world heal.*Karen Carrington knows what it means to hit rock bottom. As a teenager, she was a single mother living in a shelter with a son born at 26 weeks, weighing just one pound, seven ounces. Then her child's father took her to court, demanding full custody. She won. But she also learned something that changed her life forever: "I will never let anyone tell my story again. I will say it first."In this episode of The Blueprint Podcast, Karen sits down with Dr. Jelani Reid for a conversation about resilience, faith, and the power of a fresh start.She opens up about the 35 years she spent estranged from her father—and the porch conversation that finally brought them back together without a single explanation. She shares why she ran a men's mental health program during the pandemic and banned women from speaking so men could finally feel heard. She reveals the darkest moments: divorce, job loss, rehab, and the voice that told her to give away her last dollar to a stranger.Along the way, she introduces the F.R.E.S.H. framework that guides her life and her book: Forgive, Rejection, Elevate, Spirit-led, Heal. She explains why she stopped asking "why me" and started saying "good, it's me." And she offers a radical perspective on forgiveness: "The most powerful apology is the one you give when you're not wrong."This is not a conversation about surviving. It's about thriving—and helping others do the same.*Listen now.*