Welcome to EP 053 of the CVD Podcast!!

I know you might be thinking, "how does someone get involved in human trafficking THREE times!? Let alone once! She must have been putting herself in those situations."

Now... our brains do this. We jump to conclusions with partial information. And this is wonderful in many circumstances. Other times, we need to push that judgement or conclusion to the side so we can be open to the full story... this is one of those times.

Amanda Blackwood is an absolutely amazing person who has a story unlike any I have ever heard before. Yes, she's survived human trafficking three different times, and you'll learn that every single time was completely different. The most incredible thing about Amanda and her story, is that she's taken everything she's experienced to help others. She has a podcast called Survivors - Stories of Hope Live On, she is a speaker, and she has created multiple trauma workbooks to empower others on their healing journey.

In this open, honest, transparent conversation, Amanda doesn't hold anything back when detailing her experiences. They are very graphic, so please pause the episode if you need to.

In this episode, Amanda talks about:

• What human trafficking ACTUALLY is (and what it isn't)
  • How this compares to what we see in movies and shows
  • Some alarming statistics about human trafficking
• Her three experiences surviving human trafficking
  • How a trip to Las Vegas at 18 turned into a nightmare
    • The moment she realized she had to make a decision to survive
  • What "we'll take you in until you're back on your feet" really meant
    • How a couple took advantage of Amanda when she was at her lowest
  • A 7-year relationship ending in absolute disaster
    • How the idea of a dream wedding led to being trapped in a foreign country
• How she pieced her life back together after escaping from Scotland
  • How the trafficker from Scotland continued to control her life
  • The moment she decided to speak out about her story
• How she's healed from your trauma and the work she's doing to help others
  • The process in which she gained back control of her life
  • The trauma books, speaking, and podcasting empowering others to heal through their own trauma
    
    

Where you can find Amanda and her work online:

• Podcasts:
  • Survivors - Stories of Hope Live On
  • Growth from Darkness
• Websites:
  • Deatiled Pieces (personal) | Growth from Darkness (business)
• Social Media:
  • Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter | TikTok

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