Session 416: Navigating BDSM & Kink As A Black Woman
Therapy for Black Girls
iHeartPodcasts and Joy Harden Bradford, Ph.D.
4.8 • 5.7K Ratings
🗓️ 18 June 2025
⏱️ 54 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Dr. Lana Holmes, who you may remember from Session 222: How Horror Films Help Us Process Life, joins us again to explore sexuality through the lens of kink and BDSM practices often misunderstood but rich with opportunities for healing, agency, and reclaiming pleasure. We unpack common myths, discuss how these communities prioritize communication, boundaries, and consent, and challenge the racialized and gendered stereotypes that have long shaped Black women’s relationships with their own desires. This episode invites listeners to break past taboo narratives and embrace fuller, more authentic expressions of sexuality.
About the Podcast
The Therapy for Black Girls Podcast is a weekly conversation with Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia, about all things mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves.
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Where to Find Our Guest
Website: https://www.inclusivetherapywellness.com/lana
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lana-holmes-psy-d-348972186
Session 222: How Horror Films Help Us Process Life with Dr. Lana Holmes: https://therapyforblackgirls.com/2021/08/25/session-222-how-horror-films-help-us-process-life/
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the Therapy for Black Girls podcast, a weekly conversation about mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible |
| 0:22.2 | versions of ourselves. I'm your host, Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed psychologist in Atlanta, |
| 0:29.4 | Georgia. For more information or to find a therapist in your area, visit our website at |
| 0:36.1 | Therapy for Blackgirls.com. While I hope you love listening to |
| 0:40.6 | and learning from the podcast, it is not meant to be a substitute for a relationship with a licensed |
| 0:47.3 | mental health professional. |
| 0:56.6 | Hey, y'all. |
| 1:00.5 | Thanks so much for joining me for session 416 of the Therapy for Black Girls podcast. |
| 1:01.7 | We'll get right into our conversation after a word from our sponsors. |
| 1:09.9 | This is an I-Heart podcast. |
| 1:18.6 | When it comes to conversations about sexuality, especially for black women and fims, there's often a heavy weight of stereotypes, silence, and shame. |
| 1:29.1 | We've been conditioned to think of our desires as something to hide or fix rather than explore and understand. But what if our pleasure, |
| 1:35.1 | boundaries, and needs could be expressed with clarity, confidence, and care? This week, we're |
| 1:40.5 | exploring how BDSM and Kink can be powerful tools for reconnecting with desire, |
| 1:45.6 | agency, and emotional safety. While these communities are often misunderstood, they emphasize |
| 1:51.2 | consent, communication, and trust, values that are essential in any healthy relationship. |
| 1:57.3 | I'm so excited to be joined again by Dr. Lana Holmes, a licensed clinical psychologist and somatic practitioner who specializes in working with BIPAC and LGBTQ plus clients around identity, sexuality, and trauma. |
| 2:11.7 | Our previous conversation in session 222, how horror films helped us process life, was such an eye-opener for me. It gave me so many more |
| 2:20.6 | layers to think about when it comes to the horror genre and how it can help us process trauma. |
| 2:25.6 | Layers, I just didn't know we're there. I'm so happy she's back with us this week to explore |
| 2:30.6 | another deeply layered and often misunderstood topic, BDSM, and Kink. |
| 2:35.9 | If something resonates with you while enjoying our conversation, please share with us on social |
... |
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