S4 EP 9: Ben's Story

S4 EP 12: Roselin's Story

This episode includes mentions of childhood sexual abuse, gender-based violence, grief and loss, and barriers to leaving unsafe situations. Please take care while listening. Welcome back to Take Up Space. This season, we handed the mic back to community. To Black survivors. To voices that deserve to be heard in their fullness, in their truth, and in their own words. For our final episode of the season, we are joined by Roselin Dixon, Community Outreach and Communications Lead at the Ottawa Rape Crisis Centre and Co-Chair of Project Agape’s Board of Directors. Roselin arrives with openness and honesty, reminding us that vulnerability is not weakness, but courage in motion. Throughout this conversation, Roselin reflects on a healing journey that has been layered, nonlinear, and deeply human. She speaks about the strength she has gathered along the way, the joy that can still exist within healing, and the practice of continuing onward, even when the path feels messy. Roselin shares the profound impact motherhood has had on her life, describing how her son continues to teach her about compassion, vulnerability, forgiveness, and trusting her instincts in a world that often asks us to shrink. She also offers insight from her years working in the gender-based violence sector, naming the misconceptions many people hold about healing, and the systemic barriers that make leaving unsafe situations far more complicated than many realize. With tenderness Roselin also honours her truth as a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. She speaks about reclaiming her voice, believing herself, and the importance of giving yourself flowers for the strength it takes to keep going. As this season comes to a close, Roselin leaves us with something powerful. A reminder that taking up space can be as simple as breathing deeply and allowing yourself to exist fully in the moment. That our stories matter. That healing takes time. And that none of us are meant to carry our experiences alone. To everyone who shared their stories with us this season, and to everyone who listened with care, thank you for being part of this community. This has been Take Up Space. Until next time.

S4 EP 11: Ulyn's Story

This episode includes discussions of trauma, complex PTSD, chronic illness, suicidal ideation, and mental health challenges within families. Please take care while listening. Welcome back to Take Up Space. This season, we are passing the mic with intention and creating space for Black survivors to share their stories in their own words. In this episode, we hear from Ulyn, a mother, musician, and community member originally from Trinidad and Tobago whose healing journey has unfolded through many layers of life, family, health, and self-discovery. Ulyn reflects on the turning point that began in 2017, when a series of events, including family mental health struggles, a concussion, and her own diagnosis of complex PTSD, invited her to begin looking at her own story with honesty and care. Through her story, Ulyn shares what it has meant to rebuild from the ground up while raising seven children, navigating neurodivergence within her family, and living with chronic pain. She speaks about the role of faith, music, and community in helping her rediscover her voice, as well as the importance of taking healing one moment at a time when life feels overwhelming. Thank you for joining us, and for listening to Ulyn’s story with care and openness.

S 4 EP 10: Esther's Story

This episode includes mentions of sexual violence, childhood trauma, intimate partner violence, victim blaming, and safety concerns related to an abuser. Please take care while listening. Welcome back to Take Up Space. This season, we are passing the mic with intention and holding space for Black survivors to share their stories in their own words. In this episode, we hear from Esther Fagbola: a Nigerian chef, community-builder, and the founder of Project Agape. Esther shares how her healing journey began early, shaped by the weight of growing up fast, holding responsibility as the oldest sibling, and surviving the moment her family as she knew it fell apart. With honesty and clarity, Esther reflects on what it has meant to build a life rooted in peace, boundaries, and protection, especially while doing frontline community work. She speaks about the complicated grief of “losing” a parent who is still alive, the harm that can live inside love, and how that kind of rupture rewires the body, the spirit, and a child’s sense of safety. Esther also shares how stepping into public storytelling through Project Agape changed her relationship with herself, pushing her to heal more intentionally, not because it was easy, but because community needed it. She names the exhaustion and heartbreak of being dismissed in systems that claim equity while still overlooking Black survivors, and she reminds us that this work is both heavy and sacred. Above all, Esther returns to one truth: do it anyway, but do it with community. If you are listening and carrying something similar, this episode is a reminder that you are not meant to hold it alone, and that softness, rest, faith, and chosen family can be part of how you survive and rebuild. Thank you for being here, and for holding Esther’s story with care, respect, and tenderness.

S4 EP 9: Ben's Story

This episode includes discussions of depression, mental health stigma, being outed, family conflict, and navigating identity as a Black queer person. Please take care while listening. Welcome back to Take Up Space. This season, we are passing the mic with intention and holding space for Black survivors to share their stories in their own words. In this episode, we are honoured to hear from Ben, a Congolese artist and sculptor whose healing journey began after arriving in Canada and finally having space to name what he had been carrying. Ben reflects on the loneliness of being the token Black friend in certain environments, and the clarity that came from choosing spaces where communication feels real, direct, and safe. Through his story, Ben shares the tenderness and complexity of being outed to his parents, and the unexpected transformation of his relationship with his father, from conflict and misunderstanding to genuine effort, care, and affirmation. He also speaks about the Black queer community as a place of warmth and belonging, and how discovering the ballroom scene helped him reconnect with his body, build confidence, and feel proud of who he is. Thank you for joining us, and for listening to Ben’s story with care and openness.

S4 EP 8: Aminata's Story

This episode includes discussions of trauma, mental health, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. Please take care while listening. Welcome back to Take Up Space. This season, we are passing the mic with intention and holding space for Black survivors to share their stories in their own words. In this episode, we are honoured to hear from Aminata, an international student and community member whose healing journey began when she moved to Canada on her own and started learning who she is outside of expectation. Aminata reflects on navigating trauma, receiving her ADHD diagnosis, and what it has meant to seek support while carrying the weight of cultural stigma around mental health. Through her story, Aminata shares how learning to stop shrinking herself has been an ongoing practice, how community has helped her feel seen, and how choosing herself has opened space for confidence, freedom, and hope for the future. She speaks honestly about anxiety, triggers, and the patience required to heal, while reminding us that being different is not something to hide, but something that can become a source of strength. Thank you for joining us, and for holding Aminata’s story with care, softness, and deep respect.