What does it really mean to live and love beyond traditional rules?

In this episode, I sit down with my friend Sky to explore the messy, beautiful, and deeply human experience of being non-monogamous. Together we talk about what drew us into this path, the challenges and breakthroughs we’ve faced, and how non-monogamy has changed the way we see ourselves, our partners, and love itself.

This isn’t a “how-to” guide. It’s a conversation about the real stuff—the fear of being vulnerable, the courage it takes to tell the truth, the joy of deep connection, and the heartbreaks that shape us along the way. Sky shares stories that are raw and relatable, while I reflect on my own journey of learning how to communicate, negotiate, and love in ways I never thought possible.

At its heart, this episode is about more than just relationship structures. It’s about being human together. About what it means to feel seen, held, and heard in our relationships, and how leaning into honesty—even when it’s uncomfortable—creates space for intimacy, freedom, and belonging.

If you’ve ever wondered about non-monogamy, or if you’re just curious about how people make meaning of love in their own lives, this conversation is for you. My hope is that you leave this episode not only with a window into non-monogamy, but also with permission to ask deeper questions in your own relationships—and to trust that the hard conversations can lead to more connection, not less.

Come as you are. Leave a little more human.

In this intimate episode, I trace my personal relationship journey—from shy teenager, to married and opening up, to embracing many loves, and finally calling in my current primary partner. It’s a story about learning what love means when you stop following default rules and start creating relationships with intention.

I share the awkwardness of my early years, when I barely spoke to the girls I liked, and the sweetness of my first love at 15—a connection that planted the seed for the kind of intimacy I’d always seek. I talk about the long stretch between then and my marriage, where I often found myself drawn to people who were unavailable in some way, and how that shaped my early understanding of love.

When I got married, I knew about non-monogamy but hadn’t practiced it. We eventually opened our relationship, and while it brought new possibilities, it also brought every insecurity and fear to the surface. That experience taught me what doesn’t work for me—and pushed me to start asking better questions about what I actually want.

Post-divorce, I dove into learning: books like More Than Two and The Ethical Slut, relationship coaching, and a lot of trial and error. In 2019, I found myself in three concurrent relationships that felt surprisingly easy and connected—none of us trying to be each other’s “everything.” I realized that variety wasn’t a lack; it was richness.

When the pandemic hit, one of those relationships deepened. I said yes to it even knowing it might end, because endings can be just as sacred as beginnings. That conscious ending made space for what I truly wanted: a primary partner.

That’s when Ziona came into my life. Introduced through mutual friends, we connected immediately. We chose to be monogamous for our first couple of years, building a foundation of trust, safety, and communication. Now, with that foundation in place, we’re expanding again—slowly, intentionally, and with joy for each other’s joy. That’s compersion: finding pleasure in your partner’s pleasure.

This episode explores:

• Why I no longer believe in one person meeting all my needs
• How conscious endings can be deeply healing
• The importance of starting with friendship and moving at the pace of your nervous system
• Why there’s no “better” between monogamy and polyamory—only what works for those involved
• The role of intention and communication in every relationship style

If you’ve ever questioned your relationship model, felt torn between tradition and curiosity, or wondered how to build something that truly fits you—this episode is for you. It’s not about choosing the “right” structure; it’s about being in relationship in a way that feels aligned, alive, and authentic.

💬 Reflection prompt:
What’s your relationship style—really? And what would you choose if you set aside everything you were told was “right” or “normal”?

What’s in a name? For some of us, everything.

In this intimate episode, Kinsey shares the deeply personal and transformative journey of becoming Kinsey—from growing up with a name that never quite fit, to a life-altering moment at an acroyoga retreat in Costa Rica that sparked a naming journey rooted in truth, identity, and embodied resonance.

This isn’t just a story about gender or pronouns or even names—it’s about the ache of living misnamed, the courage it takes to claim your authentic self, and the slow, beautiful integration of becoming whole. With humor, honesty, and raw vulnerability, Kinsey recounts the layered process of moving from Paul to Myra to McKinsey and, ultimately, Kinsey—a name that clicked not just cognitively, but soul-deep.

We explore what it means to be seen before we can see ourselves, how community can hold us through change, and how naming isn’t just linguistic—it’s spiritual, social, and existential. Along the way, Kinsey reflects on the influence of Alfred Kinsey and the radical idea that human experience exists on a spectrum—of gender, of sexuality, of being.

Whether you’ve changed your name, thought about it, or never questioned yours, this episode invites you to reflect on identity, resonance, and the stories we carry in the words we’re called. What parts of you have waited to be named? What would it feel like to hear a name that makes your whole body say yes?

In this deeply personal episode, I share the story of my gender journey—how it began years before my divorce, long before I even had the language to describe it. From a pivotal moment at a swingers convention in New Orleans, where I first met someone embodying a nonbinary expression, to the early childhood memory of being told that “boys don’t paint their nails,” this episode traces the quiet awakenings and bold experiments that brought me home to myself.

I talk about what it was like to swing between masculinity and femininity, trying on names, clothes, voices, and ways of being—all in search of what felt true. At one point, I performed femininity just as I had performed masculinity, unsure where my real self ended and the performance began. But over time, with the support of chosen family, trans support groups, and my own willingness to feel the discomfort of growth, I found something even more honest than either extreme: I found the middle. The fluid, alive, ever-shifting space between.

This episode explores:

• The difference between performing gender and expressing it
• Early moments of gender suppression and their lasting impact
• The emotional turbulence of trying on new identities
• How a supportive partner and community helped me navigate unknowns
• The importance of play in discovering our truth
• The power of naming, and why “Myra” still lives within me
• How I came to embrace being both masculine and feminine—and neither entirely.

If you’ve ever questioned your gender, your identity, or the roles you were handed—this episode is for you. If you’ve ever felt like you had to choose between boxes that don’t quite fit—this is for you. And even if your journey looks different, my hope is that by sharing mine, you’ll feel a little more seen, a little more invited to be curious about your own truth.

I also introduce the term “gender fluid” as the label that resonates most with me—not because it’s fixed, but because it gives me permission to flow. I share how I now express my femininity in ways that feel embodied and joyful—painted toenails, skirts, sensuality, softness—and how that expression no longer needs to prove anything.

This episode is a love letter to the middle space. To the part of us that doesn’t need to explain, only express. To the people who helped me see myself more clearly, and to the younger version of me who just wanted to be free.

⚡ Mentioned in this episode: my first experiences with makeup, going by Myra, navigating family conversations, and how gender identity evolved alongside relational growth.

✨ Listen in if you’re seeking:

• Representation for gender exploration and nonbinary identity
• Hope during a transition or identity shift
• A mirror for your own becoming
• Permission to play, to try, to feel, and to not always know

💬 Prompt for reflection: How do you currently express your gender? Does it feel aligned with who you are—or who you’ve been told to be?

Thank you for listening to Human Beings, Being Human. May this story help you feel more at home in your body, more alive in your truth, and more connected to your own beautiful becoming.

Welcome to the very first episode of Human Beings Being Human. In this deeply personal opening, I share the winding path that brought me here — not just to this podcast, but to the person I am today.

My story begins with an ending: the collapse of my marriage in 2016, and the profound disorientation that followed. I talk candidly about the heartbreak, the identity loss, and the painful realization that I didn't really know who I was outside of that relationship. From there, I share how working with a relationship coach became my first real step toward learning that relating — to others and to myself — is a skill, one that can be practiced, refined, and transformed.

I take you through the communities that became my teachers and mirrors — AcroYoga, Tantra, ISTA, and the burn community — each one challenging and expanding my understanding of intimacy, communication, embodiment, and connection. You'll hear how seemingly simple practices like learning to communicate in partner acrobatics opened the door to deeper healing, and how being introduced to alternative communities offered me experiences of radical authenticity, vulnerability, and freedom.

This episode also plants seeds for future conversations: how I came to adopt the name Kinsey, how I stepped into non-monogamy, how I discovered sacred sexuality and healing facilitation, and how I ultimately found deep partnership. I reflect on the cycles of light and shadow that have shaped my journey — from the dark depression of 2020 to the transformative growth of 2021 and beyond.

At its heart, this podcast isn’t about offering advice or giving you a roadmap to follow. It’s about sharing my honest, unfolding story in hopes that it might encourage you to explore your own — to ask better questions, sit in discomfort, and honor the beautiful, messy process of being human.

Thank you for being here at the very beginning.