Stories, Experiences & Perspectives From the Queer Community
Now streaming on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms.
Coming Out & Beyond began in 2021 as a space for LGBTQIA+ stories and lived experiences across the queer community.
Over time, it became clear that many of the women quietly listening were questioning their sexuality later in life — often while married, raising children, navigating divorce, or untangling faith and identity shifts.
Hosted by Anne-Marie Zanzal — who came out in midlife and has supported thousands of women through later-in-life coming out for nearly a decade — this podcast offers honest conversations about:
• Questioning your sexuality while married
• Late bloomer lesbian experiences
• Midlife coming out
• Compulsory heterosexuality (comphet)
• Faith deconstruction and religious conditioning
• Divorce, catalyst relationships, and rebuilding
• Learning to trust your inner knowing
Contact Anne-Marie to Be a Guest
https://youtu.be/RCTtHyKUixI This is the start of something new. The episodes you have told us you love most are the ones where the three of us sit down together, so we are making them a monthly...
https://youtu.be/JPq3GGk6BhM Some mornings change everything. Marissa Mitchell was 39, a teacher and army veteran in southern Indiana, married to her junior high sweetheart and quietly certain that...
https://youtu.be/kPU9ALkt3Qg It is the second Friday of the month, which means Anne-Marie is back with the company she loves most: her fellow coach Barbara Rowlandson and her wife Tonda McKay. This...
https://youtu.be/vdzjGPMTzqc What if fear is not a stop sign but a signal that you are growing? In this month's first Friday conversation, Anne-Marie is joined by regular guest Anna Empey, business...
https://youtu.be/5SAAWUmNtzc This week we return to one of our most beloved conversations from the archives, my talk with Dr. Mallory Hanfling, a fellow later in life queer woman, therapist, and the...
https://youtu.be/vU2qd1QsEc8 What if the single biggest factor in whether we come out, when we come out, and how we heal along the way is the community around us? Dr. Mallory Hanfling returns to the...
https://youtu.be/pL0iy2UnwNI "The Catalyst Chapter: #For WLW Navigating Love's First Chapter and Beyond" Learn more about the course and register...
https://youtu.be/ZWbln-9OIYU "The Catalyst Chapter: #For WLW Navigating Love's First Chapter and Beyond" Learn more about the course and register...
https://youtu.be/RzBwIPXl-Dg Lotus Community Coaching | For women navigating coming out & the "messy middle": https://annemariezanzal.com/lotus-community-coaching/ "Strengthening Love:...
https://youtu.be/O62MVi3wEvA Lotus Community Coaching | For women navigating coming out & the "messy middle": https://annemariezanzal.com/lotus-community-coaching/ "Strengthening Love:...
https://youtu.be/ozvxTwlVro4 Lotus Community Coaching | For women navigating coming out & the "messy middle": https://annemariezanzal.com/lotus-community-coaching/ "Strengthening Love:...
https://youtu.be/RFyhBv3imgs In the episode of Coming Out & Beyond: LGBTQIA+ Stories, host Anne-Marie Zanzal speaks with documentary photographer, Morgan Lieberman. Morgan's work has...
https://youtu.be/TQBvwUYNgqo Activist, scholar, mental health advocate, and The Trevor Project and WClub volunteer JJ King (they/them) is Anne-Marie's special guest on this episode of...
https://youtu.be/7UC_K04jwtw Charlie Sprinkman (he/they) is a young person with a vision! After working in a job that required him to travel across 50+ states, Charlie recognized there was a lack of...
https://youtu.be/8cdlZrsREME Though there are often similarities in themes and experiences among women who come out later in life, no two people share the exact same story. In this week's episode,...
https://youtu.be/Ym1bw1002ck Women: dating in the LGBTQIA+ community, especially if you haven't dated in a very long time, or if you're new to dating other queer people, can feel very daunting!...
https://youtu.be/e12DQ5EjncI KaRon Spriggs-Bethea, DSW, LCSW, educator and expert on the subject of bullying. KaRon experienced bullying as a young person, and today uses his expertise to support...
https://youtu.be/sHTg7IQMcMM Happy National Coming Out Day, 2024! In this episode, host Anne-Marie Zanzal chats with two of her favorite lesbians: her wife, Tonda, and fellow coach, Barb....
https://youtu.be/K0r97wtxFkA This week on the Coming Out & Beyond: LGBTQIA+ Stories podcast, we are thrilled to feature film and television producer and storyteller, Frank McGowan. TW: Frank's...
https://youtu.be/9pGsQN5VGJ8 Kristin Jones (she/they) is a genderqueer and bi parent of 3, spouse, speech-language pathologist, and small business owner. They are passionate about social justice and...
https://youtu.be/vu_y3ITQF3E Dr Keith Brown is a speaker, teacher, coach, author, podcaster, and theologian with over 30 years of experience within the LGBTQ+ arena. He is a married, bisexual man...
https://youtu.be/sqJuoR2Skmc Jennifer Bourdrye is the founder of Parent With Care LLC where she helps parents of LGBTQ+ youth, teens, and young adults to understand, connect and celebrate their kids...
https://youtu.be/62HzvfAz4bo John Sovec is a therapist, coach and counselor based in Pasadena, California. He is a nationally recognized expert on creating affirmative support for LGBTQIA+ teens and...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDTCs0ZfFks This week on Coming Out & Beyond: LGBTQIA+ Stories, we have our first ever man as a guest! Mike Iamele has a remarkable coming out later in life...
https://youtu.be/1hnwOnp5lr8 Mother of two kids, a 21 year old transgender daughter, cisgender daughter. Writer, online content strategist and creator. From Barbara: If folks would like to follow my...
https://youtu.be/QdxSGDl1kCg Anne-Marie and Tonda share more about their love story, and how they created their wonderful life together as a lesbian couple after Anne-Marie came out later in...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Z__kRLybmk&t=3s Robin describes herself as a VERY late-blooming lesbian who really wasn't aware of any romantic feelings toward women while growing up. Although...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zW6GfLzP__0 Samantha Fox is a late bloomer, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in private practice in New York City and a guide/coach for women coming-out later...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMvUsOy-Z9o Terri Conroy came out at 43 after being married to a man for 17 years and having 2 kids. She always knew she was gay but like so many others, her...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpN9LcN6JhM Carla came out in her late thirties. She is the mom of two kids and is a voice teacher in Seattle. You can find her...
https://youtu.be/y6hhnYVj5k4 Marissa shares her experience coming out later in life in the very first episode of Coming Out & Beyond: Stories + Support Podcast!
I am always looking for people who want to share their coming out stories, along with quality resources from within the LGBTQ+ Community that empower us all to live authentically and proudly.
This podcast is free and it exists solely for the purpose of providing support and creating a community around sharing and telling all people’s stories in the queer community. If you want to make a donation to support the growth of this podcast please contact me here.
Contact me for more information if you are interested in sponsoring this podcast.
The information shared on this website is offered for education, reflection, and personal growth. It is not intended to provide medical, mental health, legal, or clinical advice, nor to replace care from licensed professionals.
Coaching, courses, and community spaces are designed to support insight and self-understanding, but they are not therapy. Please consult a qualified healthcare or mental health professional for concerns related to diagnosis or treatment.
You are always the expert on your own life, and we encourage you to seek the support that best meets your needs.