This month, we're doing a deep dive series into mom guilt—why it's so pervasive and what we can do about it. You can find the playlist with all of the episodes in the series here.

Dr. Pooja Lakshmin, MD is a psychiatrist and author specializing in women's mental health. She is a frequent contributor to The New York Times and the founder of Gemma, the first digital education platform dedicated exclusively to women’s mental health. Dr. Lakshmin is most passionate about empowering women and sees her clinical work as a perinatal psychiatrist as an extension of this mission.

In this episode we discuss mom guilt, stress, self-care, the anxiety of this ongoing pandemic moment, and how we can reclaim ourselves amidst it all. 

You can find Pooja on Instagram @poojalakshmin and at her website: poojalakshmin.com

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mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent,

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Are female friendships really more complicated than male friendships? Does that make our friendships more valuable?

Danielle Bayard Jackson is a female friendship coach and educator on the science of women’s platonic connections. In her new book FIGHTING FOR OUR FRIENDSHIPS, Danielle explains what makes female friendship strong as well as tips for making and keeping great friends. 

In this interview, Danielle and Amy discuss:

• The three central affinities that bring women together: secrecy, symmetry, and support
• How to compassionately approach friends who are flaky
• Scripts for navigating common issues in friendships

Here's where you can find Danielle:

• www.betterfemalefriendships.com
• @daniellebayardjackson on IG
• @thefriendshipexpert on TikTok
• Listen to the "Friend Forward" podcast
• Buy FIGHTING FOR OUR FRIENDSHIPS: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780306830617

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mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, friendships, female friendships

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This month, we take the Myers-Briggs personality test live on air—Margaret answers with her first instinct and Amy parses every question within an inch of its life. The results will and will not surprise you...

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Is one morning of runny eggs and burnt toast really fair payback for 364 days of work? Does "Mother's Day" have to mean packing the kids for a two-hour drive to see your mom and/or mother-in-law? Why does Mother's Day often feel like it's more trouble than it's worth?

Margaret and Amy discuss:

• Anna Jarvis and the rather tragic origins of Mother's Day
• "minor Mother's Day" vs "major Mother's Day," and how to deliver that message
• How to ask for—and get—the Mother's Day that feels right for you

Margaret mentions "The Lanyard" by Billy Collins in this episode.

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Mother's Day, making mom feel special mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, toddler, baby, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, mothers day, mother's day gift ideas

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This month, we're doing a deep dive series into mom guilt—why it's so pervasive and what we can do about it. You can find the playlist with all of the episodes in the series here.

"Mom guilt" is shorthand for what we think are two pretty different things:

• the universal, low-grade feelings of inadequacy that our soccer snacks aren't as good as Monica's
• the intense, deeply personal shame that we are definitely the only horrible parent who has ever allowed their baby to roll off the changing table

Yes, we take on these feelings of guilt and shame—but society is pretty quick to hand them to us. In this episode we discuss

• why there isn't such a thing as "dad guilt"
• why mom guilt might serve as a sort of magical thinking
• if we can at least skip the feeling guilty about HAVING mom guilt part

Here are links to some studies and other writing on this topic that we discuss in this episode:

• Lara Bazelon for The Atlantic: The End of Mom Guilt
• Amy Paturel for The Washington Post: Why we feel 'mom guilt'—and how to stop
• Fresh Take: Dana Dorfman on When Worry Works
• Fresh Take: Carla Naumburg on Why You Are Not a Sh*tty Parent
• Fresh Take: Sara Petersen on "Momfluencers"
• Fresh Take: Susan Linn on How 'Big Tech' Targets Our Kids
• Batram-Zantvoort, Stephanie et al, Frontiers in Global Women's Health: "Maternal self-conception and mental wellbeing..."   

Subscribe to our newsletter! Once a month you’ll get our favorite recent episodes, plus links to other things to read and watch and listen to, and upcoming special events: http://eepurl.com/h8ze3z

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mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent,

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How can we tear our kids away from the increasingly addictive video games they can't get enough of? Dr. Alok Kanojia, author of the book HOW TO RAISE A HEALTHY GAMER, explains how to talk to kids about their video game addiction.

Dr. Kanojia is a former gaming addict and a Harvard-trained psychiatrist who has developed evidence-based programs that helped tens of thousands of gamers overcome their addiction.

Margaret and Dr. Kanojia discuss:

• Signs that someone is addicted to something and why gaming can fill a void
• How to talk to your gamer about healthy habits
• Enforcing boundaries around gaming and dealing with resistance to those boundaries

Here's where you can find Dr. Kanojia:

• Follow Dr.K's podcast HealthyGamerGG https://open.spotify.com/show/6VaJwyS2KXxiXqR77jqzmP
• Check out Dr.K's Book, How to Raise a Healthy Gamer https://bit.ly/4c8BNkr    
• Healthy Gamer Website https://www.healthygamer.gg/  
• Instagram: @healthygamergg
• X: @dralokkanjia
• YouTube: @healthy gamer GG
• TikTok: @healthygamer.gg

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

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mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, toddler, baby, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, gaming, gaming addiction, video games, video game addiction, kids gaming addiction

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Are you worried your picky eater will never eat a vegetable as long as they live? Here are some parenting tips for picky eaters—and some updates on Amy and Margaret's own picky eaters since recording our very first episode 8 years ago! (It's good news.)

Amy and Margaret discuss:

• Why it's helpful to make food the least interesting thing at the dinner table
• How to maintain your own sanity around mealtimes by meeting kids where they are
• Why dinnertime is actually the worst time of day to get kids to try new foods
• How pairing and "food chaining" can help expand your picky eaters' palates

Here is a link to one of the resources mentioned in the episode:

• Benioff Childrens Hospitals: Picky Eaters

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manifest reality, positive thinking, toxic positivity, magical thinking, mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities,

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Parenting as a team is an ongoing challenge– even when your relationship with your co-parent is usually harmonious. But matching headspaces with your co-parent about a problem your family, or one of your children, is dealing with doesn't have to be the goal. 

Parenting as a team can often mean taking turns, whether it's with the pancake-flipping, the hard talks with teenagers, or the 3 am worried Googling of ICD-10 diagnoses. In this episode we talk about what’s worked for us in moments of disagreement or struggle with our spouses, and how we found common ground.

If getting through the pandemic meant zooming in, just getting to the next lamppost, parenting as a team means zooming way out. If you know you're on the same page about the adults you want your children to become, it's a little easier to chill out about how they’ll get there. 

Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the episode:

Amy and Margaret discuss their "Pre-Cana" experiences in the Catholic Church, and the usefulness of the Engaged Encounter program in particular. To find out more: engagedencounter.com

Buy WHAT CHILDREN LEARN FROM THEIR PARENTS' MARRIAGES: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780060929305

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mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, household equity, household equality, gender household equality, gender household equity

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Why are stereotypes of teenage girls rarely flattering? And what important traits are we not acknowledging in these young women? Chelsey Goodan, author of the new book UNDERESTIMATED: The Wisdom and Power of Teenage Girls, explains what teenage girls really want and need from us.

Chelsey and Amy discuss:

• The generational shift towards a culture of support and empowerment among young girls today
• The significance of offering agency to young girls in shaping their identities and futures
• What teenage girls want from their parents more than anything else

Here's where you can find Chelsey:

• https://www.chelseygoodan.com
• @chelseygoodan on IG and X
• Buy UNDERSTIMATED: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9781668032688
• https://www.democrashe.org/
• https://www.acalltomen.org/about/

Amy also mentions our Fresh Take with Judith Warner in this episode: https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/fresh-take-judith-warner-on-what-grownups-get-wrong-about-middle-school/

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

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mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, teenage girl, female empowerment, feminism, mentorship for teens, gender equity

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The human tendency to solve problems by adding something is called "additive solution bias." However, sometimes a problem is more quickly and effectively solved by taking something away.

In this episode we talk about how "additive solution bias" can play out in our parenting strategies, and how we can become more aware of the times when what we actually need to do is take something away.

Amy and Margaret discuss:

• Why our brains are wired to solve problems by adding things
• How additive solution bias increases along with the size of the problem we're attempting to solve
• Why removing something, or doing less, isn't automatically easier

Sign up for What Fresh Hell Plus on Supporting Cast to get all episodes ad-free, plus monthly bonus episodes. Supporting Cast works right where you already listen! Go to whatfreshhell.supportingcast.fm to subscribe in two taps for just $4.99 a month, or $39.99 a year. 

Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the episode:

• Diana Kwon for Scientific American: "Our Brain Typically Overlooks This Brilliant Problem-Solving Strategy"
• Gabrielle S. Adams, et. al for Nature: "People systematically overlook subtractive changes"
• Less is more: Why our brains struggle to subtract
• Anthony Sanni: Additive Bias—and how it could be affecting your productivity
• Braess's paradox
• Rachel Fairbank for Lifehacker: "Why You Should 'Subtract' From Your Parenting"
• SUBTRACT by Leidy Klotz
• Our Fresh Take with Amanda Montell
• Our Fresh Take with Yael Schonbrun
• THE SENSORY CHILD GETS ORGANIZED by Carolyn Dalgliesh

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

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mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent

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This month, we're doing a deep dive series into the division of household labor—why it's often unbalanced, and what we can do about it. You can find the playlist with all of the episodes in the series here.

Kate Mangino, PhD, is a gender expert and professional facilitator who has been working internationally for nearly 20 years. She is the author of the new book Equal Partners: Improving Gender Equity at Home, an informed guide about how readers can rewrite harmful gender norms and create greater household equity.

Here's where you can find Kate:

• https://www.katemangino.com
• @ManginoKate on X
• Buy EQUAL PARTNERS: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9781250276117

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

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mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, household equity, household equality, gender household equality, gender household equity

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