As we announced last week, this is the last episode of Tell Me Something True. Today, Laura walks through why we made this decision (it’s all fine, nothing is wrong!) 

A thing worth celebrating is that, over 67 episodes, nearly a quarter of a million adventurous, curious people said YES and pressed play over 600,000 times. Holy cow…that’s A LOT!!!!! 

The numbers only matter because they’re the mirror of how much YOU - and thousands of folks like you - said yes to falling in love with the mystery of life again. With every episode we asked, “how can this help someone to have a better next week?” We’re so grateful that you have been interested in going on this adventure with us. All of the episodes will stay up and we hope you’ll share them and return to these shows as you’re looking for inspiration, comfort, new tools, and new ideas. 

And we hope you’ll lease keep in touch! 

If you have a passionate idea for a show, or a message that absolutely MUST be heard, give Mikel a holler here: https://www.liminahouse.com/

Laura’s site (https://www.lauramckowen.com/) and her IG are the best way to say hey (https://www.instagram.com/laura_mckowen/) and pre-orders for her new book, Push Off From Here are happening! (https://www.lauramckowen.com/books/push-off-from-here)

Episode link: https://www.tmstpod.com/episodes/67-laura-mckowen-on-why-we-are-wrapping-tmst

Spotify playlist for this episode: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/07kXA2JZj7QaprV563Wfvj

Here’s the transcript: https://tell-me-something-true.simplecast.com/episodes/laura-on-why-were-wrapping-tmst-BVRgiJfS/transcript

TMST Members - We will take care of canceling the membership program and you will not see any new charges. It’s impossible to say how much we appreciate your support of the show. You made a difference and we are forever grateful.

Melissa Urban is one of the few people we’ve asked back to the show and there’s a reason for that. She’s got such a unique, magnetic energy and this strong, no-nonsense, yet compassionate way of showing up in the world. 

And now, she’s written The Book of Boundaries: Set the Limits That Will Set You Free and, can we get a hell yes? We need this in our lives.

Melissa walks us through why boundaries are one of the most important life skills one can have, common pitfalls, why she wrote a specific section for mother-in-laws, and so much more. Friends, we are not overstating it when we say it’s hands-down the best book on boundaries EVER.

Also, we have an announcement: we’ve decided to bring TMST to a close, and this episode will be our second to last. Laura will have a lot to say about what went into this decision next week, in her final solo episode. 

Melissa Urban’s site: https://www.melissau.com/

Melissa’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/melissau/

The Book of Boundaries: https://www.melissau.com/boundaries-book/

Episode link: https://www.tmstpod.com/episodes/66-melissa-urban-on-how-boundaries-will-set-you-free 

Spotify playlist for this episode: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5fhCRmsIQewGFB5b1Qz9fd

Here’s the transcript: 

https://tell-me-something-true.simplecast.com/episodes/melissa-urban-on-how-boundaries-will-set-you-free/transcript

Tell Me Something True is a 100% independent podcast. There are no corporations or advertisers backing this community. We are 100% funded by the TMST community. Support TMST: https://tmst.supercast.com/

Tell the truth - how many times does the phrase “I’m so burned out?” show up around you?

Burnout is both more than we think it is, and much more insidious. Burnout has been defined by the World Health Organization as a workplace-centered phenomenon, and they calculate that it’s killing +750,000 people a year!

Jennifer Moss has dedicated a large part of her career to researching, writing about, and educating people on burnout. She is going to get us on the same page so we can understand EXASCTLY what it is, how it’s measured, and its real-world impacts. 

Jennifer is a journalist, former start-up founder, and brilliant thinker on how our workplaces and our society is failing us. Her book, The Burnout Epidemic, is an excellent deep dive into the topic and, like so many of us, she came to this topic through her own experience of burning out.

Jennifer Moss’ site: https://www.jennifer-moss.com/

The Burnout Epidemic: https://www.jennifer-moss.com/books

If you care about these kinds of conversations, we hope you’ll become a TMST Plus member.  

Episode link: https://www.tmstpod.com/episodes/65-jennifer-moss-on-the-burnout-epidemic

Spotify playlist for this episode: 

Here’s the transcript: 

https://tell-me-something-true.simplecast.com/episodes/jennifer-moss-on-the-burnout-epidemic/transcript

Tell Me Something True is a 100% independent podcast. There are no corporations or advertisers backing this community. We are 100% funded by the TMST community. Become a TMST member today so you can hear the uncut interviews, attend private events with Laura and help keep TMST ad-free.

Support TMST and keep it ad-free: 

https://tmst.supercast.com/

Ali Shapiro arrives with a mountain of good news!

We don't have to evade our relationship with food.  We don't have to be ruled by stories that shame us and keep us stuck. Most importantly, those stories don't have to contribute to hating ourselves.

Ali is the creator of the Truce with Food Program, which combines how we think - and feel about - food and the stories we tell ourselves. She’s bridging psychology and behavioral change so we can break all the absurd, dangerous and shaming ways we approach food and our bodies. 

Ali’s a holistic nutritionist, integrated health coach and a total straight-shooter who’s not afraid to call BS on the insanity of diet culture. Her approach is truly a breath of fresh air; she’s one of the only people we'd have this kind of conversation with.

Ali’s site: https://alishapiro.com/courses/truce-with-food/

If you care about these kinds of conversations, we hope you’ll become a TMST Plus member.  

Episode link: https://www.tmstpod.com/episodes/64-ali-shapiro-healing-our-relationship-to-food-weight-and-body-image

Spotify playlist for this episode: 

Here’s the transcript: https://tell-me-something-true.simplecast.com/episodes/ali-shapiro-on-healing-our-relationship-to-food-weight-and-body-image/transcript 

Tell Me Something True is a 100% independent podcast. There are no corporations or advertisers backing this community. We are 100% funded by the TMST community. Become a TMST member today so you can hear the uncut interviews, attend private events with Laura and help keep TMST ad-free.

Support TMST and keep it ad-free: 

https://tmst.supercast.com/

On TMST we’ve been open about our conflicted relationship with technology and social media. And you’ve heard many of our guests recount their mixed feelings, as well.

Today’s guest takes all of that and turns it up to 11.

In 2018, Larissa May (who goes by Larz) spoke out about her struggle with depression on social media. The post and hashtag that emerged around it was called #HalfTheStory - and it sparked a global conversation about the relationship between technology and emotional wellbeing. 

Having just turned 28, Larz holds a unique place in our culture. She’s a part of society that has had their adulthood defined by social media AND, she’s also just about as old as you can be and still be able to talk to Gen Z as something like a peer. She’s doing that through workshops, and creating screenless experiences, and nature immersions. 

Today, Larissa is asking us to consider what we get out of being the guinea pigs in Mark Zuckerberg’s experiments in the metaverse. 

Or getting us to become aware of how prevalent the drug trade is on the social platforms - and how they’re not doing a whole lot to crack down. 

She’s is exactly the kind of person who we love to welcome to Tell Me Something True and we’re excited for you to meet her today.

Larissa’s site:  https://www.livinlikelarz.com/

Larissa’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/livinlikelarz/

#HalfThe Story: https://www.instagram.com/halfthestory/

If you care about these kinds of conversations, we hope you’ll become a TMST Plus member.  

Episode link: https://www.tmstpod.com/episodes/63-larissa-may-and-our-journey-to-digital-wellness

Spotify playlist for this episode: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1T8Wqk3beLx3f8BTaIAtXx

Here’s the transcript: https://tell-me-something-true.simplecast.com/episodes/larissa-may-and-our-journey-to-digital-wellness/transcript

Tell Me Something True is a 100% independent podcast. There are no corporations or advertisers backing this community. We are 100% funded by the TMST community. Become a TMST member today so you can hear the uncut interviews, attend private events with Laura and help keep TMST ad-free.

Support TMST and keep it ad-free: https://tmst.supercast.com/

We don’t like to admit it, but there are a hell of a lot of scripts that run us. They’re the “shoulds” - ideas so woven into our lives that we don’t even know they exist.

For virtually all women - the scripts around motherhood are the most pernicious. They load us down with self-doubt, bake in unattainable expectations, and set us up for a life where we’re always defined in relationship to others, our kids, or lack of kids.

Erin Lane has spent most of her life challenging these scripts. Her latest book, “Someone Other Than a Mother” tears up the shaming social scripts that are bad for moms and non-moms alike. When we hear things like “Motherhood is the toughest job…” or  "You don't know love until you become a mother" we’re encountering the social scripting that defines what’s “normal” for the majority of American women.

This conversation with Erin is equal parts liberating and bracing. She’s cracking something that we need to discuss in specific, urgent ways and we’re thrilled to have her as our guest on Tell Me Something True.

Resources:

Erin’s site:  https://www.erinslane.com/

Her book - Someone Other Than a Mother

If you care about these kinds of conversations, we hope you’ll become a TMST Plus member.  

Episode link: 

Spotify playlist for this episode: 

Here’s the transcript: 

Tell Me Something True is a 100% independent podcast. There are no corporations or advertisers backing this community. We are 100% funded by the TMST community. Become a TMST member today so you can hear the uncut interviews, attend private events with Laura and help keep TMST ad-free.

Support TMST and keep it ad-free: https://tmst.supercast.com/

erin s. lane, mother hunger, adoption, motherhood, parenting, codependency, christianity, biblical womanhood, someone other than a mother, laura mckowen, we are the luckiest

It’s a familiar, but true, saying: recovery is about breaking cycles. 

Jeff and Debra Jay know this better than most. Together, they’ve been doing pioneering work in the areas of family recovery and intervention for decades. 

Their book, Love First is the essential work on the family recovery dynamic. It’s now in its third printing and it’s a powerful roadmap for harnessing the power of family and friends to help a loved one accept treatment.

Debra’s book, It Takes a Family, is a ground-breaking introduction to Structured Family Recovery®. In it, she demonstrates the interconnectedness of addiction inside a family structure, and provides mountains of good news and hope - both for the person who is suffering - and the people around them. 

Jeff and Debra Jay also happen to be married - and they’ve made the family health and recovery their life’s work. This is one of those episodes that NEEDS to be shared with the people you know who are at their wits end. Jeff and Debra are the real deal and we’re so glad to welcome them to Tell Me Something True. 

Resources:

Love First - Jeff & Debra Jay’s site

Structured Family Recovery

Books by Jeff & Debra Jay (with several free samples to download and share)

If you care about these kinds of conversations, we hope you’ll become a TMST Plus member.  

Episode link: https://www.tmstpod.com/episodes/61-jeff-and-debra-jay-on-intervention-and-family-recovery

Spotify playlist for this episode: 

Here’s the transcript: 

https://tell-me-something-true.simplecast.com/episodes/jeff-debra-jay-on-intervention-family-recovery/transcript

Tell Me Something True is a 100% independent podcast. There are no corporations or advertisers backing this community. We are 100% funded by the TMST community. Become a TMST member today so you can hear the uncut interviews, attend private events with Laura and help keep TMST ad-free.

Support TMST and keep it ad-free: https://tmst.supercast.com/

“Rachel Hollis is a manifestation of a larger ideology about women's place in society. That if you just try hard enough, all of these structural issues that are making your life really, really hard can be solved if you just wash your face. .” - Anne Helen Petersen

Anne Helen Petersen is one of our most essential cultural observers. Her work at Buzzfeed culminated in her 2020 book, Can't Even: How Millennials Became the Burnout Generation. Now she’s using Culture Study, her Substack newsletter, to explore everything from The Unified Theory of Peloton to how to make friends.   

In the episode, Laura and Anne unpack the faux empowerment of Rachel Hollis, the ways we sell quick fixes to systemic problems (like how a bath bomb will overcome the ways our society devalues women, and, particularly mothers) and the myth of “having it all.”

More than ever, this is one to share with your favorite people!

Readings mentioned in the show:

Culture Study - AHP’s newsletter and community. 

Towards A Unified Theory of Peloton by Anne Helen Petersen

How Millennials Became The Burnout Generation by Anne Helen Petersen

“Girl, Wash Your Face” Is A Massive Best-Seller With A Dark Message by Laura Turner

A Quick Explainer On Why People Aren’t Happy With Rachel Hollis

If you care about these kinds of conversations, we hope you’ll become a TMST Plus member.  

Episode link: https://www.tmstpod.com/episodes/60-anne-helen-petersen-on-burnout-and-the-myth-of-having-it-all

Spotify playlist for this episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/56aVWMg3xGWSWGCXZzlVa3

Here’s the transcript: 

https://tell-me-something-true.simplecast.com/episodes/anne-helen-petersen-on-burnout-and-the-myth-of-having-it-all/transcript

Tell Me Something True is a 100% independent podcast. There are no corporations or advertisers backing this community. We are 100% funded by the TMST community. Become a TMST member today so you can hear the uncut interviews and help keep TMST ad-free.

Support TMST and keep it ad-free: https://tmst.supercast.com/

It’s great to love books and the written word and seeing new worlds open up through a writer’s work is thrilling. We know our lives can be transformed through a good book.

Friends - meet Branden Collinsworth, someone who has taken those ideas, and turned them up to eleven. 

Branden Collinsworth is a Nike Master Trainer, Yoga Teacher, Human Performance Coach and Humanitarian. He describes his life as a journey “from the streets to the skies.” He comes from a seriously tough upbringing, and also emanates a thrilling love of life and service for others.

One of the major things he credits as shaping his life is his love of reading. So much so he took on a challenge to read 1,000 books because he knew it would help him unlock a world beyond the streets and generational trauma. 

Branden’s journey of curiosity has shaped him into a man of extraordinary empathy and joy for life and it comes through in our conversation. There is something in the way he talks about his mother - the clarity of his presence that makes us so excited to welcome him to Tell Me Something True.

If you care about these kinds of conversations, we hope you’ll become a TMST Plus member.  

Episode link: https://www.tmstpod.com/episodes/59-branden-collinsworth-on-lessons-learned-from-1000-books

Spotify playlist for this episode: 

Here’s the transcript: 

https://tell-me-something-true.simplecast.com/episodes/branden-collinsworth-on-lessons-learned-from-1-000-books/transcript

Tell Me Something True is a 100% independent podcast. There are no corporations or advertisers backing this community. We are 100% funded by the TMST community. Become a TMST member today so you can hear the uncut interviews, attend private events with Laura and help keep TMST ad-free.

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TMST is hosted by Laura McKowen, the bestselling author of We Are The Luckiest and founder of The Luckiest Club.  Follow the show and Laura on Instagram.

People tell Mary Laura Philpott that her writing is like having a conversation with her. 

We can say that is 100% true. She’s an utterly captivating writer AND conversationalist.

You may have first heard about Mary Laura Philpott through her first book, “I Miss You When I Blink.” Her new memoir in essays is “Bomb Shelter: Love, Time, and Other Explosives.” It was named an Editor’s Choice by the New York Times Book Review and one of the Best Books of 2022 by NPR. 

“Bomb Shelter” had Laura laughing and crying and nodding her head as another woman (and mother) who is solidly in mid-life.

There are almost no places left where contemporary authors can sit down and discuss their work. It’s really important to me, and everyone, at TMST that we hold this space. If you care about these kinds of conversations, we hope you’ll become a TMST Plus member.  

Episode link: https://www.tmstpod.com/episodes/58-mary-laura-philpott-on-the-joy-and-dread-of-being-human

Spotify playlist for this episode: 

Here’s the transcript: https://tell-me-something-true.simplecast.com/episodes/mary-laura-philpott-on-the-joy-dread-of-being-human/transcript

Tell Me Something True is a 100% independent podcast. There are no corporations or advertisers backing this community. We are 100% funded by the TMST community. Become a TMST member today so you can hear the uncut interviews, attend private events with Laura and help keep TMST ad-free.

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TMST is hosted by Laura McKowen, the bestselling author of We Are The Luckiest and founder of The Luckiest Club. Follow the show and Laura on Instagram.

Being human means sometimes we feel deeply alone. Cut off from other people. For most people, it passes quickly.

For others, especially those who also suffer from addiction, that feeling of isolation is persistent. It’s a low hum that follows a person everywhere. Part of the reason why some drink is to numb that feeling and turn down the voices that whisper why we’re alone.

Chris Marshall knows these feelings well and he’s here today to share how listening to those voices have almost killed him on several occasions. And how he’s developed a support network to make them less loud. Chris learned how powerful the experience of connection can be and it, literally, helped to save his life. It led him to create Sans Bar, a community connection space that specializes in serving extravagantly amazing, zero alcohol cocktails.

You may know Chris if you’re a member of The Luckiest Club, the sobriety support community Laura founded where he’s one of the meeting leaders.

BONUS: Chris and Laura recorded some material just for TMST Plus members. Become a TMST Plus member to hear some of his top tips and secrets for creating an inclusive space, his favorite drink for the hottest summer day and the TWO WORD genius answer to “Do you want a drink?” and “Why aren’t you drinking?”

Episode link: https://www.tmstpod.com/episodes/57-chrismarshall-on-how-connection-can-save-your-life

Spotify playlist for this episode: 

Here’s the transcript: https://tell-me-something-true.simplecast.com/episodes/chris-marshall-on-how-connection-can-save-your-life/transcript

Tell Me Something True is a 100% independent podcast. There are no corporations or advertisers backing this community. We are 100% funded by the TMST community. Become a TMST member today so you can hear the uncut interviews, attend private events with Laura and help keep TMST ad-free.

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TMST is hosted by Laura McKowen, the bestselling author of We Are The Luckiest and founder of The Luckiest Club. Follow the show and Laura on Instagram.