The Release Podcast

Imagine that you're overwhelmed and worn out, lying on the living room carpet, noticing the crumbs that need sweeping, the toys that need putting away, and the curious sensation of nearly losing your mind. And imagine that you are overcome with the sneaking sense you were meant for more….but that it would be scary, weird, and probably alienate you from a lot of people. Imagine your sneaking suspic...

Do you still look forward to your birthday? Do you plan it, or have faith that someone else will do something to commemorate another year of your time on this earth? Or does it loom large like a threat, stressing you out and promising to lay bare the wastage of time? Tamar Hurwitz-Fleming is the author of “How To Have A Happy Birthday: Create Meaning, Fulfillment & Joy On Your Special Day.” Af...

Have you ever had the chance to see a mentalist or a magician, live? What is the line between what we cannot see, and what is an actual illusion? And how much does it matter?   My guest today is Gerard Senehi, known as the Experimentalist. He has been recognized as a “superstar” mentalist, featured in TV shows as diverse as the Today Show” and “Ellen, and has even performed for corporate audiences...

How much control do any of us really ever have…over anything? Kidnapping survivor Jess Buchanan has some thoughts.... Is it more important to be safe in body or in mind? What does safety even mean? Jessica Buchanan had 93 days to consider questions like this while she was held captive in 2011 somewhere deep in the Somali desert. A 32 year old American schoolteacher who was working with a Danish ai...

Most married people know very little about divorce, and prefer to keep it that way. But what they don’t know, can hurt them, and those they love. For a lifetime.   My guest this week learned that the hard way during her own divorce process, and in the aftermath of launching a small women’s support group that led her from her original career as an investigative reporter…to her new life as the Freed...

Feeling overwhelmed by the relentless news cycle? There's a reason for that.   Jennifer Walter is a Swiss sociologist, podcast host (Check out The Scenic Route) & mental health advocate. She’s also a self-described rebel marshmallow, and a highly sensitive person. Grounded in sociology and a deep understanding of the structures that shape our perception of who we are, where we fit, and what is...

Why have we as a society gone from simply glorifying youthful looks to aiming for a consequence-free, childlike lifestyle? When was the last time you saw an ad that showed adults behaving like…adults? How did we devolve within just one generation from teens who could not wait to a driver’s license…to teens nowadays who barely register excitement over a driver’s test? Or their first set of car keys...

How lonely are we...really? When does loneliness go from a signal like thirst to a problem like chronic dehydration? What will the world look like if in fact…we don’t collectively figure out how to do anything about it? My guest today is Dr. Julianne Holt-Lunstad, a psychology and neuroscience professor at Brigham Young University, and the director of their Social Connection & Health Lab. She...

Does a fish really need to understand that it's swimming in water? How about if that water is laced with arsenic? Does it matter what level of arsenic? How about if a woman spent her entire life for example marinating in misogyny (but I mean like low-key non-toxic levels of misogyny for the most part)? Would her accomplishments make immune? Would her beauty? Her privilege? And for how long? My gue...

Have you ever felt what seemed like a connection....only to eventually awaken to the reality that it was probably something else? There is a key difference between connection and attunement, according to this week's guest Dr. Peter Salerno.   Trusting your own judgement can be tricky after you’ve escaped an emotionally abusive relationship. Its about far more than just picking better the next time...

What's your gut reaction to learning somebody is a single mom? Sympathy? Curiosity? Judgement? Or maybe a mix? You wouldn’t be alone. But we are not homogenous; the face of single motherhood is changing, and not necessarily in the ways you might think.   Some 10 million US households are headed by a single mom, almost 40% of births in 2022 were to unmarried women, and there has been a huge growth...

Cassindy Chao is a former Goldman Sachs banker turned ultra-high-end matchmaker who we can all learn a lot from, whether we’re partnered or not. Because unlike some matchmakers, she’s focused on building relationships that last, rather than just on making matches that click. 

   On this week’s podcast we are talking about her book (Ancient Wisdom Modern Love) and her marriage of 25 years and coun...

Does choosing more wisely with a future partner require that we fully process why we chose poorly in the past?   Meet Esther Goldstein, a New York based LCSW and trauma therapist, or as I now see her, the trauma therapist’s therapist. Based on an article she wrote entitled The Allure Of The Dangerous Man, I reached out to ask Esther about healing after traumatic relationships, and whether forgivin...

What was your gut reaction to the news of the murder of United HC CEO Brian Thompson by Luigi Mangione last month? Was it perhaps a little more heartless than you’d care to admit?   While many were personally horrified at the murder, it got me thinking about the ethics of insurance denials, and the overall health of our health insurance system in this country.   So today I’m talking with Dr Daniel...

How much thought do you put into the dolls in your daughter’s bedroom, or into how those dolls affect the way she sees herself? One woman took a gasp-worthy moment in a toy aisle full of hyper-sexualized dolls, and turned it into a fight we should all get behind; Because our daughters and our sons are watching.   Jodi Bondi Norgaard is the author of MORE THAN A DOLL: How creating a sports doll tur...

Melissa Petro was working a NYC elementary school teacher in 2011 when she authored a 700 word essay for the Huffington Post that changed her life. In it, she argued that Craigslist should not take down its sex services page based on the assumption that all callgirls on CL were underage or trafficked; she could attest to this, she wrote, having been a former callgirl on Craigslist herself. It wasn...

Soraya Chemaly is the author of THE RESILIENCE MYTH: NEW THINKING ON GRIT, STRENGTH AND GROWTH AFTER TRAUMA. A Bahamian-American author, activist and feminist, she’s written as a freelance journalist for The Atlantic, Time, The Guardian, Huffington Post and Ms. Magazine, among others, on topics ranging from freedom of expression, to women's rights, to media and technology. Among other accolades, s...

Have you ever imagined what overnight internet celebrity might feel like? Wonder no more. Having a worldwide following of people who think they know you, can be exhilarating, and daunting. Take it from Peyman (AKA TikTok's sensation Pey. Pey33), who has been a mystery wrapped in a soundtrack, twirling a handkerchief over his head while dancing through life across the world on social media to the d...

Constantly achieving but still find yourself feeling empty? Join the club. It’s growing. Luckily, Dr. Adam Dorsay has a roadmap for that.   In his book, Super Psyched, he breaks down the roots of this underlying discontent that so many clients in his therapy practice present, along with ways to fight it. Dorsay is a licensed psychologist, executive coach and TEDx speaker, as well as the Host of th...

By some estimates the portion of America’s population categorized as "child-free" by choice is as high as 25%. These people are defined as adults who have actively chosen not to become parents (biologically, through marriage or through adoption).   The ranks of the child-free are going, not just in this country but worldwide, and Professor Zachary Neal of Michigan State University is one of the fe...

Maddy Dychtwald is an expert on aging and the influence of older women on the global economy, as well as cofounder of Age Wave, a consultancy and thought leader on on issues relating to an aging population. Her latest book is called AGELESS AGING: A Woman's Guide To Increasing Healthspan, Brainspan, and Lifespan. She’s been featured in Newsweek, U.S. News and TIME, and is a regular contributor to...

Cari Sietstra is a reproductive health warrior, a global women's abortion rights advocate, and the Director of The Period Pills Project. With a bachelors from Harvard and a JD from Stanford Law School, Cari has dedicated the past 20 plus years to keeping girls and women safe. Cari first learned about menstrual regulation while working on abortion at the Myanmar-Thailand border, she is well versed...

Is your relationship stuck in the loop of defensiveness? What part do you play in the spiral? Lair Torrent is a psychotherapist, executive consultant, and relationship expert who wants you to grow up and own it. And that makes sense because a therapist married to a psycho-spiritual counselor for over 23 years probably wouldn’t get away with anything less in his own relationship, nor would he hope...

Identity explosion is an internal shift in how someone perceives and/or expresses their place in the world (and it can include anything from gender to sexuality to motherhood, religion, and more).     Moraya Seeger DeGeare is a neurodivergent Black Biracial therapist, and the granddaughter of famed musician Pete Seeger. Growing up in Beacon NY in a home filled with extended family, music, art, act...

Soraya Chemaly is a Bahamian-American author, activist, feminist and the author of RAGE BECOMES HER. She’s written as a freelance journalist for The Atlantic, Time, The Guardian, Huffington Post and Ms. Magazine, among others, on topics including freedom of expression, gender, women's rights, sexualized violence, media and technology. She is also the Director of the Women's Media Centre Speech Pro...