Good Inside with Dr. Becky

When a woman becomes a mother, her brain physically reorganizes around the baby. We've known this for a while. What we didn't know (until recently) is that the same thing happens to dads. Dr. Darby Saxbe is a neuroscientist and psychologist at USC, and one of the only researchers in the world scanning fathers' brains before and after they have kids. What she found: the same regions that change and...

“If I don’t push my kid, they’ll waste their potential.” A lot of us believe this. But is it true? Myleik Teele joins Dr. Becky to work through a question that haunts every ambitious parent. What unfolds is an honest look at whose anxiety is actually running the show — and whether the drive we're trying to install in our kids is something we need to figure out for ourselves first. They get into: w...

Dr. Cassidy Freitas grew up watching her mom — a Hispanic judge who fought her way into white male spaces with no margin for error — come home carrying that same no-error version of herself. Her dad pushed straight A's as the path to financial safety. She absorbed all of it. And then she became a mom. She had a plan. A written, formatted, shared-with-her-doctor birth plan. When it fell apart in th...

Parents are being sold creativity like it's a subscription box. Workshops, kits, frameworks, scripts: the message being that your kid needs more imagination and it's your job to install it. Austin Kleon, author of Steal Like an Artist and Don't Call It Art , has a different take: your kid already has it. The imagination, the playfulness, the willingness to not-know — it's all there. The question i...

You and your partner love your kids. So why does it sometimes feel like you're parenting in completely different worlds? In this listener-favorite episode from the Good Inside archives, Dr. Becky talks with a mom named Carmella who feels stuck between two parenting styles: she's the one holding the routines and boundaries, while her husband tends to be more flexible in the moment. The result? More...

AI is getting better at sounding human. Better at conversation. Better at reassurance. Better at knowing exactly what we want to hear. So what happens when our kids start building relationships with machines designed to remove friction? In this conversation, Dr. Becky talks with former Wall Street Journal tech columnist Joanna Stern about AI toys, chatbot companions, creativity, learning, and the...

After kids, a lot of couples assume intimacy is supposed to disappear. You’re exhausted, touched-out, overwhelmed by logistics, carrying invisible mental load — and somewhere along the way, sex can start to feel complicated, distant, or impossible to even talk about. But what if the story is more nuanced than that? In this episode, Dr. Becky talks with board-certified OB/GYN, sexual wellness exper...

Dr. Becky recently had a run-in with a ... dubious ... purveyor of NeeDohs, the outrageously popular, notoriously hard-to-find squishy toys. And it made her think twice about why this craze has taken over our homes in the first place. So she did what any reasonable person would do: she recorded an emergency podcast episode in her closet.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.c...

Dr. Lindsay C. Gibson has helped millions of readers understand the lasting impact of emotionally immature parents. In this conversation, she joins Dr. Becky to explore the other side of the equation: how we raise emotionally mature kids. They discuss why kids’ behavior can feel so activating, the difference between emotions being a “master” versus an “advisor,” why emotional maturity has nothing...

For generations, fathers were taught that their job was simple: protect, provide, preside. But what happens when those old rules no longer fit? In this conversation, Dr. Becky talks with writer and father Kevin Maguire (" The New Fatherhood ") about the emotional transformation happening inside modern fatherhood — and why so many dads are trying to parent differently than they were parented themse...

You’ve probably said it—or heard it: “Nobody knows what they’re doing.” It’s meant to comfort us as parents. And sometimes it does. But… is it actually true? In this episode of our ongoing Is It True? series, Dr. Becky and Myleik Teele take a closer look at this belief—and what might be more helpful to hold onto instead. They explore: Why this idea can feel relieving… and also limiting The pressur...

If you’re pregnant… just had a baby… or love someone who is about to become a parent… this episode is for you! This is a preview of Rattled —a brand-new podcast from Good Inside, created for those early weeks and months of parenthood, when everything feels new, intense, and a little disorienting. Each episode of Rattled starts with a thought—the kind that shows up at 2 a.m., the kind you don’t alw...

People will tell you: a baby changes everything. What no one tells you is how much you change — and how hard it is to love yourself when you don't quite recognize yourself anymore. In this conversation, Dr. Becky sits down with poet and author Cleo Wade ( Remember Love ) to talk about what it actually feels like to lose yourself in early parenthood — and what finding your way back looks like. They...

We all grow up playing a role in our family — the responsible one, the easy one, the funny one. For Kenan Thompson, that role started early. In this episode of How We’re Raised , Dr. Becky talks with Kenan about how becoming “the funny one” shaped the way he connects with people — and what it looks like to parent with more intention today. They discuss: The connection between humor and emotional s...

Lots of us think screen time is a discipline problem.“My kid just wants more.”“They don’t know when to stop.”“I need to set better limits.”But what if that’s not actually what’s going on? In this episode, Dr. Becky talks with science journalist Michaeleen Doucleff, author of Dopamine Kids , about the brain system driving kids’ behavior around screens—and why more screen time rarely leads to feelin...

Most women have heard of menopause. Far fewer understand perimenopause — the years leading up to it, when things can start to feel… off. Mood shifts. Brain fog. Anxiety. Sleep disruption. A sense of “I don’t recognize myself.” In this episode, Dr. Becky sits down with OB-GYN and menopause expert Dr. Mary Claire Haver to unpack what’s actually happening in the body during perimenopause — and why so...

Your kid is melting down in public… and you feel it: “If I don’t shut this down, I'm a pushover. My kid will walk all over me." In this first episode of our new Is It True? series, Dr. Becky and Myleik Teele take a closer look at a belief so many parents carry, though rarely question: If I don’t punish, I'm being permissive. Together, they unpack what’s underneath that fear, why punishment can fee...

If you’re parenting right now, it can feel like the world your kids are growing up in is changing faster than you can understand it. AI. Social media. Phones. New technology showing up everywhere. And many parents are wondering the same thing: How am I supposed to guide my kids through something I barely understand myself? Today, we're sharing a short clip from a new Good Inside podcast called The...

Everyone in a family has a job. As parents, it’s our job to hold boundaries with our kids. It’s also our job to validate their feelings. And boy do they have feelings when we say no. On today’s episode, Dr. Becky explores the reasons behind why so many parents struggle with saying no to their kids and provides some new strategies you can start using in your house today. Get the Good Inside App by...

This episode is part of our new series, How We’re Raised — conversations about how the homes we grew up in shape the way we lead, love, and parent today. Dr. Becky sits down with restaurateur and author Will Guidara to explore how being deeply seen as a child shaped the way he builds culture — in restaurants and at home. Will shares what it was like growing up with a mother who became quadriplegic...

When food starts to feel tense, restrictive, or obsessive at home, it can send a parent into panic fast. In observation of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week, Dr. Becky sits down with Dr. Erin Parks, Chief Clinical Officer at Equip Health, to talk about eating disorders and disordered eating in kids and teens—what the early signs look like, what’s happening emotionally underneath, and how par...

If you’ve ever sat down for the first time all day and guilt showed up before rest did, this episode is for you. In this conversation, Dr. Becky unpacks new findings from Care.com ’s 2026 Cost of Care Report — and translates what the numbers really mean for your nervous system, your sleep, and your sense of self. Because the data reveals something powerful:Parents aren’t just tired. Many feel like...

Super Bowl–winning NFL quarterback Russell Wilson goes beyond game-day narratives to unpack the mindset, discipline, and mental conditioning behind elite performance. He reflects on how early expectations shaped his identity, including the belief of “Why not you?” — and how those lessons now guide him as a father, leader, and teammate. This is episode 4/4 of Good Inside Presents: The Playbook , a...

Gymnast and two-time Olympic medalist Jordan Chiles reflects on the moments that tested her most — including the Tokyo Games, where a fall felt like failure before becoming something bigger, when she stepped to compete for Simone Biles at the last minute. Joined by her mother, Gina, Jordan shares how belief, repair, and self-talk helped her separate who she is from what she does. A powerful conver...

PGA Tour star Tony Finau shares how he’s learned to stay steady in a sport — and a life — built on pressure and uncertainty. Growing up with scarcity shaped his relationship to effort, discipline, and grit, lessons that continue to guide how he competes, recovers from mistakes, and shows up for his family. Tony reflects on the moments between shots, the power of repair after things go wrong, and t...