Ma and Me Podcast

This is the season 1 finale of the Ma & Me Podcast. At the time of the recording, the hope was to launch season two with guest interviews, but that has been delayed. Crystal and Mark reflect on season 1 of the podcast and key takeaways from the experience. This podcast isn't simply about highlighting bad experiences, trauma, hardships, or venting, but about processing the entire journey—ac...

In this episode, Crystal and Mark discuss a variety of things related to the relationship they have with their mothers. There are various chapters of being human in this lifetime and we have to embrace them all. This podcast isn't simply about highlighting bad experiences, trauma, hardships, or venting, but about processing the entire journey—which means acknowledging the full spectrum of thei...

Do you ever wonder what your life might look like if your childhood was different? In this episode, Crystal and Mark discuss what they imagine life might have been like if their childhoods were different. This podcast isn't simply about highlighting bad experiences, trauma, hardships, or venting, but about processing the entire journey—which means acknowledging the full spectrum of their relat...

We all know the pain that stems from feeling abandoned and going through the grief process. In this episode, Crystal and Mark discuss their own experiences managing abandonment issues, grief, and the process of learning to love themselves and how the relationship with their mothers informed how they navigated their journeys. This podcast isn't simply about highlighting bad experiences, trauma,...

We need to be able to share difficult truths with our friends in a way that honors our love for them. In this episode, Crystal and Mark discuss their friendship and some of the difficult conversations they've been having over the last few months. This podcast isn't simply about highlighting the bad experiences, trauma, hardships, or venting, but about processing the entire journey-- which...

We need to be able to share difficult truths, but we also need to share the positive things we love about our mothers. In this episode, Crystal and Mark discuss what they love about their mothers. This podcast isn't simply about highlighting the bad experiences, trauma, hardships, or venting, but about processing the entire journey-- which means acknowledging the full spectrum of their relatio...

Adulthood is difficult, but what we learn through our parents can set us up for success or failure. In this episode, Crystal and Mark discuss what their mothers taught them about adulthood. This podcast isn't simply about highlighting the bad experiences, trauma, hardships, or venting, but about processing the entire journey-- which means acknowledging the full spectrum of their relationship w...

In this episode, Crystal and Mark discuss the concept of chosen family and the women who mothered them. Check out the documentary Paris Is Burning to learn more about the concept of chosen family and the ballroom scene, and the LGBTQ+ community. This podcast isn't simply about highlighting the bad experiences, trauma, hardships, or venting, but about processing the entire journey-- which means...

In this episode, Crystal and Mark talk about the importance of recognizing their mothers, first and foremost as women and then as moms. They share when they realized their mothers were imperfect and how that realization shifted the way they viewed their mothers. This podcast isn't simply about highlighting the bad experiences, trauma, hardships, or venting, but about processing the entire jour...

In this episode, Crystal and Mark take you down memory lane as they reflect on the fun times they shared with their mothers while growing up. This podcast isn't simply about highlighting the bad experiences, trauma, hardships, or venting, but about processing the entire journey-- which means acknowledging the full spectrum of their relationship with their mothers. Crystal and Mark are trying t...

In this episode, Crystal and Mark discuss their abandonment issues stemming from their relationships with their mothers. During the conversation, they get really raw and vulnerable, hoping that this episode helps even just one person learn how to love themselves and lean into the healing process. Generational cycles of trauma are hard to break, and during this episode, Crystal and Mark realized th...

In this episode, Crystal and Mark discuss learned behaviors and how they had to begin to unlearn how their mothers taught them to navigate life. Whether it is through the words said or behaviors displayed, our parents are the ones who lay the foundation for how we navigate the world. What happens when your foundation is not secure and begins to crack? What is the process of unlearning like? Crysta...

In their first episode, Crystal and Mark discuss how they met, developed a new friendship, and discovered an unlikely connection-- both of them were trying to heal from their "mother wound." While on the surface, they might have nothing in common, they both realized that despite the apparent differences, they were both committed to mothering themselves into wholehearted people, and this...

Ma & Me is a podcast about mothering ourselves into wholehearted people. Hosted and produced by Crystal and Mark Travis Rivera, this series will explore the complications, nuances, and beauty of reparenting ourselves and doing the work to heal. Follow the Ma & Me Podcast on Instagram .