Sisters Cracking Up

Hey, Sisters. Yes, you already know and love New York Times bestselling author, Laurie Notaro. She's the funny, irreverent, modern-day Erma Bombeck. And she's on Sisters Cracking Up with more hilarity than ever. Notaro's book, Excuse Me While I Disappear: Tales of Midlife Mayhem , is loaded with important food for thought like, "Why is my ass where my belly used to be?" and "What's the deal with m...

Hey, Sisters. Interested in a new way to think yourself to a more peaceful and joyful life? We were, too. So, when Julie found the book, Don't Believe Everything You Think: Why Your Thinking is the Beginning and End of Suffering, we knew we had to get Joseph Nguyen on the pod. Joseph Nguyen's groundbreaking book outlines a radical way to approach the countless thoughts we have every day. We can't...

If we're being honest, this happens to all parents at one point or another: Our grown kids disappoint us. But it remains one of the toughest things to talk about openly as we still believe (somewhere deep inside) that the poor/unpopular decisions our kids make reflects badly on who we are as parents. Whether we judge ourselves for their choices -- or we fear being judged by others -- we often rema...

Dry January is here! Are you partaking...or maybe finding the challenge a little too, well, challenging? Lucky for all of us, Clare Pooley , author of  The Sober Diaries,  has joined us just in time for this episode of Sisters Cracking Up . Clare Pooley discovered that her personal journey to sobriety really didn't differ all that much from the hundreds of thousands of people who logged on to read...

Hey, Sisters. Most of us know there's no time like the holidays to highlight all the good (and not-so-good) parts of being in a family. Although Hallmark (and its minions) would like us to believe that all of our close family relationships are intact, this is indeed not the case. Author Fern Schumer Chapman ( Brothers, Sisters, Strangers: Sibling Estrangement and the Road to Reconciliation) is on...

Trae Bodge is your best friend this holiday season. If anyone knows shopping, it's Trae. If anyone can actually be a shopping "guru," it's also Trae. (It's no wonder she's made over a thousand TV appearances to talk about the tricks of the trade.) The holidays are fraught with so many decisions and gift-giving is one of the big ones. It's a fact that most of us need to be mindful of what we're spe...

The title of Dr. Ellen Albertson's book, Rock Your Midlife , tells you just what you need to know about what's inside. But it doesn't stop there. The subtitle is, 7 Steps to Transform Yourself and Make your Next Chapter Your Best Chapter. Of course, we were intrigued since we're all about midlife at Sisters Cracking Up   -- and all about making it the best it can be. Dr. Ellen Albertson is a force...

Are you Shaman-curious ? Does the idea that there's more to the Universe than what you can see, feel, and touch intrigue you?  In the spirit of opening our minds (and yours!), we invited Shaman Brad Little Frog to be our guest on Sisters Cracking Up . Join us as we delve into how a shaman can help heal your mind, spirit, body -- and even help you sell your house -- as Abby found out when she worke...

Anxiety, anyone? Yep, we thought so. That's why we invited The Anxiety Sisters (Abbe Greenberg and Maggie Sarachek) to come on Sisters Cracking Up and teach us a thing or two about living with and managing anxiety. Their book, The Anxiety Sisters' Survival Guide: How You Can Become More Hopeful, Connected, and Happy , is a veritable handbook to better understanding and managing panic, worry, grief...

Does the thought of getting older make you anxious? Are you in your 30s, 40s or 50s and wonder if you've already hit your peak? Do not despair, Sisters. There is good news. Very good news. In his book, The Happiness Curve: Why Life Gets Better After 50 , Jonathan Rauch does the extraordinary. He's gathered all the cutting-edge research about aging and happiness and his conclusion is this: Life get...

Welcome back, Sisters! We're so happy to be back for Season 3 of Sisters Cracking Up ! We have some incredible guests lined up for you this season and we're kicking it off with Dr. Laurie Mintz, author of the bestseller, "Becoming Cliterate: Why Orgasm Equality Matters and How to Get It." Dr. Mintz is a feminist author, therapist, and tenured professor (University of Florida) whose life's work has...

Join Sisters Cracking Up, as we interview Gabrielle Glaser on her groundbreaking, bestselling book, "Her Best-Kept Secret: Why Women Drink -- and How They Can Regain Control." If you've ever struggled with alcohol addiction (or if someone you love has) OR if you've ever simply questioned your own relationship with alcohol (pandemic drinking, anyone?), this episode is a must listen. From how women...

Have you ever been made to doubt what you know to be true by a partner, a friend, a sibling, or a parent? If so, there's a good chance you've been gaslighted. Thanks to Dr. Robin Stern, "gaslighting" -- the term she coined to describe the experience of being manipulated into doubting one's own truth or sanity -- has been brought to the collective forefront of what we now understand is a form of ps...

Gary Janetti, comedy genius and royalty, joins us to talk about his new book, Start Without Me: I'll Be There in a Minute.  You already know and love Gary Janetti from his work on  Family Guy , The Prince , and Will & Grace . Now, you'll get to know and love the person behind the laughs as he shares what and who inspires him -- and his thoughts on commencement speeches, tanning, and fame. Sisters...

It's kind of impossible not to love the New York Times Bestseller, Group: How One Therapist and a Circle of Strangers Saved My Life by Christie Tate. And, frankly, it's kind of hard not to love Christie Tate herself. If you enjoyed Group (and even if you're the one person who didn't), you're going to enjoy this interview, Sisters. Christie pulls back every curtain as she shares her hard-won journe...

Did you grow up with an emotionally immature, unavailable, or selfish parent? Did you often feel unseen or unheard by those who raised you? Did you take on adult responsibilities or roles as a way to compensate for your parent's behavior? If so, you may still be challenged by lingering feelings of anger, betrayal, or abandonment. Dr. Lindsay Gibson had a radical thought in her decades of doing psy...

Ever look at the habits or behaviors of your parents and grandparents and think, "I'll never do that!" Sure you have. But Steven Petrow kept copious notes about all the things he'd never do...and then wrote a book about it.  Yes, it's funny. But it's also touching and enlightening as Petrow takes us through the basics ("I won't color my hair!") and then moves us gracefully into a deeper understand...

Every midlife woman has a story. Sometimes that story can be one we can learn and grow from. Jennifer Arthurton, host of the podcast, Old Chicks Know Sh*t, was floundering in midlife until she decided to choose reinvention over personal struggle and complacency. Her life truly changed when she was willing to let go of the "image" of what she (and others) thought her life should look like. And we'r...

As women, we're no strangers to the experience that what our lives look like from the outside often doesn't match the dissatisfaction and turmoil within. And no matter how many self-help books we read, or yoga classes we take, or smoothies we drink -- we still feel like we're drifting. Dr. Valerie Rein is a psychologist and women's mental health expert who has discovered Patriarchy Stress Disorder...

It's a tough swallow, but divorce always comes down to two things: kids and money. And if the kids are grown or there are none, it's all about the dough. So, what do you need to know about your financials in order to move smartly through your divorce and end up with the best possible financial outcome? Cue Shawn Leamon because he's just the guy we need to advise us on all matters of divorce financ...

Randi Kreger, co-author of the bestseller,  Stop Walking on Eggshells: Taking Your Life Back When Someone You Care About Has Borderline Personality Disorder,  joins  Sisters Cracking Up to pull back the curtain on the wild, complex, and eternally frustrating experience of being in a relationship with someone with BPD. And that relationship can be with anyone in your life: spouse, partner, parent,...

Thinking about making that career change as you round the bend in midlife? So many of us are thinking about it...and doing it! But there's so much to consider before we switch those professional gears. Career coach extraordinaire Angie Bruhn joins Sisters Cracking Up to discuss what you need to think about as you craft the second act of your professional life. And it's not just about paying the bi...

Dreading that convo you know you need to have? We've all been there! Join us as we welcome Confrontationalist Danielle Gibson who will teach you how to "talk turkey" right in time for Thanksgiving! Confrontation is usually seen as something negative but, what if instead of fearing confrontation and trying to avoid it, you stepped into it and embraced it directly?  This is what Danielle Gibson, a C...

Author and humorist Helen Ellis is in the house. And no topic is off-limits!  We talk professional poker, menopause, friendships, marriage, and the wherewithal it takes to become a successful writer. (Also, if you didn't know that the phrase "bless your heart" has negative connotations, Helen explains why.)  If you want to be Helen's friend, you've got to be willing to open up about your sex life...

Our enthusiasm is a little embarrassing, but we are true fangirls of Paul Gilmartin and his podcast, The Mental Illness Happy Hour . Listen in as Paul shares his own struggles openly and vulnerably -- in an effort to help others move through and beyond their own.  A well-known comedian and host of the long-running TBS show, Dinner and a Movie , Paul Gilmartin turned to podcasting in 2011 as a way...