Slate Advice

Guest Prudie Kristen Meinzer is joined by Care and Feeding co-host Lucy Lopez. Together, they answer letters from a wife whose husband is always looking for sympathy, someone who regrets the way they treated colleagues when pursuing a career promotion, and a person who can not move on after being dumped.  Want more Dear Prudence? Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately unlock weekly bonus episodes....

On this episode: Jamilah, Zak, and Elizabeth tackle a letter from a Care and Feeding reader who is trying to explain code-switching to a six-year-old. This kid doesn’t seem to understand how or why to speak differently to his peers than to adults… but how can you convey that without giving him the wrong message? We’ll also, of course, circle up for a round of triumphs and fails.  Join us on Facebo...

Puberty is changing, and we’re not talking about developing Adam’s apples and growing hair in new places. It starts earlier and lasts longer. Regardless of when this necessary stage of life starts, youth and their adults need support going through it. On this week’s episode of Well, Now puberty expert Vanessa Kroll Bennett discusses the biggest ways puberty has changed for today’s youth and how be...

As the parent of five kids, Sadie is no stranger to feeling overwhelmed. Most of her kids have left the nest, but one adult daughter has severe autism and can’t live or work on her own. Facing the end of school-based support services, Sadie has to figure out what comes next for her daughter—and for herself. On this episode of How To!, Carvell Wallace brings on Sarah Wayland, the founder of Guiding...

On this episode: Elizabeth, Jamilah and Zak help a member of the Slate Parenting Facebook group who's wondering how to help her seven and five-year-olds — and especially her son — learn how to listen. They’re both vibrant kids with a lot of ideas… so how do you not dull their sparkle, while also getting those lips a little more zipped? We also check in on what’s happening in the hosts’ lives right...

Guest Prudie Nadira Goffe is joined by actress and comedian Sasheer Zamata. Together, they answer letters about a neighbor-turned-last-minute-babysitter whose work has gone unappreciated, a widower whose family won’t stop judging his new girlfriend, and a reader struggling to balance time with their husband and extended family.  Want more Dear Prudence? Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately unloc...

On this episode: Jamilah, Zak and Elizabeth help a listener whose son is at the perfect age to learn about the birds and the bees. There’s just one problem: he really doesn’t want to know. We’ll help our listener with some strategies for communicating the important stuff, while still respecting a shy kid’s limits.  We’ll also circle up for a round of triumphs and fails. Join us on Facebook and ema...

We live in a weight-obsessed world, and children are not immune. From the moment a child is born, their weight and height are tracked and recorded. Then throughout their development, these metrics are used as one of the main factors to determine their health. But as the Health at Every Size (HAES) philosophy continues to gain traction for some adults, is there use for it as a part of growing child...

Erica judges other people by default. Whether they are acquaintances, co-workers, or new arrivals in a club, her first impression is often negative. “I would like to learn how to quash that part of myself,” she says, because those judgments might be ruling out potential friendships. On this episode of How To!, Courtney Martin brings on Dr. Terri Apter, psychologist and author of Passing Judgment:...

In this episode, Sam Sanders (host of The Sam Sanders Show from KCRW) sits in as Guest Prudie with Slate’s own Nadira Goffe to answer letters from readers about making amends after spreading gossip, trying to forgive your mother after years of rejection, managing social invitations when a couple in the friend group breaks up.  Want more Dear Prudence? Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately unlock...

On this episode: Jamilah, Zak and Elizabeth share what’s in their emergency kits and talk about their approaches to disaster preparedness. We’ll also share a dispatch from our Florida correspondent — whose family is, fortunately, safe and well.  If you want to help Floridians recover from hurricanes Milton and Helene, check out the Florida Disaster Fund. For more on disaster preparedness: ready.go...

Go to the supplement aisle at the grocery store, and the options are endless. Scroll through any Instagram or TikTok feed, and you’re bound to see videos of people claiming their latest supplement is life-changing.  Supplements can be used for health and wellness, but it’s important to know the facts before buying the next trendy capsule, pill, tincture, or gummy. On this week’s episode of Well, N...

At a new job, Jenna was put in charge of some beautiful plants that are imbued with deep significance to their co-workers. But despite Jenna’s best efforts, the plants aren’t doing so hot. Can the browning leaves, flopping stems, and dry soil be nursed back to health before it’s too late? On this episode, Carvell Wallace brings on Maria Failla, host of the Growing Joy podcast and author of Growing...

On this episode: Elizabeth, Lucy and Zak are joined by author, speaker, and soccer superstar Abby Wambach. We’ll talk about her new book, The Wolfpack Way, and what it means to raise a little leader. We also slip in a quick conversation about what it’s like to blend families and become a “bonus mom.” And then, if you’re joining us for the Plus Playground — out now in your podcast feed — Abby answe...

In this episode, it’s a Slate three-for-one as Cheyna Roth and Candice Lim join our Guest Prudie (Nadira Goffe) to answer letters from readers about what to do when your partner keeps spontaneously changing your dinner plans, how you should handle the fact that your father is the “other woman” in his new relationship, and how to handle your brother’s incredibly insecure fiancee. Want more Dear Pru...

On this episode: Zak and Elizabeth are joined by Rachel Riskind, a longtime listener and mom to three Jewish kids. Together, they’ll commemorate Rosh Hashanah by reflecting on how to raise Jewish kids in the complicated world of 2024. Our community had a ton of questions and stories to share on everything from Gaza to fasting to how to explain to teachers that Hanukkah isn't that important. We’re...

GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic, WeGovy, Mounjaro and others revolutionized weight loss and chronic weight management. But what does it feel like for the patients who take them? On this week’s episode of Well, Now Kavita and Maya talk with journalist and author Johann Hari. Over the course of a year, Johann dived into the research and history behind GLP-1 drugs and how they became the latest and most eff...

The How To! hosts love helping listeners find the answers they need. But sometimes a host needs help, too. On this episode, Courtney Martin and her brother, Chris, open up about how their father’s dementia has led them to upend their own lives in order to become his caregivers. To help Courtney and Chris talk through what comes next, Carvell Wallace welcomes Dr. Allison Applebaum, whose book Stand...

On this episode: Elizabeth, Lucy and Zak help a member of the Slate Parenting Facebook group who’s struggling with wrangling her new baby… and the baby’s very clingy new grandma. Grandma’s struggled with loneliness and is-over-the-moon about the baby. But is it time to set some boundaries? And how many photos is too many? We also check in on what’s happening in the hosts’ lives right now. And then...

In this episode, Rachel Bloom (The CW musical comedy-drama series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and Netflix’s Death, Let Me Do My Special) joins our Guest Prudie (Cheyna Roth) to answer letters from readers about how to handle a newly sober (and vegan) friend getting super judgy, what to do when you become friends with an ex-boyfriend and then that boyfriend gets a jealous girlfriend, and whether not wantin...

On this episode: Lucy, Zak and Elizabeth answer a question from a listener who’s worried that her preschooler has already encountered a lot of bullying and cliques… so what is kindergarten going to be like? And why are these little kids already capable of being so mean? We’ll also circle up for a round of triumphs and fails — including an update on Zak’s talking-about-the-Holocaust dilemma. Join u...

Modern IUDs have been used for decades to prevent unwanted pregnancy and have been extremely effective at doing so. But they’re not without side effects. With few places to turn, many patients have resorted to TikTok to describe their experiences of painful insertion and removal as well as cramping, changes in menstruation, and mood shifts. But patients don’t have to be left in the dark. If there...

Ari always dreamed of starting his own podcast. When he started interviewing fellow academics for the Taylor Swift class he’s teaching, Ari suddenly had the perfect opportunity to turn those conversations into something called ¿What Are Taylor Swift Studies Anyways? Now he just needs to find an audience. On this meta episode of How To!, Carvell Wallace brings on Lauren Passell, founder of Tink Med...

On this episode: it’s Friendship Week at Slate, and we’re hopping aboard the friendship train to talk about the beauty, and challenges, of making friends in the parenting world… with special guest host Rebecca Onion, a senior editor for Slate. We also check in on what’s happening in Elizabeth, Zak, and Rebecca’s lives right now. And then, if you’re joining us for the Plus Playground — out now in y...

In this episode, Akilah Hughes (host of a new podcast from iHeart, Rebel Spirit) joins our Guest Prudie (Ashley C. Ford) to answer letters from readers about how to be a supportive long-distance friend to someone in an unhappy marriage, what to do when your friend is great at being a friend but a terrible colleague, and whether birthday texts are really necessary. Want more Dear Prudence? Subscrib...