This Is Uncomfortable

You’ve got savings. You’re paying your bills. You’re hitting your financial goals. On paper, you’re doing fine. So why does it still feel like you’re just one step away from financial disaster? This week, Reema talks with writer Lindsey Stanberry and financial therapist Amanda Clayman about money dysmorphia – the disconnect between how much money we have and how secure we actually feel – and how w...

As more former child stars come forward about the pain they experienced, does it still make sense to put kids in the spotlight? This week on the show, guest host Jasmine Romero speaks with actor Mara Wilson (of “Mrs. Doubtfire” and “Matilda”) and journalist Kate Taylor about how to protect child stars. If you like this episode, share it with a friend! And let us know what you think by calling 347-...

BOO!! We’re back with even more financial tales from the crypt — from giving a hormonal teen a debit card to getting into business with a scammer. Plus, a Backstreet Boys obsession that goes awry. If you like this episode, share it with a friend! And let us know what you think by calling 347-RING-TIU or emailing uncomfortable@marketplace.org If you want to answer our “Uncomfortable Questions” see...

Surprise! We’ve got more creepy money stories to get you in the Halloween spirit. A while back, listener Hayden started getting these surprise gifts in the mail. Once he realized who sent them to him, he wondered just how far the gift giver would go. Plus, two more stories of spending regret. If you like this episode, share it with a friend! And let us know what you think by calling 347-RING-TIU o...

With Halloween around the corner, we revisit listeners’ spine-chilling money horror stories — you know, the financial choices that are still haunting them, or the spending secrets they hope to take to the grave. If you like this episode, share it with a friend! And let us know what you think by calling 347-RING-TIU or emailing uncomfortable@marketplace.org If you want to answer our “Uncomfortable...

For many adult children of immigrants, success comes with pressure to give back. This week, Reema asks, what do we owe our families, and how do we care for the people we love without losing ourselves in the process? She talks with fellow first-gen kids — financial educator Gigi Gonzalez and financial therapist Sahaj Kaur Kohli — about reframing responsibility, setting healthy boundaries without gu...

Staying on top of your personal finances is hard enough as it is, but it can be especially challenging if you’re going through mental health challenges or your brain just works a little differently. So this week, Reema talks to Ellyce Fulmore , a neurodivergent financial educator who helps people create money systems their brains will actually use. Together, they answer your questions about impuls...

Are you more likely to buy some spicy mayo because it’s made by a blockbuster star? What about pet food or a mobile network? It used to be that you’d just buy a ticket to your favorite actor’s movie or your favorite singer’s concert, but as more celebrities cash in on their fame with product endorsements and brand extensions, what does that do to us and our relationship with celebrity culture? And...

Does higher education still guarantee financial stability? How can parents set their kids up for success, without subjecting them to overbearing pressure? Reema talks to writer Min Jin Lee to talk about her new novel, “ American Hagwon .” They discuss the precariousness of the middle class, and how love, fear, and money get tangled up in what parents want for their children … and what those kids c...

Before Ali Hazelwood’s “The Love Hypothesis” was a bestselling novel or movie, it was “ Star Wars” fan fiction. And Hazelwood isn’t the only one making the leap from fan fiction to traditional publishing. Fan fiction has historically been a labor of love, and not all fans are happy about the shift to monetization, and what that means for the fandom community. Reema is joined by journalist Elizabet...

Millions of Americans leave the U.S. each year for medical care. But how do you reap the rewards of medical tourism while managing the risks? And why do some have to travel out of the country to get affordable healthcare in the first place? This week on the show, Reema is joined by Dr. Alok Patel and podcast host TK Dutes to discuss what it’s like to travel for medical care, and how to do so safel...

As a special bonus this weekend, we’re revisiting one of our favorite stories from 2024, which Reema and Alice mentioned in the latest episode. While sorting through her father’s belongings after his death, Amanda Petteruti came across a collection of locked toolboxes. What she discovered inside made her rethink what she knew about her family’s finances and left her with unsettling questions about...

Who doesn’t love getting mail? This week on the show, Reema and Alice open up the mailbag and respond to your messages about questionable investments, doomspending, and caring for aging loved ones. Plus, we hear your advice on keeping weddings affordable for your guests and wedding party. Past stories referenced in this episode: ”The things we leave behind” “Nicole Chung and the toll of caregiving...

College sports has become a multi-billion dollar industry, but until just a few years ago, the actual athletes never saw a penny. It wasn’t until 2021 that the NCAA decided that college athletes could make money off of their Name, Image and Likeness (NIL). Guest host Alice Wilder talks to Madeline Hill and Charlotte Wilder (no relation), hosts of The Sports Gossip Show , to understand how NIL is c...

Ever look back and wish you could stop your past self from making a financial mistake? Yeah, us too. This week, Reema talks to researchers Abigail Sussman and Hal Hershfield about how to handle financial regrets, why our past choices look so much clearer in hindsight, and how our emotions and blind spots shape our financial lives. Plus, a new segment of “Alice Gets Her Life Together” on how to bud...

How much should parents budget for daycare? Does it make more financial sense for both parents to work and pay for childcare, or for one parent to stay home and care for their child? And why is childcare so expensive if childcare workers aren’t paid enough? In this episode, Reema shares a big announcement… She also hears from listeners and new parents about how they’re making childcare work for th...

Tight grocery budget? Try a "recession recipe." Reema talks producer Alice Wilder about her trip to meet Kiki Rough , a TikTok creator who makes hyper affordable recipes. Kiki learned how to to cook on a shoestring budget while on food stamps and has gained a large following as food insecurity in the U.S. rises. But even after going viral, she’s is still struggling to feel financially secure. How...

How were you raised to think about money, and how do you know when the values you inherited no longer fit? What do we owe other people, and when is generosity a duty? Reema talks with Abigail Disney, the grandniece of Walt Disney, about family, legacy, and giving away millions. If you like this episode, share it with a friend! And let us know what you think by calling 347-RING-TIU or emailing unco...

How many subscriptions are you paying for right now? Whether we’re watching TV, listening to music, or even just storing photos, it feels like we are required to rent so many parts of daily life these days. Reema talks to tech reporter Lance Ulanoff and finance writer Hanna Horvath about the origins of the subscription economy, what lies ahead, and how we can cope. Plus, we’ve got another edition...

Is a frustrating dynamic in your workplace keeping you up at night? In our recurring advice column, “Work Drama”, we try to find answers to your sticky work questions. This week Reema is joined by Marketplace correspondent Kristin Schwab and host/correspondent Sabri Ben-Achour to answer your workplace questions – from favoritism getting in the way of a promotion to persistent recruitment for the o...

This week we’re sharing an episode of the Marketplace climate solutions podcast “ How We Survive .” The new season is all about the controversial ways humans are tinkering with nature in an effort to save the planet, from shooting sulfur dioxide into the stratosphere, to launching sunshades into space. In this episode, they explore the wildest intervention to date: de-extinction. The team takes a...

Have you ever daydreamed about leaving your office job, moving to the countryside, and living off the land? In 2008, Laura Griggs and her husband did just that: they moved to a small farm in rural Missouri and raised their family there for nearly a decade. Reema talks with Laura about the real cost of homesteading, and why she ultimately had to leave it behind. And later in the episode, we’ve got...

How are you supposed to juggle caring for your aging parents while also raising young children of your own? And how do you budget for those competing responsibilities? This week, Reema talks to Nicole Chung, author of “ A Living Remedy ,” about her experiences caring for her parents in their final years of illness, how the U.S. healthcare system failed them, and the toll it took on her both emotio...

This week, we’re sharing an episode of “ Proxy ,” a podcast about the emotional questions that make people feel alone — and the conversation that unfolds when you find someone who gets it. Sam is a progressive person who suddenly has more money than friends and family — and he doesn’t know how to feel about it. He wants to be generous. He wants to be responsible. He wants to stop feeling guilty an...

Marriage brings with it a slew of state and federal privileges – when it comes to taxes, inheritance, and benefits – but what if that’s not the most important relationship to you ? What legal and financial options are out there for chosen family? Reema talks to LGBTQ+ legal advocate Angela Giampolo and tax expert Brixton Carothers about everything from setting up a revocable living trust to formin...