We Can Do Hard Things

How do we bring our full selves into our relationships without fear of rejection?  Today, Abby shares more about what’s been happening in her life since she’s stopped “bright siding” including powerful truth-telling she’s unleashed in business and her family of origin. Glennon shares how Abby embracing her full emotions has led to deeper intimacy and connection, and a feeling of “un-loneliness” in...

Abby opens up about starting therapy and the work she’s been doing to unearth and express uncomfortable emotions like anger and sadness. She shares her long-held fear that if she feels and expresses her full self, people will leave her. In a profound moment, Abby shares a deep longing to truly love herself. She explains that this love has been clouded by messages she’s received since childhood whi...

Where does all our suffering come from and how can we free ourselves? Pastor, author, and speaker, Nadia Bolz-Weber, discusses how she finally became healed and whole enough to choose romantic love from freedom instead of desperation. With her characteristic raw honesty, Nadia shares that the secret to her healing has been “honestly, a lot of pain.” Plus, Nadia leads Abby to a heartbreaking, catha...

Priya Parker is here to discuss what Glennon called “the most important thing in the world” – connection – and how to make our time with other people have more of it. She teaches us:  How – whether it’s a wedding or a retirement party – you can create new gathering rituals that forge truer, deeper relationships; Why the outcome of every gathering is decided before anyone steps in the room; and  Wh...

Glennon tells three stories that reveal how recovery from anorexia has changed who she is and how she experiences the world. Together in G’s home, recording for the first time, Abby and Amanda respond with their reflections and the impacts that G’s recovery work has had on the entire family.

In this special episode, Glennon, Abby, and Amanda sit down with icon Dolly Parton for a heartfelt conversation about how to start something new at 77, how she mothers the world, and how she broke her own heart when Elvis asked to record her hit song.  Plus, the advice Dolly would give to Glennon and Abby’s daughter, Tish, as she enters the music business.  About Dolly:  Dolly Parton is the most h...

Brilliant life coach, Martha Beck, works her magic for our Pod Squad. In this treasure trove of profound insight and practical guidance, Martha teaches us how to find purpose in midlife, how to use our longing as a map, and how to know for sure if what we have is real love.  If you’d like to go back and listen to the episodes mentioned in today’s conversation, check out episodes:  252. Martha Beck...

In this incredibly raw episode, Martha Beck coaches Amanda through a transformative, therapeutic session to help heal her overfunctioning, resentment, and burnout. Martha uncovers the different parts of Amanda that have existed inside her since childhood – and invites them to speak and then finally rest into peace, joy, and enoughness.   If you’d like to go back and listen to episodes referenced i...

Singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Allison Russell, shares her incredible life story and teaches us how she healed from abuse through music, sisterhood, and returning to her body. This hour is a soul-stirring reminder of the life-saving, cycle-breaking power of truth telling, art, and love.  About Allison: Allison Russell has spent her career in multiple bands, including Po’ Girl, Our Native...

Today, Angela Chen teaches us how understanding asexuality helps us understand ourselves and the true meaning of sex. Angela describes:  The misconception that blocks us from fully understanding our own sexuality; Why your sexuality is a relationship between YOU and YOU;  How there are MANY reasons people have sex. (Glennon says sexual attraction only accounts for 5% of her sexual experiences.); a...

Who do we go to for advice? And do we really even WANT advice — or just a good listener? Glennon, Abby, and Amanda tell us who they each go to when they don’t know what to do next — and offer their best advice to Pod Squaders dealing with loneliness and the unexpected jealousy of their partner's affection for a pet.

Amanda shares the one proven way to get the truth from someone – plus: Why Glennon calls her lying style “The Puppeteer” – and why you’ll never know what Amanda’s really feeling.  Amanda defends our right to lie, and debunks myths about how we can tell if someone is lying.  What’s the difference between lying and controlling, manipulating, and filtering the truth? Glennon’s fear of judgment from t...

Kerry Washington shares the deeply personal story of what happened when her parents finally told her the truth about a long-held and shocking family secret: How uncovering the truth – as painful as it was – led Kerry to reclaim her self trust;  How the revelation made her the lead character of her own life for the first time; Walking the line between protection and deception; Breaking the cycle of...

Calling all Caregivers!  Today is a tribute to the everyday efforts of all caregivers who are holding up the sky for everyone else.  Ai-jen Poo is here shining a light on why caregivers are exhausted, unsupported, and overwhelmed – all while doing the work that makes everything else possible.  We talk about how to give the people we love the care they deserve without neglecting our own needs, and...

Andrea Gibson returns with their partner, Megan Falley, for a gorgeous, hilarious double date with Glennon and Abby: An Andrea health update and what each has learned since Andrea’s cancer diagnosis; How their chemistry ignited with Andrea’s questionable move on a sweaty dance floor – and the text moment Andrea knew Megan was the one; How each of their relationships with their bodies has been tran...

Where do you go to escape the pain of reality? Today, author Chloé Cooper Jones shares:  The survival strategy many of us use to retreat from our lives and how to become more present;  How she grapples with the world dehumanizing her disabled body;  Why desire and disgust are so connected – and what they teach us; and  The thing Chloé wants most – to be seen as inherently whole – and how to get it...

In the world of feelings, there are winners and losers, and somebody has to be the judge. World-renowned, self-proclaimed couples therapist Dr? Sheila invites you to sit in on her private sessions with clients. (For legal reasons, Dr? must be said in the form of a question.) Each week, a new couple…and a new puzzle to crack. You’ll get to hear, and benefit from, many of her famous techniques as sh...

The moment Oprah finally knew who she really was; The hidden gift of criticism, and the image to remember when you’re envious;   Why “Slugging It Out” is a losing game; How to let go of outcomes – and make peace with what you have to offer; and  Oprah reads the letter Glennon wrote to her after her mother died – which she says changed her life.   Read Oprah’s newest book BUILD THE LIFE YOU WANT. T...

Liar, liar – all of our pants are on fire. In this juicy conversation about lying: Why the question isn’t “DO you lie?” – but “HOW and WHY do you lie?” What constitutes a lie to you: defining what makes something a lie; Figuring out our own particular lie languages – and why Abby’s a Bullshitter; and Deciding if there is anyone you can be completely honest with – and how to create the algorithm of...

Amanda, Glennon and Abby explore how to survive the lifelong, universal pain of being left out: What Abby felt when she heard “We don’t want you here” – and its long-lasting impact;  Why it is so painful, and how to process feelings of rejection and isolation; How dissociation helped Glennon cope with rejection in the cafeteria;  What parents should and *should not* do when helping kids navigate e...

Dr. Hillary McBride is back to continue our thrilling conversation about PSYCHEDELICS — and how folks are using them to enhance their relationships and lives. She helps us understand:  The importance of seeing our partners – and letting ourselves be seen – without any defenses;  How combining therapy with psychedelics is helping people stay close to their feelings;   Why the first step toward heal...

Why is everyone talking about psychedelics?!?!  Today, Dr. Hillary McBride joins us to answer all of our questions about therapeutic psychedelics, and:  Her personal, step-by-step journey with therapeutic psychedelics;  The science behind how psychedelics help break old patterns and create new ones;  How she uncovered the root of her eating disorder; and  How psychedelics can reveal your innate go...

Are you capable of being satisfied? Today, adrienne maree brown helps us uncover:  How to find beauty and connection in the everyday; How to stop wasting your time on things that don’t feel good; Why the greatest risk of life is also where its preciousness comes from;  How, through the discipline of pleasure, we can ALL be satisfied.  About adrienne: adrienne maree brown is a pleasure activist, wr...

Abby and Glennon attempt a Relaxation Intervention, which Amanda sabotages – resulting in a riveting discussion of why we can’t (don’t) de-stress, and how relaxation can help us ALL feel a little more human: Why so many of us have lost our playful, silly, absurd selves – and how we might recover them;  The “Relaxation Homework” Abby assigned to Amanda;  How over-functioners can channel their super...

Glennon and Amanda share why they love this wildly popular conversation with Dr. Becky Kennedy and how it radically changed their approaches to parenting their kids (and reparenting themselves).  Dr. Becky Kennedy guides us through Attachment Styles, how our past comes alive in our present – and how to free ourselves and raise freer kids. 1. Why attachment styles are at the heart of our most inten...