Sunday, July 26, 2020 is the 12th annual National Auntie’s Day—a day for celebrating the special bond between women and their nieces and nephews.  It’s an opportunity to highlight the unique and important contribution aunts make to the development of the children in their lives.  I’m an aunt and so are many of you, so I’m pleased to welcome the founder of Auntie’s Day and author of Otherhood: Modern Women Finding a New Kind of Happiness, Melanie Notkin, to the program!  In our conversation, Melanie and I discuss:
·        How women of The Otherhood manage their ongoing and currently unmet desire for marriage and family.
·        The question almost every woman of The Otherhood has asked herself, “Should I settle for a ‘good enough’ guy in order to have children?”
·        How to handle invasive and insensitive questions/comments about your life e.g. “You must have focused too much on your career!” or “Didn’t you want kids???”
·        The prevailing, yet inaccurate, assumption that women of The Otherhood delayed marriage and child bearing.
·        Grieving the loss of the life we’d expected, while embracing the joys of the life we have!
Aunties matter!  And, despite the fact our lives haven’t played out as planned, we women of The Otherhood, can be assured our nurturing and influence make a profound, positive impact on the children we didn’t create, yet choose to love.

Ep. 99 Otherhood: Single Women Without Kids (Who Want Them!)

We’re celebrating Love & Life’s 100th episode! And, as a thank you to our Love & Life family, we’ve made this episode all about what you love most!  We start by discussing the inspiration behind your three favorite Instagram posts—the mindset shifts that helped me remain hopeful and positive despite multiple heartbreaks over my MANY years of dating. We then break down a powerful approach from cognitive therapy to sustainably level up our emotional well being—even during the most painful and challenging times. I then answer 3 listeners’ questions and announce the Love & Life 100th Episode Celebration Giveaway! And the best part? Everyone’s a winner!

Website: loveandlifemedia.com 
Support the podcast: anchor.fm/love-and-life-media/support

Ep. 100 Take Charge of Your Thoughts, Take Charge of Your Life: Our 100th Episode!

We’ve all heard that journaling can be therapeutic.  But how does writing down our thoughts and feelings heal our emotional wounds?  In this episode, we explore all this and more with Stacy Brookman of “Life Story Laboratory.” Stacy shares how writing helps us process our experiences, recover from trauma, and take back our power!  Stacy explains how we can discover our life’s “theme” and reframe it if it’s not working for us.  She encourages us to identify any lies we’re telling ourselves and replace them with the truth—that we’re strong, capable, and tenacious!  According to psych research, writing fosters resilience and cultivates confidence.  Join us to learn how to implement this powerful practice in your life!

Website: loveandlifemedia.com
Support the podcast: anchor.fm/love-and-life-media/support

Citations:
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/figure/10.1080/10503300701691664?scroll=top&needAccess=true https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/Putting-Feelings-Into-Words-Produces-8047 https://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2017/for-worriers-expressive-writing-cools-brain-on-stressful-tasks/

Ep. 101 What Story Are You Telling Yourself? Writing Therapy with Stacy Brookman

With a Ph.D. in psychology and 27 years on the dating scene, Dr. Karin Anderson Abrell brings life experience and academic acumen to her philosophy on love and relationships.

Love & Life with Dr. Karin Anderson Abrell