Clinical psychologist Kenya Malcolm shares how to build healthy, flexible relationships with your kids

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Clinical psychologist Kenya Malcolm shares how to build healthy, flexible relationships with your kids

If you’ve ever worried about traumatizing your kids or wondered if they’ll still want to talk to you when they’re grown up, then you’ll enjoy this week’s episode of It’s a Lot. I talked to Dr. Kenya Malcolm, a clinical psychologist and the Director of Early Childhood Initiatives at the University of Rochester Medical Center’s Department of Psychiatry, about how parents are on a journey of growth alongside their kids, what to do when you’re worried about your child’s mental health (or your own), how she wishes the U.S. was more proactive in addressing mental health issues, and more.

In the second half of the show, we have a fun discussion about why her adult daughters still talk to her, what she’s looking forward to about being a grandma, and what books she’s enjoyed lately.

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Hayley DeRoche embraces the joyful weirdness of parenthood

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Hayley DeRoche embraces the joyful weirdness of parenthood

On my podcast It’s a Lot this week, I was thrilled to interview Hayley DeRoche (who you might know as Sad Beige on TikTok) about everything from their creative process to working through grief, from fostering and adoption to what happens when your kids love Jar Jar Binks. It was a really fun conversation and I learned a ton from their perspective on creativity, parenting, community, and more.

Pick up a copy of her fantastic book, Dress Your Baby in Sage and Taupe: A Handbook for the Sad Beige Parent anywhere you get your books! You can even ask your local library to get a copy if they don’t have one yet.

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Journalist Fortesa Latifi takes a nuanced approach to her reporting on mom influencers

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Journalist Fortesa Latifi takes a nuanced approach to her reporting on mom influencers

This week on It’s a Lot, I talked to journalist Fortesa Latifi about how she brings much-needed nuance to the conversation about mom influencers. We discuss how often vulnerable single moms are drawn to influencing because it doesn’t require an advanced degree and the work can be lucrative, the ethics of sharing your kids online, and how to figure out where to draw a line for yourself as a consumer of parenting content. Her excellent book Like, Follow, Subscribe: Influencer Kids and the Cost of a Childhood Online is out on April 7th and I highly recommend it!

Fortesa is also the mom of a toddler close in age to my son, so we had fun discussing the “I’ll do it myself” era, the joys of getting to see their personalities emerge, and the crushing weight of the mental load.

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For Rachel Kramer Bussel, an unconventional career path was the right choice

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For Rachel Kramer Bussel, an unconventional career path was the right choice

On my podcast It’s a Lot this week, I spoke with Rachel Kramer Bussel, a writer, editor, and toddler mom who is doing a LOT—and has been for decades. We discuss how she unintentionally dropped out of law school, the surprising reach of her cupcake blog, her decades of writing erotica and editing anthologies, and how she knows when it’s time to move onto a new chapter in her career. These days, Rachel is the editor-in-chief of Open Secrets Magazine, the organizer of personal storytelling summit Open Secrets Live (May 2 in NYC!), and now the host of the Finders and Keepers podcast.

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