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PODCAST

This Is So Awkward

Peoples Media, This Is So Awkward

This is so awkward…but it doesn’t have to be. These days, puberty starts earlier, lasts longer, and happens with a cellphone in hand. The most trusted voices on puberty, Dr. Cara Natterson and Vanessa Kroll Bennett, are here to remove cringe from this stage of life – not just for kids going through it but also the adults who care about them. With science, guidance and humor, they cover all the physical, emotional, and social changes that happen between ages 8-18 and beyond. Watch the full episodes

kids & family parenting

All Episodes

65:31

Gynecology for Kids & Teens: Yes, It’s a Thing!

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/03/24

When people think of gynecology, they usually think of care that happens for older teens and adults, from birth control to pregnancy to menopause. But there’s a whole world of gynecologic conditions that affect young girls and adolescents, too. Dr Nichole A Tyson + Dr. Joseph Sanfilippo, giants in the field of Pediatric Adolescent Gynecology, join us for a wide ranging conversation about painful periods, blood disorders, PCOS, endometriosis, MRKH, and STDs. Show Notes: ⁠NASPAG⁠ Watch the

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54:59

Exam Stress: Turning Down the Volume

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/03/17

Exams have always been a stressful part of growing up. But layer on growing college admissions pressure, spiraling teen mental health, and recognition of the wide variety of learning styles, and the volume turns way up. This episode was prompted by a listener's question seeking advice about how to get through exam season from every angle: from the role of AI to the necessity of exams in the first place. We get into it… along with some of our own applicable parenting fails.Show

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60:38

The Hidden Science of Teen Motivation

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/03/10

What makes kids tick? Even when they appear uninterested, defiant, or lazy, there’s usually much more lurking under the surface. To learn how to pull it out of them––and how to connect and communicate, too––we’re joined by Rosalind Wiseman, author of Queen Bees and Wannabes (inspiration for the movie Mean Girls), who has spent her career exploring how to get the best out of tweens and teens.Show Notes: Watch the full episode on Youtube! Join the LESS AWKWARD MEMBERSHIP HUB Go to

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45:48

How Kids Get Emotionally Intelligent

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/03/03

Emotional intelligence is often called EQ. Some might say it’s a soft skill, but in fact research shows it’s central to lifelong resilience and wellbeing. Building EQ takes years and years––adults are still working on it too!––but starting young, kids can develop self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and decision making abilities. This episode digs into all the ways to support kids' development of emotional intelligence and why it matters so much.Learn more about

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56:10

Getting Real About Sex Ed with Shafia Zaloom

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/02/24

Sexuality education is proven to have positive impacts on kids’ lifelong wellbeing in all areas and yet, people assume it only covers S-E-X. In fact, as health educator Shafia Zaloom discusses on the podcast, this corner of education provides young people with a wide variety of life-critical skills like emotional intelligence, boundary setting, conflict resolution, and so much more. Yes, science-based sexual health is an important part of any good education but so too are the cornerstones of

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57:37

Teaching Kids to Trust their Guts

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/02/17

Gut instinct is only partially innate – it’s also very much learned and developed over time. And it turns out to be a fundamental safety skill kids need to master. To do this, we need to shed the “stranger danger” approach of the 1980s, replacing it with the concept of “tricky people,” because it turns out that those who harm kids are often not strangers to them at all. This episode is all about helping kids recognize when someone makes them uncomfortable, how to set boundaries, and express

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49:29

Parents Have Feelings Too: Anger, Disgust + All the...

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/02/10

Parenting brings up so many difficult emotions like: disgust, disappointment, anger and more. Layer on top the shame parents experience for having those feelings! Two mental health professionals, Hilary Hendel and Julie Fraga, authors of Parents Have Feelings Too, join us to normalize the full emotional landscape of parenting and offer tools for moving forward in loving and constructive ways.Show Notes: Watch the full episode on ⁠⁠Youtube⁠⁠! ⁠⁠Join the LESS AWKWARD MEMBERSHIP

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49:39

It’s Not Fair!

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/02/03

Kids are constantly analyzing and expressing their views on fairness––they do it in school, at home, on the sports field, basically everywhere. There are two different interpretations of fairness: equity and equality. We explore the difference between meeting each person’s individual needs vs slicing the pie the same way for all. While the constant refrain of “It’s not fair!” can be irritating to adults, the skill of understanding fairness is critical to kids’ social and moral development.Show

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53:28

Mattering in Today’s World

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/01/27

It’s easy to feel untethered in a modern world filled with stressors and tech-laden realities, but research tells us that the secret sauce is mattering: a combination of feeling valued and offering value back. Mattering fuels wellbeing. Journalist Jennifer Wallace, author of Mattering, joins us to explain this beautiful concept, sharing data-driven ways to achieve it for ourselves, our families, and in our communities. Show Notes: Watch the full episode on Youtube! Join the LESS AWKWARD

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52:06

The Wild West of AI + Education

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/01/20

The rapid evolution of artificial intelligence is affecting every aspect of our lives, including education. When it comes to the impact of AI on kids’ learning and overall wellbeing, we don’t have the luxury of waiting on long-term studies. There is, however, a new “pre-mortem” study out from Brookings, looking at whether AI does more good or more harm in education. Here with the answers is Dr. Rebecca Winthrop, Director of the Center for Universal Education at Brookings Institution. She helps make

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52:39

Weightlifting + Cross Training in Teens

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/01/13

The pressure to look a certain way and perform at peak athletic levels keeps moving younger and younger. It begs the question: what’s actually healthy and safe for growing bodies? This episode starts with the science of growth spurts and then answers some of the most common questions we get: is it safe for tweens + teens to weight train? If so, at what age? How important is cross-training really? Show Notes: Watch the full episode on Youtube! Join the LESS AWKWARD MEMBERSHIP HUB Go

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49:59

Consent 101 for the Early Years

This Is So Awkward ·

2026/01/06

Teaching kids about consent begins in their earliest years as they learn what it looks like to give and receive permission for any number of things. Hand in hand is their developing sense of privacy and safety in relationship to others. All of these skills become critical as kids grow and mature. Pediatrician and author of Eyes, Knees, Boundaries Please!, Dr. Krupa Playforth, joins us for a joyful unpacking of the language, choices, and routines families can use to integrate a culture of consent

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32:06

A Different Kind of Resolution

This Is So Awkward ·

2025/12/30

We’re not big believers in New Year’s resolutions, but we ARE big believers in resolving to make change and do better. This episode is about learning lessons from the past, recognizing where we want to (and need to) take a do-over, and harnessing that wisdom as we head into the new year! Show Notes: Watch the full episode on Youtube! Join the LESS AWKWARD MEMBERSHIP HUB Go to Quince.com/AWKWARD for free shipping on your order and three hundred and sixty-five -day

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55:52

“Are You Mad At Me?”

This Is So Awkward ·

2025/12/23

There is another F word – no, not that one. It’s FAWN, the under-appreciated fourth companion of the well-known coping responses: fight, flight, and freeze. Fawning means people-pleasing, and it can be used for survival – truly! Listen to this fascinating conversation with psychotherapist Meg Josephson on how to recognize fawning, break the cycle, and replace it with other coping strategies. She helps all of us pause before asking the question: Are you mad at me?Show Notes: Watch the full

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76:34

Teens, Screens, and The Science of Adolescence

This Is So Awkward ·

2025/12/16

Headlines blare with the dangers of tech, frightening parents and shaming kids. Making sense of the data requires research-based guidance rooted in an understanding of adolescent development. Enter Erin Walsh author of It’s Their World: Teens, Screens, and the Science of Adolescence for ways forward that both set limits and foster connection with young people. Show Notes: The Keys; A Guide to Digital Safety from Snapchat Snapchat Family Center It’s their world: Teens, Screens, and the

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61:04

The Power of Secure Attachment

This Is So Awkward ·

2025/12/09

Secure attachment is a term that gets thrown around, but it’s often not clear what it means or why it matters! In fact, it’s a decades old psychological concept that points to the protective impact on a child’s lifelong wellbeing of having just one caring adult. Therapist and author of Raising Securely Attached Kids, Eli Harwood AKA the Attachment Nerd, joins the podcast to dissect the critical role of secure attachment on people’s development and explain ways to achieve it in our

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46:08

Bigger Kids, Bigger Safety Needs

This Is So Awkward ·

2025/12/02

A life with more independence, generally has more risk. As kids get older, they might start walking to school alone, playing on travel sports teams, sleeping at friends’ houses, driving on their own, or exploring outdoors… all increasingly without adult supervision. Expanding autonomy demands new tools for safety, including the rationale behind the rules. This episode is chock full of common scenarios––from sleepovers to seatbelts, from driving to parties––and tips for adults about setting limits

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61:52

Emotional Longevity in a Burnout Culture

This Is So Awkward ·

2025/11/25

Longevity isn’t just about living longer, but living well. Yes getting enough sleep, eating a balanced diet, and regular exercise are important for longevity, but so is recognizing and releasing feelings. Dr. Elisha Goldstein joins us to explore overwhelm, and then helps outline small, actionable steps we can take to improve our well-being to model emotional longevity for our kids. Show Notes: Watch the full episode on Youtube! Join the LESS AWKWARD MEMBERSHIP HUB Go to

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47:18

Sexual Harassment in Middle Schools

This Is So Awkward ·

2025/11/18

Show Notes:Watch the full episode on Youtube! Join the LESS AWKWARD MEMBERSHIP HUB Go to Quince.com/AWKWARD for free shipping on your order and three hundred and sixty-five -day returns. Download the FREE Playbook for Getting Your Kid to Talk Order our book This Is So Awkward Check out all our speaking and curriculum at www.lessawkward.com and our super comfy products at www.myoomla.com To bring us to your school or community email operations@lessawkward.com To submit

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53:43

Love the Kid You’ve Got

This Is So Awkward ·

2025/11/11

The world often pits tweens + teens against their trusted adults. But research shows that young people actually thrive when they feel a connection with those very adults. So how can everyone get on the same side? What’s the path to stop fighting unimportant battles, and instead work together to manage fears and worries? Here to make sense of these complex topics is Dr. Ann-Louise Lockhart, pediatric psychologist and author of Love the Teen You Have. Show Notes: Love the Teen You

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