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You can feel it in families right now: everyone is tired, kids are wired, and a simple “How was school?” gets you absolutely nowhere. We sit down with Gayle Alexander, a licensed professional counselor who works with teens, young adults, and parents, to unpack what actually helps kids talk and what quietly shuts them down. We get practical about the moments that matter most like the car ride home, the bedtime confession, and the first sentence you say when your child finally opens up.

We also go straight to the big stressors shaping teen mental health: smartphones, social media, sleep loss, comparison, and the anxiety loop of constant dopamine hits. Gail explains why the issue is not a phone call or a text; it is unlimited internet access in a developing brain, plus the pressure to look perfect. We talk about realistic screen time boundaries, why devices should stay out of bedrooms at night, and how family dinners with no phones can rebuild connection without turning into an interrogation.

Then we zoom out to what’s missing for a lot of kids and parents: community. Gail shares how Project Safe creates in-person support through group therapy and family work, and why being around peers helps teens feel less alone while they learn communication and coping skills. We also touch on vaping, marijuana, and other ways kids numb discomfort, plus what parents can watch for and how to start hard conversations without blowing up trust.

If you want better conversations, calmer boundaries, and tools that work in real life, hit play. Subscribe, share this with a parent friend, and leave a review with the one rule or question you’re going to try this week.

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Website: https://www.doyouwantthetruthpod.com

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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/samanthastrom

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Connect with Zara:

Zara Hanawalt https://www.linkedin.com/in/zara-hanawalt/

TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@zarahanawalt

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The internet doesn’t just “share” your child. It archives them, copies them, and can weaponize them.

We’re joined by journalist Fortesa, author of Follow, Subscribe: Influencer Kids and the Cost of a Childhood Online, to talk about what happens when parenting becomes a content pipeline. We get into the uncomfortable stuff creators rarely say out loud: why brands pressure parents to “show the kids,” how followers feel entitled to a family’s private life, and why the algorithm often rewards the most vulnerable moments. If you’ve ever wondered whether posting a sick kid, a tantrum, or a hospital scare crosses a line, this conversation will give you language for what your gut already knows.

We also dig into the bigger system around family vlogging and influencer marketing: FTC disclosure incentives, hidden sponsorship dynamics, and why child labor laws still don’t cleanly apply to kids working on camera at home. Fortesa explains how a patchwork of state laws is trying to catch up, and we talk about newer threats like AI deepfakes and broad “usage rights” that can let brands reuse a creator’s likeness indefinitely, raising serious questions about consent and long-term digital privacy for minors.

And because real life is always in the room, we go personal too: emergency C-section recovery, building a parenting village, and hyperemesis gravidarum, including emerging research on metformin that may offer hope for future pregnancies.

If this hit home, subscribe, share with a parent group chat, and leave a review so more families can find it. What’s your boundary on posting kids online?

Support the show

Website: https://www.doyouwantthetruthpod.com

Connect with Sam:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/samanthastrom

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@samanthastorms

Connect with Zara:

Zara Hanawalt https://www.linkedin.com/in/zara-hanawalt/

TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@zarahanawalt

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/zarahanawalt/

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In this raw, wide-ranging Pop Culture Mom Talk episode, Sam and Zara are joined by new co-host Rachel Gibbs (@rachonlife) for an unfiltered conversation about what’s flooding women’s algorithms — and why it feels so overwhelming right now.

They unpack everything from toxic TV relationships like Tell Me Lies to the unsettling ripple effects of the Epstein files, the Blake Lively / Justin Baldoni discourse, and why so many women feel like pop culture has crossed from escapism into emotional overload.

The conversation weaves through influencer ethics, why more moms are pulling their kids off social media, how motherhood changes your tolerance for “hot mom” culture, and what it really means to parent intentionally in a world that feels increasingly unsafe and unregulated. From unaccompanied minors on flights to uncomfortable truths about privacy, power, and who actually gets held accountable — nothing is off-limits.

It’s funny, uncomfortable, validating, and very much a reflection of the moment we’re all living in. If your algorithm feels dark, confusing, or too real lately — you’re not alone.

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Support the show

Website: https://www.doyouwantthetruthpod.com

Connect with Sam:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/samanthastrom

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@samanthastorms

Connect with Zara:

Zara Hanawalt https://www.linkedin.com/in/zara-hanawalt/

TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@zarahanawalt

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/zarahanawalt/