I Have To Ask

For many, the holiday season is both a joyful time with friends and family and a period of high stress with dangerous ways to cope. This can be especially challenging for people with substance use disorder. On this week’s episode of Well, Now Maya and Kavita discuss addiction and recovery with Zac Clark. Reality TV fans may remember him as a contestant on The Bachelorette, where he opened up about his history with drug abuse and how his journey to sobriety led him to create Release Recovery, an addiction and mental health recovery program based in New York City. If you liked this episode, check out: How Nick Cannon Got Celebrities to Open Up About Their Mental Health  Well, Now is hosted by registered dietitian nutritionist Maya Feller and Dr. Kavita Patel. Podcast production by Vic Whitley-Berry with editorial oversight by Alicia Montgomery. Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to wellnow@slate.com. Want to listen to Well, Now uninterrupted? Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately unlock ad

André has known for years that they have to execute the estate when their parents pass. They feel wholly unprepared for the task, especially since their parents are reluctant to share any important information. On this episode of How To!: Carvell Wallace brings on M.P. Dunleavey, journalist, author of the Squished Substack, and contributor to Next Avenue where she covers aging, caregiving, and money. M.P. walks André through the important paperwork that needs to be in place and gives them guidance for working with stubborn family members.  Additional resources:  M.P.’s follow-up story on Next Avenue Area Agencies on Aging Benefits check up Estate planning checklist Creating a financial roadmap Easing family burdens Writing a will If you liked this episode check out: How To Care for an Aging Parent and How To Make Aging Easier for Everyone Do you have a problem that needs solving? Send us a note at howto@slate.com or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show. Subscribe for free

When actor and performer Jeff Hiller first tried improv comedy, he was instantly amazing at it. Jeff is an excellent listener. He’s also accommodating, flexible, and undeniably hilarious. This week on the show, Jeff discusses his role on the critically acclaimed HBO series Somebody, Somewhere and the personal quirks and qualities that have made him such a funny and talented performer.  Mentioned in the episode: -Jeff’s conversation with his husband Neil on the podcast She’s a Talker.  -Anna’s interview with Mark Duplass.  -Death, Sex & Money will be at San Francisco’s Sketchfest on January 31st. Get tickets and info here!  Podcast production by Cameron Drews.  Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus. And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here

On this episode: Every year, like clockwork, we start getting questions about how to do, or not do, the whole Santa thing. We’ll answer a listener's question and muse on the nature of belief. We’ll also check in on where the hosts are this week – and then, if you’re coming to hang out on the Slate Plus Playground, we’re honoring peak holiday meal szn with a round of food would-you-rathers.  If you’re not part of the Slate Plus community, we hope you’ll consider joining! Keep reading to learn how. Jamilah’s check-in: Wicked and a cold Elizabeth’s check-in: terrifying VR jungle trek Zak’s check-in: Noa’s accent work Join us on Facebook and email us at careandfeedingpod@slate.com to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes. You can also call our phone line: (646) 357-9318. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get to hang out with us on the Plus Playground every week fo

In this episode, Carvell Wallace (author of Another Word for Love and host of Slate’s How To!) joins Prudie (Jenée Desmond-Harris) to answer letters from readers about how to cancel on family vacation plans that sound horrible to you, how to break it to your butch lesbian girlfriend that her friends might be misogynists, and how to convince your parents to let you go to a high school in a not so great neighborhood.  Want more Dear Prudence? Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Or, visit slate.com/prudie-plus to get access wherever you listen. This podcast is produced by Se’era Spragley Ricks, Daisy Rosario, and Jenée Desmond-Harris, with help from Maura Currie and Anuli Ononye. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're off for Thanksgiving but still got together to share some things we're grateful for — and then, Zak is grateful to share an episode of his other show with you... all about being grateful for friendships, even in the rear-view. Join us on Facebook and email us at careandfeedingpod@slate.com to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes. You can also call our phone line: (646) 357-9318. If you enjoy Care & Feeding, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get to hang out with us on the Plus Playground every week for a whole additional grab-bag of content — and you’ll get an ad-free experience across the network. And you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Care and Feeding. Sign up now at slate.com/careplus – or try it out on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More than half the population will experience menopause if they’re fortunate enough to age. Yet so much of this full-body transformation remains a mystery. Journalist and filmmaker Tamsen Fadal is out to change that.  Her new documentary The M Factor: Shredding the Silence on Menopause premiered on PBS earlier this year. In it, her team interviews patients and health experts worldwide about the lack of research into this important stage of life. On this week’s episode of Well, Now Kavita and Maya ask her what can be done to better care for the millions of women experiencing it now and in the future. If you liked this episode, check out: Michelle Obama Gets Health Advice From This Gyno. Now You Can, Too. Well, Now is hosted by registered dietitian nutritionist Maya Feller and Dr. Kavita Patel. Editing and podcast production by Vic Whitley-Berry with oversight from Alicia Montgomery. Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to wellnow@slate.com. Want to listen to Well, Now uninterrupted? Subscrib

‘Tis the season of gathering with friends and family. It’s also a time where some of us yearn for a closer community, like this week’s listener. Morgan is looking for a way to hang out with friends in a consistent, meaningful manner. On this episode of How To!, Priya Parker, author of The Art of Gathering, explains how to transform a lackluster hang-out where people just sit around drinking beer into a party with a purpose where guests want to come back. She tells us how to create an event that meets a need with the right rules and the right guest list. She even has tips for sprucing up your next holiday party.  If you liked this episode, check out: How To Cook One Perfect Meal. Do you have a question without an answer? Send us a note at howto@slate.com or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show. Subscribe for free on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen. Podcast production by Derek John, Rosemary Belson, and Kevin Bendis.   Want more How To!? Subscribe to Slate Plus to unlock

When is it time to go no contact? In this episode, we talk to four listeners who have recently become estranged from loved ones. This episode was originally aired in 2022, and is part of a three-part series on estrangement. You can listen to the other episodes here:  Estrangement Purgatory - Our episode about the contemplation stages of estrangement with a listener named Brian who is considering leaving his religious community. Estrangement’s Alternate Endings - What does long term estrangement look like? And one listener’s choice to get back in touch.  Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus. And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on Instagram and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new ema

On this episode: we’re weighing how to teach little ones about the dangers of germs… without making it sound too scary. We’ll talk about how to explain why eating off the floor is bad… without unlocking some new fears. We’ll also check in on where the hosts are this week – and then, if you’re coming to hang out on the Slate Plus Playground, we’re calling a meeting of the C&F weed caucus to order. If you’re not part of the Slate Plus community, we hope you’ll consider joining! Keep reading to learn how. Jamilah’s check-in: let’s unpack that  Elizabeth’s check-in: bestie inbound Zak’s check-in: out and about and car-free Join us on Facebook and email us at careandfeedingpod@slate.com to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes. You can also call our phone line: (646) 357-9318. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get to hang out with us on the Plus Playground every we

Guest Prudie Cheyna Roth is joined by Steven Ray Morris — best known for his work on My Favorite Murder, but now producing and hosting See Jurassic Right. Together, they answer letters from a listener hurt by her boyfriend’s comments that “marriage isn’t on his radar,” another hoping to support her partner through work conflicts without adding to her own stress, and a listener whose husband doesn’t seem concerned that their family friends have been displaced by Hurricane Helene. Want more Dear Prudence? Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Or, visit slate.com/prudie-plus to get access wherever you listen. This podcast is produced by Se’era Spragley Ricks, Daisy Rosario, and Jenée Desmond-Harris, with help from Maura Currie, Vic Whitley-Berry, and Anuli Ononye. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adcho

On this episode: Elizabeth, Jamilah and Zak share advice for weighing whether you want your kids on Roblox. The company just announced some impending safety enhancements to the mega-popular online multiplayer game… but, as the hosts and our Slate Parenting community will tell you, the platform might still be a wild west. After that, of course, we’ll circle up to share some Triumphs and Fails.  Join us on Facebook and email us at careandfeedingpod@slate.com to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes. You can also call our phone line: (646) 357-9318. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get to hang out with us on the Plus Playground every week for a whole additional grab-bag of content — and you’ll get an ad-free experience across the network. And you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Care and Feeding. Sign up now at slate.com/careplus – or try it out on App

Regular movement is crucial for lifelong health, but finding a routine that fits well in your life can be challenging and overwhelming. On this week’s episode of Well, Now we speak to retired volleyball player Gabby Reece on transitioning out of professional sports and talk about ways to realistically bring performance-level fitness to every kind of exercise routine. If you liked this episode, check out: Breaking Up With Diet Culture  Well, Now is hosted by registered dietitian nutritionist Maya Feller and Dr. Kavita Patel. Podcast production by Vic Whitley-Berry with editorial oversight by Alicia Montgomery. Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to wellnow@slate.com. Want to listen to Well, Now uninterrupted? Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately unlock ad-free listening to Well, Now and all your other favorite Slate podcasts.  Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Or, visit slate.com/wellplus to get access wherever you listen. Learn more about

Ezra is adrift in his early 20s. He craves a life of meaning, community, and love. But he’s struggling to find those things in a world that seems increasingly uncertain and discouraging for young people. On this existential episode of How To!, Courtney Martin brings in Andrew McPeak, author, podcast host, and vice president of Growing Leaders. He tackles Ezra’s big questions and explains how Gen Z (and everyone else) can make life more meaningful.  If you liked this episode check out: How To Keep Caring Amid Endless Crises Do you have a problem that needs solving? Send us a note at howto@slate.com or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show. Subscribe for free on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen. How To’s executive producer is Derek John. Joel Meyer is our senior editor/producer. The show is produced by Rosemary Belson, with Kevin Bendis and Sara McCrea. Want more How To!? Subscribe to Slate Plus to unlock exclusive bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening a

Therapist Lauren LaRusso has spent the past few years learning everything she can about infidelity–why people have affairs, how to cope with an unfaithful spouse, and how to move forward with or without your partner after a betrayal. And she’s been sharing this wisdom with her 100,000 followers on Instagram.  This week, Lauren explains why she approaches this topic with more curiosity than judgment, and she discusses the affair that happened in her own marriage that led her to become a trusted and invested authority on the matter.  Learn more about Lauren at laurenlarusso.com or on her Instagram page. She also writes at laurenlarusso.substack.com.   This episode references the song Next Lifetime by Erykah Badu. Podcast production by Cameron Drews.  Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today

On this episode: Zak sits down with Zach O’Hora and Lisa Whittick – respectively, the creator and director of the new PBS Kids show Carl The Collector. They’ll talk about crafting a kids’ show with neurodiverse characters… and what it means to tell a good story. We’ll also check in on where the hosts are this week – and then, if you’re coming to hang out on the Slate Plus Playground, we’re celebrating the life and work of children’s folk singer Ella Jenkins. If you’re not part of the Slate Plus community, we hope you’ll consider joining! Keep reading to learn how. Jamilah’s check-in: tall fun man and an IEP  Elizabeth’s check-in: self-sufficiency and model UN  Zak’s check-in: two wheels and a dream Join us on Facebook and email us at careandfeedingpod@slate.com to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes. You can also call our phone line: (646) 357-9318. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate

Guest Prudie Kristen Meinzer is joined by longtime Slate-ster June Thomas — author of A Place of Our Own: Six Spaces That Have Shaped Queer Women’s Culture. Together, they answer letters from a boyfriend who has been financially supporting his girlfriend but can’t afford to anymore, a spouse whose younger partner is mocking part of their aging, and a friend struggling to support someone in their life going through something so similar it’s painful.  Want more Dear Prudence? Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Or, visit slate.com/prudie-plus to get access wherever you listen. This podcast is produced by Se’era Spragley Ricks, Daisy Rosario, and Jenée Desmond-Harris, with help from Maura Currie and Anuli Ononye. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode: Elizabeth, Jamilah and Zak talk about the aftermath of the presidential election — from the policy issues that freak us out to handling grief in front of our kids. And we’ll share a ton of amazing thoughts, advice, and reassurance from the Slate Parenting community. Join us on Facebook and email us at careandfeedingpod@slate.com to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes. You can also call our phone line: (646) 357-9318. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get to hang out with us on the Plus Playground every week for a whole additional grab-bag of content — and you’ll get an ad-free experience across the network. And you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Care and Feeding. Sign up now at slate.com/careplus – or try it out on Apple Podcasts. Podcast produced by Maura Currie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do women gain social influence?  Understanding this is crucial because research shows they often face unique challenges in having their voices heard and their expertise recognized, even in highly qualified fields like medicine.  The consequences of this could be dire, both for female patients and their healthcare providers. On this week’s episode of Well, Now, Kavita and Maya talk with psychologist Alison Fragale about the science behind effective social influence. Her new book is Likeable Badass: How Women Get the Success They Deserve. If you liked this episode, check out: Who Cares for the Caregivers? Well, Now is hosted by registered dietitian nutritionist Maya Feller and Dr. Kavita Patel. Podcast production by Vic Whitley-Berry with editorial oversight by Alicia Montgomery. Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to wellnow@slate.com. Want to listen to Well, Now uninterrupted? Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately unlock ad-free listening to Well, Now and all your other favorite Slate

Contraception is a huge burden for women and people with uteruses to bear. What would it look like—on a personal, cultural, and medical level—if more men took on that responsibility? Today on How To!, a conversation about gender equity for reproductive care, from changes in sexual education to more accessible vasectomies to the development of new contraception methods. Carvell Wallace welcomes two guests: Dr. Sarah Miller, a board-certified family physician and family planning specialist at Northeast Vasectomy and Family Planning, where she provides many vasectomies. And: Dr. Brian Nguyen, associate professor of clinical obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Southern California, sub-investigator for a network of male-contraceptive clinical trials, and director of The EMERGE Lab.  If you liked this episode check out: How To Make Sexual Consent Sexy and How To Orgasm. Do you have a problem that needs solving? Send us a note at howto@slate.com or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have yo