It's Not Just You: Why Connection Feels So Hard Right Now

**Why does connection, caregiving, parenting, friendship, and community feel so hard right now?**  **Author Stephanie Malia Krauss is here to talk about the “weather” we’re all living in right now: we’re overtapped, overworked, overstimulated, and overwrought.**  **And honestly, when I read that, I felt like she had put language to something so many of us are carrying around without even realizing it.** **Stephanie and I both know what it feels like to be raised by a community. We talk about the adults who showed up in small ways when we were kids: the friend’s mom who always had a snack waiting, the counselor with animal crackers in her office, the parents who figured out rides, and the people who kept opening doors even when we weren’t ready to tell the truth.** **This episode is all about the tiny ways people can help us feel human again, and why none of us were ever meant to do this alone.** **In this episode you’ll hear about:** - **How Stephanie’s “dangerous weather” framework explains the exhaustion so many of us feel right now** - **What Stephanie and I learned from unlocked doors, team jackets, special snacks, and tiny check-ins** - **Askables, anchors, and activators, and why kids need more than one caring adult in their lives** - **How being praised for self-sufficiency, responsibility, and caregiving can become its own kind of trap** **Resources & Links** **Check out Stephanie’s new book,** *How We Thrive: Caring for Kids and Ourselves In a Changing World.* **Stephanie’s other books include** *Making It: What Today’s Kids Need for Tomorrow’s World* **and** *Whole Child, Whole Life***.** **This episode is sponsored by Slowly**, a digital pen pal app used by over 10 million people worldwide. If you’ve been looking for a low-pressure way to connect with someone completely outside your normal friendship circle, this is it. Exchange letters at your own pace, no small talk panic required. Download Slowly free and get 30% off Slowly Plus using my link: https://open.slowly.app/miXL/l8ei5iw6 **WANT MORE?** My book, ***Are We Friends Yet?*** is here. Order your copy today! **Dive into The Connection Reset.** A 10-day private podcast to help you see the abundance of connection that already exists in your day-to-day (Yes. Really. I promise you have more than you realize). Start today.