What Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face of Motherhood | Parenting Tips From Funny Moms

We welcome back family counselor Erin Cox to talk about how we talk about the immigration raids and ICE detentions taking place in the United States, the children who are being detained, and the fear all children are absorbing from the news, social media, and their communities.

We discuss what’s happening on the ground in places like Minnesota, Texas, and Portland; why it's making so many of us feel frightened and disoriented; and what we can do as parents whose children are directly impacted—and for those kids who are learning about it online.

We discuss how children communicate distress through behavior and play and why empathy and emotional vocabulary are essential tools we can teach our children. Erin explains the importance of co-regulation—how children borrow calm from the adults in their lives—and shares ways parents can care for their own nervous systems so they can show up as a steady presence.

While fear may be the point of these tactics, connection, community, and resilience are how we can respond.

Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the episode:

Follow Erin on IG @loveuwitherin


Corina Knoll for The New York Times: A Winter of Anguish for Minneapolis Children


A.O. Scott for The New York Times: In Under 500 Words, a Judge Weaponized Wit to Free the Child Detained by ICE


Hennepin County Sheriff Dewanna Witt talks to CBS News' Nicole Sganga about the situation in Minnesota


Elora Mukherjee for The New York Times: Liam Ramos Was Just One of Hundreds of Children at This Detention Center. Release Them All.


Sahara Sajjadi for Copper Courier: Three-year-old child forced to serve as her own attorney in Tucson immigration court


Camilo Montoya-Galvez for CBS News: ICE halts "all movement" at Texas detention facility due to measles infections


CBS News: Columbia Heights schools, where 5-year-old Liam Ramos attends, closed Monday due to bomb threat


David Martin Davies for Texas Public Radio: Reps. Castro and Crockett Describe Conditions at ICE Dilley Detention Center


Laura Kelly Fanucci for America: The Jesuit Review: I’m a Minnesota Catholic Mom — Here’s What My Neighbors Are Saying About ICE


The Marshall Project: ‘Why Is This Happening to Us?’ Daily Number of Kids in ICE Detention Jumps 6x Under Trump


Lily Hay Newman et. al for WIRED: What to Do If ICE Invades Your Neighborhood


Ken Burns documentary The American Revolution


James Baraz and Shoshana Alexander: AWAKENING JOY

What Fresh Hell is co-hosted by Margaret Ables and Amy Wilson.

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/⁠

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, parenting in crisis, talking to kids about ICE, immigration fear children, kids and anxiety, family separation, safety planning for kids, co-regulation, empathy for children, trauma-informed parenting, kids and current events, emotional regulation parents, helping anxious kids, resilience in families, parenting during political stress, how to talk to kids about scary news
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Still not feeling that new-year excitement? That's because forcing productivity during the darkest months is a losing battle. Would it make you feel better to learn that January and February were once considered such black holes of nothingness that they did not appear on the calendar *at all*?

In this episode, we're declaring that February is the new January. We discuss the history of the calendar, why January is the worst time to start anew, and how modern life works against our natural rhythms.

We also discuss the Lunar New Year, how the Year of the Snake has a few more weeks before we enter the Year of the Horse, and how we're going to use our February for reflection, not reinvention.

Keep resting! You're a mammal!

Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the episode:

Our Fresh Take with Dr. Greg Hammer

Our Fresh Take with Katherine May

Annie Scott on Substack: The Wankery Verdict: New Year, New You!

Erin Blakemore for National Geographic: The new year once started in March—here's why

Aadrika Sominder for The Hindustan Times: As the Year of the Snake ends, the Year of the Horse begins: Here's what this Chinese zodiac transition means for you

r/LTL_Chinese: Year of the Fire Horse 2026 🐎 What does it mean for you

Stacey Durnin for Medium: Why January is a terrible time to make resolutions

What Fresh Hell is co-hosted by Margaret Ables and Amy Wilson.

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/⁠

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, February is the new January, wintering, seasonal affective disorder, parenting podcast, mental health and seasons, Gregorian calendar, Lunar New Year, Chinese zodiac, productivity culture, burnout, rest and reflection, seasonal rhythms, modern parenting, self-care in winter, New Year resolutions
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When we imagine peer pressure, we imagine coming to the rescue by slapping drugs and alcohol out of our kids' hands after their friends undoubtedly tell them they should definitely try some. But peer pressure--who feels it, why, and exactly WHAT kids are being pressured to do--is a complex issue.

In this episode, Amy and Margaret discuss:

The biological imperative adolescents have to take risks in front of their peers

What kids report actually feeling peer pressured to do- the answers aren't what expected

How to actually prepare our kids to counter the peer pressure they face

This episode was originally released on April 13, 2022.

Here are links to past episodes with similar topics:

⁠"When Other Kids Are Bad Influences"⁠

⁠"What Is Up With Teenagers?"⁠

Here are links to resources mentioned in this episode:

Juliana Menasce Horowitz and Nikki Graf for the Pew Research Center: ⁠"Most U.S. Teens See Anxiety and Depression as a Major Problem Among Their Peers"⁠

Centerstone.org: "⁠What is Peer Pressure and Who is at Risk?⁠"

Science Daily: ⁠"Peer pressure? It's hardwired into our brains, study finds"⁠

⁠Laurence Steinberg⁠ and ⁠Kathryn C. Monahan⁠: ⁠Age Differences in Resistance to Peer Influence⁠

Jess Shatkin, ⁠Born to Be Wild: Why Teens Take Risks, and How We Can Help Keep Them Safe⁠

Jessica Lahey, ⁠The Addiction Inoculation: Raising Healthy Kids in a Culture of Dependence⁠

Sign up for What Fresh Hell Plus on Supporting Cast to get all episodes ad-free, plus monthly bonus episodes. Supporting Cast works right where you already listen! Go to whatfreshhell.supportingcast.fm to subscribe in two taps for just $4.99 a month, or $39.99 a year.

What Fresh Hell is co-hosted by Amy Wilson and Margaret Ables.

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠⁠⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/

What Fresh Hell podcast, mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, peer pressure
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Amy talks with developmental psychologists Dr. Kathy Hirsh-Pasek and Dr. Roberta Golinkoff, authors of the newly revised parenting classic EINSTEIN NEVER USED FLASHCARDS, about why today’s parents feel more pressured than ever to optimize every moment of childhood—and why research shows that approach often backfires.

From academic preschools to AI toys, screen time to early reading, Kathy and Roberta explain what actually supports healthy learning and development.

You’ll learn:


Why play-based learning leads to better academic and emotional outcomes


The five key conditions for how the human brain learns best


Why “faster” and “earlier” aren’t better for child development


How everyday moments (like the grocery store or setting the table) are powerful learning opportunities


The effects of AI toys and excessive screen use


How simple games build executive function and social skills


A practical mantra for overwhelmed parents: reflect, resist, recenter

This episode offers science-backed reassurance that children don’t need flashcards, apps, or enrichment overload—what they need most is playful, joyful, human connection.

Here's where you can find Drs. Hirsh-Pasek and Golinkoff:

@drkathyanddrro on IG

Buy EINSTEIN NEVER USED FLASHCARDS: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780593980767

What Fresh Hell is co-hosted by Amy Wilson and Margaret Ables.

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠⁠⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/

What Fresh Hell podcast, mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, play-based learning, Einstein Never Used Flashcards, child development, early childhood education, parenting advice, executive function, screen time for kids, AI toys, learning through play, social emotional development, preschool learning, developmental psychology, parenting pressure, raising kids, how children learn, educational research, parent anxiety, technology and kids
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why do some moments feel enormous while others vanish from memory? Why do two people experience the same event and walk away with completely different interpretations? And why do we so often repeat stories about ourselves that keep us stuck?

In this episode, we explore narrative identity—the science-backed idea that who we are is shaped not just by what happens to us, but by the story we tell about what happens.

But small shifts in perspective can radically change those narratives. In this episode we unpack what it means to notice the script, question it, and rewrite it.

We also dive into the research showing that the ability to find agency and redemption in our stories is one of the strongest predictors of mental health.

Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the episode:

Emory University blog: Changing the narrative of your self

Leo Babauta for ZenHabits.net: Mental Badassery: Becoming Aware of the Stories We Tell Ourselves

Listen to David Foster Wallace's commencement speech at Kenyon College.

Samantha Boardman for Psychology Today: Take Control of the Story You Tell About Yourself

Bruce Feiler for The New York Times: The Stories That Bind Us

What Fresh Hell is co-hosted by Amy Wilson and Margaret Ables.

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠⁠⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/

What Fresh Hell podcast, mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, narrative identity, personal narratives, storytelling and identity, self story psychology, meaning making, memory and perception, how the brain creates meaning, cognitive bias, sense of self, psychology of storytelling, rewriting your story, mental health and narratives, agency and redemption, neuroscience of identity, parenting and mindset, family narratives, personal growth podcast, self awareness psychology, behavioral psychology, mindset shifts
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices