Terrible, Thanks For Asking

In April 2022, Marlin Sill’s father died from a head injury caused by a cycling accident. A few weeks later, he embarked on a months-long hike through the Western United States. Throughout last summer, Marlin sent the TTFA team voice memos of himself processing his dad’s death while he hiked. In this episode we take you on the trail with Marlin as he grieves, and also throughout the rest of the first year without his dad. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Read the episode transcript here. Shop Our Sponsors:  Rothy’s: Get $20 off your first purchase at rothys.com/TERRIBLE Vegamour: Visit vegamour.com/Terrible and use code Terrible to save 20% on your first order Squarespace: Visit squarespace.com/TTFA for a free trial and use offer code TTFA to save 10% Find tickets to spring tour cities below or at TTFA.org: Friday, March 3 | Phoenix, AZ | Crescent Ballroom Saturday, March 4 | Austin, TX | Stateside at Paramount Theatre Sunday, March 5 | Atlanta, GA | Variety Playhouse Monday, March 6 | Durham, NC | Motorco Music Hall Friday, March 31 | Milwaukee, WI | Turner Hall Saturday, April 1st | St. Louis, MO | Delmar Hall Sunday, April 2 | Lawrence, KS | Liberty Hall Monday April 3 | Boulder, CO | Boulder Theatre Our social media: TTFA on Instagram TTFA on Facebook Nora on Instagram Nora on Facebook Nora on TikTok Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A very long time ago (like … honestly maybe a year ago now?) we asked TTFA listeners how their school’s gifted and talented programs messed them up (or didn’t). In this bonus episode, Nora listens to your voicemail, reads your email, and responds to them. Find tickets to spring tour cities below or at TTFA.org: Friday, March 3 | Phoenix, AZ | Crescent Ballroom Saturday, March 4 | Austin, TX | Stateside at Paramount Theatre Sunday, March 5 | Atlanta, GA | Variety Playhouse Monday, March 6 | Durham, NC | Motorco Music Hall Friday, March 31 | Milwaukee, WI | Turner Hall Saturday, April 1st | St. Louis, MO | Delmar Hall Sunday, April 2 | Lawrence, KS | Liberty Hall Monday April 3 | Boulder, CO | Boulder Theatre Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

TTFA producer Claire McInerny experienced an extreme weather event in 2021, a result of climate change, that left her worried about the future. She started channeling her anxiety about the future of our world into another important question she was asking herself: “Should I have kids?” In this episode, Claire tries to untangle her feelings around what the world will look like in the future with her desire to have a family of her own. Find tickets to spring tour cities below or at TTFA.org: Friday, March 3 | Phoenix, AZ | Crescent Ballroom Saturday, March 4 | Austin, TX | Stateside at Paramount Theatre Sunday, March 5 | Atlanta, GA | Variety Playhouse Monday, March 6 | Durham, NC | Motorco Music Hall Friday, March 31 | Milwaukee, WI | Turner Hall Saturday, April 1st | St. Louis, MO | Delmar Hall Sunday, April 2 | Lawrence, KS | Liberty Hall Monday April 3 | Boulder, CO | Boulder Theatre SHOP OUR SPONSORS: ROTHY’S: Get $20 off your first purchase at rothys.com/TERRIBLE THE FARMER’S DOG:Get 50% off your first box at thefarmersdog.com/nora SQUARESPACE: Visit squarespace.com/TTFA for a free trial and use offer code TTFA to save 10% OSEA: Head to oseamalibu.com and use code TTFA for 10% off Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here’s a sneak peek of what you’ll get when you join us on TTFA Premium. For $7.99 a month, you can support our show AND get ad-free episodes and bonus content. Sign up today at TTFA.org/Premium. When you shop our Bookshop.org store, you support the author, independent bookstores AND our show! Shop here. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Find tickets to spring tour cities below or at TTFA.org: Friday, March 3 | Phoenix, AZ | Crescent Ballroom Saturday, March 4 | Austin, TX | Stateside at Paramount Theatre Sunday, March 5 | Atlanta, GA | Variety Playhouse Monday, March 6 | Durham, NC | Motorco Music Hall Friday, March 31 | Milwaukee, WI | Turner Hall Saturday, April 1st | St. Louis, MO | Delmar Hall Sunday, April 2 | Lawrence, KS | Liberty Hall Monday April 3 | Boulder, CO | Boulder Theatre Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re back with another Terrible Reading Club episode! Think of it as our book club for truly terrible times. Haven’t read the book we’re discussing? Good news: In this reading club, that’s not a requirement. Today, we’re chatting with KC Davis, author of “How to Keep House While Drowning.” KC Davis used to feel terrible about the way her home looked all the time. But does having a clean space have to be a moral issue? ______ Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our Substack subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join here. You can find the episode transcript here. Catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter  and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Find tickets to spring tour cities below or at TTFA.org: Friday, March 3 | Phoenix, AZ | Crescent Ballroom Saturday, March 4 | Austin, TX | Stateside at Paramount Theatre Sunday, March 5 | Atlanta, GA | Variety Playhouse Monday, March 6 | Durham, NC | Motorco Music Hall Friday, March 31 | Milwaukee, WI | Turner Hall Saturday, April 1st | St. Louis, MO | Delmar Hall Sunday, April 2 | Lawrence, KS | Liberty Hall Monday April 3 | Boulder, CO | Boulder Theatre SHOP OUR SPONSORS: OSEA: Head to oseamalibu.com and use code TTFA for 10% off ROTHY'S: Get $20 off your first purchase at rothys.com/TERRIBLE VEGAMOUR: Visit vegamour.com/Terrible and use code Terrible to save 20% on your first order THE FARMER'S DOG: Get 50% off your first box at thefarmersdog.com/nora SQUARESPACE: Visit squarespace.com/TTFA for a free trial and use offer code TTFA to save 10% Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Team Terrible is going back on the road for the second leg of the Bad Vibes Only live show tour. Where are we going? What does a live show look like? Listen in and let Nora tell you herself! Find tickets to spring tour cities below or at TTFA.org: Friday, March 3 | Phoenix, AZ | Crescent Ballroom Saturday, March 4 | Austin, TX | Stateside at Paramount Theatre Sunday, March 5 | Atlanta, GA | Variety Playhouse Monday, March 6 | Durham, NC | Motorco Music Hall Friday, March 31 | Milwaukee, WI | Turner Hall Saturday, April 1st | St. Louis, MO | Delmar Hall Sunday, April 2 | Lawrence, KS | Liberty Hall Monday April 3 | Boulder, CO | Boulder Theatre Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter  and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nora's dad died in 2014 from pretty much all of the cancers, leaving her mom Margaret without her life partner of almost 50 years ... and leaving Nora without a dad. Does a 40-year-old married woman with four children of her own need a father figure in her life? Nora thinks so! But what does Margaret have to say about dating in your 70s? Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our Substack subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join here. You can find the episode transcript here. Catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter  and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. SHOP OUR SPONSORS: OSEA: Head to oseamalibu.com and use code TTFA for 10% off ROTHY'S: Get $20 off your first purchase at rothys.com/TERRIBLE VEGAMOUR: Visit vegamour.com/Terrible and use code Terrible to save 20% on your first order THE FARMER'S DOG: Get 50% off your first box at thefarmersdog.com/nora SQUARESPACE: Visit squarespace.com/TTFA for a free trial and use offer code TTFA to save 10% Find tickets to spring tour cities below or at TTFA.org: Friday, March 3 | Phoenix, AZ | Crescent Ballroom Saturday, March 4 | Austin, TX | Stateside at Paramount Theatre Sunday, March 5 | Atlanta, GA | Variety Playhouse Monday, March 6 | Durham, NC | Motorco Music Hall Friday, March 31 | Milwaukee, WI | Turner Hall Saturday, April 1st | St. Louis, MO | Delmar Hall Sunday, April 2 | Lawrence, KS | Liberty Hall Monday April 3 | Boulder, CO | Boulder Theatre Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Identity theft is something many of us are familiar with, but we have a specific image of what this looks like – our data being stolen online, or someone getting a hold of our social security number. But almost a third of identity theft crimes are committed by a family member. This episode tells the story of two people who experienced financial abuse at the hands of their parents. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our Substack subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join here. You can find the episode transcript here. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter  and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. SHOP OUR SPONSORS: OSEA: Head to oseamalibu.com and use code TTFA for 10% off ROTHY'S: Get $20 off your first purchase at rothys.com/TERRIBLE VEGAMOUR: Visit vegamour.com/Terrible and use code Terrible to save 20% on your first order THE FARMER'S DOG: Get 50% off your first box at thefarmersdog.com/nora Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here’s a sneak peek of what you’ll get when you join us on TTFA Premium. For $8 a month, you can support our show AND get ad-free episodes and bonus content — including mailbag episodes like this one. Sign up today at TTFA.org/Premium. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cheval spent her entire life trying to be a wedding dress designer (she started sewing at 7 years old and studied fashion design in college). In her mid 20’s, she got her big break when a large fashion house hired her to design a wedding dress collection named after herself. But that dream only lasted eight years. She found herself in the middle of a legal battle that would take away her collection, her job as a designer, and eventually her name.  — Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our Substack subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join here. Read the episode transcript here. Follow Cheval on Instagram @allthatglittersonthegram and check out her new shoe line at sheischeval.com. — Our social media: TTFA on Instagram TTFA on Facebook Nora on Instagram Nora on Facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One thing we know about grief is that it needs a witness. That inside every griever is a nearly uncontrollable urge to make the people around us understand what we had and what we have now. In this episode, we are all David’s witnesses. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our Substack subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join here. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter  and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. You can read the episode transcript here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s December 28, 2022. And Nora McInerny is 40 years old.  Here’s a sneak peek of what you’ll get when you join us on TTFA Premium. For $8 a month, you can support our show AND get ad-free episodes and bonus content — including mailbag episodes like this one. Sign up today at TTFA.org/Premium. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The happyish holiday season can be whatever the heck you want it to be, no matter what pressures you feel from family and friends and society. So, here’s to creating new traditions – and to the Terribles who shared theirs with us (and with you). Our Substack subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

‘Tis the season! Our terrible holiday tradition is back, this time with more of your painful, sad, awkward holiday stories. Plus: boundary setting advice from Melissa Urban and a fiery Hanukkah story from Vanessa Zoltan. Our Substack subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join here. You can find the episode transcript here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Natalie Weaver stepped into the media spotlight to advocate for her 8-year-old daughter Sophia’s right to health care, she expected some pushback. She didn’t expect the flood of online hate and death threats that came her way … or for images of Sophia to end up on the wrong, hurtful, abusive side of the Internet.  — Learn more about Natalie’s work for families with medically fragile kids at Sophias-Voice.com. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our Substack subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join here. You can find the episode transcript here. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter  and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you’ve listened to our show, at all, ever, you know that grief has been a big part of Nora’s life since 2014 when she lost her husband Aaron. Since then, she’s built this show, her writing, and much of her life around helping others navigate their own grief. Despite all this, Nora never felt like she was doing enough, until the events of 2021 forced her to slow down and re-examine her grief once again. Nora recently appeared on the podcast "A Slight Change of Plans" with Dr. Maya Shankar, where she shared for the first time the story of why 2021 was, in Nora’s words, her worst year since 2014. It’s a raw and honest conversation about long-term grief, and we knew we had to share it here. You can find "A Slight Change of Plans" on their website or wherever you get your podcasts. We're coming to your living room on December 6th with a *new* and terrible holiday show! RSVP for Happyish Holidays here. Read the episode transcript here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Death by suicide has long been a problem within the U.S. military, and not just among veterans: In 2020, suicide rates among active duty service members hit a six-year high. On August 28th, 2015, Heather’s husband Tyler became one of those statistics. Theirs is a story of friendship, of love, of family, of service and duty … and of trauma, domestic abuse and mental illness. If you’re experiencing thoughts of suicide, you can call or text 988. If you’re a victim of domestic violence and want out, you can call the National Domestic Violence hotline. You’re not alone. References:  Recommendations for Reporting on Suicide Common Factors in Military Domestic Homicides: Implications for Prevention and Intervention  Military Versus Civilian Murder-Suicide Military Suicide Rates Are at an All-Time High Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter  and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Read the transcript for this episode here. HAPPYISH HOLIDAYS, EVERYONE! Join us for a live show in-person or via livestream on December 6th. Tickets here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Allio was a fan favorite on Katie Thurston’s season of “The Bachelorette,” applauded for the vulnerability he showed as he talked about losing his wife, Laura, to cancer and raising his son James without his mom.  Losing a partner to cancer? Raising a young son on your own? Sounds familiar! Michael came across Nora’s TED Talk shortly after Laura died, and when he reached out to the podcast, we knew we had to get these two on a call together. That call became a TTFA Premium episode.  Now, if you’re a Bachelor Nation fan, you know that Michael is on the current season of “Bachelor in Paradise,” where he’s been speaking to his grief and loss and the difficulty of dating again in general … but especially on national television. We’re re-airing this episode in our main feed here today for all of you Bachelor Nation fans who want some more insight into Michael’s ~*journey*~ (yes, that’s a Bachelor joke).  If you like it, and want more bonus content like this, sign up for TTFA Premium at www.ttfa.org/premium. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the early morning hours of June 24th, 2021, an apartment complex in Surfside, Florida collapsed out of nowhere, killing 98 people – including Patty’s mom, Maggie.  It’s difficult enough to lose a loved one to an unthinkable tragedy. It’s exceptionally awful when you’re forced to watch them die over and over again on national television. — Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter  and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Read the transcript for this episode here. References: One year after Surfside condo collapse in Florida, a legal settlement is approved Experienced Team From Israel Helps Search Through Florida Condo Debris Dozens Of People Are Missing After A 12-Story Florida Condo Partly Collapsed — This week's sponsors: KiwiCo: kiwico.com/TERRIBLE Green Chef: greenchef.com/TTFA135, use code TTFA135 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The vibes aren't good. They're not even decent. They're bad. Nora's new book, BAD VIBES ONLY, is available today wherever you buy books! — TTFA is on tour now! Come see Nora perform LIVE! Tuesday, October 11 - Los Angeles, CA Saturday, October 15 - Philadelphia, PA Sunday, October 16 - Brooklyn, NY Monday, October 17 - Washington, DC Tuesday, October 18 - Boston, MA Wednesday, October 19 - Toronto, ON Friday, October 21 - Chicago, IL Saturday, October 22 -  St. Paul, MN  Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter  and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Read the transcript for this episode here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Four years ago, Nora sat down with her friend Gigi to tell the story of … Gigi’s face. It was a story about confidence and beauty (and beauty standards) and chronic illness, and it has touched so many people since we first aired it. Today, you’ll hear that first conversation with Gigi, plus an important update on what’s going on with Gigi’s health … and with her face. Gigi runs a shop called Gigi’s Flair Emporium. Check it out! She also has a GoFundMe here. TTFA is coming to your city October 7th - 22nd with an all-new live show, and tickets are on sale now! Friday, October 7 - San Francisco, CA Sunday, October 9 - Seattle, WA Monday, October 10 - Portland, OR Tuesday, October 11 - Los Angeles, CA Saturday, October 15 - Philadelphia, PA Sunday, October 16 - Brooklyn, NY Monday, October 17 - Washington, DC Tuesday, October 18 - Boston, MA Wednesday, October 19 - Toronto, ON Friday, October 21 - Chicago, IL Saturday, October 22 -  St. Paul, MN  Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter  and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Read the transcript for this episode here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Leah Nixon woke up in the hospital after a construction accident and learned she was paralyzed from the chest down, she wondered how she’d go about starting a family someday. In this episode, she gives us a glimpse into her daily life as a “para-mom” to her 9-month-old daughter, Ellie.  Leah’s company is called Tiny & Snail and they make adorable cards and stationery. Read the episode transcript here. TTFA is coming to your city October 7th - 22nd with an all-new live show experience, and tickets are on sale now! Friday, October 7 - San Francisco, CA Sunday, October 9 - Seattle, WA Monday, October 10 - Portland, OR Tuesday, October 11 - Los Angeles, CA Saturday, October 15 - Philadelphia, PA Sunday, October 16 - Brooklyn, NY Monday, October 17 - Washington, DC Tuesday, October 18 - Boston, MA Wednesday, October 19 - Toronto, ON Friday, October 21 - Chicago, IL Saturday, October 22 -  St. Paul, MN  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Allison Raskin was just 4 years old the first time she told her parents she wanted to die. Within weeks, the preschooler was diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder and depression. In this episode, we talk with Allison and her mother Ruth about raising a child with severe mental illness and what Allison’s world looks like today as an adult living with OCD.  You can buy Allison’s book “Overthinking About You” at your favorite book place. TTFA is coming to your city October 7th - 22nd with an all-new live show experience, and tickets are on sale now! Get yours here. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here.  Read the episode transcript here. Our social media: TTFA on Instagram TTFA on Facebook Nora on Instagram Nora on Facebook Nora on TikTok Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Genna is fat. They are also queer and nonbinary. All of these things can make a person feel marginalized in a straight, cisgender, thin-obsessed society … but for Genna, it’s being fat that’s hardest. TTFA is coming to your city October 7th - 22nd with an all-new live show experience, and tickets are on sale now! Get yours here. For more information about The Hartford, click here. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. (Don’t worry, we send like maybe 1 email a month). Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora here. To read the episode transcript, click here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The thing about having your life fall apart is that there’s just so much to do, and there’s so much that you don’t know until it’s too late. In today’s episode: What helps when everything goes wrong. For more information about The Hartford, visit thehartford.com/employeebenefits. TTFA is coming to your city October 7th - 22nd with an all-new live show experience. Get your ticket here. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Read the transcript for this episode here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're officially in our Taylor Swift era, and we can't wait for what's to come. TTFA is coming to your city October 7th - 22nd with an all-new live show experience. Get your ticket here. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Read the transcript for this episode here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chelsea’s mom and unborn brother died in a car accident on Chelsea’s first birthday, leaving little Chelsea and her grief-stricken father behind to piece back together their shattered life. As a child, Chelsea longs for a mom – a living mom – and she’s thrilled when her dad remarries a wonderful woman named Shawna. But even when she’s surrounded by love, Chelsea still finds herself trying to fill a gaping hole in her heart. TTFA is coming to your city October 7th - 22nd with an all-new live show experience. Get your ticket here. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. You can read the episode transcript here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When romantic relationships end, there’s usually a clean cut – a moment, a conversation, an argument that ends things for good. When friendships dissolve, the break is usually way less clear, if it’s clear at all. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Read the episode transcript here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re back with another Terrible Reading Club episode, sponsored by BetterHelp Online Therapy. Think of it as our book club for truly terrible times. Haven’t read the book we’re discussing? Good news: In this reading club, that’s not a requirement. Today, we’re chatting with Drew Magary, formerly of Deadspin and now of Defector, about his new memoir, “The Night The Lights Went Out: A Memoir of Life After Brain Damage.” There’s quite a bit of adult language in this episode, so you *might* not want to listen while driving around in the car with your kiddos (unless your kiddos are cool with curse words). Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Four years ago, we published a Father’s Day episode called “About Bob,” about a woman named Laura and her dad named – you guessed it – Bob. It ended with father and daughter trying to navigate their complex (but hopeful!) relationship. In this episode, Nora sits back down with Laura to find out if things with her dad are still as complicated as they were back in 2018. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Read the episode transcript here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why do we hold on to things we no longer need? For many of us, it’s because they remind us of who we were and who we thought we might become. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Read the episode transcript here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last year, we did a virtual live show on Valentine’s Day, and Nora — who considers herself a bit of a matchmaker — did some matchmaking. And while she was doing that, the live show comments section was popping off with other Terribles looking for love. This gave Nora the harebrained idea to make … a matchmaking episode. Consider this the podcast version of that “Great Expectations” video dating service from the ‘90s.  We're no longer taking submissions for these daters, but we hope you enjoy the episode anyway! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Girlboss culture is now, as they say, cringe, but during the 2010s, SO MANY of us thought we were on the precipice of busting through that glass ceiling. We thought we could rise and grind, hustle our way to the life of our dreams, and as long as we loved what we did we wouldn’t work a day in our lives. Leigh Stein is also a recovering girlboss, who went into debt building an organization that supported women but left her burned all the way out. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Read the transcript for this episode here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re back with another Terrible Reading Club episode, sponsored by BetterHelp Online Therapy. Think of it as our book club for truly terrible times. Haven’t read the book we’re discussing? Good news: In this reading club, that’s not a requirement. Today, we’re chatting with Kathleen Glasgow about her YA novel “You’d Be Home Now,” which tackles substance abuse and the opioid crisis. Note that we also talk about self-harm in this episode. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. You can read the episode transcript here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In March, a New York Times article made the rounds titled, “How Long Should It Take to Grieve? Psychiatry Has Come Up With an Answer.” And if that sentence alone makes you roll your eyes and want to punch an inanimate object, you’ve come to the right place. Nora read the article (twice) and had … some thoughts. So did her friend — and former TTFA guest — Brittany Freeman Jean-Louis. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our language surrounding mental illness has evolved a lot over the past couple of decades … to a point. There are still some mental illnesses that exist outside of the bounds of most people’s understanding and compassion, that are not so easily accepted and are really scary to people who don’t have them. Illnesses that make the person seem “crazy,” where people might not want to associate themselves with you. Today’s guest -- Brettina -- has one of those. Resources: “Why Borderline Personality Disorder is Misdiagnosed” from NAMI  Building a Life Worth Living by Marsha Linehan Follow @TheBrettina on Instagram Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some holidays are just more loaded than others, depending on our individual experiences. When you’re grieving the loss of your mother — either because they’ve died or because you don’t have a relationship with them — what the heck are you supposed to do with a holiday like Mother’s Day?  When a listener reached out to Nora after their mom died to ask for advice on moving forward, Nora decided to tap into the Terrible Rolodex of accidental grief experts … past TTFA guests and listeners and friends of the pod who have been there. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re back with another Terrible Reading Club episode, sponsored by BetterHelp Online Therapy. Think of it as our book club for truly terrible times. Haven’t read the book we’re discussing? Good news: In this reading club, that’s not a requirement. Today, we’re chatting with Christine Pride about her book co-authored with Jo Piazza, “We Are Not Like Them.” Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grief comes with so much judgment. Everybody is sure that there's a right way to do it, and only for a certain length of time. If our grief doesn’t neatly fit into a category, we worry that it’s illegitimate. Erin knows this judgment very well. She’s a widow … or is she? Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re back with another Terrible Reading Club episode, sponsored by Betterhelp Online Therapy. Think of it as our book club for truly terrible times. Haven’t read the book we’re discussing? Good news: In this reading club, that’s not a requirement. Today, we’re chatting with Dylan Marron about his soon-to-be-released book, “Conversations With People Who Hate Me.” Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2020, we asked how it was going in there … wherever it was you were isolating, quarantining, social distancing. Somehow, it’s been *checks watch* TWO YEARS of COVID and so much more, so we thought it was time for another check-in. How *is* it going in there, Terribles? Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Danielle’s daughter Della was a quintessential “good baby.” She slept through the night almost from the get go. She rarely cried! But when Danielle started weaning her, little Della would just … not eat. Could not eat. Her tiny body rebelled against her with every food she tried. When your baby lives with a chronic illness that wants to kill her, each day brings more anxiety. And it’s especially tough when you’re Della. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Growing up, Dani Shapiro never felt like she truly belonged to the orthodox Jewish community she lived in. All around her were kids who dressed and prayed and looked alike … and then, there was Dani — a fair-skinned, fair-haired, blue-eyed little Jewish girl. Dani spent much of her early writing career authoring fictional stories about secrets within families, not knowing that she would soon learn her own family had a big secret: Dani herself. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When someone we love dies, we become the vessels responsible for carrying their memory forward. The people we love stay alive in the big things, of course … but in the little things, too. When a listener shared an inside joke with the Terrible community about her late husband, we knew it was the beginning of an episode. Today, we share your stories, your inside jokes, your memories about your people. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Liam was raised as a girl, but from a very young age he knew that just … didn’t make sense. When he comes out to his evangelical Christian parents as a young adult — first as a lesbian, then as a trans man — it unfortunately goes exactly how he expected it to. This episode includes anecdotes and language that disparages the LGBTQIA+ community and trans experience. We include them with Liam’s explicit permission, as they play a role in his story as a trans man. We also refer to Liam by his birth name (and he refers to himself by his birth name) at times during this episode. For more tips on how to be a better ally to transgender people, visit GLAAD’s resource center. Follow Liam on TikTok. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our “Behind The Scammer” episode, you met Celisia Stanton and Rev. Gonzales, two people who had their life savings stolen from them by their financial adviser, a man named Isaiah Goodman. We intentionally focused that episode on the scammed – on the victims. But we do have a duty to reach out to the subject of any story and say “Hey, do you want to comment on this?” So we did. And Isaiah agreed to an interview, from inside federal prison. Celisia’s podcast is called “Truer Crime,” and you can (and should!) listen to it here. She also set up a GoFundMe to help the Gonzales family recoup some of their financial losses. You can help them here. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are all just products of the people who raise us. And they are products of those who raised them. Vanessa Zoltan knows that better than most. She is the grandchild of four Holocaust survivors, and for her, nihilism and depression kind of run in the family. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Many people who have autism are diagnosed at a young age. But today’s guest, Grace, wasn’t diagnosed with autism until she was 27 years old. In the months since the diagnosis, Grace has spent a lot of time reflecting on her childhood and young adulthood to understand why this wasn’t caught sooner — and in the process, she’s come to better understand herself and who she’s always been. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We recently made an episode called “The Grudge Book” filled with your grudges, and the feedback was SO strong. People felt validated. They laughed. They connected. So Nora got to thinking … did we need an episode that also gave you a place to share the other things that are hard to say? Your regrets? Your almosts? We decided the answer was yes, and this episode is loaded with them. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Olivia is 7 years old when her dad moves out of state to take a new job … and is never heard from again. In high school, a manilla envelope appears in Olivia’s mailbox letting her know the reason she never heard from him is because he died by suicide. But when Olivia learns as a young journalist that her father might have faked his own death all those years ago, she decides to investigate. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s the stuff of romantic comedies: Man meets woman as they’re boarding a flight. The two quickly discover they share many similarities and go on to chat for hours. There’s an instant connection. The big difference here is the woman is Nora, and the man is a TTFA listener. And what she and Jose spend hours talking about, what they instantly connect on ... is their grief. Because like Nora, Jose recently lost the love of his life. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Suffering can feel like such a singular experience -- like there’s no one else in the world who understands what we’re going through. But sometimes, if we look hard enough, we find that our singular experience intersects with another. This is the story of two young girls whose stories intertwined during a tragic accident on October 8, 1988 … though they wouldn’t meet for decades to come. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our “Behind the Scammer” episode, you met Celisia Stanton. Being the victim of a crime really makes you think through the way that you consume true crime entertainment, and Celisia wanted to approach the genre from a different angle — not just on the crime that occurred, but on the systems that surround every crime. She started her own (amazing) podcast called “Truer Crime” – give it a listen here! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re culturally obsessed with scammers, con artists and fraudsters. People like Elizabeth Holmes and Bernie Madoff dominate headlines and then get films made and books written documenting what they did and how they did it. But behind the scammers are the victims: individuals who are struggling to recover their sense of safety, their identity … and their money. In July 2021, Isaiah Goodman was sentenced to 7 years in prison for defrauding clients out of more than $2.3 million dollars. He spent the money on a hot tub, a fancy house, two cars, a cruise … but it wasn’t his money. That money belonged to -- among others -- Celisia Stanton and Rev. Michael Gonzales, two very real people whose lives were materially impacted by Goodman’s materialism. Celisia’s podcast is called “Truer Crime,” and you can (and should!) listen to it here. She also set up a GoFundMe to help the Gonzales family recoup some of their financial losses. You can help them here. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When you introduce yourself to someone for the first time, you start by telling them your name and (maybe!) a few facts about you. The other person takes the information at face value. There’s no judgment, no opinion formed … just two people meeting each other. Amanda has no idea what that feels like. In 2007, she made international news headlines through no fault of her own. Now, more than a decade later, strangers decide their opinion of her as soon as they hear her name. But what many people consider Amanda’s story isn’t really hers at all. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The internet and social media are a huge way for us to be seen as individuals. We share our lives online because it gives us connection … and because it gives us attention. But that attention isn’t always positive. Jolie knows this all too well, because in 2019, she found herself on the wrong side of the Internet Rage Machine. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re back with another Terrible Reading Club episode, sponsored by BetterHelp Online Therapy. Think of it as our book club for truly terrible times. Haven’t read the book we’re discussing? Good news: In this reading club, that’s not a requirement. Today, we’re chatting with Danielle Henderson about her memoir, “The Ugly Cry.” Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Angela and Jeff have an awesome marriage. They share the same life goals, the same ideologies. Their life together is peaceful and easy, and they love their two kids. But just after their tenth anniversary, Angela starts to feel that something is ... off. And it's not Jeff — he's as steadfast as ever. It's her. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When one of the people in a relationship is dead, the relationship becomes a bit one-sided. Your version of who that person is and was is obscured by all of your own biases, your commitment to your version of the truth, to your side of the story. Nora’s dad — Vietnam veteran, father of four, advertising copywriter — died seven years ago. And in this episode, the McInerny siblings reflect on who Stephen J. McInerny was … as a young boy sent to war, as a husband, and as their father. About how they love their dad, even if he wasn’t always the kind of dad they wanted. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grief doesn’t always mean the loss of a person. It can also mean the loss of who you used to be. The loss of the life you thought you were going to have. Gina is 43 years old. She’s single without kids. She’s a producer and world traveler (25 countries so far). Her independent nature — and her love of solo travel — is a major part of Gina’s identity … and it’s being challenged by an undiagnosed autoimmune disorder. Gina wrote a book about her pal Rafael appropriately titled, “Blowing Up” (IYKYK). You can learn more about it here.  Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sometimes the humans we need love and support from the most just aren’t able to give it to us. When that happens, who do you have? If you’re Adrienne, you have Luke, a giant German Shepherd. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to the Terrible Reading Club, sponsored by BetterHelp Online Therapy. Think of it as our book club for truly terrible times. Haven’t read the book we’re discussing? Good news: In this reading club, that’s not a requirement. Today, we’re chatting with Suleika Jaouad about her memoir, Between Two Kingdoms, in which she writes about the aftermath of recovering from an illness she was not expected to survive. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sleep experts the world over seem to have countless tips and tricks for getting those eight hours of Zzzs each night. But sometimes our brains just … can’t shut down, no matter what we do. Nora recently asked you, the TTFA community, what’s been keeping you up at night these days, and you answered. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you’re sent into an anxiety spiral every time you hear the words “climate change,” you’re not alone. Everything we read these days tells us that the clock is ticking down, and there is nothing we as individuals can do about it. But we talked to climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe recently, and she told us that yeah, things are bad … but it’s not hopeless! Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lynda and her daughter, Sophia, have a busy day ahead of them. First, a bike ride to train for an upcoming sprint triathlon. That evening, a dinner party. In between, a funeral to honor a friend. When Lynda wakes up in the emergency room and learns Sophia and she were in an accident during their morning ride, their busy day — and the rest of Lynda’s life — is forever changed. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You learn to expect the unexpected when you’re a new parent — and for Kari and Aaron, the list of unexpected things is long when it comes to their daughter, Sloan. Sloan is a beautiful and medically complex baby girl who requires constant care. And when a beloved family member dies unexpectedly months after Sloan’s birth, Kari and Aaron find themselves overwrought with grief. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re back with another Terrible Reading Club episode, sponsored by BetterHelp Online Therapy. Think of it as our book club for truly terrible times. Haven’t read the book we’re discussing? Good news: In this reading club, that’s not a requirement. Today, we’re chatting with John Green about his latest book, The Anthropocene Reviewed. You can buy John’s book from our Bookshop.org storefront or wherever you get books. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kari and Aaron had vastly different childhoods. Kari’s was filled with adventures, laughter and silliness. Aaron grew up in a complicated religious household. When the two high school sweethearts start dating, Aaron becomes part of Kari’s family -- the son that her parents never had. And when the two get married and begin planning for a baby, unexpected news has Kari and Aaron leaning on their family more than ever before. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

About six years ago, Nora took a notebook and wrote down all of the grudges she was holding against people ... and then, she left that notebook in a seat-back pocket on a plane and never saw it again. We wanted to know what you, our listeners, would put in your own Grudge Book if you had one, and in this episode, we share your responses. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

High school is a miserable time for Hannah for all of the usual reasons that our teen years are awful … but also for an extra reason. Hannah is disabled, and she’s living in a world that doesn’t seem to want her to be a part of it. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Melissa is the epitome of responsible. She loves following rules and has spent her whole life trying to be the best person possible. But accidents happen, and one winter morning, a split second changes everything she thought she knew about herself. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s rare to have a friendship that actually lasts forever, but that’s what Josie and Miles have. When Miles’s cancer comes back after years of remission, Josie is there for him every step of the way … until there are no more steps to take. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to the Terrible Reading Club, sponsored by BetterHelp Online Therapy. Think of it as our book club for truly terrible times. Haven’t read the book we’re discussing? Good news: In this reading club, that’s not a requirement. Today, we’re chatting with Anne Lamott about her latest book, Dusk, Night, Dawn, which explores how we see ourselves in the context of seriously dark moments. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Children are often taught to respect and honor their parents. For Elissa Altman, this is complicated by the fact that her mother has narcissistic personality disorder and borderline personality disorder. Elissa couldn’t escape her mother’s emotional and verbal abuse when she was a child. Now, as an adult, she must learn how to untangle herself from her aging mother’s web and still provide the care she needs. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Adoption is often viewed as a happy ending, and sometimes it is! But for Thenedra, her experiences as a child in the foster care system and later as a trans-racial adoptee were — and still are — much more complicated than that. This is an episode about what can happen when trans-racial foster and adoptive parents are not just unprepared to raise traumatized children, but also unprepared to raise Black children in a predominantly white society. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you know what it feels like to be on the brink of an emotional meltdown, you’re not alone. Many of us feel like we’re at the end of a rapidly fraying rope … like we’re falling behind in life and it’s solely our fault … like the reason for our problems is our inability to make lemonade out of climate change and racial injustice and a global pandemic. Nora recently asked folks to share what it’s like to be standing at the edge of an existential crisis, and you responded with your stories. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of folks got really into bread baking. Banana bread! Biscuits! Sourdough! (So much sourdough.) Ashley got into bread baking too, but for an entirely different reason. A week before quarantine began, Ashley’s wife died of a heart attack after years of living with cerebral palsy. Ashley wasn’t just lonely … she was ALONE. So she turned to baking as a way to heal. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ryan’s life often feels like a Venn diagram. Ryan the person loves listening to metal and The Grateful Dead. Ryan the person is a sneakerhead who reads Punisher comic books at night. Ryan the person is also queer — bisexual — and a recovered alcoholic. Brother Ryan, on the other hand, is a man who has taken strict religious vows. Brother Ryan is a man who believes in the beauty of communal living. Brother Ryan spends his life dedicated to service through education. These two versions of Ryan must find a way to exist together, or he could lose everything. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our last episode, you met Leticia and her son Anthony. At the end of part one, things were finally looking good for both mother and son: Anthony had just welcomed his own daughter into the world; Leticia had married a wonderful man and was settling into life in the suburbs. But mental illness is a vicious beast, and in this episode, Leticia revisits 2017 — the last year of Anthony’s life. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Leticia was 16 years old when she got pregnant with her son, Anthony. As you might imagine, raising a child more or less on your own when you’re only 16 is really, really hard. It’s even harder when you’re dealing with your own childhood and generational trauma. This is part one of Leticia and Anthony’s story. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nora loves giving advice, especially when the questions are really easy and really low stakes. In this episode, she answers a few of your frequently asked questions and later teams up with comedian Tig Notaro to dole out some wisdom about grief, friendships and her everlasting love for skater boys. Book recs mentioned in this episode include Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott and On Writing by Stephen King. Another one Nora loves is Before and After the Book Deal by Courtney Maum. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We all want a good death — a death where we’re surrounded by the people we love and don’t feel any fear or pain. A good death is what Ron Deprez wanted when his body became ravaged by ALS … and thanks to his daughter, Esmé, and Maine’s death with dignity legislation, that’s exactly what he got. In this episode, Esmé Deprez shares her father’s story with us. Read Esmé's article here. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Maggie has always been a planner. The kind of person who enjoys planning a thing almost as much as she loves doing the thing. The kind of person who adds something they’ve already completed to a checklist just for the satisfaction of crossing it off. Getting divorced wasn’t on Maggie’s life plan, or on her checklist. When you’re a planner and life throws you a big, rusty wrench, how do you live in the aftermath? Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Edith Eger was 16 years old when the Nazis invaded Hungary during World War II. She was imprisoned at Auschwitz concentration camp with her family. Today, Dr. Edith Eger is a 93-year-old clinician, speaker and author who is so full of wisdom and light, we could’ve done ten episodes with her. This is her story. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Many of us have been forced to adopt a new way of grieving over the past year. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected our ability to properly mourn the way we need to when a loved one dies. We can’t safely gather by the dozens and sit in pain with one another for days on end. Stacy Cooper’s husband, Chad, died last fall, so she knows this all too well. But her grieving process actually started long before the pandemic hit. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gaby Dunn is a podcaster, a YouTuber, a writer, an actor and a bi-con. She’s bi-sexual and bi-polar, and in this episode, she talks to us about all of it. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cynthia is a Latina adult woman living with autism. In this episode, she lets us in on her world, what her life was like growing up, and what she experiences today as an autistic adult. Cynthia made a Spotify playlist for all of us! You can listen to it here. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Teresa fantasized about falling in love as much as any other teenager growing up. But because Teresa never saw people like her on TV or in movies — people living with disabilities — she could never really SEE herself having that kind of romantic relationship. That all changes when Teresa heads off to college. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Leah loves to make things. Growing up, she loved to draw and paint. In college, she started her own comic. As an adult, she’s built tiny homes from scratch. And after an unexpected accident, she’s tasked with finding new ways to be the maker she’s always been. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gina loves her big brother, Alan. She took care of him for most of their childhood, and as an adult, she wants to make sure he’s okay no matter what. But she also knows she can't be around to help make that happen. This episode is about being a child of divorce. It's about having one absent parent and another who lives with severe depression. It's about loving a sibling whose genetic disorder causes him to inflict physical harm. And it's about putting your own health above all of it. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Caregiving has always been hard work … and heart work. It has always been challenging, rewarding, grueling and life-giving. It has always been work worth doing, and work whose worth is challenged or hard to quantify. And adding COVID to the mix didn’t help. This episode is filled with stories from caregivers — people who were thrust into this role by COVID or found the role further complicated by COVID. It is a reminder that you are not alone, even when you are bone-achingly lonely. It’s a piece of recognition and appreciation for all of you. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Care connects all of us. In this episode, we talk to Jonny, a domestic worker, and Ai-jen Poo of the National Domestic Workers Alliance about the people who take care of our homes, our families and our communities — the people whose work makes the rest of our work possible. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s not just dying that is hard. It's not just the prospect of death. It's the recognition of it. It’s the conversation around it ... which is often no conversation at all. In this episode, we talk with Dr. Sunita Puri about care at the end of life — and why we need to start having those tough conversations. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

America is in a care crisis. Women, especially mothers, are leaving the workforce in staggering numbers in this pandemic era. They're buckling under the pressure of managing the responsibilities of their households and their families on top of their work. In this episode, we talk with Eve Rodsky about the straw that broke her back and re-examine what it means to value care and time in your own household. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark has remarried after the death of his first wife, and the couple give birth during COVID-19 to a perfect little girl. But this podcast has “Terrible” in its title for a reason, and Mark and Melissa must face yet another Worst Case Scenario. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark’s mom died of cancer when he was fresh out of high school. Years later, when Mark’s wife Karen is also diagnosed with cancer, he’s faced with losing another loved one way too soon. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Way back in 2017, we did two episodes with Nora’s friend Chelsea, who was suer she was going to be alone FOREVER … until she met Brian. Chelsea and Brian’s relationship was complicated by Brian’s relationship with alcohol, and their story ended on a question mark. For years, people have been asking us what happened. In this episode, you finally get the answers. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Busy Philipps is weird. She knows it, and actually, she considers it her superpower — a superpower she used in her early acting days to wield revenge against the people who told her she'd never make it. But then, a weird thing happens: Busy does find success. She builds a family! But none of it feels the way she thought it would. Stars. They really are just like us, with their own struggles and problems that look just like ours. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Your sense of self when you’re young is tied to who you belong to and where you live. Morgan is Black and Pentecostal. She's the daughter of Sybil and Jon. She's their only child and has her father’s eyes. She’s from New Jersey! Her nickname — the milkman's baby — is a joke about her fairer skin. But as Morgan gets older, she realizes she actually doesn't know much about her family's history. This is a story of finding your roots, your ancestors and a new sense of self. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Good vibes only? Not on this podcast. And not when psychologist Susan David is in the room (figuratively speaking, of course, because pandemic). For years, Susan has been leading the conversation about the value of *all our feelings* and how no emotion is bad or good. This episode is your antidote to toxic positivity. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode features conversations with people doing the best they can in difficult circumstances. Like Dr. Lucy Kalanithi, whose husband Dr. Paul Kalanithi was a notable and rising brain surgeon who wrote When Breath Becomes Air, a bestselling memoir about his fatal battle with cancer. And comedian Amber Tozer, who tells a funny and poignant story about walking in on her mother’s wedding… on Christmas Day. We will also talk with some of the women of the Hot Young Widows Club on their hopes and dreams for the upcoming year. Plus, stories of people’s worst Holidays ever. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We all have to find our way to our adult selves. As an author, filmmaker and co-founder of a mass movement — the Women’s March — Paola’s adult self is very impressive! But even the most impressive among us can struggle with belonging, especially in the systems that are set up to reject us.  Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ten years ago, Rebecca Black was a 13-year-old girl who made a music video with her friends honoring everyone's favorite day of the week (you know the one). The music video wasn't great. But it also wasn’t great that the video quickly went viral on YouTube — and that being cruel to a teenage girl suddenly became a professional sport. A decade after the release of "Friday," Rebecca Black is back to remind everyone that her story doesn't boil down to just one thing she did when she was a teen. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Something to get your mind off of the stress of this 2020 Election Day! Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2012, Rosie became the first Black woman to win the Miss North Dakota pageant. She got to do what she loves most — play music and perform! — and she won scholarship money to pay down her student loab debt. It was thrilling. It was exciting! But winning Miss North Dakota means more than just wearing a gorgeous gown on a stage in front of a bunch of people. For the next year, Rosie represents the state like a sort of ambassador, touring the region and sharing her diversity platform with folks … in North Dakota, a state that’s 90% white. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We know that romantic and familial relationships are work, and we respect the time it takes to maintain healthy relationships with our partners and families. But in a culture that prizes romantic love above all else, how do we make sure to maintain and protect our friendships? Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman *literally* wrote the book about friendship and give us an assist with this episode. (Thanks, pals.) Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do we talk about addiction in more productive ways? How do we hold empathy and boundaries together? What does it mean to "recover"? Nora has no idea, so Dr. Nzinga Harrison is here to educate, comfort and reassure all of us. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A typical arc for stories on this podcast is that things are bad, very bad. And then, they’re ... not great, but are at least a little better. For author and comedian Samantha Irby, life is all good and all bad all at the same time. Because there are SO MANY things to laugh about when life is awful and your body is turning on you. There are also things to complain about when you’re deeply in love with a person who treats you like an angel. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In May 2020, a viral video filmed by two young men pushed them to the top of everyone’s news feed. Suddenly, it seemed the whole world knew what had happened to Abdi and Salman while they were working out in the gym of the Minneapolis office building they leased for their growing business. In this episode, we get past the story of what happened to Abdi and Salman and dive into the bigger story: who they are. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jennell's home life was difficult growing up, and the Pentecostal church she attended was the only place she truly felt safe. A talented vocalist, Jennell quickly became the church's rising star. When a church leader 15 years her senior takes advantage of teenage Jennell's mental health issues and begins a sexual relationship with her, she initially feels loved and cared for. Eventually, the relationship is revealed to the rest of the church. And when Jennell is cast as the villain in the story, she faces losing her faith for good. Heads up: suicide, sexual trauma and eating disorders are a part of this episode. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Leslie is a Black widow. No, not the spider — a Black human woman whose husband died. Because eventually, when she least expected it, she DID finally find a guy (whom she had already found once before). This episode is about that guy. His name is Scott. But it’s also about another guy: a baby boy named Brooks. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Drayden is a Black boy with Autism Spectrum Disorder. His mother, Dana, has been consistently fighting and pushing to get him the diagnosis and services he deserves (and needs!) since he was just a few months old. This episode is one about racism within the medical field. It's about a mother who must protect her son from the people who are supposed to protect him in a world where innocent, sweet, adorable Black boys grow up to be perceived by many as dangerous Black men. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lyndsey and her mother have a shared love of horses. They both compete in dressage (Google it). They ride together after their daily farm chores are finished. But Lyndsey is more naturally gifted in the saddle than her mother, and this creates tension and envy. After a riding accident leaves her mother with severe physical injuries, Lyndsey isn't sure her mom will ever ride again. As her mom's body slowly heals, and as Lyndsey reteaches her mother how to ride, the two begin mending their relationship. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here's the thing: We do not like describing grief as a "journey." But when your grief involves a literal road trip across the country, what other choice do we have? And when your friend loses his wife and decides to go on that road trip to clear his mind, what do you do? If you're David's friend, you fly out to meet him, open up the maps app on your phone and buckle up. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our last episode, you met Brittany. (If you haven't listened to that one yet, we recommend scrolling back and checking it out.) When we left Britt, she finally had a good relationship with her biological dad for the first time in 33 years. She has her own solid family unit with her husband, Sonny. Her mom's health has improved, and so has Britt’s relationship with her. Things are good. They’re really, really good! And because this podcast isn't called, "Really, Really Good, Glad You Asked!” that means it's time for Britt's world to start unraveling. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sometimes our parental relationships are a little tangly. We’re wrapped up in big, old knots from strings that were already jumbled up before we were even born. This is a story about the knotted threads of one family, as seen through the eyes of a girl named Brittany, who is busy grieving the recent death of her dad when she learns that he ... wasn’t actually her dad. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Salome and Isaiah can't wait to become parents to Isaac and Joy, children they've come to love after multiple visits to Isaiah's home country of Nigeria. The children's birth mother has been unable to care for them, and Isaiah's brother has been helping the children's grandparents financially. Isaac and Joy's mother agrees to the international adoption. But after the papers are finalized, the children are kidnapped ... and Salome and Isaiah are thrust into a system in which no one ever wins. To learn more about Impact Missions: http://imworldwide.org/. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jen Hatmaker was a perfect prototype of evangelical woman subculture. She followed the rules close enough to not be problematic but had just the right amount of edge to be successful in the Christian blogger space. In 2016, Jen finds herself ostracized from the community that once supported her after she voices love and support for LGBTQ individuals. She's sure she's lost it all — her friends, her income, everything — until Jen discovers a whole other segment of the evangelical community ready to welcome her and continue doing the hard work. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Layoffs. Redundancies. Furloughs. Right-sizing. There are so many ways to say, “Whoops, sorry, you don’t have a job here anymore,” and Sarah Hagi has already lived through a few of them. If you’ve ever been told some nonsense during a job interview about how the company in question is “like a family,” and the reason for the low salary offer is because there's free lunch and booze in the kitchen, this episode is for you. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This isn’t *technically* our 100th episode but rather the episode we made as soon as we’d learned that we’d already well surpassed 100 episodes. It’s an episode about milestones and anniversaries, and why humans care so much about them. It’s a chance for us to look back and reflect on our body of work. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kate Bowler grew up in a Mennonite church and has spent her academic career studying the prosperity gospel, aka the belief that God wants you to do well in life. Ever heard the phrase, "Everything happens for a reason"? Yep, that's based in prosperity gospel! When Kate is told she has Stage 4 cancer, the diagnosis rocks her professional and personal world. Her illness is totally out of line with what she expected from faith, and it makes her begin to question her life's work. It’s easy to believe in a higher power when things are going well, but what about when everything turns to crap? Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you need to laugh? Do you need to laugh REALLY HARD? Well, good. Because Nora turned the hilarious movie "Bad Moms" into a novel. It’s fun and funny and a perfect escape for right now, and you get the first three chapters right here. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It can be hard to be honest with ourselves, especially when something terrible is happening EVERYWHERE and to EVERYONE and we don’t want to call too much attention to ourselves because … it could be worse, ya know?  As the world locks down due to COVID-19, and as the lives as we knew them screech to a halt, we decided to ask you: “How’s it going in there?” These are your stories from the era of isolation. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stuff is hard right now. Like, really hard. If you feel like you're hanging onto a rapidly fraying rope? You are not alone. Not by a long shot. The bad news about the Terrible Club? Your membership is non-negotiable. Something happens and boom! You're in the club! The good news about the Terrible Club? You're not alone. We promise. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2015, a young woman was sexually assaulted on the Stanford University campus. The crime (and specifically, the man who committed it) dominated news headlines throughout the trial. For years, the woman who'd been assaulted was known as Emily Doe. In 2019, Chanel Miller gave up her anonymity with the publication of her powerful memoir, "Know My Name." In this episode, Chanel talks about the time she spent living with two identities — one anonymous but constantly talked about, the other trying to pretend she's the same woman she's always been. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When you believe that love will never, could never happen to you, it feels like a miracle when it finally does. This is the story of a young man named Oliver, whose religious upbringing has convinced him that love isn’t in the cards for him. And it’s a story about a young man named Jamie, who shows Oliver that yes, miracles do happen. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Laura McKowen is sober. Drinking used to be her "thing," and what she's learned in sobriety is that we all have a thing — something we'd be better off without that we just ... keep doing. Maybe that's scrolling your phone or Googling your ex (no judgment). Maybe it's alcohol or drugs or sugar or watching Netflix until 3 in the morning. This episode is filled with hope and help for whatever your "thing" is. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dan and Darren have been friends for decades. They hit all of their major adult milestones together — jobs, marriage, kids. They planned on becoming old men together... ... and then Darren dies of brain cancer. Everyone experiences grief, but the resources for grieving men are virtually nonexistent. We know that only about .03% of our listeners identify as male, so you might need to forward this one to any grieving guy you know. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jessica’s sobriety story is like a lot of other sobriety stories you’ve heard. She put in the work and did what she had to do to stop doing the thing that was going to kill her. At the same time, Jessica’s sobriety story is also different, because hers is complicated by the debilitating pain of an incurable reproductive disease that nobody understands. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pam and Steve have just gotten married and are getting ready to celebrate with friends and family at their upcoming wedding reception in just a few days … but first, they gotta head to the north woods of Minnesota to tackle some chores at their lake cabin. When a tragic accident up at the lake has Pam planning Steve’s memorial service instead of celebrating their nuptials, she realizes the life she planned for her and Steve will never even have a chance to get started. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Neil Pasricha’s life is falling apart. His marriage, which gave him a sense of purpose and value, is over. His best friend has died by suicide. Therapy helps, but he still struggles with all of the negativity swirling in his head. So Neil does what a lot of people did in the mid-aughts: He starts a blog — a blog about awesome things that make him happy. Right now, a lot of us rely on the internet and social media for connection and instead find the exact opposite. If that's you (and it probably is), this episode is for you. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In life, the only thing that remains constant is change. As TTFA goes through our own major changes, we explore what change really means to us. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you’ve listened to this podcast since the beginning, or since the middle, or even if you’ve only listened to a few episodes, we want to say thank you. As of this episode, TTFA is three years old … which is basically the same age as the baby Nora told you about in Episode 0. And in this episode, Nora reflects on the past few years and what’s to come for the show. Also, book recommendations for grievers: The Body Keeps The Score by Bessel van der Kolk, M.D. Mindsight by Daniel J. Siegel, M.D. When Bad Things Happen To Good People by Harold S. Kushner Felicity by Mary Oliver Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our third and final episode in our series on childhood trauma, we take a look at the bigger picture — as in, what the heck are we supposed to do with the knowledge that what happened to us as kids can affect our health in adulthood? How can we help heal our own childhood traumas? Buckle up, folks, because this train makes stops in Rantville, Can You Believe This Burg and OMGtown. This episode was produced in partnership with: Call to Mind, American Public Media's initiative to foster new conversations about mental health; St. David's Center for Child and Family Development, which is building relationships that nurture the development of every child and family; with support from the Sauer Family Foundation, which is committed to improving the lives of disadvantaged children and their families in Minnesota. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If the terrible things that happened to you during childhood can affect your physical health later in life, how do you NOT live out the worst possibilities for yourself? Is that even possible? In this second episode of our series about childhood trauma, we look at protective factors and resilience. And once again, we're joined by Britt. This episode was produced in partnership with: Call to Mind, American Public Media's initiative to foster new conversations about mental health; St. David's Center for Child and Family Development, which is building relationships that nurture the development of every child and family; with support from the Sauer Family Foundation, which is committed to improving the lives of disadvantaged children and their families in Minnesota. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We all kind of understand that what happens to us as a child affects us as an adult, but there is recent evidence that the way our childhoods affect us is so much deeper and more surprising than we thought. So where do we start when we’re talking about how childhood adversity affects us? We start by looking at a childhood. One childhood, from a few different angles. And this child's name is Britt. This episode was produced in partnership with: Call to Mind, American Public Media's initiative to foster new conversations about mental health; and St. David's Center for Child and Family Development, which is building relationships that nurture the development of every child and family; with support from the Sauer Family Foundation, which is committed to improving the lives of disadvantaged children and their families in Minnesota. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Caleb Campbell knew growing up that God’s plan for his life was sports. And when you believe that God himself is responsible for your football career, you feel a LOT of pressure to succeed. By the time he makes it to the NFL, Caleb is suffering from severe depression and anxiety. He's having regular panic attacks. He feels like he's disappointed everyone, including God. He turns to drugs and alcohol to cope with his self-hate. When Caleb leaves sports behind and finds himself working as a church janitor, he finally begins to heal. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Cortney's dad dies, her mother grieves the way a lot of people do: by buying things to fill the void, sometimes things she can't afford. By age 15, Cortney is helping her mom pay the bills. By her 20s, when her mom is diagnosed with cancer, Cortney is working 60-hour weeks just to keep her mother's lights on. This is an episode about what money means — when you have it, when you don't — and how a lack of it can strain family ties. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Karen grew up with two sick parents — two sick but incredibly loving parents. Her mom died when Karen was just 10 years old, and her dad has dealt with medical and kidney issues her whole life. Karen is 22 years old and living in Spain when she learns her dad’s health is deteriorating again. He needs a new kidney. And thankfully, Karen has one of those to spare. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Emily and Brian, like many couples, have had both ups and downs during their relationship. About a week before their third wedding anniversary, Emily gets the sense that things are down again. It’s just a feeling. Nothing concrete. No proof of anything. But when Brian dies in a tragic accident a few days later, Emily learns that her husband has been having relationships with people who are … not Emily. This is an episode about multiple truths — about how you can love someone and grieve their death and also feel intense betrayal. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Siblings Syeda and Syed are 16 and 17 years old when their father tells them that more than half of their little American family unit are undocumented immigrants; Mom and Dad fled Pakistan when Syed was just a baby to escape violence in their home country. Syeda and her younger brother are U.S. citizens, but Syed and their parents are not. They must return to Pakistan — a place they haven’t considered “home” for almost two decades. A place Syed doesn’t even remember. This is an episode about an American family … and how policies often don’t reflect humanity of any one individual. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kelsey and Louie’s life is blessedly boring in the best kind of way. They have good jobs. They live in the suburbs. They have a kid. When Kelsey gets pregnant again, everything changes. Not just because they’re about to go from one kid to two, but because Kelsey isn’t feeling well. She’s diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome. Some changes you anticipate. They are eagerly awaited — like a pregnancy. And some changes just jump out at you and turn everything upside down. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We have an update on a past episode! Harris Wittels was the executive producer of "Parks and Recreation," the coiner of the word "humblebrag," a Phish enthusiast, and the funniest person in any room he walked into. He died of a heroin overdose in 2015, leaving behind his mother, his sister, and a lifetime of talent and potential. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Maynard travels a lot for his job. His wife, Barbara, often goes with him so they can make a mini vacation out of it. If she can’t tag along, they keep in touch via phone calls and little love notes. When Maynard heads to New York for work, it feels like just another business trip. Except it’s not. Not at all. Because when Barbara last talks to Maynard on the phone, he’s heading into the World Trade Center for his first meeting of the day on September 11th, 2001. This is an episode about what happens when a national tragedy becomes a very personal one. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In high school and college, Ryan was … kind of a jerk. He didn’t treat his girlfriends well and had warped ideas of what it meant to “be a man.” As he gets older, his definition of masculinity greatly expands. He and his wife, Tiffany, take each other’s last names and hyphenate them. He learns to embrace his love of art and poetry. He commits to fighting the patriarchy! But when Ryan and Tiffany learn that the reason they haven’t been able to get pregnant is because of Ryan, he finds himself once again questioning his manhood. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2015, Jayson and Stacy's 2-year-old daughter, Greta, was killed while she was sitting on a bench in New York City. A loose brick from the building above her fell from the windowsill and fell eight stories before hitting the toddler on her head. Some things, like the death of a child, are unimaginable. In fact, we'd prefer to NOT imagine them, ever. But for Jayson and Stacy, the loss of Greta to this random tragedy is their reality. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In August 2017, members of the Ku Klux Klan and other white nationalist groups descended on Charlottesville, VA to protest the removal of a statue of Robert E. Lee as part of the Unite the Right rally. Constance was also at that rally — as a counter-protestor trained in de-escalation techniques. She expected to be just a face in the crowd amongst thousands of others. But when the worst moment of her life becomes *content,* Constance has to take back control of her own story. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When most people meet Aiko, they think she’s just a really picky eater. But it’s much more complicated than that. Aiko has avoidant restrictive food intake disorder, or ARFID. She gets extremely anxious and panicked if she has to eat foods outside of a very small list of “safe” items. In this episode, we talk to Aiko as well as an eating disorder expert about what it’s like to live in fear of food. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the very first episode of TTFA, you met Nora’s friend Moe. Nora and Moe are both widows, and in the summer of 2019 they went on a mini road trip to promote Nora’s newest book about widowhood and grief. At each stop along the tour, folks had questions — lots of questions. About how to move forward. About why they're STILL so sad. About how to talk to their kid about their dead parent. And in this episode, Nora answers those questions for all of us. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nicole is 21 years old and has an alien growing inside her chest. No, not really. But it IS an extremely large tumor growing inside of her that very much feels like an alien — an alien that doctors have told her multiple times is just weight gain. This is a story about physical pain, and how women are often dismissed and suffer through things they shouldn't have to. But it's about another kind of pain, too: the pain of wondering what could’ve been. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For many of us, homelessness is something that happens to other people. People who had bad luck, or who made bad choices, or who are bad people … or some combination of all that.  But the fact is, the average age of someone in the U.S. experiencing homelessness is 9 years old. And one in three people experiencing homelessness are homeless with their family. In this episode, we talk to individuals who have experienced various degrees of homelessness at some point during their youth. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a new psychotherapist, Lori Gottlieb has a lot of ideas about what a therapist is supposed to be and how a therapist is supposed to act. Therapists are here to help us, of course, but they aren’t supposed to become our friends. When Lori’s patient Julie comes to her after a year and a half of therapy and tells Lori that she’s dying of cancer, Lori is heartbroken. And when Julie asks Lori to stay with her as her therapist until the day she dies, Lori says yes. This is an episode about what it means to be both a professional and a human being. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's that special time of year when we look long and hard at our own mothers and at ourselves as mothers. So, how do we all measure up? In this TTFA listener-submitted episode, we hear from you, the Terrible community, about your motherhood experiences. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"Stronger Than Hate" is what everyone said in response to the mass shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in 2018. But what ... does that mean, exactly? In this third and final episode in our series from Pittsburgh, we talk to all types of people about who and what is stronger than hate. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 27, 2018 was a big day for a lot of people in Pittsburgh for a lot of different reasons. For Nate, it was the day of his bar mitzvah. For Matthew and Adam, it was the day of the naming ceremony for their two little girls. For many others, it was the day a mass shooter changed their lives forever. This is our second of three episodes from Pittsburgh, PA. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Six weeks after 11 people were murdered by a mass shooter at the Tree of Life mass shooting in Pittsburgh, we traveled to Pennsylvania to hear from folks in the community. In the first of three episodes from Pittsburgh, we talk with three women about how the ripple effects from a shared public tragedy have affected their lives. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you've ever been in therapy, something your therapist might've told you about is both/and thinking. It means two things can be true at once. And in this episode, which features an essay from Nora's book No Happy Endings, she's both sad and lucky. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jenny and Michelle are the kind of twin sisters you see in movies. They’ve got the twin telepathy. They’ve done the switching places shenanigans. The sisters are so connected, so in sync, that Michelle feels like she should’ve seen it coming. On what should’ve been the best day ever, Michelle loses a sister, Pat loses a wife, and a brand new baby named Teddy loses his mom. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After fertility treatments fail, Deya and Sandra decide to adopt a child through the foster system. They have a lot of love to give. They also know the intended outcome of foster care is for the child to reunite with their birth family. When Deya and Sandra begin fostering a baby girl, they try to not get too attached ... but it's SO hard. And as the baby's birth mother works toward reunification, the women are torn. They want the young mother to succeed. They believe in reunification! They also fear losing the baby girl they've come to deeply love. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

All weddings have some family drama, and all families have their own generational tension. It's no different for Mai Neng Moua and her mother, Yer Vu. Yer Vu was once a different kind of bride in a different country. She has expectations for her daughter's wedding. Mai Neng knows this ... but she has her own expectations, too. This episode is about two equally strong women and how growing up in two very different cultures can affect a relationship. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Parenting is never what we expect it to be. But most of us don’t expect to be afraid of our 9-year-old child … or to have to hide from him to protect ourselves from abuse. This is Maiya’s reality. Her son, Bailey, has autism and also deals with anxiety and depression. He’s smart! He loves to cook. He can be so, so sweet and loving. He also loses his temper often — and when he does, it gets very violent. This is an episode about a family navigating life as best they can, with the knowledge that there’s no good answer and no right path to follow. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rachel Haines is really good at gymnastics. And when you're really good at a really demanding sport, you eventually deal with injuries. At age 12, Rachel hurts her hamstring. At age 15, she fractures her spine. Both times, Rachel is immediately taken to the team physician, a man named Larry Nassar. Yes, that Larry Nassar. Rachel's story is one of strength and survival — and, despite everything, a continued love of gymnastics. You can buy Rachel's book here. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Warning: Spoilers ahead for previous TTFA episodes! Listen at your own risk! Our episodes end, obviously, but the lives of the people whose stories we tell continue on. In this episode, we touch base with some TTFA guests so they can share what they’ve been up to since you last heard from them. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're back with our third annual Happyish Holidays episode! This year, comedian Alyssa Limperis shares with us the holiday letter she wrote the year her dad died from brain cancer. We talk with Jay Mathews, a 48-year-old father and son who, with stage IV cancer, is probably experiencing his last holidays with his family. And we ask listeners what they took away from 2018, what they're looking forward to in 2019, and what it is about hoping for something that can be so scary. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two things that grief brings you: Kleenex and hotdish. Two other things? Anger and people telling you what you should or shouldn't do. Grandma Ruth (rest in peace) once gave our producer Hans a piece of wisdom that has since become a core belief of Team TTFA: "Don’t you let anyone should on you. And don’t you should on anyone else." In this episode, grandmotherly wisdom, stories about anger, and a whole lot of shoulding on ourselves. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sheridan's dad died by suicide when she was 6 years old. Growing up, she feared suicide was her legacy. This fear worsened as she got older and began dealing with her own mental health struggles and suicidal ideation. When Sheridan purchases a take-home DNA kit as an adult and learns that her dad who died when she was just a kid WASN’T actually her father, she finds a new family … and a new, complicated and wonderful birthright. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“I’m sorry, did I stutter?” No, you didn’t. But Erin did. Erin does. And in this episode, she tells us what it’s like to live with a speech impediment that people still use as a comeback and make jokes about. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People say there are nine circles of hell. If so, Ashley's been to at least six of them. When she wakes up in an Intensive Care Unit, Ashley learns that she was in a house fire. She learns that her boyfriend was also in that house fire. And he’s dead. Ashley is not dead, but she’s suffered full-thickness burns on more than a third of her body. And just like that, Ashley’s plans for her life take a hard left turn. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If we're lucky, we can learn to love ourselves. But if we love the way we look? People tend to frown upon that ... because gosh forbid we come off as self-centered. Gigi doesn't care about any of that. Gigi unabashedly loves herself. She embraces every single part of who she is. And she especially loves how she looks. This is an episode about, what else? Self-love. So much self-love. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Heather grew up in Kansas, but she hasn’t been back there for years … not since the moment she was old enough to leave. When her mother dies, Heather heads home for the services, and an already difficult situation becomes even harder — because Heather and her sisters must, for the first time in 13 years, come face to face with the man who sexually abused them throughout their childhood: their father. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A quick update and clarification on our recent episode titled, "Nebach." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Talia grew up in a small Orthodox Jewish community with lots of rules and expectations, many of them surrounding dating and courtship. If you aren’t married by the time you turn 22, you’re labeled as “nebach," a word that means sad, misfortunate, pitiable. Talia doesn’t want to be “nebach,” and when she finds the perfect man for her, she thinks she’s headed for marraige ... until the man she loves confesses to having pedophiliac thoughts. There are a lot of true crime podcasts out there about people like Talia’s ex. There AREN’T many stories out there about the Talias of the world. In this episode, Talia gets the chance to share hers. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OCD is one of those acronyms we use when what we really mean to say is, "I organize my spice drawer alphabetically,” or “I always forget if I’ve locked the door or not, so I have to double check.” Those things are … not OCD. So what does it mean to actually live with obsessive compulsive disorder every day? We asked you, the Terrible community, to share your stories. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the last episode, we heard from people who had ideated and/or survived their own suicide attempts, as well as people who had survived a loved one’s suicide. They told us about all the unhelpful and hurtful things that people had said or done. But there ARE things that people can do and say that ARE helpful, and in this episode, we dive into it. -- If you're looking for resources on suicide, here are some good places to start: Be The One To - https://www.bethe1to.com National Alliance on Mental Illness - https://www.nami.org National Suicide Prevention Lifeline - https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention - afsp.org/about-suicide/suicide-statistics Center for Disease Control - https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/suicide -- Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You know what people hate talking about? Dreams. Politics. Religion. Also: suicide. But it's important that we talk about the hard stuff (and it's kinda what we do here), so we asked you to talk to us about your experiences with suicidal ideation and suicide loss. For resources on suicide and mental health, nami.org has a wealth of information. Text NAMI to 741741 for immediate support. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nathan always knew he was different growing up. He also knew the LDS church had certain expectations of him: He'd do his mission, find a girl, get married and settle down. Being gay? Not part of that plan. Nathan does everything he can to be straight, including sending himself to "conversion therapy" that, of course, doesn't work and only destroys his mental health. And then ... he starts to uncover his true self. And his true self is beautiful. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is an episode about two letters. One of those is the letter Jim left for his wife, Annie, before he died by suicide. The second is the letter Annie wrote to Jim after his death — and as she dealt with her own mental health issues and suicidality in the wake of it. When someone dies by suicide, people want it to be someone’s fault, so they can (hopefully) feel less like it’s their fault. But the thing is … it’s never anyone’s fault. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How are you? No, like, really. We ask this question of all of our guests, and we recently asked all of you, too. And you answered! This episode features you, the Terrible community, and oh goodness, you’re a hot mess. (Which is okay, because so are we.) Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jamie Hahn was 29 years old when she was murdered by Jonathan Broyhill — the guy who had been the best man in her wedding to her husband, Nation. The intrigue surrounding Jamie's death and her killer's subsequent murder trial created non-stop news fodder ... and the story quickly became about Broyhill — his lies, his deception, his crimes. Nation wanted to tell his and Jamie's story without putting her murderer at the center of it. And in this episode, he does exactly that. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cancer is rude. We know this. And it’s been very rude to Rachel. Every time her life and career are going in the direction she wants them to … BAM. The cancer’s back. When you’re a young woman, and when your life plans are completely upended by cancer for the third time, what do you do? If you’re Rachel, you turn to Tinder. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You only live once … unless you're Leilani, because Leilani has died five times. FIVE! She was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy when she was 13 years old after experiencing sudden cardiac death. Hearts don’t last forever. Leilani’s heart was only prepared to last about 24 years. So Leilani got a new one. And that new heart? Well, it didn’t work so well either. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The stories we hear about our parents and grandparents are often an intergenerational game of telephone. Even the ones we think we know by heart, fact for fact, evolve as they're told and retold. Ka came to us with her father's incredible story of heroics and bravery. And his version of events IS incredible and heroic and brave. It's just ... not the story that Ka remembers. And this makes her start to question everything. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Justin is living in a sort of limbo that’s hard for us to really try to imagine. He’s 27 years old. He’s a handsome dude. He’s married. And he’s got genetic stage IV lung cancer. More than a year ago, we gave Justin a recording kit and asked him to document what it’s like to live with terminal cancer — the ups and downs, the clinical trials and the mini vacations. This is his story. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The world is a hard place when you’re a Black woman. It’s even harder when you are a Black woman who has survived domestic violence. It’s even harder still when you’re a Black woman charged with the murder of your abusive ex-boyfriend while you’re eight weeks pregnant with his child. And Natalie is. She’s eight weeks pregnant when she’s charged with second degree murder in her ex's death. This is an episode about how the punishment is supposed to fit the crime but often doesn’t. It’s about how sometimes, even when a sentence is served, the punishment is far from over. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Laura gets a call from the hospital telling her that her dad has severe frostbite and could die, Laura is shocked. Not because of the whole frostbite part ... but because her dad is alive. She hasn't seen or talked to him in years and honestly assumed he was long dead. This is a story about what happens when we realize our parents are, in fact, real people — and that real people mess up and make mistakes. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lesly is a mother of three and a three-time cancer haver living on borrowed time. All of her treatment options have been exhausted, and the only thing that might save her is a bone marrow transplant ... which she can't afford. What do you do when you have just two months left to live? When you have a small child, just 6 years old, and your oldest daughter is newly married and a mother herself? How do you say goodbye to your family? If you're Lesly, you go to Disney World. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The difference between a love story and a military love story is just one word, but that word represents a huge scheduling issue: the military. Matthew and Rose are both in the Air Force, and when they get together, they know they’re signing up for a long-distance romance. Rose and Matthew are in the middle of their longest time apart yet, and they’ve planned a big Meet The Families road trip for when Matthew gets back from Afghanistan. But when unexpected guests come to visit Rose in the middle of the night, she knows something has gone terribly wrong. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chris was born with cerebral palsy. Growing up, his parents taught him he can be anything he wants to be. They raised Chris to stay positive — to get on with it no matter what. But “getting on with it” isn't always so easy when others won't make room for you to be a full person. As Chris gets older and becomes his own person, he learns that his disability means he can’t necessarily be everything he wants to be, do everything he wants to do. He learns that there will always be people in the world who want to limit him. And that really effing sucks. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Karen tried for years to get pregnant before she and her husband Dave decided to give up on the idea. When Karen goes go the doctor to have a small lump checked out, she learns that — surprise! — she’s three months pregnant … and she also has incurable cancer. That pregnancy became Mandi, whose mom Karen died when she was just 15 months old. And her dad, Dave? He had NO idea what he was doing. He was a new widow and a new father, and he was a mess. In this episode, father and daughter come together to talk about their complicated relationship — and about Karen. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Religion often gives people a sense of belonging. It tells them who’s in and sometimes (depending on the faith, or depending on the microcosm of the faith they're raised in) who's out. That's how Patricia grew up — in a faith where leaving your religion meant leaving behind everyone you love. She is a former Jehovah’s Witness who left the church when she was in her mid-20s. This episode looks at what's worse: keeping the people you love at a distance, or showing them your true colors and losing them forever. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chelsey and Kevin's 3-month-old son, Bryson, was in his second week of daycare when he died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS. When a baby dies of SIDS, it's almost like saying there's no cause of death. It's horrifying to think about, but sometimes babies just ... die. For no reason. This is an episode about grieving parents trying to make sense of the absolutely senseless. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sometimes change happens organically, by an external driving force or through no choice of our own. And some transformations happen as a matter of choice. We make resolutions and promises. We sign up for 5Ks. We read self-help books. For Carter and Mimi, the transformation that brought them together was weight loss — followed by transformations in marital status, immigration and gender identity. Theirs is one of our favorite love stories. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the eve of Kelli's 25th birthday in 2017, she and her boyfriend find themselves running for their lives in a dystopian nightmare. They'd planned to spend the weekend in Las Vegas at the Route 91 country music festival to celebrate the dawn of a new phase of Kelli's life. Instead, they witnessed the deadliest mass shooting (so far) in U.S. history. This episode is a story about terror ... and what happens after you've survived the unsurvivable. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Charlotte’s career is built on theoreticals. As an operating room nurse, she has a protocol for every tragedy — a “then” for every “if.” That all changes one night when, on her way home, Charlotte encounters a teenage girl on the wrong side of a guardrail on an overpass above a highway. Charlotte wasn’t this girl’s mother, or sister, or best friend. She didn’t even know her. But Charlotte was the last person who spoke to the girl before she died. She was THERE. And now, she doesn't know how to get back to the way her life used to be. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stacy made a decision when she was 17 years old that felt crappy at the time but also like the right thing to do. She didn't know then that sending her boyfriend a nude photo would haunt her for years. (Heck, this was 2005; the internet was barely even a thing!) This episode is about betrayal and shame — and moving forward in the face of both. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Taz’s mother dies, Taz begins to give a long, hard look at her religious and spiritual beliefs. Many of us believe that there’s a thin space between life and death, and that this veil is lifted when we are near death. In this episode, Taz and her aging, ailing grandfather try to peek behind that veil so mother and daughter can reconnect. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Megan and Clark have a good life with a lot of perfect moments. They’re also both medical professionals — Clark a radiologist, Megan a physician. So when Clark tells Megan he thinks he needs to go to the ER after coming down with a stomach bug, she knows something is very wrong. This is an episode about how things can fall perfectly into place to create the best days of your life… or the absolute worst. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Achilli siblings would like you to know that if there was a Dead Parent Contest (there's not), they would win the gold medal. In 2008, their dad was murdered by a hitman in a dispute over a girlfriend. Four years after their father's killers are tried and convicted, their mom dies after driving her car off a cliff. This is a story about being orphaned as young adults and the family ties that keep siblings together. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Cat is 32 weeks pregnant, she and her husband Jim learn their unborn son has Trisomy 18 syndrome, a very rare chromosomal condition. Their doctors tell them that their baby will likely not survive to be born. If he does, he'll likely die within his first month of life. Cat and Jim find themselves planning for their son’s death while hoping for his birth ... and that includes making arrangements for their unborn baby boy's funeral. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lauren’s brother died at Thanksgiving. Her mother died at Christmas. So … this time of year is not exactly joyous for her. And it’s not all that fun for a lot of other people, too. The holidays can really suck! We’re back with our second annual Happyish Holidays episode, in which we share your holiday stories of humor and loss. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Malena is 10 years old, and she worries a lot. She worries about her grades. She worries about failing. And she worries about her dad — especially about her dad. Because her dad deals with substance abuse issues, and he’s also an undocumented immigrant living in the U.S. In this episode, we talk to Malena about her worries. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amee's dad is the life of the party. He's whacky! He makes up fun games! He's also a very heavy drinker. And extremely violent toward Amee's mom. He lives with severe mental illness. And he's a sexual abuser. And now, he says he doesn't remember any of it. This is an episode about finding closure and learning to live with your version of the truth. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jaamil’s sister died when he was just 12 years old. His grandmother and great grandmother died when he was 13. His mother died when he was 15. His brother was murdered when Jaamil was 22 ... and a week after that, his father died. Yeah. It’s A LOT. But Jaamil’s story isn’t just about loss. It’s an episode about what loss can teach us. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nora’s husband, Aaron, and Casey’s wife, Hope, died on the exactly same day in 2014. Aaron and Hope both left behind spouses, children, and all of the love their small families had created. Nearly three years later, they’ve started moving forward … but don’t you dare say they’ve moved “on.” Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you are or ever plan to be in a relationship, you need to know Esther Perel, The Patron Saint of Relationships. Known for her TED Talks, her brilliant book, Mating in Captivity (and her captivating podcast, "Where Should We Begin?") Esther believes that the quality of our relationships determines the quality of our lives. Your life is about to get better, because Esther joined us live on stage at the Now Hear This podcast festival to hand out sparkling gems of relationship wisdom to real TTFA listeners. You can find Esther Perel's new book, The State of Affairs, anywhere you buy books. Season 1 of "Where Should We Begin?" is available everywhere. Season 2 is coming out on October 24, 2017 exclusively on Audible. Go listen to it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part one of "Forever Alone?" we met chronically single Chelsea, who was looking for love in all the same places we all look for love ... and coming up empty-handed. In this episode, we meet Chelsea's new boyfriend and explore what happens when the love we find isn't what we expected. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the saying goes, "There’s a lid for every pot." There’s someone for everyone. Chelsea has been looking for her lid — her someone — since high school. Nearly 15 years after her only real relationship ended, Chelsea still hasn’t found her person. It’s not like she hasn’t been trying, and it’s not like her life is totally miserable … but in case you haven’t had to date lately? It’s exhausting. And sometimes demoralizing. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

America has a garbage attitude toward grief — we know this. Bereavement leave generally means you get 2-3 business days to mourn a partner, a child, a parent, a sibling. But what about when your very best friend in the world dies? What then? When the funeral is over and the casseroles have been eaten, how do you reckon with an irreplaceable friendship? These are some of the questions Janya is forced to ask herself after the death of her very best friend, Michele. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Courtney and Jay are parents to 9-year-old Bruce, who they affectionately call Baby Huey. Bruce has never had a friend. Never had a playdate. Never been invited to a birthday party. He has fragile X syndrome, and that diagnosis makes his young, little life a complicated one. There are lots of people who get to be parents but not the kind of parents they imagined being. This is one of those stories. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harris Wittels was the executive producer of "Parks and Recreation," the coiner of the word "humblebrag," a Phish enthusiast, and the funniest person in any room he walked into. He died of a heroin overdose in 2015, leaving behind his mother, his sister, and a lifetime of talent and potential. In this episode, we talk to Harris' sister, Stephanie Wittels Wachs, about her brother and what it means when addiction is part of your legacy. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2014, Brittany Maynard exercised her right to an assisted death under Oregon's Death With Dignity Act. She'd been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer less than a year earlier. Her death at age 29 — and her advocacy work for the legalization of assisted death — made headlines. Nora's husband also died in 2014, also from brain cancer. But his and Brittany's deaths were very different. In this episode, Nora and Dan, Brittany's late husband, reflect on their partners' decisions about how to spend the end of their lives. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you remember being a child? We sure do. Mostly, we remember being filled with piping hot feelings. And now, as adults, we worry … are saying the right things to our kids? Are we being the right kind of grown-ups? We asked the Terrible community what they wish their grown-ups would’ve said to them when they were young and going through hard stuff. This is what they said. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Khaleel Thompson is an 18-year-old who loves music, reading, and his cat, Domino. Naomi is his mother, asking why four police officers fired more than 12 rounds at her son in a public park two weeks ago, leaving him in critical condition. The two of them are the humans behind a news headline — caught in a story that is just unfolding. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grief is always fresh for someone. Right now, somewhere, someone is losing a friend. A partner. A parent. And they are entering a new role — a new relationship to their loved one and to the world. Holly feels that grief. And she came in to share it with us. Fresh and undiluted … just 19 hours into her first day as a widow. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When someone dies, you're supposed to say something. Someone is supposed to say something. Someone is supposed to summarize this person, prove that they existed, that they mattered. But what do you say when a complicated person dies after a complicated life? Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alysha-Aubrey sent us a story about both her parents falling seriously ill at the same time, and the toll it took on her as a teenager. And she ended her story with a question about whether or not it’s OK that she doesn’t feel OK … even though her family has recovered from trauma and is doing OK. We thought that the best way to answer Alysha-Aubrey’s question was to ask it of you, the audience. And you had so much to say to her. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s 12:00. No, 1:00. No, 4:45 in the morning. You should be sleeping — we all should be — but you’re not. You’re laying there as the minutes tick away, thinking about … what, exactly? One sleepless night, Nora took to Twitter to see what was keeping you up. And you answered. This is an episode made by you (and Hans — okay, mostly Hans), about what keeps you up at night. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So many people start off their stories by saying that it doesn’t compare to what happened to someone else. But this isn’t a game of Who Has It Worse, so why do we act like there is some sort of imaginary yardstick for struggling? Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Nora McInerny's dad died, she lost his stories — the ones that she’s not sure she can quite remember right, and the ones she never knew ... like the stories from his time as a Recon Marine in Vietnam. Nora decides to look up some of the men he served with. What unfolds is Nora discovering a story about a single day — September 20, 1968 — and the patrol where two men were killed. Nora’s father was on that patrol. It was one of his first. As Nora learns about those men and that day, she discovers that it had a profound effect on shaping everyone who was there. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Damon’s grandparents were murdered 18 months before he was born. He never knew them, but their deaths — and the trial for their killer — defined much of his childhood. For nearly three decades, Damon’s mother has attended every parole hearing to deliver a victim impact statement. When we meet Damon, there is another such hearing coming up, but his mother is unable to attend. For the first time in his life, Damon prepares to see his grandparents’ murderer face to face.  Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For many of us, death is scary and mysterious. This episode is about the in-between, the middle place between life and death — and the people who are there to witness it. We talk with Heather, a hospice nurse, and Sarah, a woman with the gift of intuition. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah Super is not broken. Sarah Super is a woman who is absolutely, 100% living up to her name. She’s is a rape survivor — a very outspoken rape survivor. In this episode, Sarah talks about the things that nobody wants to talk about, the things that grow and survive in silence … including what happened after her ex-boyfriend raped her in 2014. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Colleen is a pediatrician, a wife, and a mother to a beautiful son named Henry, who was stillborn. After Henry's stillbirth, Colleen and her husband continue trying to build their family, but they're faced with secondary infertility and a series of miscarriages. This is Colleen's story, but the episode is for the thousands and thousands of people just like her, who continue to keep trying ... even if that means breaking their hearts over and over. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dawn is a nurse. In June of 2015, she was injured on the job by one of her patients and suffered a traumatic brain injury. Dawn’s husband and their kids have been in deep, deep grief since that day in 2015. Not because Dawn died — she’s very much alive, thank goodness. But because Dawn isn’t the same person she used to be. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Danni Starr had everything she wanted: a successful radio career, a husband and a new baby. But off the air, motherhood wasn't all that great. In fact, it was awful. Nothing had prepared her for the postpartum depression and anxiety that quickly consumed her brain … or for the double life she’d be living as she juxtaposed that postpartum depression and anxiety with her very public job and image. This episode is about what happens when you’ve taken all the classes, read all the books, bought all the stuff and still feel lost as ever. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two days after Nora’s husband Aaron died, she celebrated Thanksgiving with her family. Well... maybe not “celebrated.” Every year, millions of people do the same thing during the holidays. In this episode, we talk with some of those folks, including Dr. Lucy Kalanithi and comedian Amber Tozer. We also spend some time with some of the women of the Hot Young Widows Club, talking about their hopes and dreams for the upcoming year. Plus, stories of some of the worst holidays ever. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Nora also writes sad & funny books! You can buy them here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. You can read the episode transcript here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eva Hagberg is young, ambitious and about to get her Big Break — a byline in the New York Times! And then, she publishes an error. A big factual error. In the New York freaking Times. Cue the breakdown. If you've ever laid in bed replaying your missteps, this episode is for you. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Toddlers Ralphie and Bronson have lived most of their young lives with dead fathers. Their mothers — Nora and Moe — struggle to understand how to help their boys remember the dads they won’t know directly. As they worry about what long-term effect the losses will have on the kids, Nora seeks perspective from Ambra Markos, whose mother died when Ambra was just 2 years old. Support our independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nora McInerny is in love with two men. With one man (who died two years ago this week), she has a child. And just last week, she had a child with the other. She didn’t tell many people about the new baby. Or her pregnancy, for that matter. And in the first-ever episode of “Terrible, Thanks for Asking,” she explains why. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by joining TTFA Premium. We now offer tiers as low as $4.99 / month. Sign up. Our email subscribers get first dibs on ticket sales, new merch, show announcements and more. Join our mailing list here. Did you know we’re on TikTok? Yep, it’s true. Follow Nora. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using @ttfapodcast. Nora's Instagram is @noraborealis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices