Some red flags don’t look like red flags until it’s too late.

And when it comes to relationships and money, the costcan be devastating.

Emily Rose—known as Mama Wilder—found herselfin a financially abusive marriage, pregnant and alone, and had to build a safe, stable life from scratch. Now she’s helping other women do the same through her nonprofit work, Instagram advocacy, and real-talk conversations like this one.

We’re talking about the signs of financial abuse, why “traditional” family dynamics can mask toxic control, how secrecy around money creates generational harm, and how to build relationships rooted in trust, transparency, and shared decision-making.

KEY TOPICS

What healthy financial transparency looks like in a relationship.

How early childhood scripts shape beliefs about healthy relationships with people and finances.

How normalizing secrecy around money keeps dangerouscycles in place.

How wealth can be used as a weapon—or a lifeline.

CHAPTERS

00:00 – Intro: Defeating Bad Decision-Making in Life & Business

00:49 – Sanger Brags on His Wife for Owning Motherhood

03:12 – Meet Emily Rose

06:24 – Subtle Conditioning That Leads to Financial Abuse 

08:36 – Why Her Nonprofit Gives Women Cash with No Strings Attached 

13:19 – Infantilizing Women: A Common Thread Across Systems 

15:46 – The Framework That Set Her Up for an Abusive Marriage 

20:33 – Recognizing the Moment: “This Isn’t Normal” 

22:56 – How Her Family Reacted (and Why Her Mom Funded Her Abuser’s Legal Fees) 

27:43 – Generational Blind Spots Around Abuse and Money 

32:10 – How Culture Shapes What We See as ‘Normal’ in Relationships

34:37 – Why Financial Secrecy in Marriage Is So Dangerous 

37:03 – Raising Kids to Be Financially Literate (and Why That Starts with Honesty) 

41:44 – Breaking Cycles and Teaching Healthy Money Dynamics 

44:07 – The Family Power Plays That Fuel Financial Abuse 

46:31 – What Happens When Inheritance Replaces Financial Empowerment 

48:53 – The Family Member Who Showed Up (and What That Meant for Her Kids) 

51:13 – Dating Again with Boundaries, Standards, and Transparency 

55:58 – The Guy Who Paid for the Babysitter (and Set the Bar) 

58:18 – A Courtroom Bombshell and a Wedding the Next Day 

59:40 – Where to Connect with Emily

59:55 – Key Takeaways

1:00:49 – Message from the Producer

FREE WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

CONNECT WITH US

⁠www.decidedlypodcast.com⁠

Watch this episode on YouTube

Subscribe on ⁠YouTube

⁠Instagram⁠

Facebook⁠ 

Thank you to Shelby Peterson of Transcend Media for editingand post-production of the Decidedly podcast.

SANGER’S BOOK: ⁠A Life Rich with Significance: Transforming Your Wealth to Meaningful Impact⁠

SHAWN’S BOOK: ⁠Plateau Jumping: What to Change When Change Is What You Want⁠

MAKING A FINANCIAL DECISION?

At ⁠Decidedly Wealth Management⁠, we focus on decision-making as the foundational element of success, in our effort to empower families to purposefully apply their wealth to fulfill their values and build a thriving legacy. 

LEARN MORE: ⁠www.decidedlywealth.com⁠

CONNECT WITH EMILY ROSE

Instagram: @mama_wilder

Mama Wilder Foundation: https://themamawilderfoundation.org/

Website: https://www.mamawilderonline.com/

Emily, the face of "Mama Wilder" on social media, spearheaded the Mama Wilder Foundation in 2021, when she began to utilize her platform to raise money for women in similar crises as her own.

Having survived family and criminal court not totally unscathed, she spends her time homeschooling her three kids, embracing the beauty of Western Colorado, and supporting her husband in his business and legal ventures. 

She uses her BA in Women & Gender Studies educating the masses on coercive control, financial abuse, and the importance of women's autonomy in healthcare. The bulk of the Mama Wilder Foundation’s funding comes from Emily's social media presence and passive income generated through her platforms.