Samantha’s friend, Joe, joins us to discuss his journey from “horrible husband” to consciously working on, and being present in, his current relationship. His journey includes two marriages, children, coming to terms with his extra-marital affairs, a cancer diagnosis, getting (and staying) sober and being accountable for his actions.

Samantha and Cathy are two (50+) single women talking about love, dating, friendships, family, divorce etc. from the suburbs of the Rust Belt, USA. Samantha is a masters level independently licensed clinical social worker supervisor, licensed independent chemical dependency counselor supervisor and DBT-Linehan Board Certified Therapist with over 20 years of experience in the field of mental health therapy. She has two children. Cathy

Find and follow us on Instagram @RBLovePod

Podcast music: umumumu by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Fania Katz⁠⁠⁠⁠ is licensed under a ⁠⁠⁠⁠Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Podcast artwork: Good Parts @goodpartscle

Samantha and Cathy share notes on their re-reading of the

Samantha and Cathy are two (50+) single women talking about

Find and follow us on Instagram @RBLovePod

Podcast music: umumumu by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Fania Katz⁠⁠⁠⁠ is licensed under ⁠⁠⁠⁠Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Podcast artwork: Good Parts @goodpartscle

After the demise of her 17 year marriage, our friend Chandra actively dated for a few years before finding her current partner. She credits lots of good therapy, understanding what she wanted and what she could bring to a relationship, to finding herself where she is now.

It was not a smooth road--there were dating app scammers, ghosting and other trials, but she persisted to her goal of being in a partnership where she can be her best self.

Tune in to hear Chandra's inspiring story (and tips for dealing with bats in the house).

Find and follow us on Instagram @RBLovePod

Podcast music: umumumu by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Fania Katz⁠⁠⁠⁠ is licensed under a ⁠⁠⁠⁠Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Podcast artwork: Good Parts @goodpartscle

So, you’ve been on a few dates with someone and things are starting to heat up--what are you experiencing? Are you able to discern whether this person is really right for you? The big red flags tend to be obvious, but what about the yellow flags? (Those certain things that might give you pause). Some yellow flags can be personal, and unique to you, and some might indicate unhealthy or controlling behavior. Proceed with an open heart, open mind and open eyes! In between “senior moments” and other distractions, Samantha and Cathy discuss their own yellow flags and explore the difference between dating, situationships and friends with benefits.  

Samantha and Cathy are two (50+) single women talking about love, dating, friendships, family, divorce etc. from the suburbs of the Rust Belt, USA. Samantha is a masters level independently licensed clinical social worker supervisor, licensed independent chemical dependency counselor supervisor and DBT-Linehan Board Certified Therapist with over 20 years of experience in the field of mental health therapy. She has two children. Cathy works in a local healthcare system as a program manager and yoga instructor. She has 4 children.

Tune in to hear their stories and musings on life and relationships.

Find and follow us on Instagram @RBLovePod

Podcast music: umumumu by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Fania Katz⁠⁠⁠⁠ is licensed under a ⁠⁠⁠⁠Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License⁠⁠⁠⁠.

RBL artwork: Good Parts @goodpartscle

Our friend Laura joins us to discuss attachment styles as outlined in the book "Attached" by Amir Levine, MD and Rachel S.F. Heller, MA. Laura and her partner read this book in the early days of COVID and it inspired them to understand themselves and one another better.

Tune in to hear their stories and musings on life and relationships.

Find and follow us on Instagram @RBLovePod

Podcast music: umumumu by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Fania Katz⁠⁠⁠⁠ is licensed under a ⁠⁠⁠⁠Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License⁠⁠⁠⁠.

It's a classic Samantha and Cathy grab bag episode. We touch on Tinder fails, "love languages", first dates, second dates, a first kiss that resulted in COVID and how to let someone know, nicely but firmly and clearly, that you are not interested in another date (and much more!)…

Samantha and Cathy are two (50+) single women talking about love, dating, friendships, family, divorce etc. from the suburbs of the Rust Belt, USA. Samantha is a masters level independently licensed clinical social worker supervisor, licensed independent chemical dependency counselor supervisor and DBT-Linehan Board Certified Therapist with over 20 years of experience in the field of mental health therapy. She has two children. Cathy works in a local healthcare system as a program manager and yoga instructor. She has 4 children. Tune in to hear their stories and musings on life and relationships.

Find and follow us on Instagram @RBLovePod

Podcast music: umumumu by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Fania Katz⁠⁠⁠⁠ is licensed under a ⁠⁠⁠⁠Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License⁠⁠⁠⁠.

In today's episode we meet Cathy’s longtime friend Lisa who shares her story of working through past trauma and heartbreak to be open to love now. Lisa talks candidly about relationship red flags she experienced and how being single and taking the time to work on her own stuff is how she is finding herself present and more open in her current relationship.

(In this episode Samantha references the ACE score which is the Adverse Childhood Experience study--search for more info online, if you're interested)

Samantha and Cathy are two (50+) single women talking about love, dating, friendships, family, divorce etc. from the suburbs of the Rust Belt, USA. Samantha is a masters level independently licensed clinical social worker supervisor, licensed independent chemical dependency counselor supervisor and DBT-Linehan Board Certified Therapist with over 20 years of experience in the field of mental health therapy. She has two children.

Cathy works in a local healthcare system as a program manager and yoga instructor. She has 4 children. Tune in to hear their stories and musings on life and relationships.

Find and follow Rust Belt Love on Instagram @RBLovePod

Podcast music: umumumu by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Fania Katz⁠⁠⁠⁠ is licensed under a ⁠⁠⁠⁠Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Samantha and Cathy review the dating apps they have been using- Hinge, Match, Bumble, and two apps geared toward the older folks- Our Time and Silver Singles. They discuss how to have a successful experience on a dating app from setting up a thoughtful, simple profile to browsing potential dates. It all starts with a positive attitude and understanding what success means to you (and having good photos!).

Samantha and Cathy are two (50+) single women talking about love, dating, friendships, family, divorce etc. from the suburbs of the Rust Belt, USA. Samantha is a masters level independently licensed clinical social worker supervisor, licensed independent chemical dependency counselor supervisor and DBT-Linehan Board Certified Therapist with over 20 years of experience in the field of mental health therapy. She has two children. Cathy works in a local healthcare system as a program manager and yoga instructor. She has four children. Tune in to hear their stories and musings on life and relationships.

Find and follow us on Instagram @RBLovePod

Podcast music: umumumu by ⁠⁠⁠Fania Katz⁠⁠⁠ is licensed under a ⁠⁠⁠Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License⁠⁠⁠.

Samantha and Cathy talk about love with Miles, a local philosopher and poet. He gets the conversation started by reading two (short) poems: Sappho Fragment 29 Love is in No Haste, and Stefan George, You Slim and Pure Just Like a Flame. We explore the idea of love-starting with the ancient Greek seven types of love and discuss self-love and how it feels to truly love another person.

Samantha and Cathy are two (50+) single women talking about love, dating, friendships, family, divorce etc. from the suburbs of the Rust Belt, USA. Samantha is a masters level independently licensed clinical social worker supervisor, licensed independent chemical dependency counselor supervisor and DBT-Linehan Board Certified Therapist with over 20 years of experience in the field of mental health therapy. She has two children. Cathy works in a local healthcare system as a program manager and yoga instructor. She has four children. Tune in to hear their stories and musings on life and relationships.

Find and follow us on Instagram @RBLovePod

Podcast music: umumumu by ⁠⁠⁠Fania Katz⁠⁠⁠ is licensed under a ⁠⁠⁠Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License⁠⁠⁠.

Samantha and Cathy discuss dating safety...all the basic first date stuff, and also these: don't "loan" or give a date money, don't feel obligated to have a second date, or have sex or even kiss! If your date is creepy or their profile mislead you--report and block them on the app where you met. They also touch on the complications of being in a small dating market, perhaps the first profile you see when you decide to go on a dating app is your ex, or you are aware that your ex is actively dating--these kinds of things can make the whole process of dating feel emotionally unsafe. So, when you're ready...have fun, be smart, use common sense and it's likely dating will be a great experience for you!

Samantha and Cathy are two (50+) single women talking about love, dating, friendships, family, divorce etc. from the suburbs of the Rust Belt, USA. Samantha is a masters level independently licensed clinical social worker supervisor, licensed independent chemical dependency counselor supervisor and DBT-Linehan Board Certified Therapist with over 20 years of experience in the field of mental health therapy. She has two children. Cathy works in a local healthcare system as a program manager and yoga instructor. She has 4 children. Tune in to hear their stories and musings on life and relationships.

Find and follow us on Instagram @RBLovePod

Podcast music: umumumu by ⁠⁠Fania Katz⁠⁠ is licensed under a ⁠⁠Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License⁠⁠.