In this episode of A Fresh Story: Simple Tips to Support Yourself, host Olivia Howell sits down with Ron Platt, co-founder of the National Association for Single and Divorced Families (NASDF) — the only national organization built to surround divorcing parents and single-family households with practical products, services, and support in one place. Ron brings a rare combination of insider expertise and lived experience: a background in insurance product development, hands-on advocacy work in foster care, and his own journey through a difficult relationship and financial hardship. Listeners looking for grounded divorce recovery tips will come away understanding how to stop piecing together help from a dozen scattered sources and instead build a real support system as they navigate starting over after divorce.

The conversation turns quickly to actionable strategies. Ron breaks down the concrete resources families can tap during a transition: vetted referrals for attorneys, mediators, divorce coaches, and financial planners; free and discounted mental health care sessions; real estate support that can offset closing costs by thousands of dollars; and career services designed to help at-home parents re-enter the workforce and close resume gaps with confidence. He also explains Support Insured, a first-of-its-kind insurance product that guarantees child support and alimony payments continue if the paying parent dies, becomes disabled, or involuntarily loses their job — a safety net that speaks directly to the financial anxiety at the heart of single parenting advice and effective co-parenting strategies.

Beyond the logistics, Ron offers honest, expert-backed guidance on emotional resilience during life's hardest seasons. Drawing on his own experience working with a coach through crisis, he shares simple daily practices anyone can start today: journaling your thoughts, writing down goals and reviewing them regularly, clarifying your “why,” and anchoring each morning with movement, affirmations, and gratitude. His core message — “get comfortable being uncomfortable” — reframes discomfort as the doorway to growth. Whether you're newly separated, deep in co-parenting logistics, or simply feeling wobbly, this episode delivers clear, supportive tools to help you move forward with clarity and strength.