Sincerely, Leila

In this episode, I share the big life update of moving to Brussels, Belgium to continue my journalism studies and get my Master's degree, and my immigration story of the past 10 years of living in Malaysia, Czechia, and Slovenia.

Mary Efendi is an Azerbaijani-American writer, whose debut novel I Sat Alone by the Gate became an instant success and a bestseller. In this episode we spoke about Mary's experience of living in the US, post 9/11, as a Muslim woman, and how moving from Baku at the age of 18 changed the trajectory of her life.

Leila Mekhdi's IG: https://www.instagram.com/leilamekhdi

Video version of the podcast: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJuL1E8p2yGYh20EEwz98ImezJd9DQPNx&si=XncMqlTNydwQwSIo

Zahra Hankir is a Lebanese journalist, editor, and author born in the United Kingdom, raised in Lebanon, and now living in Brooklyn. Zahra's journalistic work ranges from politics to culture and beyond.

As an Arab woman and a journalist, after spending seven years working at Bloomberg News in Dubai and London, she decided to amplify the voices of Arab women reporting from the Arab world. That's how Our Women on the Ground, a collection of 19 essays written by 19 talented and brave women journalists and edited by Zahra, was published and became a major success.

This month (November 2023) Zahra's new book Eyeliner is coming out as a celebration of marginalized communities and their beauty traditions that are more than just about beautifying oneself.

And of course, we spoke about the ongoing suffering of Palestinian people and how Zahra's Egyptian-Lebanese family history is deeply connected to Palestine.

Instagram accounts of the journalists reporting from Gaza:

https://www.instagram.com/byplestia

https://www.instagram.com/hindkhoudary

https://www.instagram.com/wael_eldahdouh

https://www.instagram.com/motaz_azaiza

https://www.instagram.com/eid_yara

In this episode, I look back at my childhood and experience growing up poor in a post-Soviet country in the late 90s and early 2000s, and how my marriage and therapy made me realize that being born into a working-class family affected me and my choices in life more than I knew.

In this episode, I talk about why I changed my last name online and renamed my podcast

In this episode, I open up about my mental health struggles. Since 2018 I have been unable to drink in public due to my anxiety disorder and only in 2021 I finally reached out to a psychiatrist and asked for help. My journey with antidepressants and why it should be normalized.

In the first episode, Leila walks us through the decision-making process full of resentment and self-doubt on her way to starting this podcast. Tune in to learn what's next, and what this podcast is going to be about.