Thank You, Mama

Author and podcast host Ronit Plank, author of "Home is a Made-Up Place" and "When She Comes Back", talks about her mom who left six year old Ronit and her four year old sister to move to India and follow guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, the center of Netflix documentary "Wild Wild Country". In this incredible story of personal development, Ronit shares how she forgave her mother and created a strong relationship with her. We learn that while most people don't change, some do; that the way people treat you shows who they are - not who you are; the importance of expressing feelings in a vulnerable and constructive way; and to always use more herbs than the recipe calls for.

To learn more about Ronit and her work, visit her website here.

Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…" newsletter here.

To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest, please send your mail to: [email protected]

For more about "Thank You, Mama", please visit: http://www.thankyoumama.net

Connect with Ana on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/anatajder/

https://www.facebook.com/ana.tajder

Lawyer from Tanzania specialized in human rights, Ashura Kayupayupa, talks about her mother Rose, who, after her husband was killed in a car accident, was disowned by his family. Ashura tells us about widow abuse and witch-hunt, a problem that's still widespread in Africa. But mama Rose stayed strong, re-built her life and started her small agricultural business. Rose teaches us about hope, endurance, hard work, patience, and focusing on your own life. We also learn not to ponder on why something happened to us, but to make the best out of any situation.

Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…" newsletter here.

To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest, please send your mail to: [email protected]

For more about "Thank You, Mama", please visit: http://www.thankyoumama.net

Connect with Ana on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/anatajder/

https://www.facebook.com/ana.tajder

Emmy-winning ESPN broadcaster Jenn Hildreth and FOX Sports Senior Vice President Talent Relations Aimee Leone, talk about "Tough as a Mother: Women in Sports, Working Moms, and the Shared Traits That Empower Us All", their anthology offering an intimate look at the lives of iconic women in sports and their journeys of balancing family and career. Jenn also talks about her mom Sandra, from whom she learned to love, have courage and strength, always do her best, and find her own way of doing things. Aimee talks about her mom Diane, from whom she learned to always keep evolving, be accepting of others, face her fears, and not to overthink. Aimee and Jenn also talk about what "having it all" means and if it's possible, about moxie, prioritizing, and lifting others.

To order "Tough as a Mother" please visit here.

Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…" newsletter here.

To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest, please send your mail to: [email protected]

For more about "Thank You, Mama", please visit: http://www.thankyoumama.net

Connect with Ana on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/anatajder/

https://www.facebook.com/ana.tajder

A published poet, author of "Novice", and mom, Nida Sophrasarun talks about how her poetry is influenced by her family on two ends: on one end, it was her family's inability to communicate emotions that lead her to finding her voice in poetry. On the other end, the birth of her son lead her to finding herself again through writing. Nida talks about her Thai mom Kobkua, "a tiger", as Nida describes her, from whom Nida learned important lessons, in spite of their challenging relationship. Nida talks about showing love and connecting through food; about the solace of mysticism; about finding her unique voice; and understanding what really belongs to us - and what is just an illusion. Nida also read her poem "Starling" for us.

To order Nida's book of poems "Novice", go here.

You can read Nida's beautiful poem Violent Femmes here.

Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…" newsletter here.

To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest, please send your mail to: [email protected]

For more about "Thank You, Mama", please visit: http://www.thankyoumama.net

Connect with Ana on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/anatajder/

https://www.facebook.com/ana.tajder

Widely known as the "Mother of Mindfulness", Dr. Ellen Langer is a foundational figure in the study of mindfulness outside of meditation traditions. Dr. Langer is the first woman to ever receive tenure in psychology at Harvard, where she has researched, in her own lab, mindfulness for over 40 years. Dr. Langer has published well over 200 research articles and 13 best-selling books, ("Mindfulness", "The Mindful Body", "The Art of Noticing", "Counter Clockwise", and "The Power of Mindful Learning") in which she has written on the illusion of control, aging, stress, decision-making, and health without meditation. In our interview, Dr. Langer talks about these topics, and also shares lessons she has learned from her American mom Sylvia.

To learn more about Dr. Langer, visit her website here.

To order her latest book, visit here.

Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…" newsletter here.

To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest, please send your mail to: [email protected]

For more about "Thank You, Mama", please visit: http://www.thankyoumama.net

Connect with Ana on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/anatajder/

https://www.facebook.com/ana.tajde

A mother, a US Marine Corps combat veteran and a Navy psychologist, Dr. Julienne Shin, talks about lessons she learned through her difficult relationship with her Filipino mom Corazon. We learn about the impact of a mother's relationships with her child at a young age, about not holding on to your parents' pain; and about the importance of emotional intelligence. Julienne also shares some amazing things she learned through writing her dissertation about mothers in combat.

Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…" newsletter here.

To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest, please send your mail to: [email protected]

To learn more about "Thank You, mama" creative writing workshop, visit here.

For more about "Thank You, Mama", please visit: http://www.thankyoumama.net

Connect with Ana on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/anatajder/

https://www.facebook.com/ana.tajder

Authors of "What To Do When I'm Gone" and "What to Do When You Get Dumped", a mother-daughter team, share their mothers' lessons. Suzy Hopkins is a former newspaper reporter and magazine publisher. Her daughter Hallie Bateman is a freelance writer and illustrator based in Los Angeles whose work has been published by The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, The Awl and others. Suzy talks about her mother, a soft-spoken librarian, and mother of six, who suffered domestic abuse and managed to leave the marriage after 30 years - only after she found out her husband had a mistress. We learn about leaving the moment somebody lifts a hand to you; about asking for help; talking about elephants in the room; and knowing what you have the right to expect from a relationship. While Suzy learned what not to follow, Hallie learned from Suzy's example: how important it is to talk about everything; the power of unconditional love; and turning the sense of discovery and question-asking into art. Suzy also talks about recovering from grief after her husband or 30 years surprisingly asked for a divorce, a process which took four years, during which she wrote highly inspiring and comforting "What to do When You Get Dumped".

To learn more about Suzy, follow her on Instagram here.

To learn more about Hallie, visit her website here.

Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…" newsletter here.

To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest, please send your mail to: [email protected]

To learn more about "Thank You, mama" creative writing workshop, visit here.

For more about "Thank You, Mama", please visit: http://www.thankyoumama.net

Connect with Ana on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/anatajder/

https://www.facebook.com/ana.tajder

Project Associate at UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organization) and co-founder of Diaspora Creatives, Audrey Kodjo tells us about her mom Lucy, who, in spite of having the status of a queen in Benin, had to master many obstacles both in her childhood and adulthood – from being a foster child to facing marital challenges. We learn about Benin, and what it means to be a queen there, but we also learn many life-lessons about teaching your children values and strong roots; why women are the backbone of a family; the eternal split between family and your dreams; the power of spirituality; and why it's important to take risks.

To learn more about Diaspora Creatives, visit their website.

Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…" newsletter here.

To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest, please send your mail to: [email protected]

To learn more about "Thank You, mama" creative writing workshop, visit here.

For more about "Thank You, Mama", please visit: http://www.thankyoumama.net

Connect with Ana on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/anatajder/

https://www.facebook.com/ana.tajder

Psychodynamic psychotherapist, Alejandra Wild Proano, talks about her Ecuadorian mom Desiree, and shares her inspiring story. Desiree went from the first female guide through the Amazon to finding herself widowed, with two small children, a foreigner in the US. Not giving up, she took classes and became a licensed psychotherapist. We learn many wonderful lessons from Desiree: to follow your path and never give up; to see the invisible - the spiritual, energetic, magical side of our existence; to protect our relationships by cherishing what's important and letting go of small things; and to not see things in black and white. Alejandra and I also talk about many different phases in a woman's life, and about allowing our mothers – and ourselves - to be different things at different times.

To learn more about Alejandra, please visit her website here.

Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…" newsletter here.

To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest, please send your mail to: [email protected]

To learn more about "Thank You, mama" creative writing workshop, visit here.

For more about "Thank You, Mama", please visit: http://www.thankyoumama.net

Connect with Ana on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/anatajder/

https://www.facebook.com/ana.tajder

Dr. Briana Chen is a postdoctoral neuroscientist at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, where she researches sex differences in stress resistance and psychiatric disorders. Briana is particularly interested in developing sex-specific treatments for depression, anxiety, and PTSD. She won numerous awards for her scientific work and was included in Forbes 2023 list of 30 under 30. Briana shares her Chinese mom May's lessons on the value of education, continuous learning, and curiosity about the world; about how important it is to question things and to always try understanding the "why" – as Briana explained, this helps her to find motivation for her scientific work and for pursuing grants and awards for her research. Finally, we learn about giving back – for Briana, it meant using her research to support those who are often overseen by the scientific and medical establishment – in her case, women.

To learn more about Briana and her work, please visit her website here.

Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…" newsletter here.

To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest, please send your mail to: [email protected]

To learn more about "Thank You, mama" creative writing workshop, visit here.

For more about "Thank You, Mama", please visit: http://www.thankyoumama.net

Connect with Ana on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/anatajder/

https://www.facebook.com/ana.tajder