In this episode of The Gentle Year, Knikki sits down with Dara Wax—global health expert, founder of SAM+LEO, and mom of two teenage boys—for an unfiltered conversation about what teen mental health actually looks like.

This isn’t a clinical discussion or a list of warning signs. It’s a grounded, honest exploration of what parents are seeing every day but rarely feel safe saying out loud.

Together, they ask the questions many parents are asking themselves:

• What if teen “mental health” is too broad a term to be useful—and actually hides what kids really need?
• Are we unintentionally creating addictions through screens, even when we have good intentions?
• Why does taking a phone away sometimes look and feel like withdrawal?
• What happens when therapy, medication, or school accommodations aren’t enough?
• How do you support a teen without making them feel like something is wrong with them?
• What if resilience isn’t missing but simply hasn’t been exercised?
• How much of anxiety is about the world kids are inheriting, not their personal weakness?
• What does real emotional safety look like in a home?
• And what do you do when you mess up as a parent… and need to repair?

Dara shares deeply personal stories about raising teens with anxiety, OCD, ADHD, and heightened sensitivity while navigating divorce, COVID disruptions, rural vs. urban schooling, and the quiet fear many parents carry about what their kids are seeing online. The conversation explores screen time, peer pressure, diet, sleep, self-talk, and why modeling imperfection may be one of the most overlooked tools in parenting today.

This episode is for parents who are tired of shallow awareness campaigns and want something more honest. For those who are trying to support their kids without hovering, fixing, or panicking. And for anyone who suspects that teen wellness isn’t about having all the answers but about asking better questions, earlier.

If you’ve ever wondered:

Am I doing too much? Not enough? Or the wrong thing entirely?

This conversation is for you. 

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Stop Trying to Make Them Feel Better

When your child is overwhelmed, your instincts probably tell you to fix it, explain it, or shut it down. But what if those responses are actually making things worse?

In this episode of The Gentle Year, clinical psychologist Dr. David S. Marcus joins Knikki Hernandez to explore why logic fails during emotional overload, what children (and teens) really need when emotions run high, and how being a soothing presence—instead of a problem-solver—creates safety, trust, and long-term resilience.

You’ll hear powerful real-life stories, including why silence can be more effective than words, why “use your words” often backfires, and how kids learn emotional regulation not through lectures, but through being truly heard.

This conversation challenges common parenting advice and offers a deeper, more human way to respond to big emotions—without losing boundaries or authority.

Key themes include:

• Why reasoning doesn’t work during meltdowns
• The difference between calming behavior and calming emotions
• What it means to “empty out” emotional intensity
• How parents unintentionally shut down communication
• Why access, not control, builds influence

If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing everything “right” but your child still isn’t hearing you, this episode will change how you see emotional communication—starting today.

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What if the biggest problem in education today isn’t failing schools—but a system that no longer teaches kids how to think?

In this episode of The Gentle Year, Knikki sits down with veteran educator, former school board member, and historian Ted Lamb for a candid conversation about truth, critical thinking, and what we’ve lost in modern education. With nearly three decades in the classroom and experience teaching across continents, Ted challenges the idea that compliance equals learning—and explains why primary sources, real thinking, and intellectual struggle matter more than standardized answers.

Together, they explore why kids’ “brains hurting” might actually be a sign of real learning, how standardized testing reshaped classrooms, and what parents can do—starting at home—to raise thoughtful, resilient learners in a world flooded with information.

This conversation isn’t about politics. It’s about responsibility, curiosity, and why loving learning may be the most important education a child ever receives.

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Money isn’t just about numbers—it’s about fear, identity, habits, family, and the stories we inherit.

In this episode of The Gentle Year, Knikki sits down with Albert Butler, CPA, for a deeply human conversation about finances, family, and what it actually means to build stability in an uncertain world. Together, they explore why so many families—especially millennials—feel stuck despite “doing everything right,” and why budgeting, purpose, and self-awareness matter more than chasing more income.

Albert reframes money as a tool, not the goal, introduces the idea of an internal economy built on skills and time, and explains why avoiding financial conversations often creates more stress—not less. The conversation also dives into parenting and money: how children learn financial attitudes, how scarcity thinking gets passed down, and why transparency without fear is essential.

This episode covers:

• Why financial stress is emotional, not just mathematical
• Inflation, cost of living, and why money keeps feeling tighter
• Budgeting your life, not just your bank account
• The limits of the traditional 9–5 model
• How families can change habits without earning more
• Teaching children abundance instead of anxiety
• Work ethic, compassion, and breaking generational cycles
• Why purpose is the key to boundaries, clarity, and peace

If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed, behind, or unsure how to talk about money—with yourself or your family—this episode offers clarity, grounding, and a way forward that doesn’t rely on hustle or shame.

🎧 Listen in for a conversation that brings money back to where it belongs: the kitchen table, the family unit, and a life lived with intention.

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What does it really mean to provide for a family, and who gets to define that?

In this episode of The Gentle Year, host Knikki Hernandez sits down with Tony Berardo, a father, entrepreneur, and creator who made the unconventional decision to prioritize presence over status. After layoffs, health scares, financial uncertainty, and years of IVF, Tony chose a path many fathers quietly consider but few feel permitted to take.

Together, they explore uncomfortable questions most families are already living:

• Why does job security often come at the cost of family security?
• How much of our financial stress is driven by culture rather than necessity?
• What happens to a man’s identity when success is no longer tied to a paycheck?
• And why choosing family over status can feel like a personal and social risk, especially for fathers.

This is a candid, nuanced conversation about masculinity, money, presence, and redefining success. Not as a rejection of ambition, but as a recalibration of what truly matters.

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What does it really mean to provide for a family, and who gets to define that?

In this episode of The Gentle Year, host Knikki Hernandez sits down with Tony Berardo, a father, entrepreneur, and creator who made the unconventional decision to prioritize presence over status. After layoffs, health scares, financial uncertainty, and years of IVF, Tony chose a path many fathers quietly consider but few feel permitted to take.

Together, they explore uncomfortable questions most families are already living:

• Why does job security often come at the cost of family security?
• How much of our financial stress is driven by culture rather than necessity?
• What happens to a man’s identity when success is no longer tied to a paycheck?
• And why choosing family over status can feel like a personal and social risk, especially for fathers.

This is a candid, nuanced conversation about masculinity, money, presence, and redefining success. Not as a rejection of ambition, but as a recalibration of what truly matters.

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In this episode of The Gentle Year, Knikki Hernandez sits down with Terry Bean—children’s book author, life & executive coach, and caregiver to her 91-year-old mother—for a candid conversation about positivity, power, and emotional responsibility.

Together, they examine a question many parents and educators wrestle with but rarely say out loud: When does “choosing happiness” empower children—and when does it quietly pressure them to silence real emotions?

Drawing from personal experiences with caregiving, childhood bullying, family dynamics, and education, Terry explores the difference between inner power and emotional pressure, optimism and denial, boundaries and obligation. They discuss how well-meaning messages like “be positive” or “choose how you feel” can either build resilience—or create confusion and self-blame—depending on how and when they’re taught.

This episode challenges simplistic narratives around positivity and offers a more honest framework for raising emotionally grounded children, supporting aging parents, and modeling presence, compassion, and self-trust across generations.

Thoughtful, direct, and deeply relevant, this conversation invites listeners to rethink what emotional strength really looks like for children and adults alike.

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In this episode of The Gentle Year, Kimberly Lechnick joins Knikki Hernandez to talk about one of the hardest lessons in parenting: letting go. From quitting baseball to giving up swimming, Kimberly shares how she learned to stop controlling her sons’ paths and start guiding them with trust, empathy, and space.

This isn’t a sugarcoated conversation about “doing it all.” It’s an honest look at the grief, confusion, and quiet pride that come with raising kids who choose their own way. Together, Knikki and Kimberly unpack the tension between control and connection, discipline and freedom, and how faith and awareness transform the way we love.

The Gentle Year is supported by Turning The Tide Tutoring, and every listener donation helps fund scholarships for students who need extra support on their educational journey.

If this episode resonates with you, consider giving because healing homes create thriving students.

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What happens when the person who gave you life never really wanted you?

In this raw and unflinching conversation, we talk about what it means to grow up unwanted — and how that pain echoes into adulthood, parenting, and love itself. 

My guest opens up about the invisible scars left by her mother’s rejection, and the daily work of unlearning that story.

This episode isn’t about blame. It’s about survival, forgiveness, and the courage to create love where none was modeled.

If you’ve ever felt like you were too much, not enough, or simply unwanted — this one’s for you.

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What does it really mean to stay committed — to your marriage, your kids, your faith, and your purpose — even when life gets hard?

In this powerful episode of The Gentle Year, I sit down with Albert Smith, a husband of 23 years, father, grandfather, and seasoned forex trader who’s as passionate about family as he is about finance. Albert shares how his mother’s faith shaped his path, how discipline and integrity became his compass, and why he believes that quitting is just firing yourself.

We talk about what commitment really looks like, how faith and mindset influence your family’s future, and why raising children to know their worth — and their gifts — matters more than ever.

🎧 Listen now and take your own next step toward calmer, more connected parenting with The Gentle Year Course for Parents:
👉 The Gentle Year Course

#FaithAndFamily #Fatherhood #BlackFathers #MarriageMatters #TheGentleYear #ParentingPodcast #FinancialWisdom #PurposeDrivenLife

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