Relationships

Courtney’s Secret Garden

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Courtney Maum is having a midlife crisis. Parenting is taking so much of her time. Her writing career is going well, but that means she’s overwhelmed by deadlines and book deals. Her marriage is in a rough patch, and when she starts asking herself “should I have an affair?” and “should I become an alcoholic?” […]

Objectively and Objectifiable-y Beautiful with Dessa — TTFA Premium

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Like many people who identify as women, Nora grew up being inundated by very specific ideas of what it meant to be beautiful. In this TTFA Premium episode preview, she talks with rapper Dessa about their complicated feelings surrounding beauty standards and aging. To get access to the rest of this hour-long conversation and the […]

The Greener Grass — TTFA Premium

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

When Ashley went through puberty, she knew her body. Or at least, she felt like she knew it. As an adult, Ashley undergoes an unexpected and rapid physical change, and she struggles with accepting her new body and all that comes with it. If you love the show, consider supporting us by becoming a TTFA […]

Jamie The Good Times Gal

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

There are a ton of money stories out there. Stories about people who are screwed financially through no fault of their own. People who did everything right and still cannot get a leg up. This episode is not one of those. It’s an excavation of a specific kind of debt, and a specific kind of […]

The Trail

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

In April 2022, Marlin Sill’s father died from a head injury caused by a cycling accident. A few weeks later, he embarked on a months-long hike through the Western United States. Throughout last summer, Marlin sent the TTFA team voice memos of himself processing his dad’s death while he hiked. In this episode we take […]

Gifted and Terrible – TTFA Premium

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

A very long time ago (like … honestly maybe a year ago now?) we asked TTFA listeners how their school’s gifted and talented programs messed them up (or didn’t). In this bonus episode, Nora listens to your voicemail, reads your email, and responds to them. Find tickets to spring tour cities below or at TTFA.org: […]

Should I Have Kids?

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

TTFA producer Claire McInerny experienced an extreme weather event in 2021, a result of climate change, that left her worried about the future. She started channeling her anxiety about the future of our world into another important question she was asking herself: “Should I have kids?” In this episode, Claire tries to untangle her feelings […]

How to Keep House While Drowning

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

We’re back with another Terrible Reading Club episode! Think of it as our book club for truly terrible times. Haven’t read the book we’re discussing? Good news: In this reading club, that’s not a requirement. Today, we’re chatting with KC Davis, author of “How to Keep House While Drowning.” KC Davis used to feel terrible […]

A Note From Nora

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Team Terrible is going back on the road for the second leg of the Bad Vibes Only live show tour. Where are we going? What does a live show look like? Listen in and let Nora tell you herself! Find tickets to spring tour cities below or at TTFA.org: Friday, March 3 | Phoenix, AZ […]

Nora Needs a New Dad

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Nora’s dad died in 2014 from pretty much all of the cancers, leaving her mom Margaret without her life partner of almost 50 years … and leaving Nora without a dad. Does a 40-year-old married woman with four children of her own need a father figure in her life? Nora thinks so! But what does […]

Debt, Lies and Other Things Our Parents Leave Us

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Identity theft is something many of us are familiar with, but we have a specific image of what this looks like – our data being stolen online, or someone getting a hold of our social security number. But almost a third of identity theft crimes are committed by a family member. This episode tells the […]

Imagine That

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Brandie and Cathy are two strangers who have something unusual in common. They both suffer from a literal lack of imagination – a condition called Aphantasia. In this episode, they talk with Nora and Marcel about what it means to grieve the loss of something they never had to begin with. — Support our new […]

The Trick with Trich – TTFA Premium

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Here’s a sneak peek of what you’ll get when you join us on TTFA Premium. For $8 a month, you can support our show AND get ad-free episodes and bonus content — including mailbag episodes like this one. Sign up today at TTFA.org/Premium. You can catch up with TTFA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook using […]

How To Lose Your Name

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Cheval spent her entire life trying to be a wedding dress designer (she started sewing at 7 years old and studied fashion design in college). In her mid 20’s, she got her big break when a large fashion house hired her to design a wedding dress collection named after herself. But that dream only lasted […]

Into The Void

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

One thing we know about grief is that it needs a witness. That inside every griever is a nearly uncontrollable urge to make the people around us understand what we had and what we have now. In this episode, we are all David’s witnesses. Support our new independent production (and get bonus content galore!) by […]

This is 40. – TTFA Premium

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

It’s December 28, 2022. And Nora McInerny is 40 years old.  Here’s a sneak peek of what you’ll get when you join us on TTFA Premium. For $8 a month, you can support our show AND get ad-free episodes and bonus content — including mailbag episodes like this one. Sign up today at TTFA.org/Premium. You […]

Your Happyish Holiday Traditions

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

The happyish holiday season can be whatever the heck you want it to be, no matter what pressures you feel from family and friends and society. So, here’s to creating new traditions – and to the Terribles who shared theirs with us (and with you). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Listen to […]

Happyish Holidays 2022

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

‘Tis the season! Our terrible holiday tradition is back, this time with more of your painful, sad, awkward holiday stories. Plus: boundary setting advice from Melissa Urban and a fiery Hanukkah story from Vanessa Zoltan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Listen to this podcast Author: Feelings & Co. You know how every […]

Blocked and Reported

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

When Natalie Weaver stepped into the media spotlight to advocate for her 8-year-old daughter Sophia’s right to health care, she expected some pushback. She didn’t expect the flood of online hate and death threats that came her way … or for images of Sophia to end up on the wrong, hurtful, abusive side of the […]

When Surviving Is Enough, From “A Slight Change of Plans”

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

If you’ve listened to our show, at all, ever, you know that grief has been a big part of Nora’s life since 2014 when she lost her husband Aaron. Since then, she’s built this show, her writing, and much of her life around helping others navigate their own grief. Despite all this, Nora never felt […]

Army Wife

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Death by suicide has long been a problem within the U.S. military, and not just among veterans: In 2020, suicide rates among active duty service members hit a six-year high. On August 28th, 2015, Heather’s husband Tyler became one of those statistics. Theirs is a story of friendship, of love, of family, of service and […]

Between Two Widows

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Michael Allio was a fan favorite on Katie Thurston’s season of “The Bachelorette,” applauded for the vulnerability he showed as he talked about losing his wife, Laura, to cancer and raising his son James without his mom.  Losing a partner to cancer? Raising a young son on your own? Sounds familiar! Michael came across Nora’s […]

After The Headlines

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

In the early morning hours of June 24th, 2021, an apartment complex in Surfside, Florida collapsed out of nowhere, killing 98 people – including Patty’s mom, Maggie.  It’s difficult enough to lose a loved one to an unthinkable tragedy. It’s exceptionally awful when you’re forced to watch them die over and over again on national […]

Bad Vibes Only

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

The vibes aren’t good. They’re not even decent. They’re bad. Nora’s new book, BAD VIBES ONLY, is available today wherever you buy books! — TTFA is on tour now! Come see Nora perform LIVE! Tuesday, October 11 – Los Angeles, CA Saturday, October 15 – Philadelphia, PA Sunday, October 16 – Brooklyn, NY Monday, October 17 – Washington, […]

Update: The Beautiful Ones

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Four years ago, Nora sat down with her friend Gigi to tell the story of … Gigi’s face. It was a story about confidence and beauty (and beauty standards) and chronic illness, and it has touched so many people since we first aired it. Today, you’ll hear that first conversation with Gigi, plus an important […]

Para-Mom

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

When Leah Nixon woke up in the hospital after a construction accident and learned she was paralyzed from the chest down, she wondered how she’d go about starting a family someday. In this episode, she gives us a glimpse into her daily life as a “para-mom” to her 9-month-old daughter, Ellie.  Leah’s company is called […]

Overthinking About You

Written by Puzzlehead, in Relationships, TTFA

Allison Raskin was just 4 years old the first time she told her parents she wanted to die. Within weeks, the preschooler was diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder and depression. In this episode, we talk with Allison and her mother Ruth about raising a child with severe mental illness and what Allison’s world looks like […]