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Send us Fan Mail What if everything we've been taught about success, ambition, motherhood, and what it means to be a woman deserves a second look? This week on Navigating Between the Lines, I'm joined by Chelsea Ann O'Brien, nurse practitioner, author of The Feminine Effect and Feminine Frequency, for a conversation that took me somewhere I wasn't expecting to go. Chelsea shares her perspective on feminine energy, spirituality, motherhood, marriage, and the expectations modern women carry. We talk about the pressure to do it all, how we define success, the relationships we have with other women, and whether being incredibly capable actually means we're fulfilled. And I had questions. A lot of them. What about the women who love their careers? The mothers who don't have the financial option to stay home? The women who genuinely enjoy being ambitious? And how do we find balance when the responsibilities of everyday life aren't exactly going anywhere? We also get into family dynamics, difficult mother-in-law relationships, boundaries, friendships, generational patterns, and the importance of being present for the lives we're living right now. And yes, somewhere in the middle of discussing the deeper meaning of womanhood, I needed advice about my kids leaving their stuff all over the house.. and really loved the answer.  This conversation stretched my thinking. There were perspectives I hadn't considered, questions I walked away with, and a few moments that have stayed with me since we recorded. Are we living the lives we actually want, or have we just gotten really, really good at handling the lives we've built? You don't have to agree with every perspective shared here. That's part of the conversation. My hope is that you'll listen with curiosity, take what resonates, question what doesn't, and maybe walk away seeing something in your own life a little differently. No matter our perspectives, we're all still navigating. Listen in, and please tell me what you think. I have a feeling this one will get us talking. Connect with Chelsea Read the Book!  Follow Along with NBTL Support the show

Send us Fan Mail You asked. I answered. And FFS, “I don't know” came out of my mouth on repeat.  This week we're keeping things a little lighter with a listener Q&A. We're talking about 16-year old Maggie (complete with a red minivan and conference calls), the difference between being outgoing and actually feeling confident, things I used to judge other women for, and what Justin would say is the most exhausting part of being married to me. Plus, five things I'd bring to a deserted island. Which turned out to be a surprisingly complicated question. Some funny stories, a few honest admissions, and a reminder that even the people we've known forever still have stories we haven't heard. Thanks for hanging out with me. See you next Thursday! Follow Along Support the show

Send us Fan Mail You can love someone, care about them, want the absolute best for them… and still not be very good at showing up. This week we're talking about friendship, support, and the difference between having good intentions and actually making people feel them. The friends who remember. The people who show up without being asked. The ones who make a big deal out of something simply because it's a big deal to you. We're getting into the village that grows up with us, why we're sometimes better at celebrating success than encouraging someone who's still trying, and why “let me know if you need anything” might be the least helpful thing we say with the best intentions. There's also an unfortunate college haircut, some thoughts about Instagram lurkers (I was in a little bit of a mood), and a reminder that none of us are perfect at this. Myself very much included. Because caring about your people is one thing. Making sure they feel it? That's the whole point. You don't have to show up perfectly. You just have to make sure the people you love can feel that you showed up. Follow Along Support the show

Send us Fan Mail This week’s episode was supposed to be about support. Instead? Maggie is tired, her back hurts, her brain is foggy, and everyone needs something. So… we’re checking in. A very real conversation about mental load, parenting older kids, motherhood, feeling overwhelmed, friendship, and the parenting happiness graph making its way around the internet. Plus, why everybody has their own version of hard, the 45-minute “conference call” with a friend that can save your day, and remembering that a full life can still feel like a lot sometimes. Also: Christmas decorations in September, a child who hasn’t had soap in his shower for four days, and officially being unavailable after 7 PM. Because sometimes life isn’t one big lesson. It’s just life. And we’re navigating it together. Follow Along Support the show

Send us Fan Mail At 40, life feels very much in the middle. Some friends have babies. Some have kids driving. Some are starting businesses, taking care of parents, navigating health scares, changing careers, and somehow we’re all asking some version of the same question; where am I in all of this? After taking two weeks off, I came back to the idea of the sandwich years with a different perspective. This episode is about midlife, growing kids, aging parents, ambition, health, identity, and loving the life you’ve built without disappearing inside of it. Because while everyone around you is becoming who they’re becoming, you still get to become too. Follow Along Support the show

Send us Fan Mail One year and 52 recordings later, I’m revisiting the very first episode of Navigating Between the Lines. Pilot 2.0 is about what changed, what didn’t, and what a year of showing up taught me about grief, friendship, anxiety, ambition, consistency, motherhood and wanting more from a life you already love. Mostly, it’s about taking the leap before you know where it leads because you have no idea what the journey might teach you until you start walking it. Welcome to Year 2. Follow Along BTS Support the show

Send us Fan Mail The sandwich years hit differently when back-to-school season rolls around. This week, Maggie talks about motherhood in your 40s, raising growing kids while watching your own parents get older, and why this stage of life can feel so emotionally full. From kids who need less from us but somehow still need us constantly - to the mental load, overstimulation, changing family roles, and the strange feeling of missing versions of your children who are still standing right in front of you. Plus, why back to school feels like its own kind of New Year, why moms need community just as much as our kids do, and why Maggie is taking that idea offline with a very simple plan: coffee, donuts, and real conversation. Because maybe the sandwich years aren’t something we’re supposed to navigate better by ourselves. We’re all somewhere in the middle. We might as well talk about it. Subscribe to Navigating Between the Lines and come back next week for one year of NBTL: what changed, what Maggie learned, and where we’re going next. Follow Along Support the show

Send us Fan Mail RUNNING IT BACK: NBTL Revisited 🎙️ This week we’re going back to the time my friend Heather and I decided not to eat for 72 hours.  Would I do it again? Yes. Am I planning another one anytime soon? Absolutely not. These days, I occasionally do a 24-hour fast, and I’ve realized I didn’t need to keep doing the extreme version to keep the part that worked for me. We’re also talking about the endless “what I eat in a day” content, why I’m still looking for the woman eating pizza followed by the ice cream run, and the bigger question I keep coming back to.. what actually makes you feel good in your life? A quick note before you listen: This episode shares our personal experiences with fasting and is not medical advice. Listening back, there are definitely moments where I confidently repeat things I’d read about fasting like I had suddenly acquired a medical degree in those 72 hours. I had not. Please talk with a qualified healthcare professional before making decisions about fasting or your health. I took the part that worked for me and left the rest. Here’s the original episode. Follow Along Support the show

Send us Fan Mail RUNNING IT BACK: NBTL Revisited 🎙️ We say it constantly.. life goes so fast. And then we turn around and fill every available inch of it. This week I’m running it all the way back to Episode 3, Between the Minutes. I recorded this almost a year ago and apparently had nine minutes to discuss being busy, my son being born early, grief, my Grandma Sandy, how we spend our time AND the moon. I also talked approximately 400 words per minute. But listening back, I realized I was asking a question then that I’m still asking now, Busy doing what? After a summer that felt both really full and really good, I’m realizing I have more control over the pace of my life than I sometimes want to admit. We can't slow down time. But maybe we can stop filling every damn minute of it. Here’s Episode 3, with a little perspective from almost one year later. The editing does not hold up. The moon does. 🌙 Follow Along Support the show

Send us Fan Mail I’m turning 40 and I love a list. 40 things I’ve learned about life, friendship, grief, heartbreak, ambition, starting over, and figuring out who you are along the way. Some are big, like knowing you can be sad and still have a really good life. How losing someone changes you, but so does surviving losing them. And how you are never as stuck as you think you are. Some are obvious, like wear sunscreen, order the fries for the table (duh) and how a clean kitchen fixes an unreasonable amount of problems. We’re also getting close to one full year of Navigating Between the Lines, which has me thinking about starting something new at 39, feeling more like myself than ever, and why turning 40 feels really exciting. I’m ready for it. Come hang and we’ll send the list to BuzzFeed when we’re done.  Follow Along Weekly Substack Support the show

Send us Fan Mail Join me on Substack Follow Instagram Some weeks deserve a plan. This wasn't one of them. This week we're talking about summer, the mental load that comes with it, why I suddenly miss having "admin days," and the conversations every mom seems to be having right now. We also head north for marathon weekend, celebrate my dad's incredible Top 10 finish at 64 years old, and talk about the lesson I take away every single year from watching that race. Because maybe life isn't about coming in first. Maybe it's about continuing to show up when nobody's watching. And the people in 95th place deserve a little airtime too. Thanks for being here. 🤍 Support the show

Send us Fan Mail Follow Along Support The Show I turn 40 in a few weeks, and if I'm being honest... I thought it would feel different. Somewhere along the way we decided every decade comes with a reputation. Your 20s are for figuring it out. Your 30s are for building a life. Your 40s? Apparently they're supposed to be the beginning of the end. Except... that's not what I'm seeing. I asked all of you what gets better with age, and almost every answer was the same: Everything. In this episode, we're talking about the terrible marketing around getting older, the wisdom that always seems to arrive a decade late, friendship, confidence, career pivots, raising kids, and why I think 40 might actually be the decade we've been looking forward to all along. If you've ever been nervous about getting older, or wondered if you're exactly where you're supposed to be, this one's for you.Support the show

Send us Fan Mail It'll be four years this week since I lost my mom. For a long time, I thought surviving was the hardest part. Just making it through the next hour, the next day, the next week. But nobody prepared me for what came after. The first time I laughed without feeling guilty. The moments where life slowly started asking me to participate again. Because healing isn't always what we think it will be. Sometimes it feels like betrayal. Sometimes it feels like leaving the person you love behind. In this episode, I'm sharing the most honest conversation I've had about grief, what the last four years have really looked like, turning 40 without my mom, and the unexpected lessons I've learned about choosing to keep living. If you've ever lost someone you love, if you're carrying heartbreak, or if you're trying to find your way back after life changed forever, I hope you'll borrow my belief until you find your own. Maybe healing isn't about letting go. Maybe it's finally learning how to carry them with you.Support the show

Send us Fan Mail Is it just me… or are millennials actually different? This week on Navigating Between the Lines, I'm diving into all the things that make our generation... well, us. From AIM, Blockbuster and MapQuest to LOL, ankle socks, paper grocery lists and unexpected phone calls, we're unpacking the habits, memories and contradictions that define millennials. I also asked you to share the most millennial thing you do, and your answers absolutely delivered. If you've ever wondered why we all seem to say "I'll figure it out," this one's for you. Follow Along Read my thoughts Support the show

Send us Fan Mail On paper, Jill Zagar has it all together. She's the owner of Pink Lemonade, a mom of two, and the leader of a business that's grown from one small storefront into four locations.  But behind the scenes? It's youth sports, laundry, family, long days, and trying to take care of everyone else.. sometimes at the expense of herself. In this episode, Jill opens up about building a business while raising a family, working alongside her parents, redefining success, and the health scare that reminded her why taking care of herself matters too. If you've ever looked around and wondered how everyone else seems to be doing it all... this conversation is for you. Follow Along Support the show