Dear Nina: Conversations About Friendship
Nina Badzin
Dear Nina: Conversations About Friendship is a top 1% podcast that dives into the complicated feelings behind adult friendship—why it’s harder than we expect and how to navigate it with clarity, honesty, and intention.Whether you've agonized over a text, wondered why you're always the one reaching out, or found yourself drifting away from an old friend—this show gets it and we're here to discuss it all. Note--these are conversations, not classic interviews. We're serious, but we laugh a lot too!"Dear Nina" is hosted by longtime friendship advice columnist Nina Badzin, and every episode digs into the messy, meaningful, and sometimes maddening questions adults don't always want to ask out loud. How do you make real friends as an adult? How do you handle a one-sided friendship? Should you salvage a friendship that's fading or let it be? How do you kindly turn down an acquaintance who wants to be closer, but you're just not feeling the same chemistry? Why don't your friends like your social media posts, but they definitely support other friends there?We talk about being the single friend in a coupled-up world, navigating friendship after divorce, the grief of losing a friend to illness or a falling out, and what it means to be included in a friend group but not quite feel like you belong—whether that's happening to you or to your kid. And yes, we talk about what happens when your kids used to be good friends and now can't stand each other. (It's a whole thing.)Nina has been writing about adult friendship for over a decade, and her advice has been featured in NPR, Real Simple Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, The Guardian, Time Magazine, The Skimm, and more. Each episode draws from real listener letters (hence "Dear Nina"), relatable dilemmas, and thoughtful guests.Every episode leaves room for the fact that there are no perfect answers. There's only real talk here, a lot of warmth, and the reminder that if you're overthinking your friendships, you're probably just someone who cares deeply about the people in your life.That's a good thing. Social connections MATTER! Let's talk about it.ALL THE DEAR NINA LINKS + CONTACT INFO!! Catch up on all Dear Nina episodes on Apple and Spotify📢 How to promote your service, business, or book on Dear Nina🎈 Celebrate your friend on the show by dedicating a week of episodes!📱 Subscribe to my newsletter “Conversations About Friendship” on Substack❤️ Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, & the Dear Nina Facebook group📪 Ask an anonymous friendship question📪 email: dearninapodcast@gmail.com🔎 Want to work with me on your podcast, your friendships, or need another link? That’s probably here.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jan 15, 2024 • 24min
#83 - Becoming Friends with Fellow Exes with Lara Starr
Exploring the benefits and vulnerabilities of befriending your ex's ex, validation and support from fellow exes, navigating a complicated connection with an ex, finding healing and sisterhood through friendships with women.
Jan 3, 2024 • 31min
#82 - The Lasting Ties of Friendships Formed in Difficult Times with Jenny Leon
This podcast explores the lasting bonds formed in difficult times, such as cancer and challenging work environments. The guest shares her personal experience of finding a special friend during her cancer treatment. They discuss the importance of showing up for friends and the impact of thoughtful gestures. The speaker also highlights the strength of connections formed in online cancer support groups and expresses gratitude for supportive friends.
Dec 22, 2023 • 33min
#81 - Do Your Friends Who Want to Hear Your Good News? (encore with Chaz Sandifer)
This podcast explores the challenges of sharing good news with friends and the importance of having friends who can genuinely celebrate achievements. They also discuss the power of community in the fitness wellness and nutrition realm and reflect on the impact of life changes on friendships. Additionally, they delve into understanding different types of friendships and the significance of direct communication in building deeper relationships.
Dec 11, 2023 • 29min
#80 - Neediness in Friendships with Sally Vardaman
The podcast explores the concept of neediness in friendships and emphasizes the importance of addressing unmet needs. It discusses the correlation between neediness and insecurity and provides advice on setting boundaries with needy friends. The chapter also highlights the significance of acknowledging our own worthiness of receiving assistance and offers various ways to connect with the host.
Nov 27, 2023 • 29min
#79 - Moving Every Three Years and Creating Community with Bri McKoy
Bri McKoy is a cookbook author and military wife who has moved seven times in 12 years. She went from burning everything in the kitchen to learning to cook as a way to create community. Have you ever wondered how to make good friends in a new city? Bri has repeatedly accomplished this task with some towns proving harder than others. Bri's husband, Jeremy, has been deployed four times since they were married. Cooking helped Bri make friends while he was gone. She is now the author of a beautiful and helpful cookbook, The Cook's Book, Recipes for Keeps and Essential Techniques to Master Everyday Cooking. I am so inspired by Bri's story. I think you will be too!WE COVERED:the importance of creating a sense of community, even when you know you're moving againwhich cities were harder to make friends than otherscombating loneliness and building relationshipsactionable advice on reaching out to othersnot waiting for invitations learning patience in the kitchen and letting go of perfection as a hostFIND BRI MCKOY:Website, Instagram, YouTubeALL THE DEAR NINA LINKS + CONTACT INFO📢 This week’s fabulous sponsor + how to purchase ad space on Dear Nina📱 Subscribe to my newsletter “Conversations About Friendship” on Substack❤️ Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, the Dear Nina Facebook group📪 Ask an anonymous friendship question🔎 Want to work with me or need another link? That’s probably here.Our sponsor this week is Esther Goldenberg, author of THE SONG OF THE BLUE BIRD, sold everywhere you love to buy books.
Special thank you, as always, to my assistant producer, Rebekah Jacobs!
Nov 13, 2023 • 31min
#78 - Pursuing a New Friend and Texting Etiquette with Stephanie Goldstein and Rachel Levy Lesser
You feel good potential friendship chemistry with someone, but then what to do next? This is an episode about pursuing a new friend. (We also get into some texting etiquette.)How do you pursue the friendship in a way that lets the other person know you're interested, but doesn't scare them off? And if you're someone who already has a full social life, how do you make time for a new friend? And why should you make time for a new friend?We also discussed some texting etiquette such as when to employ the thumbs up and when to respond with words. Fans of Dear Nina will know I have strong feelings about this!Join my conversation with the co-hosts of Life's Accessories, The Podcast, Stephanie Goldstein and Rachel Levy Lesser, as we learn how these very new friends met and became so close despite living in different cities and neither one lacking for friends.Meet Stephanie and Rachel: Authors, journalists, friends and self proclaimed over-accessorizers, Rachel Levy Lesser and Stephanie Goldstein remember what they wore on pretty much every meaningful occasion. In Life's Accessories, The Podcast, they dig deep into their closets and their memories to tell the stories behind these items. Rachel and Stephanie interview experts, friends, celebrities and just really interesting and awesome people about items from their jewelry boxes and closets, and they do it with wit, humor and insight.ALL THE DEAR NINA LINKS + CONTACT INFO📢 This week’s fabulous sponsor + how to purchase ad space on Dear Nina📱 Subscribe to my newsletter “Conversations About Friendship” on Substack❤️ Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, the Dear Nina Facebook group📪 Ask an anonymous friendship question🔎 Want to work with me or need another link? That’s probably here.Our sponsor this week is Esther Goldenberg, author of THE SONG OF THE BLUE BIRD, sold everywhere you love to buy books.
Special thank you, as always, to my assistant producer, Rebekah Jacobs!
Oct 31, 2023 • 21min
#77 - Loneliness and Male Friendship with Gabe Mollica
If there's one thing we need these days, it's some joy and laughter. It's dark times. And while today's story of a heartbreak from a friendship breakup isn't exactly what we think of as funny on its own, I am thrilled to tell you that there is a fantastic comedian out there who has made humor and art out of a painful friendship breakup he had in college.Gabe Mollica's one-man show is called Solo: A Show About Friendship. How could I not feature it on Dear Nina? If you're a fan of This American Life, you might have already heard a bit of comedian Gabe Mollica's friendship breakup story. Reporter Aviva DeKornfeld did a story called “Say It To My Face” about Gabe. I don't want to give too much away from that episode, but for context, Aviva managed to interview not only Gabe, but also his former college best friend, Tim. The parts with Tim are the fantasy anyone with a friendship breakup has ever had. Gabe got to hear from the friend who got away. And it was that part I related to most in Gabe's story. We discussed it more in today's episode. Listen to Gabe and I swap friendship break-up stories and share how we both turned that pain into art. Gabe is a masterful storyteller, and his one-man show, Solo: A Show About Friendship, is in the middle of a long run in New York City with shows planned in Chicago and other cities, too. More about Gabe Mollica: Gabe's story on This American LifeReview of Gabe's show in Time Out New YorkFind Gabe on Instagram and TikTok.ALL THE DEAR NINA LINKS + CONTACT INFO📢 This week’s fabulous sponsor + how to purchase ad space on Dear Nina📱 Subscribe to my newsletter “Conversations About Friendship” on Substack❤️ Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, the Dear Nina Facebook group📪 Ask an anonymous friendship question🔎 Want to work with me or need another link? That’s probably here.Our sponsor this week is Esther Goldenberg, author of THE SONG OF THE BLUE BIRD, sold everywhere you love to buy books.
Special thank you, as always, to my assistant producer, Rebekah Jacobs!
Oct 18, 2023 • 18min
#76 - Yes, Reach Out to Your Friends During a Crisis
This episode of Dear Nina focuses on reaching out amidst turmoil (this time in particular, in the Middle East), navigating conversations when you’re not sure what to say, and the profound impact of letting someone know you’re thinking of them.Questions discussed include: Can a simple message of love and support make a difference to a friend during a crisis?Is it fair to expect friends to post on social media? At what point do you let friends know you're disappointment they didn't reach out?How do you handle it when you see friends publicly post their anger about others' silence and you suspect they might be referring to you?What might keep people from reaching out personally or expressing their opinions publicly? Past episodes mentioned in this episode:"The Friend Who Never Initiates Contact""The Friend Who Ignores Your Social Media Posts" ALL THE DEAR NINA LINKS + CONTACT INFO📢 This week’s fabulous sponsor + how to purchase ad space on Dear Nina📱 Subscribe to my newsletter “Conversations About Friendship” on Substack❤️ Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, the Dear Nina Facebook group📪 Ask an anonymous friendship question🔎 Want to work with me or need another link? That’s probably here.Our sponsor this week is Esther Goldenberg, author of THE SONG OF THE BLUE BIRD, sold everywhere you love to buy books.
Special thank you, as always, to my assistant producer, Rebekah Jacobs!
Oct 4, 2023 • 31min
#75 - Scheduling, Structure, and Traditions as the Key to Keeping Friends with Dan Moore and Jeff Waldman
If you're struggling with managing your friendships or looking for innovative ways to make new friends, this episode is your roadmap to a richer, more fulfilling social life. What you might be missing if you're not spending time with friends is a container for those friendships. My guests have tons of ideas for you!Jeff Waldman and Dan Moore joined me for an inspiring thirty minutes where we discussed creating closer friendships by scheduling time with friends. Yes, something as mundane as scheduling in the magic here. We also got into more specific ideas like organizing workshops or trips, putting standing dates on your calendar for phone calls, dinners, fitness check-ins, games, workshops, retreats, and more.We discussed saying yes sometimes, even when you feel like staying home, and the benefit of being the host of events instead of the guest.Meet Jeff and DanJeff Waldman is a designer, builder, and author of a book on tools. He sells building plans and has a newsletter on Substack called Elevated Spaces where he writes about both construction and community building and where those two practices intersect for him. Two of Jeff’s especially pertinent posts about friendship are: “Who are all these friends— Scheduled phone calls edition” and “What’s Up With All These Workshops”His communal property in California's Santa Cruz mountains burned in the wildfires of 2020 but lives on as a canvas for new project.Dan Moore is a technologist, outdoor enthusiast, husband and father. He has been writing software for over 20 years, and was shocked early in his career at how much software project success depends on human relationships. He's an author and contributor to technical books such as "97 Things Every Cloud Engineer Should Know" and "Letters To a New Developer: What I Wish I Had Known When Starting My Development Career." Dan's also an organizer and member of several interest based groups, including the Odd Fellows (a fraternal order) and the Boulder Ruby programming language meetup group. Dan lives in Boulder, Colorado with his wife and two daughters.ALL THE DEAR NINA LINKS + CONTACT INFO📢 This week’s fabulous sponsor + how to purchase ad space on Dear Nina📱 Subscribe to my newsletter “Conversations About Friendship” on Substack❤️ Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, the Dear Nina Facebook group📪 Ask an anonymous friendship question🔎 Want to work with me or need another link? That’s probably here.Our sponsor this week is Esther Goldenberg, author of THE SONG OF THE BLUE BIRD, sold everywhere you love to buy books.
Special thank you, as always, to my assistant producer, Rebekah Jacobs!
Sep 27, 2023 • 31min
#74 - The Childhood Friendships that Shaped Our Identities with Kristin Nilsen
Kristin Nilsen, co-host of The Pop Culture Preservation Society Podcast and middle-grade fiction writer, discusses the impact of childhood friendships on our identities and happiness. They explore the significance of friendships in children's books, navigating social dynamics, and the influence of childhood friendships on identity formation, fashion choices, and love for writing.
