Expert Stepfamily Advice for Any Woman Whose Partner Has Kids
Privacy Policy
Do Your Stepkids Tell Mom Everything?
BY MARY T. KELLY, MA
“All violations of essential privacy are brutalizing.” –Katherine Fullerton Gerould
Like me, you’ve probably never heard of Katharine Fullerton Gerould. She was a well-respected writer who was born in the late 1800s. I wonder what she would think of stepfamilies and the very real and consistent problem of privacy.
Let’s not mince any words here. Continue reading “Stepmom Privacy: Inside the August 2018 Issue”
“My Husband Hates My Child!”
10 Steps to Bridging the Gap Between Them
BY LAURA PETHERBRIDGE
Some situations are so serious that they require immediate attention. The following scenario is a perfect example.
“Laura, my husband hates my son,” Stepmom Megan lamented. “And I’m not exaggerating.”
“It’s so obvious that even our friends and family notice. Continue reading “Stepfamily Struggles: Inside the August 2018 Issue”
Fighting Parental Alienation: Filmmaker Ginger Gentile Aims to Educate and Reunite #Erased Family Members By Kristen Wilkinson, PsyD
We all have our guilty, reality TV pleasures. I mean, how exciting was it that Meghan King Edmonds of Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of Orange County” was featured in StepMom Magazine in March 2016? Those of us who then watched the show over the summer saw one of its other stars open up about the impact of divorce, as Tamra Judge spoke at a gala in support of the documentary film “Erasing Family.”
Judge talked about her experiences—as a child of divorce, Continue reading “Erasing Family: Inside the December 2017 Issue”
Financing Your Stepkids’ Teen Years: Protect Yourself—and Your Savings—From the Teenage Money Pit by Mary T. Kelly, MA
Teens have been known, throughout the ages, to be reckless and careless with their possessions, their lives and those of other people. Some 2,300 years ago, Aristotle wisely said: “The young are heated by Nature, as drunken men by wine.” He should have added that their antics could end up costing a hell of a lot of money. Continue reading “Teen Stepkids and Money: Inside the January 2017 Issue”
Stepmoms and Rejection: 5 Ways to Deal When You’ve Been Dissed by Mary T. Kelly, MA
Do any—or all—of these complaints ring a bell for you? They will if you suspect that the stepkids are none too thrilled with you:
⊲ “I’ve never felt so disliked or unwelcomed.”
⊲ “His ex hates me. Now? His kids hate me, too.”
⊲ “His kids were never warm, friendly or kind—despite my efforts.”
⊲ “My stepdaughter and I were close. She turned 13 and it all went sour.”
⊲ “My stepkids loved me before I moved in. They took a 180-degree turn after I unpacked my bags.” Continue reading “Stepmoms and Rejection: Inside the October 2016 Issue”
Step Aside, Stepmom: Sharing the Spotlight With Their Mom by Claudette Chenevert
During the cycle of life, we encounter many major milestones that transform our families. They force us to interact with people we may not be excited to stand alongside, including mom. Stepmoms sometimes dread the most significant milestone moments, in which the occasion is inevitably shared with their stepkids’ biological moms: graduations, weddings and babies. Continue reading “Stepfamily Events: Inside the July 2016 Issue”
Grieving Stepmoms: Recognizing and Reconciling What You’ve Given Up by Brenda Snyder, LCSW
Lots of stepmoms show up in my counseling office because their family doctor prescribed an antidepressant and recommended therapy. Admittedly showing signs of depression (i.e., irritability, sadness, changes in appetite, difficulty sleeping, fatigue), these women readily agree with their doctors that something is not right. What both doctor and stepmom fail to consider, however, is that the symptoms of depression are stunningly similar to signs of bereavement. Continue reading “Stepmom Grief: Inside the July 2016 Issue”
FOR THE MEN!
Dearest Wife: It’s Your Stepdad Husband—Can We Talk?
by Christina Roach, LMHC, NCC, DCC
Dearest Wife,
I’m a little lost here, as to where I fit in. As the man of the house, I feel an obligation to contribute. But, regardless of what I do, I’m in the wrong.
I can’t just stand by and let your kids walk all over you. Continue reading “Support for Stepdads: Inside the June 2016 Issue”
The March 2016 issue of StepMom Magazine is HERE!
Being a stepmom is a job no one gets right in the beginning. No one. That’s why we explore and offer solutions to some of the most common challenges faced by all stepmoms in this month’s issue.
From learning how to prioritize your relationship to stepfamily estate planning to finding ways to improve your relationship with your stepchild, you’ll find it inside this month’s edition.
AND we talk with Meghan King Edmonds: stepmom and Real Housewives of OC star. She dishes about her life in front of the cameras, her homerun-hitting husband and what she’s learned (the hard way!) about being a stepmom.
Here’s what’s inside if you subscribe: Continue reading “Inside the March 2016 Issue of Stepmom Magazine”
On Thurs., Jan. 21, 2016, StepMom Magazine Founder and Publisher Brenda Ockun was on TV, representing stepmoms worldwide, as a special guest of the “Steve Harvey” daytime TV talk show.
Brenda was asked to appear on Steve’s first-ever, televised Stepmom Summit, as the resident subject-matter expert. On that panel were two celebrity stepmoms—Steve’s wife, Marjorie, and Tameka “Tiny” Harris, a former member of the R&B group Xscape and wife of rapper T.I. Continue reading “Stepmom Summit – Videos from The Steve Harvey Show”