Expert Stepfamily Advice for Any Woman Whose Partner Has Kids
The August 2016 issue of StepMom Magazine is HERE!
This month you’ll receive:
→ Advice for stepmoms who don’t like being disliked
→ Help for those times when you feel invisible and left out
→ Tips to ease the stress of being a 24/7 custodial stepmom
→ A guide to forgiving others (even if it’s not deserved!)
→ Information on why stepmom stereotypes still exist
→ And much more!
Here’s what else you’ll find inside:
Continue reading “Inside the August 2016 Issue of StepMom Magazine”
Not Cinderella’s Stepmom: Why Stepmom Stereotypes Persist and Ditching the Evil Myth by Claudette Chenevert
Think of the word “stepmom” and it’s hard not to envision Cinderella’s evil stepmother—a woman willing to do just about anything to get rid of her step- daughter. So many examples of wicked stepmoms surround us in a social context that it’s difficult for most people (our stepkids, the ex, coworkers) to avoid falling back on them as they typecast us. Continue reading “Stepmom Stereotypes: Inside the August 2016 Issue”
The Younger Stepmom: Strategies for Women Partnered With Older Men by Brenda Snyder, LCSW
As if being a stepmom wasn’t hard enough, many stepcouples face another challenge—an age gap. And, while none of us is immune to the unflattering stereotypes heaped onto stepmoms (i.e., tramp, gold digger, trophy wife and evil homewrecker), those slurs are often hurled more harshly at younger women who partner with older men.
Those stereotypes don’t even hint at the fact that we love and are committed to our partners (be they young, old or somewhere in between). Continue reading “Younger Stepmoms – Inside the March 2016 Issue”
How Jealousy Affects Stepmom-Stepchild Relationships: It’s Not Easy Being Green, by Wednesday Martin, Phd
It has been said over and over: Children, even grown ones, feel threatened, displaced, hurt and scared when dad remarries. Less often do we hear how the stepmother experiences this reality: Hurt and threatened stepchildren are also frequently angry and jealous—and they want us gone.
A stepmother’s “vengefulness and jealousy” toward her husband’s powerless children may be something other than what it seems. Often, it is a fantasy and a projection, one that allows stepchildren of all ages to disavow a deeper, more disturbing truth. Continue reading “Stepmom-Stepchild Relationships – Inside the March 2016 Issue”
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”
The January 2016 issue of StepMom Magazine is HERE!
This month marks StepMom Magazine’s 7th anniversary! To celebrate, we’ve packed this special edition with information to make your life as a stepmom easier by revealing the truth about becoming a stepmom and sharing tips to help you succeed. This issue is full of candid admissions and insights from therapists, best-selling authors, lawyers, and stepmoms on the front lines.
Wednesday Martin, PhD, author of Stepmonster, shares what she’s learned in her research on stepmom resentment. Feel like you’ve lost yourself since becoming a stepmom? Heather Hetchler offers a few resolutions for reclaiming your old self. And Christina Roach explores the unique impact infertility has on stepmoms.
And that’s just a sampling. Here’s everything you’ll find inside this month’s issue: Continue reading “Inside the January 2016 Issue of StepMom Magazine”
Stepmoms and Resentment: What It Means and Why You’re Not Alone by Wednesday Martin, PhD
In the course of researching my book, “Stepmonster: A New Look at Why Real Stepmothers Think, Feel, and Act the Way We Do,” I was reminded time and again that there are a handful of emotions that are just too taboo for those of us married to men with kids to admit having.
Often an interview with one of my subjects would have to go on for 30 or 45 minutes before the woman speaking with me felt she could express feelings she feared I might judge her for having. More than once, I had to pave the way to disclosure by going first: “There were days I was so angry at my husband and his daughter for shutting me out that I wanted to leave.” Continue reading “Stepmom Resentment – Inside the January 2016 Issue”
The December 2015 issue of StepMom Magazine is HERE!
It’s known as the most wonderful time of the year. But, for many stepmoms, the holidays create unique stress and family tension.
Most families must make decisions about where to celebrate, when and with whom—but stepfamilies face extra challenges. Every year stepmoms ask: When are the kids coming over? Are the kids coming over? How do we manage everyone’s traditions?
The articles in this month’s issue are designed to take you back to simpler times and help you remember that as a stepmom you must focus on what you can control and to let go of what you can’t. You might just find that letting go doesn’t nullify your past—it helps you enjoy the present.
Here’s what’s inside when you subscribe: Continue reading “Inside the December 2015 Issue of StepMom Magazine”
The Truth About Being a Stepmom: Replace Those Old Stepmom Myths With New Mantras by Brenda Snyder, LCSW
Almost everything you hear early on in stepmother life serves no purpose except to make you feel bad about yourself. People are full of advice about how you should feel, how you can make yourself into a better or more supportive parent and how you shouldn’t expect anything from the kids—especially at first. (At first? You’ve been with this family for five years!)
Even well-meaning friends give laughable advice—fit for a traditional family, perhaps, but certainly not for a stepmom. Most people simply miss the point. Women in love with men who have children are a special breed. Continue reading “Stepmom Myths – Inside the December 2015 Issue”
Same Sex Stepfamilies: To Be, Or Not to Be, in the Closet? by Trisha Ladogna
The U.S. Supreme Court ruling that the Constitution gives same-sex couples the right to marry and Caitlyn Jenner’s public transition are both tremendous milestones which pave the way toward legitimizing and accepting same-sex and transgender stepfamilies.
There is a lot to celebrate, not only for those who identify as members of related communities but also for those who gave birth to, grew up with, befriended or love someone who identifies as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.
These massive steps forward, however, have not eliminated the challenges faced by lesbian stepfamilies. Continue reading “Same-Sex Stepfamilies – Inside the October 2015 Issue”