To mark five years of making this podcast, I invited the person who has heard every episode, encouraged every new idea, and occasionally reminded me to follow my own friendship advice. Welcome to my husband, Bryan!

Bryan hasn't been on Dear Nina since the first year! I brought him back to talk about what has surprised him after five years of listening to conversations about every aspect of friendship. He shared the theme he's been n...

Admissions counselor, Alexis White, on why 'fit over flex' should guide the college search

The college search puts a lot of pressure on families to find the “best” school. But the highest-ranked school (the hyper-focus for many) is not necessarily the place where a particular student will be happiest, most successful, or most likely to find their people.

My guest this week is Alexis White, an internationally recognized co...

Group dynamics, feeling left out, and not waiting around for invitations

We have all felt that sting of not being invited. You see the pictures, hear about the dinner, find out there's a group chat, there was a weekend away—and you were not included. It can hurt, even when we know intellectually that every gathering cannot include every person. And even though we do not personally want 15 people at every thing we do.

This episo...

How age, loss, and experience can change the way we see friendships from the past

This week I’m joined by one of my very best friends, Rebecca Kotok, a public school counselor in Maryland and one of the most popular guests in the history of Dear Nina.

Rebecca was first on the show in episode 34, where we talked about our friendship breakup in our 20s and our reconciliation. This time, we’re talking about a differ...

My friend, Jill Smokler, touched so many lives. If you loved Jill, I hope hearing her voice is a comfort. If you didn’t know her, I hope this episode gives you a glimpse of why countless longtime followers, fans, and friends felt deeply connected to her candor and warmth.

This bonus episode of Dear Nina is a replay of a conversation Jill asked me to record with her in the summer of 2024, soon after she was diagnosed with gliob...

How small talk, "loose ties," and everyday conversations help us feel more connected

For episode #200 of Dear Nina: Conversations About Friendship, I’m joined by Dr. Gillian Sandstrom, an associate professor in the Psychology of Kindness at the University of Sussex and author of Once Upon a Stranger: The Science of How Small Talk Can Add Up to a Big Life.

I came into this conversation a little wary. Do I really want to talk to ...

How to make girls trips, weekend getaways, and friendship travel actually happen

This week, I’m joined by one of my favorite people to talk to about friendship on and off the microphone: my assistant producer and friend, Rebekah Jacobs!

We're discussing something she does far more often than I do—traveling with friends. Rebekah is a frequent girls-trip traveler. She’s the friend who is always hopping on a plane, mee...

Two entrepreneurs on friendship, support, and staying open to new connections.

When we talk on Dear Nina about making friends as adults, I often focus on hobbies, neighborhoods, volunteer opportunities, or the activities we do outside of work. But work is one of the most common ways adults meet new people, and it's something I probably don't talk about enough.

This week, I'm joined by Mara Smith, founder of Inspiro Tequila, and Kim O...

Why Reassurance-Seeking, Overthinking, and Fear of Rejection Can Strain Even Good Friendships

Most of us have moments when we wonder where we stand with a friend. That's part of caring about people. But for some, those worries become a constant rumination in the background of their friendships. You might find yourself replaying conversations, looking for signs that something is wrong, or repeatedly seeking reassurance that the frien...

In this episode of Dear Nina: Conversations About Friendship, I’m talking about the social complications of having a second home. Whether it’s a lakeside cabin, a Florida condo, or simply living somewhere everyone wants to visit, these situations bring up all kinds of friendship questions around hosting, invitations, reciprocity, FOMO, boundaries, and expectations.

My guest is the incredible Stephanie Hansen: cookbook au...

I’m sharing a bonus episode from my appearance on The Visibility Standard with Jazzmyn Proctor. We talked about modern friendship and all the strange new tensions that come with living so much of our lives online.

From expecting friends to endlessly support our businesses on social media (and the resentment when they watch but don't 'like'), to replacing real connection with memes and endless scrolling, this conversation digs ...

Money can shape adult friendships in ways we don’t always talk about openly. Who pays for dinner? Who can afford the group trip? Do you need to attend the wedding AND the bachelorette party and wedding shower? What happens when your kids start noticing how other families spend money? And how do you handle it when your own financial situation changes before your friendships catch up?

This week on Dear Nina: Conversations About ...

This episode is a little different—and very fun—because it’s packed with specific, creative ways to spend time with friends that go beyond the usual walk, coffee, or dinner at a restaurant.

I’m joined by Ashlee Gadd and Katie Blackburn of the Coffee + Crumbs community and authors of the new book, You're In Good Company: The Gift of Friendship, Motherhood, and Showing Up. Ashlee and Katie came ready with ideas...

Is your neighborhood or town welcoming?

I spend a lot of time on this show talking about the one-to-one side of friendship—the texts, the plans, the misunderstandings, the dynamics that keep us close or pull us apart. But once in a while, I like to zoom out and look at something bigger: the social health of where we live. Our friendships don’t exist in a vacuum. They’re shaped by our neighborhoods, your cities, and...

Navigating friendship when your planning styles don’t match

Why is it so hard to actually make plans with friends as adults? In this solo episode, I’m digging into one of the most common (and frustrating) dynamics in friendship: when one person likes to plan ahead and the other prefers to keep things spontaneous. I also discuss when both people like to have an actual plan, but one friend is doing most of the work of send...

The Unexpected Friendships You Find Through Networking When You Work Alone

If you're ever feel lonely at work, lonely working from home, or you realize your regular friends just don't get what you do, this episode is for you.

I spoke with Lindsay Pinchuk, award-winning entrepreneur and founder of the Dear Founder Forum, a networking community for women business owners over 40. Lindsay's group is a big reason the "Dear Nina" ...

I’m excited to share a fantastic episode from when I was the guest on Your Child Is Normal with pediatrician Dr. Jessica Hochman. (@askdrjessica on Instagram)

Dr. Jessica and I spoke about how to help kids become socially confident in a world where so much interaction happens on screens. From teaching kids to initiate plans instead of waiting to be invited (adults need to master this too!), to why proximity and real-life time ...

Reframing Your Birthday and Your Friendships

Birthdays can be emotionally loaded and full of expectations, mixed signals, and quiet disappointment about what we’re “supposed to do” and who is “supposed to do” it for us. If birthdays have left you feeling overlooked or unsure of your friendships, this episode offers a practical—and freeing—way to think about them differently.

And I know some o...

“You don’t really have any friends, do you, Dad?”

That’s the question that stopped Andrew McCarthy—yes, the Pretty in Pink / Mannequin/St. Elmo's Fire/"Brat Pack" Andrew McCarthy—in his tracks and led to a 10,000-mile journey to reconnect with the people he considered his closest friends. Andrew's book, Who Needs Friends: An Unscientific Examination of Male Friendship Across America, is available ...