Posts

How to Feel Safe in Your Romantic Relationships

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If you want to feel safe in your romantic relationships, Jessica Baum wrote a wonderful book on this topic. Tune in to learn more. — Do you feel safe in your relationships? Most of us struggle with feelings of security and safety. Enter my guest, Jessica Baum, a licensed psychotherapist and author of SAFE—Coming Home to Yourself and Others and Anxiously Attached: Becoming More Secure in Life and Love . She explores the “Whys” of life: why we feel, connect, and experience the world the way we do. This passion led her to specialize in trauma, attachment theory, and interpersonal neurobiology. She believes that connection to ourselves and others is at the heart of healing, and she uses a range of modalities to help individuals and couples return to wholeness. She’s the founder of the Relationship Institute of Palm Beach, and she leads the Conscious Relationship Group, a global coaching company offering support to clients worldwide.  In this episode of Last First Date Radio: H...

How to Improve Your Standards, Boundaries and Self-Worth in Dating

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How can you improve your standards, boundaries, and self-worth in dating? Here are five tips to get started. — If there’s one thing I know for sure about dating in our 50s, 60s, and beyond, it’s this: your standards, boundaries, and self-worth aren’t just important. They’re your superpowers. At this stage of life, you’ve lived, learned, loved, lost, rebuilt, and reimagined yourself more times than you can count. You don’t date from insecurity or scarcity anymore. You date from abundance, wisdom, and a deep knowing of who you are. And yet… even the strongest, most self-aware women sometimes find themselves lowering their standards, over-accommodating, or tolerating behavior they would never accept from a friend. Let’s change that. Here are five essential tips to help you date with strong standards, clear boundaries, and unshakeable self-worth, all while keeping your heart open and your spirit light. 1. Identify Your Standards and Live Them Consistently Standards aren’t ...

An Empowering Guide to Perimenopause and Menopause

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Learn how to manage perimenopause and menopause with my podcast guest, Lauren A Tetenbaum. Tune in to discover valuable tips. — How do you understand and gain control of your body and mental health during perimenopause and menopause? My podcast guest, Lauren A. Tetenbaum (AKA “The CounseLaur”) wrote the book on this topic. She is a millennial mother of two, a writer, a social worker specializing in supporting women through life transitions, and a former lawyer passionate about advocating for women. Through her counseling practice, Lauren helps empower postpartum and other women in corporate settings, provides clinical therapy to individuals and couples in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Florida, and frequently speaks on podcasts and at events about topics like maternal mental health, gender equity, working parenthood, and women’s reproductive health. Millennial Menopause is her first book. In this episode of Last First Date Radio: How menopause impacts women’s mental he...

5 Ways to Create Momentum in Early Dating

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Discover five powerful ways to create momentum in early dating to attract a healthy, connected relationship. — When you’re a woman over 50, momentum in early dating matters. Not pressure, not urgency… momentum. That sweet spot where you’re signaling, “I’m interested,” while still honoring your time, energy, and your value. Too many women confuse showing interest with over-functioning. And too many men mistake your graciousness for indifference. The magic is found in between: asserting yourself without being aggressive, opening the door without dragging him through it. Here are five powerful, grounded ways to create momentum in early dating without chasing, nudging, or managing the experience. 5 Ways to Create Momentum in Early Dating 1. Show Enthusiasm in Real Time Men over 50 respond incredibly well to positive reinforcement. When you’re with him, let him see that you’re enjoying yourself. Smile. Lean in. Laugh freely. Make eye contact. Say, “I’m enjoying talking to yo...

How to Love Without Losing Yourself

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If you tend to give yourself completely to your partner, here are tips on how to love without losing yourself. — How do you love without losing yourself? Tonya Lester, is the author of Push Back: Live, Love, and Work with Others Without Losing Yourself and a Brooklyn-based psychotherapist and writer known for her work with relationships and communication. Her essay “Couples Therapist, Heal Thyself” was published in the Modern Love column in The New York Times, and she has been writing the popular Staying Sane Inside Insanity blog for Psychology Today since 2020. In this episode of Last First Date Radio: Why so many women have much trouble asserting themselves in their relationships Why it’s sometimes good to be “difficult” in your relationship How perfectionism isn’t about excellence, it’s about anxiety How to tell if we should keep pushing back or if it is time to leave a relationship Why it’s important to stop saying, “But I shouldn’t have to tell him!” EP 688: Tonya L...

How to Quickly Assess Compatibility on a First Date

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How do you assess compatibility on a first date? Try this “vibe check” method in the early stages of a relationship. — Compatibility on a first date is not just about shared laughter or common interests. It’s about the unspoken chemistry, the way your energies interact with each other. This intuitive feeling, almost like a dance of non-verbal cues and emotional responses, speaks volumes about potential compatibility. Here are five ways to assess compatibility early on in dating. How to Quickly Assess Compatibility on a First Date 1. The Art of the Vibe Check During your date, tune in to the energy between you. Was there a natural, effortless flow to the conversation? Did it feel easy, engaging, or like hard work? Usually the best indicator isn’t what was said , but how you felt in their presence. Ask yourself: Did their energy feel grounded, playful, tense or disconnected? Did you feel seen and comfortable being yourself? Was there curiosity and mutual interest or jus...

Why Pleasure is Essential to Wellness (and no longer taboo)

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Did you know that pleasure is crucial to our wellbeing? My podcast guest, sexologist Tugce Balik, dives deeper into this topic! — Tugce Balik believes that pleasure is essential to our wellness. She blends Western science with Eastern traditions to help people heal, reconnect, and feel at home in their bodies and with each other. She’s a certified Tibetan Tantra practitioner and an American Board-Certified Sexologist with a focus on healing through embodiment. Her approach is gentle, empowering, and rooted in deep care. To her, pleasure isn’t something you earn. It’s your birthright, your medicine, and her work at Arya helps couples remember exactly that. In this episode of Last First Date Radio: Why pleasure is moving from taboo to essential wellness Why 57% of couples can’t talk about sex—and practical ways to bridge that divide How intimacy impacts stress, hormones, and overall relationship satisfaction How technology can help couples approach once-uncomfortable conversat...