The Jewish Divorce Project Podcast

Leeron and Noam catch up and talk divorce disaster planning. That is, what you do when a natural catastrophe hits. With the LA wildfires turning our worlds upside down, Leeron and Noam both had to consider what co-parenting looks like when impacted by a natural disaster. Few parenting plans seem to include moments of acts of god. And there are plenty of questions that go along with it: Who gets the kids? Where do you go if you need to evacuate? How do you provide stability to your children amidst the anxiety and chaos? Ultimately, it's how we step up and prioritize safety for everyone in the family that the decisions becomes clear. Please consider these resources should you, or anyone you know, seek to give or require assistance: Support the Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center GoFundMe Campaign. Support the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation - Wildfire Emergency Fund

Looking to kill some time during the last hours of 2024? Have a listen to episode 89. Noam and Leeron talk about infidelity and the its potential opportunities. We also speak directly with Lauren LaRusso, a psychotherapist helping all sides in an affair to learn, grow, and heal. Lauren holds a bachelor's degree in Psychology and Creative Writing from The College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA, and a Masters in Professional Counseling from The University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA.  ​She has helped countless individuals transform their life's greatest challenges into opportunities for positive growth and change in her private psychotherapy practice.  ​She uses a relational, trauma-informed, and recovery-focused approach to her work with individuals and couples far and wide who are navigating the complex and painful dynamics of marital affairs.  Follow Lauren on Intagram for her guidance!    

Episode 88 brought a fun conversation between Leeron, Noam, and Aurisha Smorlarski- LMFT & Cooperative Co-Parenting Coach. Aushira shares her time and wisdom to discuss attachment theory, she tackles questions like: What are some strategies for effective communication you recommend to co-parents? How can parents help their children feel secure and stable after a divorce, especially when adjusting to the concept of their parent's divorce? What are some tips or strategies you can offer to reduce the anxiety that some kids may experience on transition days?  Aurisha Smolarski, MA, LMFT, is a licensed marriage and family therapist, certified co-parenting coach, mediator, and the award winning author of Cooperative Co-Parenting for Secure Kids: The Attachment Theory Guide to Raising Kids in Two Homes. As a mother and co-parent herself, she intimately understands the complexities faced by parents navigating divorce or separation. With over fifteen years of experience, Aurisha specializes in fostering cooperation and security in co-parenting dynamics. She has been has been featured in Vogue, Psychology Today, The Huffington Post, Parents, and more.

Sorry for the delay! This episode is a little out of date since it was recorded at the end of Sukkot. Nonetheless, Leeron and Noam touch base about holidays with the kids while divorced and Jewish divorce camp! Reach out if you have further questions about this. And we talk with Liz Pharo about all the minefields and avoidable scenarios one could encounter with divorce. Here is more about about guest, Liz: Elizabeth "Liz" Pharo has a passion for realizing the goals of rising companies to help them improve, expand, and take off. As the CEO and Chair of our board and past chair and advisor to numerous successful companies Liz is known for her talent in harmonizing business objectives with a company’s vision, mission, and aspirations for its customers and community. Beyond her work helping Divorce.com reduce the time, cost, and trauma of the typical divorce process, Liz is dedicated to the growth and development of her own community and serves on the boards of the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama, Venture for America, and Blight-Free Birmingham. Liz enjoys running and spending time with her family at Lake Martin.

Leeron and Noam catch up about the High Holidays and talk with our guest Rachael Lowell Ellison about the SHIFT method. Rachael shows us how we can best lead ourselves during this time of year. We also talk about taking it easy on the holidays- with or without kids. Sometimes you need a holiday from the holidays. And when you have kids on the holidays it's important not to stress yourself out with the details. Sometimes, its better not to have your kids on the holidays at all. That way you can remember that the special times with your kids can come when you make them. We also talk about a five-year commitment that Leeron is on the verge of making. Listen for more details. Our guest is  Rachael Lowell Ellison. With over two decades of experience, Rachael Lowell Ellison brings deep expertise in executive coaching and consulting to guide leaders through professional challenges and unleash their full potential. Her unique approach seamlessly integrates theoretical knowledge, practical research, and real-world insights gained from her own leadership roles. Rachael specializes in providing empathetic, intuitive, and highly customized support that enhances her clients' self-awareness, adaptability, and decision-making capabilities. She excels at shifting leaders from a reactive to a creative mindset, offering a comprehensive perspective on navigating complex leadership challenges.

Leeron and Noam continue the conversation with Samantha Boss, who is, in fact, a boss! But before we get into the ugly truth about divorce with Samantha, Leeron updates us on a big divorce transition that took some time to get to: reclaiming her maiden name. For many, taking back one's maiden name is a major part of the divorce process that is necessary in moving on and coming to know oneself again. And coming to know ourselves again is part of our spiritual journey involved in the High Holidays. 

Welcome back to our 7th? 8th? season? Leeron and Noam catch up after a long summer break. Think we keep it light for our first episode of a new season? Think again! We have some honest talk about the hidden costs- to the wallet and the soul- of single parenting in a tough economy. But there's hope! Hope is found in breaking. In giving oneself a break in meeting expectations, and the looming self-criticism that comes with parenting. 

Noam and Leeron catch up about mother's day moments this year.Like about how tough and good it felt for Leeron to share mother's day with her kid's step-mom. How was mother's day for you? We are also joined by Ginger Gentile. Note: last name pronounced GEN-TEAL, to talk about parental alienation and how to heal from it. Ginger Gentile, the "Erased Child Whisperer", was a child caught in the middle of a bitter divorce, and now helps parents facing similar battles find peace and even reunite their families via coaching designed for the worst cases of Parental Alienation and Estrangement. She is a documentary film-maker, activist, who is on a mission to reverse parental alienation – a silent epidemic . Her documentary, ‘Erasing Family’ shows children suffering from alienation reuniting with their parents. Ginger’s extensive work in healing families has been featured on shows like Red Table Talk and Real Housewives of Orange County. She’s also been featured on NBC and CBS, The Atlantic, spoken at SXSW, and on many podcasts. She has reunited numerous families and leads the only coaching program that features ex-alienated kids as coaches, using simple techniques to cure a complex problem.    Ginger can be reached at: https://ReversingParentalAlienation.com https://ErasingFamily.org (to watch the film for free) @ErasingFamily on IG, FB and YT Free training on the secrets to reverse parental alienation: https://ReversingParentalAlienation.com/secrets  

In episode 82 we speak with and learn a lot from Rabbi Ari Saks. Rabbi Saks talks to us about the cultural myths that couples face in their interfaith relationships. Particularly that interfaith relationships will inevitably lead to divorce and separation.  We ask the question if interfaith relationships mean it’s MORE likely or LESS likely for a couple to divorce? Rabbi Saks challenges that idea by teaching that differences can actually lead to a deeper relationship rather than division.  Currently, Rabbi Saks is focusing his efforts on reaching out to interfaith families, primarily through his recently launched podcast “Interfaithing: Why families can embrace two faiths under one roof.” The podcast can be found on all podcast platforms. Rabbi Saks is also developing unique, online Adult Education curricula including “Torah Teachings for Jewish Grandparents of Interfaith Families” and “How Israel Should be Taught on College Campuses.” Finally, Rabbi Saks serves Torat Yisrael, a Conservative congregation in Rhode Island, on a part-time basis and serves pastoral needs for unaffiliated families in the Philadelphia area.

In Episode 81 Noam and Leeron discuss Passover and how you celebrate a holiday even if you don't have your kids. We also talk with Andrea Hipps a certified divorce coach and how to make your former partner irrelevant by moving beyond forgiveness to even forgetfulness. We  talk about why it is important, and share a few steps that help listeners make their way to the promised land. Andrea Hipps, LBSW is a Certified Divorce Coach and author who helps parents all along the divorce continuum resolve their divorce debris and create healthier two-address families. She's the author of the internationally bestselling book The Best Worst Time of Your Life: Four Practices to Get You Through the Pain of Divorce, which outlines the four practices you need to create wholeness and healing for you and your kids before, during, and after divorce. As a regular contributor to our nation’s divorce recovery conversation, she's been featured on NBC, ABC, FOX and the CW discussing how we can do divorce better for the sake of ourselves and our families.