Author Archives: TracyPoizner

Summary Please go check out Team Super Dad and get more Jonnie Jensen. I feel very much aligned with his mission and how he goes about empowering dads to make all the impact they want to have on their kids while having a great work-life balance and even a great bank balance! Want to tryContinue reading “ESP 8.5 Jonnie Jensen: dad, stepdad, superdad”

Summary There’s a lot of talk about helping girls to take their power and shed limiting stereotypes, but our boys suffer from limits too. How can we stop our unconscious role-typing of boys and girls? Don’t we want boys to become compassionate, sensitive, heart-centered husbands and dads? Michael C Reichert can be found at MichaelCReichert.comContinue reading “ESP 7.8 How to Raise a Boy – with author Michael C. Reichert”

Summary Richard Capriola has been a mental health and addictions counselor for over two decades. He’s been licensed in Illinois and Texas and recently retired from Menninger Clinic in Houston where he worked as an addictions counselor for adolescents and adults diagnosed with psychiatric and substance abuse disorders. He is the author of the bookContinue reading “ESP 7.7 The Addicted Child – with author Richard Capriola”

Summary Send your partner over to listen to some episodes of The Dad Mindset Podcast with Rich Bolus at TheDadMindset.com  Book a call and let’s talk about whether coaching is the right kind of support for you – bit.ly/CALLTRACY I have a free parenting guide for dads who need to make a stronger connection withContinue reading “ESP 7.6 Rich Bolus part 2 “Am I robbing them of these experiences?””

Summary Rich Bolus hosts The Dad Mindset podcast which you can find at http://thedadmindset.com You can download my free Restorative Parenting Quickstart Guide at bit.ly/dadagain I have two email addresses – both are super-private! Try either info@essentialstepmom.com or tracy@tracypoizner.com Did you know I have a Facebook group for divorced dads? It’s called One For TheContinue reading “ESP 7.5 The Dad Mindset with Rich Bolus (part 1)”

Summary Lori Sims is the creator of the ingenious Nacho Kids method and the Nacho Kids Academy which is saving blended families and second marriages every single day. Check out the Nacho Kids Academy with this link and she’ll send some support right back to this podcast! NachoKidsAcademy.com/theessentialstepmom Shoot me an email at info@essentialstepmom.com ReadyContinue reading “ESP 7.4 Best-of-Essential-Stepmom, Red Flags with Lori Sims”

Summary Alienated kids can be awful to their divorced parent. Does your partner ever just feeling like giving up? It’s pretty normal to run out of steam and it’s OK to take a break but don’t give in to despair. Miracles happen all the time – you can even make them happen yourself! Grab myContinue reading “ESP 7.3 When can a weary dad just give up?”

Summary Here’s a little spirituality for the season – non denominational of course. I hope you enjoy the ESR Technique to help you chill out and turn down the volume on your Yuletide stress. You can reach me at info@essentialstepmom.com Ready to just take the leap and say this time next year that coaching wasContinue reading “ESP 7.2 A bit of “woo” – from me to you.”

Summary Heidi’s blog can be found at notjustastepmom.com Grab my free Restorative Parenting QuickStart Guide at bit.ly/dadagain Would you (or your partner) share your experiences of parental alienation with me? Email me at info@essentialstepmom.com to set something up, or just go ahead and jump onto my calendar to book any time you see that worksContinue reading “ESP 7.1 Not Just A Stepmom with Heidi Farrell”

Summary Jack is not a dad but he’s divorced and he has some valuable insights into one husband’s emotional experience after a failed marriage. You can find him on instagram at @f_divorce, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/fdivorce and on the F_Divorce Podcast Join my Facebook group “One For The Dads” by sending a join request toContinue reading “ESP 6.8 F_Divorce: Jack Rollins”

Summary Are you sick and tired of hearing about your stepchild’s fantastic mom, when you’re the one showing up for the child in all the way’s she’s not? Let’s talk this through, and we’ll talk about life coaching too – maybe you’re finally ready to make a step towards letting go of the filters thatContinue reading “ESP 6.7 The completely amazing, totally absent bio mom.”

Summary Pre-order Trystan’s book “How We Do Family” from Amazon, or support one of the last standing independent booksellers, Powells of Portland Oregon: https://www.powells.com/book/how-we-do-family-9781615197569 Trystan is on Facebook and Instagram @biffandi Interested in learning tools to share with your child or stepchild to help them be resilient in the face of emotional or psychological pressureContinue reading “ESP 6.6 Trystan Reese Part 2”

Summary “If I can’t be like those perfect multi-household-happy-families who all get along and do Thanksgiving together, am I broken?”  I don’t know about you, but I can totally relate to thinking my family should look – at least a little – like the ones on Instagram, but this guy says things out loud thatContinue reading “ESP 6.5 Trystan Reese shines a bright light on your secret fears (part 1 of 2)”

Summary You can follow Deuce on Facebook at Deuce Almightee, and on Instagram @EHYODEUCE His webinar is taking place on Thursday November 5th – you can sign up here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIkcuiurzguE9C6bP1aHLP5GNMtA1WBO69b You can register for my free Facebook Challenge: “Stick To Your Guns”: Parenting for Divorced Dads with this link: bit.ly/dadpower Connect with me anytime atContinue reading “ESP 6.4 Man the F_%@ Up! with Deuce Almightee”

Summary “My expectations set her up for failure”. That’s what David Sims has to say about his experience of blended family life before he and his wife Lori figured out how to step back from the edge of divorce and put their marriage and family back together. They founded the Nacho Kids method and nowContinue reading “ESP 6.3 David Sims – Pulling it out of the fire”

Summary You can find Stephane’s podcast on every platform, and by visiting his website,  thedivorceddaddiaries.com You can find my blog and other resources at essentialstepmom.com If it’s time for you to get another level of support for your stepmom journey, reach out for a 1:1 coaching session or two.  Email me for more info atContinue reading “ESP 6.2 The Divorced Dad Diaries with Stephane Jutras”

Summary Jeffrey Hoffman can be found at visibleman.org I can be found at essentialstepmom.com I’m gearing up for a free Facebook Live 5-day challenge where I’ll walk you through how to create immunity from interference in your parenting, and how you can build it right into your parent-child relationships. Just shoot me a message atContinue reading “ESP 6.1 Visible Man with Jeffrey Hoffman”

Summary You heard it right – college scholarships are available even for kids in kindergarten! You don’t have to go nuts with it, but it’s truly never too early to start learning about what’s involved in getting your kids a full ride. Learn to line up your ducks and you can save tens of thousandsContinue reading “ESP 5.7 Are you panicking about college fees yet? Part 2 with Denise Thomas”

Summary My guest Denise Thomas dug herself and her family out of bankruptcy and researched her butt off to get $199,000 in college scholarships for her two home-schooled kids. She says it’s not about marks, it’s about smarts! She’ll dish some secrets in this episode and the next one – it was too much goodnessContinue reading “ESP 5.6 Are you and your partner stressing (or fighting) over college fees yet? It’s coming!”

Summary Do you know anybody’s first wife who seems to cling energetically to him years, even after she gets a new partner? Turns out this is not such a rare phenomenon.  Today’s guest gets full marks for putting her experience as “that” bio-mom on the table, crumbs and all! Kate  Anthony is a gem. She’sContinue reading “ESP 5.5 Kate Anthony talks First-Wife-Forever Syndrome!”

Summary Never mind the emotional toll, there are dollars to consider too! Therapy, counsellors, private schools, college, mediation or lawyers – it seems never ending. If alienation is a feature of your partner’s relationship with his or her kids, it’s worth being proactive! To learn more about Restorative Parenting, my comprehensive coaching program to getContinue reading “ESP 5.4 The hidden cost of Parental Alienation”

Summary Can you get off the hamster-wheel of drama? How can you fight for your kids without just buying into more drama? Reach out any time to me at my personal email:  info@essentialstepmom.com Sign up for the FREE Stepfamily Summit 2020 here: http://bit.ly/tracysummit Join me and my guest Naja Hall this Wednesday, Sept 9 atContinue reading “ESP 5.3 High Conflict: The Drama Behind Parental Alienation”

Summary Stepmoms are the first point of contact with people who help parents heal the relationship with their kids after divorce or due to parental alienation. Then, they have to step aside and let the biological parent roll up their sleeves and do the work. I’ll be speaking about how to restore your relationship andContinue reading “ESP 5.2 It’s the stepmoms who find the answers”

Summary Dorcy Pruter is the founder and CEO of the Conscious Coparenting Institute. She runs a 4 day intensive workshop called High Road to Reunification that boast a stunning 100% success rate! Learn more about her work at: Conscious Co-Parenting Institute Home Dorcy has prepared a free e-book called “Stepping In: The Step-parents’ Guide ForContinue reading “ESP 5.1 Dorcy Pruter on healing the damage from Parental Alienation”

Summary Blended Families United is Bobbi’s website and organization. Her work centres around helping couples who are planning or just starting their stepfamily journey. Her book Reconciled is available from Amazon. Yes, I offer personal coaching for stepmoms and focused support for families struggling with parental alienation, manipulation or brainwashing. Reach out for a chatContinue reading “ESP 4.6 Bobbi Brooks Wilcox on Reconciling and More”

Summary You can find Bobbi’s website at blendedfamiliesunited.com and her book “Reconciled” is available from Amazon. Try the Nacho Kids Academy at no risk for a month and support this podcast at the same time by using this link: NachoKidsAcademy.com/theessentialstepmom Grab my free download 3 Secrets of Successful Stepmoms from my website at essentialstepmom.com —Continue reading “ESP 4.5 Bobbi Brooks Wilcox wrote the book on getting it wrong and turning it around.”

Summary It’s actually pretty simple: you bond around the fact that they don’t want to connect with you! I’ll explain how it looked in my family and how it worked out for us. Spoiler alert: Happy Ending! Check out the Nacho Kids Academy with this link to support this podcast with a portion of yourContinue reading “ESP 4.4 How do you bond with a kid that wants nothing to do with you?”

Summary This is my new go-to comeback for anyone who wants to give me unsolicited advice about my stepfamily dynamics. They can try whatever they like on their own family! Visit my website at essentialstepmom.com Join my Facebook community by sending a join request to The Spectacular Stepmom — Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/essentialstepmom/message

Summary Myth #2 is that Blended Families are forever families. Truth is, they unblend just the same as other stepfamilies do. What can we do to make our families stand the test of time, despite messed up custody schedules, high conflict personalities, loyalty issues and more? Listen up and we’ll get started. Visit me atContinue reading “4.2 Busting Blended Family Myth #2”

Summary I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that stepfamilies aren’t required to blend. They have a much more noble mission in my opinion, which is to “mend”. When you shift your focus, everything could change for your family. The book I mentioned is Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach. VisitContinue reading “4.1 The Myth of the Blended Family”

Summary Do you feel like you’re walking around wearing a heavy backpack that you can’t take off? I don’t know about you but I hate it that the idea of a stepmother is automatically linked to an image of someone not so nice.  I’ll share some thoughts about how we can change that dynamic. TheContinue reading “3.10 The Evil Stepmom Archetype: #notme”

Summary Is your partner struggling with guilty parent syndrome? Here’s help in 3 easy steps. Grab my free cheat sheet: 100% Dad In Half The Time Interested in hanging out on social with some other dads in the blended family dynamic? Send a join request to my Facebook community, One For The Dads . ItContinue reading “3.9 3 easy steps to conquering Guilty Parent Syndrome”

Summary Join my email community by sending an email to info@essentialstepmom.com with the subject line EMAIL! Here’s where you can find the podcast episode of “Unruffled” with Janet Lansbury: UNRUFFLED – listen here Follow Susan David here: SUSAN DAVID’S WEBSITE …plus,  her TEDTALK is linked here! Visit my website at essentialstepmom.com and email me atContinue reading “3.8 Why feeling bad might be the best thing that ever happened to you [and to your stepkids].”

Summary Jessica Kuiken is a nutritionist, NLP practitioner and a Diamond Leader with DoTerra, my personal favourite supplier of essential oils. You can find her at jessicakuiken.com and her Facebook group is called SpOIL the Soul. I’m looking for input to help me prepare my live webinar about Unbrainwashing the Alienated Child. Please reach out toContinue reading “ESP 3.7 Jessica Kuiken has help for your transition-day troubles.”

Summary This is a quick primer on a complex topic. I’m thinking about doing a full webinar about healing a brainwashed child – if you’re interested in hearing about that, or have anything to contribute to the discussion, please shoot me a message at info@essentialstepmom.com OR, just book a 20-minute phone chat, I’d love toContinue reading “ESP 3.6: Un-Brainwashing Your Alienated Child”

Summary Brace for it – the whole world is getting ready to poke you in a very sensitive spot. Here’s how to prepare. Don’t forget, Stepmom Day is Sunday May 17th – put it in big letters on the family calendar and let them know what kind of activity to surprise you with!  Visit meContinue reading “ESP 3.5: Your Mother’s Day Readiness Checklist”

Summary What can I say? This is embarrassing but it’s good for me to talk about it, and it’s good for you to hear it because maybe by laughing *at* me (even if I feel like you’re laughing *with* me), you can avoid repeating my mistakes! Join my Facebook community, which I police like aContinue reading “ESP 3.4: True Confessions: I’ve lost it on someone else’s kids – more than once.”

Summary Listen to Jack Kornfield’s beautiful guided meditation on Broken Record Podcast. There is lots of support available also on his website jackkornfield.com. You can learn more about my coaching process and how to discover and deliver your special gifts by contacting me at info@essentialstepmom.com or booking a free discovery call at tracypoizner.bookafy.com — SendContinue reading “ESP 3.3 Five Fast Ways To Shake Off Negative Emotions”

Summary Come with me for a little walk. We’ll talk about getting what you need during these extra difficult days. Visit my website at http://www.essentialstepmom.com If you’d like to hear my webinar where I shared suggestions from homeopaths around the world for treating symptoms of this virus, just send me an email at info@essentialstepmom.com I”mContinue reading “ESP 3.2 Join me for a little “self-care”!”

Summary Season 3: The Season of Coronavirus! You thought being a stepmom was the hardest thing you’d ever done? LOL – welcome to the new hardest thing ever! I’ll share some advice about getting through this pandemic with your head on straight. Kim John Payne’s Simplicity Parenting website is simplicityparenting.com Learn more about Juice PlusContinue reading “ESP 3.1 Mothers In A Dangerous Time”

Summary Lori Wilkins Sims is my guest today. She’s the originator of the Nacho Kids method. I challenged her to come up with some situations where it’s not necessary to disengage from some aspects of raising your stepkids, and we had a lively conversation – some of it serious and some tongue in cheek. I challengedContinue reading “ESP 2.21: Five Kinds of Stepmom Who DON’T Need to “NACHO”!”

Summary Part 2 of a 3-part series with Tamasin Thomas, therapist and financial expert.  Grab her free e-book, 3 Steps to Resolving Financial Conflict from her website at tamasinthomas.com My book of Boredom Busters is also available at no cost during this challenging time – find it at essentialstepmom.com With all the “social distancing”, I’mContinue reading “ESP 2.20 More with Tamasin Thomas on stopping those Matrimonial Money Fights!”

Summary CLICK BELOW to join my 4 day livestream video challenge from Monday March 9 to Thursday March 12, 2020. You can watch live, on replay or listen in audio only mode and download the tips and recipes too! bit.ly/stepmomtricks The book I mentioned is The Collapse of Parenting by Leonard Sax. Please come onContinue reading “The cure for picky eating [and BONUS: The cure for ANGST over picky eating!].”

Summary What can I say? It’s true, I’m a work in progress. Brene Brown’s audio-book The Power of Vulnerability is available from her website, http://www.brenebrown.com Visit my website at http://www.essentialstepmom.com Join the Facebook group, The Spectacular Stepmom We have a group for your spouse called One For The Dads too! Got my free guide yet?Continue reading “Confessions of a people-pleasing stepmom [and the 3 stages of a recovery-in-progress]”

Summary Want my free gratitude journal template? Grab it here: bit.ly/123gratitude I love to hear from you – really, it just makes my day every time. You can find me at my personal email, info@essentialstepmom.com. If you’d like to chat, I encourage you to book a free 20-minute strategy session: BOOK A CALL WITH TRACYContinue reading “ESP 2.17 Stop the “Stepmom Spiral”: 3 ways to conquer the habit pattern of negative thinking.”

Summary Do you and your spouse ever argue about money? Does it drive you crazy that he spends too much on his kids, or that his ex is making poor choices with the child care payments coming out of your joint bank account? My guest Tamasin Thomas is a certified financial planner AND a certifiedContinue reading “ESP 2.16: Who pays for what, and how is that working out for you?”

Summary Everyone has days like this, I know I have had my share. Days when you think you just suck at being a stepmom and everything that’s going wrong is your fault. I made a live video last year for my Facebook group, The Spectacular Stepmom and I decided to share it with you here.Continue reading “ESP 2.15: For those days when you think you just suck at this.”

Summary There’s a lesson we can all learn from the story of how Roger Bannister became the first human to run a mile in under 4 minutes, and especially from what happened next! The world is changing, family structures are changing and we need to change in order to keep to keep the orders ofContinue reading “ESP. 2.14 Dads, Kids and Consequences (and the 4-minute mile)”

Summary This is from a live video I made for my Facebook group called One For The Dads. If you’d like to join (and you’re a biological dad) send a join request! If you’re a stepmom and you’re looking for a social media community, join us at The Spectacular Stepmom I’d love to hear fromContinue reading “ESP 2.13 Dealing with Alienated Teens”

Summary If you don’t know Brene Brown, just google her TED talk on vulnerability – it’s had over 30 million views. She’s the author of a number of fabulous books, but the one I’m working on right now is called Dare to Lead. I dare you to read it and not see every word ofContinue reading “ESP 2.12 Riffing on Brene Brown’s “Dare To Lead””

Summary Happy New Year to you, wherever in the world you’re listening from. I am partway through a holiday experience unlike anything I’ve had in 13 years of blended family life. It took us a long time to get here, but that only makes me appreciate it more! If I can give you one singleContinue reading “ESP. 2.11 My Christmas Miracle + REPLAY: OVERSTEPPING”