She is a single mother by choice. She lives in a very tight knit community with very traditional values. Now... more

She's grappling with the aftermath of a tumultuous relationship with a narcissistic partner. First, he love bombed her and made... more

Dating often comes with a lot of questions. Who gets to say what they want? Who gets to be chosen?... more

This is a classic session, from the second season of How's Work? From day one, they’ve described their relationship as... more

They were in love for 6 years and building a life together. They froze embryos and agreed on a timeline... more

This week, Esther talks to a caller who often feels let down by her friends. She longs for deeper and... more

A mother comes to Esther for help dealing with the escalating conflicts between her husband and their teenage daughter. She's... more

This is a classic session of Where Should We Begin? An on-again, off-again couple in their fifties, dating in a... more

Their relationship is on the edge. They're grappling with communication issues and the emotional scars from their past. And they're... more

"Am I too much?" is a consistent frame for a relationship that so many people come to Esther with. This... more

Esther talks with a young divorcée about the challenges of co-parenting with her ex-husband while wrestling with feelings of anger... more

She feels abandoned by him, he feels choked by her, and their marriage is at a tipping point. They are... more

We all know the difference between being alive and feeling alive. The state of the world has many of us... more

This is a classic session of Where Should We Begin? A young couple has endured a series of crises early... more

Esther speaks to a woman who has been estranged from her father for almost two years for reasons she can’t... more

Esther talks with a woman who is contemplating ending her five-year long-distance relationship. She reflects on avoidant behavior, stemming from... more

This is a classic session of Where Should We Begin? After ten years, a husband tells his wife he no... more

Sexual preferences demand a lot of trust, intimacy, and vulnerability in relationships. This week, Esther talks with a couple who... more

They had a whirlwind romance, and he spun a tale of their future to come—marriage, kids, a life together. He's... more

Should we have tried harder to make this work? What if you're the one who got away? These are the... more

For the first time in an Esther Calling, Esther speaks to the partner of the caller from last week to... more

This week, a caller wonders if she’s sexually compatible with her partner or if they’ve just become too adherent to... more

A young woman notices a pattern in her life of frequently being ghosted. And the last time this happened, it... more

After becoming a mother for the first time, a young woman reflects on the complicated relationship with her own mother.... more

This episode contains discussions of a death by suicide. Please take care listening. Recently, on Where Should We Begin, we've been... more

Recently, on Where Should We Begin, we've been focusing on the things we sweep under the rug in our relationships—conversations... more

A year after explosive revelations of cheating and the existence of a 14 year old son her partner never told... more

He's been searching for someone for so long that he questions if he's actually looking for a unicorn. He wants... more

Imagine meeting the love of your life at work. And a few months in, you want to keep the guy... more

Theirs is an accelerated love story. They moved in, decided to have a baby, and are now struggling to weather... more

They have been best friends for years. He opened a book store and she was his first employee. Things were... more

This week, Esther is in a borrowed bedroom in Los Angeles, the perfect place to talk about desire and the... more

Esther speaks to a woman who feels frustrated and stuck in her dating patterns. She loves going on dates, regularly... more

They were in a consensual, non-monogamous relationship and happily growing their family. But he broke the first rule of their... more

They're amicably divorced divorce lawyers, carving out a new kind of relationship after the end of their marriage. Esther reframes... more

Often when a relationship ends, we're left with regrets, questions, and conversations we wish we could have had. Esther helps... more

This episode contains discussions of a death by suicide. Please take care listening. The suicide of his first wife left... more

Ten years and two kids later, a wife comes to Esther looking for answers: does she want to explore her... more

Join Esther for a dinner table conversation on the topic of polyamory. The dinner was held to mark the anniversary... more

It began as a passionate affair and ended two marriages. Now, they're struggling as they try to build trust. Esther... more

They met in college; he's a U.S. citizen and she's trapped in a cross-border limbo. Their young love complicated by... more

The Arc of Love is my gift to you as your summer beach listen of 2024. A curated collection of... more

They met as community organizers in their neighborhood. She had just gotten out of a multi-year marriage to her ex-wife... more

Four affairs and four divorces later, she is searching for answers as to why she can’t stop leaving in such... more

Esther takes a question from a young woman struggling with her relationship with her father. A recent divorce and the... more

In this Esther Calling, Esther speaks to a young woman grappling with the burden of caring for her ailing parents... more

They grew up together and now run a production company. They are contending with the growing pains of transitioning from... more

Esther speaks to a woman who is experiencing a kind of a double story. She resents her mother for the... more

He gets to a certain point in relationships before he starts fantasizing about his ex-boyfriends or other future partners. Esther... more

She gets angry when she feels devalued and put down. He intellectualizes and rationalizes instead of sympathizing. Esther helps them... more

A woman whose ex-boyfriend cheated on her with his ex girlfriend ends a perfectly good relationship because she can't trust... more

This week we're airing a very special episode of Brené Brown's Unlocking Us where Esther and Brené discuss how we... more

They were aid workers who met abroad, fell in love, and came to the States to get married. After two... more

Not all conversations with Esther have to happen behind closed doors. Last week, Esther sat down with Trevor Noah, live... more

Esther talks to a woman who, despite her best efforts, finds herself implicated in the same toxic cycle of abuse... more

They are a young couple with a small child and they fight non-stop. And while they each have good intentions,... more

Ira Glass has created over 800 episodes of the genre-defining radio show and podcast This American Life. Each week on... more

Too often we can focus on troubles in our relationships and not what happens when the relationship goes right. This... more

She lost her husband five years ago. Now, she's finally ready to start picking up the pieces of her life... more

They find themselves at an erotic stalemate. Married for 20 years with four children, they have lost their way with... more

They are new mothers after a long wait and they are both struggling in their roles at the same international... more

This episode contains discussions of a sexual trauma. Please take care listening. This is the second part of a special... more

This episode contains discussions of a sexual trauma. Please take care listening. A woman in a healthy and loving relationship... more

For years she has been the breadwinner while he has felt like a failure at home raising their daughter. After... more

Esther speaks to a woman who seems to get to a certain place within a relationship and then they end... more

Our friend Dan Harris hosts the Ten Percent Happier podcast. A skeptical journalist, Dan had a panic attack on live... more

Friendships are their own love stories. Our friends provide continuity in an ever-changing world. They accompany us through the trials... more

A woman comes to Esther with a question about how to move on from the pain that her parents have... more

Esther speaks to a man struggling to live a life he can enjoy. He feels wracked with guilt over a... more

After 20 years together, they wonder if their marriage has run its course? She is too unhappy to stay together... more

How do you begin to define a new identity for yourself when you've left the comforts of the world you've... more

He was deployed to Fallujah, Iraq in 2004. In the 20 years since, he has struggled with PTSD and addiction.... more

They're best friends and ER doctors at a small hospital. During the pandemic, they experienced a fracturing among their coworkers,... more

He fell in love with someone at work and left his wife. Fast forward a year, he's engaged and realizes... more

This is a classic session, from the first season of Where Should We Begin? A young family, a ten-year age... more

Esther talks to a woman who was passed over for a promotion, again. She straddles two cultures and finds that... more

When a tragedy shakes their church and their community, both the preacher and his wife try to put the pieces... more

She has never quite fit into the mold of the preacher's wife in their small town. He has put his... more

In this Esther Calling, we meet a woman who feels that her brother's wife is standing in the way of... more

A woman in her 40s talks to Esther about a crossroads in her life. She has begun a relationship with... more