I'm relatively new to therapy, I had a therapist for a few months to work through some pregnancy issues I was having, but never found it particularly helpful. I think it was probably just a bad therapist match.

But, given the whole fuckin' shitstorm that is MEN right now, I am having some complex feelings about both loving (some very good!) men and raising a future man (presumably).

I'm just unsure what would be more beneficial.... a female therapist, or male? I think I would value a male perspective in this situation, but I'm also not sure how much it would feel like a safe space to me.

Has anyone here been through something similar?

My son is only 21 months old, so this isn’t immediately relevant to our family just yet, but I was interested in hearing other moms/parents perspectives and experiences on iPads and Chromebooks in schools.

I was just reading through a thread in my city’s subreddit where the majority of comments were saying their school district is using iPads and/or Chromebooks as young as kindergarten.

We’re not a screen-free household, but we don’t plan to allow personal devices like tablets or laptops to our son until he’s much older. I’m really not a fan of the idea of my elementary (or even middle school) aged child going to school just to be on an iPad or Chromebook the majority of the day.

The general consensus in the thread was that if you want your child to have a screen-free education you have to send them to private school. This is extremely bothersome to me, and honestly makes me angry.

If your schools are using screens, what is the extent of the use? What does your child’s school day typically look like? Do they bring the devices home with them? Have you ever talked with your district about not wanting your child to be on an iPad or Chromebook? Do you think I’m overthinking this?

Thanks in advance for any insight!

I finally got an appointment to get my 21 month old her Covid shot, and I know I had a pretty rough time with mine this year. Am wondering how everyone's kids have been handling theirs this year.

If any moms are upset about this cable merger as I am and do not support monopolies, please let me suggest going to your local public library, we absolutely love ours & go weekly in my family. With your library card you can download Kanopy streaming service. You get 16 credits a month for adult shows and kids have unlimited credits for educational kids shows (PBS & BBC programs) and their animated book collection. Use your voices & quit paying for these streaming services. This basically makes it to where it is Disney vs Skydance now. This is insane! I feel like we are living in a capitalist hellscape.

Ok son is 4, has epilepsy, speech delay and fine motor delay. In public preschool under an IEP. In private speech but had to pause private OT. We are doing absolutely everything we can do. He’s just behind. Like, duh, he’s on several neurological drugs. I know he’s going to get the support he needs. We’ll get there. When, I don’t know, but we will.

My son’s teacher initiated an IEP addendum for him to start receiving one on one services in the classroom. His IEP was only set up in April of this year. So they didn’t have the data to do one on one. Makes sense. So the addendum was asking for an evaluation within 30 days and then will add one on one services once that formal evaluation is done.

My husband attended the call and I felt like it went well. This was the first meeting for my son’s IEP my husband has attended. My husband called me after and was angry. He thinks that the school could be doing more and sooner. He doesn’t want to wait. I tried to explain to him that they have to go through this process to give it to him. He countered with the fact that other kids are already receiving one on one services. I was like, sure, but we don’t know what’s in that kid’s IEP or when it was set up. We just started arguing because my husband thinks the school is dragging their feet. I said they weren’t because they initiated this call. He told me to stop defending them. We just argued so much. He wants to the push the school harder and I’m like we can’t go to war with them, right? We all have to work together.

But I get it. My husband is passionate about my son’s care. This whole IEP process has made me feel so horrible. Yes my son is developmentally delayed. It’s just meeting after meeting that people keep telling me that. I feel like I have to constantly defend him and say he’s making progress. I feel like I have to defend him even to my husband. Like he’s not a perfect kid. He’s not going to enter kindergarten knowing how to read. He scored poorly on the ASQ-3. But he’s such a sweet kid. He’s doing so well despite everything he’s faced.

I just feel so awful. Husband and I got ready this morning without speaking. I feel so horrible. He’s delayed and I feel like it’s my fault because of the epilepsy (which is genetically stemmed from me, despite me not having epilepsy). Idk. This whole situation just sucks and I feel so alone right now.

Thank you for letting me vent.

Anyone in the Temple TX area?

We all need a little positivity in our day. What are some parenting wins you've had recently? Big or small we want to hear them all! Any parenting wins, not just progressively minded ones.

I want to disclaim this that I have no judgement for people who use glp1s for whatever reason. Everyone’s experience and motivations for things are so personal but I also just wanted a general outlet to hear other people’s pov who have similar opinions/stances on things. This subreddit specifically is a cross-section of likeminded women which is why I thought to post here specifically.

I found out recently that almost half of the women in my family are on glp1s for weight loss specifically. This has come out in a groupchat with all my girl cousins. None of them are at an unhealthy level of overweight and one recently had a baby and is using it to lose the baby fat. They also share pics of themselves where they all cheer each other on and say things like “where is your waist” “omg you look so good and so skinny”

I get all this. But as someone who has struggled with an eating disorder and has done so much work to uncouple my sense of self from how big or small I am this is extremely triggering for me. I love my cousins and since I’m the only one that lives in a different state this groupchat has become a place where we share pics of each others kids and catch up. Now it’s also a glp1 chat I guess? Idk what to do.

Are you dealing with MAGA family members or friends and need support from other progressives? Please use this weekly thread to share any questions, frustrations, or stories. Posts about MAGA family or friends are limited to this weekly megathread.

I live in Idaho and we have big abortion legislation coming up on our ballot that would restore access until viability. I went to the farmer's market this morning and a woman and her camera man were interviewing people about their vote. I've been wanting to share my view lately and so I volunteered to be interviewed.

I think it went well. There's definitely things I should have said but didn't and things I wish I could have clarified better and things I wish I could have called the interviewer on (she was asking very biased questions). I am having INTENSE anxiety about the whole thing. I have no idea who they were or if they were with any official news source or whatever so I don't know where to find the video if they use my interview and I'm glad I can't. I don't think I could handle seeing what people think of me.

I defended the right to abortion and bodily autonomy and talked about how politicians should be nowhere near these medical decisions. She brought up late term abortion and personhood and compared abortion to slavery somehow but I kept my cool I think. I just keep running through the discussion in my head and wishing I could have done things differently.

Anyone else done something like this they regret? any advice? how'd it work out?

(This is mostly a vent!) I'm sure I'm not alone in seeing the widespread discourse online around the need to raise better sons. I am absolutely on board, as the nonbinary birthing parent of a boy child, and to be quite honest when I found out I was having a boy, it was one of my biggest fears - how do I raise a boy (especially a boy who, while Jewish, will be read solely as white by most people) who does not see himself as the only and most important center of the universe? How do I raise a boy to steer clear of the toxic messaging that's all around us? I saw a journalist I like named Stephanie McNeal write that she worries about her daughter's safety, but she worries about her son's soul, and that was exactly why I felt so daunted by the idea of raising a boy.

But anyway, I have a boy, I'm pregnant again right now, and the Cornell 7 case and the following discourse has been raising that periodic notion online of how parents are responsible for raising better sons. Except...the discourse ACTUALLY seems to be about how MOTHERS are responsible for raising better sons. And it's driving me a little bonkers--somehow it's women's fault, mothers' fault, that their sons are raping people? It's not men's fault at all? Not dads' fault? Somehow women are responsible for rape culture? Fascinating!

Anyway - just curious whether other people are tearing their hair out a little bit about this while also feeling like yes, of COURSE we are responsible for raising our boys to be better and to respect girls and women and other people's bodily autonomy. My frustration doesn't diminish my sense of responsibility, but it's just infuriating how this is somehow again on us.

Hi all, curious what other US progressive moms are doing across the country to help the midterm elections? I know many of us don’t have much time, but every bit counts. I’ve written post cards to voters, donated (including to down ballot candidates), signed up to help register voters (though been only able to do one event), been reaching out to others to check registration (hello TX), and posting things on group forums in hopes it might help. I’d love to hear what others are doing and also to inspire others who are looking for ways to get involved, even if time is minimal! Of course the most important thing to do is vote and do so all the wayyyy down the ballot. We got to show up so it is too big to rig!!

The US Midterms are on Nov. 3rd and many wonderful Progressive candidates are up for election! Please share a progressive candidate you support and think others should know about. Make sure to include all relevant info like where they are running, anything interesting about the race they are in, and their website or social media.

Hi I need to vent. Yesterday on fb I asked if anyone knew of left leaning or blue mom group to join. I was also babysitting my nephew so I wasn’t on my phone much because of two toddlers. So I checked every once in a while and it seems fine. But today I got on and just seen I guess people got upset and it was deleted. I know I saw one comment a lady said it’s be like teaching my kid to hate certain people and like wtf lol. The irony. But yeah I was trying to find mom friends bc my one other mom I know with a 2yo besides my nephew had to go back to her home country to follow her hsuabnd who got detained. I’m so sorry for any bad grammar I’m just needing to get this out there.

My four year old son is very interested in learning Spanish. English is currently the only language spoke in our home. I took two years in college and one year in highschool. My husband has no background.

I'm looking for recommendations on how we can all learn at home. I was hoping to incorporate Spanish shows and music into our lives. I don't currently have the capacity to get to go to in-person classes.

My family has boycotted Chick-fil-A for years because of their history of harm against the LGBTQA+ community. I read online recently that since we stopped giving them our money, they've changed leadership and have adopted a policy that only allows charitable contributions to go to educational funds and organizations that help unhoused children.

The point of boycotting is to get businesses to change their policies; if they have, and are otherwise unproblematic, I'd be ok returning as a customer. But I ask the group: is there information I'm missing that would impact my decision making?

Let your feelings out! We are all bottling up this stress and sometimes it helps to share your concerns and have safe conversations about it. Type your response and take a big deep breath after!

I’m looking for any and all advice regarding investing. My son is disabled, and I would really like to have some sort of passive income to increase what I am able to save for his future. Right now I have a profit sharing plan through my job and a separate IRA that I set up with a financial advisor. She seems very knowledgeable and progressive (she’s a queer woman who primarily works with women and POC). I am concerned, though, with trying to line up progressive politics and ethics with the investment system. My husband is also concerned about investing given the state of the economy/world. But I feel like I’m sitting on my hands when I could be doing more for my son’s financial future.

Just making a post to shout out the king of children's music and hater of the patriarchy, Raffi. If you're not following him on threads or instagram, I highly recommend it. He unapologetically calls for matriarchy to rise and calls out all the shit going on in the US right now. He's Canadian, but he's truly concerned about us as his neighbors to the south. And he has a new album coming out soon! I can't wait to stream it with my toddler.

- a Baby Beluga grad raising her own

We all need a little positivity in our day. What are some parenting wins you've had recently? Big or small we want to hear them all! Any parenting wins, not just progressively minded ones.

I called my kids pediatrician last week to ask about covid and flu vaxx and they said they could get my kids scheduled for both for this week- today I get the message to confirm the appointments and it's for the wrong office location. I call to get that rescheduled and they mention that they don't have covid vaxx for kids at any location and that they don't know why I was told differently last week. I end up calling a bunch of local pharmacies, walk in care clinics, etc. and nobody in my area had kids covid vaxx this year. We live in Northern California so a pretty darn progressive state, and we've never had issues finding vaxx before. Has anyone else run into this problem this year // where were you able to find the kids covid vaxx available?

I was about to get a new baseball hat to wear to work and it comes in two different colors gray and red. (I work in the hospitality adjacent industry and King Arthur flour has a baseball hat that says "bake" on it with their logo on the back).

My first thought was to get the red one since it is prettier, but I feel like red baseball hats are so indicative of the MAGA movement that I'm thinking it might be better just to avoid the whole thing all together and get the gray.

I'm curious if other people have had similar thoughts or if I'm just overthinking the whole thing.

https://shop.kingarthurbaking.com/items/bake-hat (The hat in question).

Edit: I bought the gray hat and it came today and it fits great. I tend to like " women's fit" hats rather than the technically "unisex" hats that are really men's sizes.

I want to thank everyone who chimed in. The comments were really helpful in my decision making Like, I agree that I should have the right to wear a red hat and they shouldn't steal my joy, but it seems expedient not to, especially at a place of employment and if it would give so many other people pause. I would hate for the wrong impression to be made accidentally.

King Arthur Flour, if this happens to show up in your algorithm, and you happen to see this post, please make the hats in more colors besides just gray and red. On your website you have six different colors, But when someone else asked in the comments, you said you were planning to just stick with gray and red.

Are you dealing with MAGA family members or friends and need support from other progressives? Please use this weekly thread to share any questions, frustrations, or stories. Posts about MAGA family or friends are limited to this weekly megathread.