In this episode, I’m joined by the amazing Jackie Glaser—psychologist, educator, and transformational coach—for a powerful conversation about dating, marriage, and emotional healing. Jackie shares her own journey from psychologist and Today Show guest in Australia to deep Torah learning in Jerusalem, and how she now helps women tune into their inner world to unlock clarity in dating and life. We explore: ✨ When a relationship goes too deep before marriage ✨ How sure someone really needs to be before they say “yes” ✨ The difference between dating to assess and dating in a relationship ✨ How these experiences might play out beyond the chuppah Jackie answers from the dating perspective, and I chime in from the newlywed side—it’s real, honest, and packed with gems for wherever you are in your relationship journey. 🔗 Mentioned in this episode: 👉 Learn more about Jackie: jackieglaser.com 👉 Follow Jackie on Instagram: @datingbyjackieg 👉 Jackie and her husband Aharon share their dating journey on Stories of Hope Youtubeyoutube.com/watch?v=7TJpGLGPRYE&pp=0gcJCdgAo7VqN5tDYoutubeyoutube.com/watch?v=7TJpGLGPRYE&pp=0gcJCdgAo7VqN5tD 👉 Explore my resources for newlyweds and beyond: kaylalevin.com 💌 Subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss Part 2, where we dive into dating mindset, emotional triggers, surrender, and what to do when your spouse changes.

Today I'm excited to bring you a conversation with Shevi Samet, a Jewish educator who, among other things specializes in working with women before and after marriage.  We're going super meta here today, talking about true meaning of marriage (we discuss this from the perspective of Torah concepts but feel free to use this as a springboard for your own belief work). We also dove into why we get married, the social and individual concepts that drive us that we sometimes aren’t even aware of, the difference between love and commitment, and some bizarre and yet very helpful metaphors about parenting and marriage.  Most importantly, make sure you listen to the end when Shevi explains where love and giving fit into a marriage and how neither have anything to do with selflessness.  You can find Shevi at @itsalearninglife on Instagram or by email at sametshevi at gmail.com 

We talk a lot about the challenges that can come up with connecting to your spouse, especially as a newlywed. However, for some of us, the initial stressors of married life come from external factors. Bari Mitzmann came on this week to share her story about her first year of marriage and the health struggles she dealt with right as they were getting married. Bari is a great example of someone who embraces the “do-over.” Bio: Bari Mitzmann is a wife, mother and content creator living in Nevada. Her content on her Instagram @barianna and the Woman of Valor Podcast is geared toward finding meaning and inspiration in every day as well as breaking stigmas tied toward mental and chronic illness. Sources: Instagram: @barianna Website: https://barianna.com Podcast: Woman of Valor

This week I have Simone Sobel, an Atlanta-based couples counselor and trauma therapist on, to discuss some important and common questions about couples therapy: When is it time to go see a couples therapist? What red flags do newlyweds need to know about that may indicate that their husband might have a personality disorder or they may be in an abusive relationship? How to find a good couples therapist? What to expect when you go to a couples therapist? Is it ever too late for couples therapy? How to know if couples therapy is working? How do you decide who to go to between a therapist, a coach, or a mentor or religious advisor? Simone says that marriage classes and coaching are a great foundation for any couple, teaching psycho-educational tools that are beneficial to everyone, even if they’ve been married a long time. When is it time to go see a couples therapist? There are lots of common reasons that couples come to couples therapy. Communication is very poor (ie, they can never get on the same page about a certain issue, or there is stonewalling, chronic defensiveness, hyper-criticism, etc.) Breach of trust in the marriage (ex, one partner spending a lot of money in secret or looking at pornography) Devestating or dificult life events (losing a job, health crisis, loss of a child or parent) Lifecycle change (retirement, new baby, empty nest, a major move) Negative cycles that aren’t going away and you need outside help. Fine tuning a good relationship (no, there don’t have to be major issues to go to a therapist!) Spiritual mentors can be very helpful for spiritual based issues, and often they give very good guidance and advice. If you find you are going again and again to your priest, rabbi, etc., and aren’t making progress, that would be a time to consider a therapist. What are some red flags that your husband may have a psychological or personality issue or disorder? If a woman feels consistantly criticized and put down in a way that makes him/her feel insecure, demaned, or shamed. Ongoing provocation, even with a calm or apologetic period between cycles, are considered a cycle of abuse. If your husband is trying to isolate you from your friends, this is a red flag. If your spouse can never take responsibility for an issue, this is also a red flag. Kayla’s note: friends are not the best place to “diagnose” your husband. A therapist will be able to distinguish between normal human misbehavior and serious dysfunction or abuse. Simone: Find one person to speak with, more of a mentor, who is supportive. A coach or therapist can be neutral and non-judgemental. Couples can get into negative cycles and say mean things to each other, but it’s not necessarily abusive. Read more on the First Year Married website.

This is a LANDMARK episode for How to Glow because today's guest has had a tremendous influence on the way that I approach coaching and personal development for you all. Rebbetzin Miriam Kosman is a lecturer, teacher, and author of the book Circle, Arrow, Spiral and she joins me today to discuss what gender is all about in Jewish thought and how that might apply to us in our lives and relationships. Want to take this work further? I would love to coach you inside my coaching program, How to Glow. It's a no-commitment monthly program where you can get coached every week and be part of an amazing community of women. Ready to give it a try? Join today at kaylalevin.com/coaching

This week we are in our second of the four self-mastery skills that will move us into Glow energy! A few updates before we get started The Modern Jewish Girl podcast is awesome! If you know anyone exploring Judaism, send them her way! Lots of questions coming in about How to Glow! I'm sharing some details with you about what it will look like inside: We will have a monthly Topic Call and two Q&A calls where you can get coached live or submit questions in advance. I'm also offering my three signature courses inside: Time Management, Foundations, and the First Year Married Online Course.  How to Glow is open for membership from November 28-30.  Today's skill is Being in Your Lane. It's simple and you can use it all the time. First I want you to notice what happens when you get busy with "his lane"--what he's doing, what you think he SHOULD be doing, and all those things. Where does it take you? How do you show up? How do you feel? Are you effective now? Does it work? No! Resisting and judging doesn't really change what's happening. It's not effective. What do you get to experience when you're in your lane? Focused on your goals, your power, your possibilities... This is so much more fun! And more effective--we are engaged in an area where we can make changes Choose what you want to create with the reality or situation you are in Want more support? Join us inside How to Glow to get all your coaching questions answered.