28 Things I Wish I Knew at 18 (About Boys, Confidence, Dating, and Self Worth)

Mary's Cup of Tea: the Self Love Podcast for Women

Mary Jelkovsky

Body-image, Education, Relationships, Self Compassion, Society & Culture, Self Love For Women, Self Love, Self-improvement, Advice For Women, Women's Health, Health & Fitness, Mental Health, Love Yourself, Self Worth, Self-love, Body Image

4.9 • 745 Ratings

🗓️ 12 February 2026

⏱️ 41 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This conversation moves from chaotic sister humor to the deeper realities of building confidence as a woman. We talk about why most mistakes get made after midnight, how everything feels more dramatic in the dark, and why intensity is not the same thing as compatibility. We unpack the difference between attraction and anxiety, and why calm, secure love can is often the healthiest. Beyond dating and relationships, we get into the foundations of self-love for women. Lessons I learned in my 20s.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Alright, all right, all right, it's your favorite sisters.
0:07.4	Why don't you sing me a birthday song?
0:11.0	Happy birthday to you.
0:18.3	Happy birthday.
0:20.6	Is this awkward for you? Not at all. Happy birthday. Is this awkward for you? Not at all.
0:22.9	Happy birthday, dear mania.
0:31.6	Happy birthday to you. Wow, I actually like when people sing happy birthday to me. Really? I really don't.
0:42.1	I like attention. I like attention too, but I feel like when people, especially strangers,
0:48.7	sing happy birthday to me, I feel really awkward. But it's so precious that human beings get united by something as simple as a birthday
0:56.5	song. Hi, hello. Welcome to Mary's Cup of Tea, the Self-Love Podcast for Women. Though,
1:02.3	all self-lovers are welcome here. I'm Mary. I write and speak about self-love, and I'm best
1:08.1	known for my book, The Gift of Self-Love, and I also host retreats for
1:12.2	women. And this is the podcast that will inspire you to love yourself. Hey, sister, thanks for joining
1:18.6	me on my birthday episode. I thought it would be fun to do like a 28 things I wish I knew at 18
1:26.3	since I am turning 28 and you are going to be turning 18 later this year.
1:34.4	Wow. It's kind of a version of my golden birthday. Like I'm turning 28 on 28. Oh, no, I think that's called the diamond birthday, actually. Or wait, maybe that's by the
1:44.9	year. Because you, maybe your diamond birthday would be when you turn 98. Well, can't wait to look
1:51.4	forward to that. On my actual golden birthday, like when I turned eight on February 8th, I was grounded.
1:57.1	Why? I did something really bad. What? I was eight. I didn't know better. That's not explaining. What? I guess I could always cut this out if I don't want it in later, but I called CPS on mom and lied to them. The only reason I feel brave enough sharing that is because, do you know who Marcelo Hernandez is?
2:19.7	No, I don't.
2:20.4	The Cuban comedian, the one who did Domingo with Sabrina Carpenter and Ariana Grande.
2:24.6	I do know that.
	...

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