Ep.278: She Was the Perfect Student—And Secretly Depressed

Parenting Great Kids with Dr. Meg Meeker

Dr. Meg Meeker

Kids & Family, Education, Parenting, Self-improvement

4.6 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 6 June 2025

⏱️ 43 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

What happens when a high-achieving, all-American girl is silently battling depression? In this powerful episode, Dr. Meg Meeker sits down with Allie Marie Smith, life coach, speaker, and author of Social Media Reset, to explore how the pressure to be perfect—and the influence of social media—nearly led her to end her life. Allie shares her story of growing up in Silicon Valley, struggling with hidden sadness from a young age, and reaching a breaking point as a teen. She opens up about the moment that changed everything near the Golden Gate Bridge, her journey back to mental health through faith, and how stepping away from social media helped her reclaim her joy. As summer begins and screen time skyrockets, this episode offers an honest and hopeful conversation about the emotional impact of social media on kids and teens—and how families can move toward healing, connection, and purpose. In This Episode: Allie’s story of hidden depression behind straight A’s and smiles How social media deepened her struggle—and what changed when she unplugged The myth of “they look fine”—and how to see beneath the surface How faith and mental health support saved her life The dangers of unchecked social media: from self-harm to trafficking What parents need to understand about screen time this summer How Allie’s nonprofit Wonderfully Made is helping the next generation reclaim joy and identity Join Our New Parenting Community — FREE! Get access to webinars, mini-courses, exclusive content, a private forum to connect with other parents, and so much more. Start parenting with more confidence and real support: ⁠meekerparenting.com⁠ About Allie Marie Smith Allie Marie Smith is the author of Social Media Reset: A 30-Day Guided Journey to Unplug, Reconnect with God, and Reclaim Your Joy and founder of Wonderfully Made, a faith-based nonprofit equipping girls and women with resources for mental health, identity, and purpose. Her mission is to help young people break free from the pressure of perfection and discover their God-given worth. Sponsored by: Hungryroot – 40% off + a free item in every box at ⁠hungryroot.com/drmeg⁠ (code DRMEG) Acorns – Start investing with spare change: ⁠acorns.com/drmeg⁠ Sponsored by Rula — Therapy should be affordable and covered by insurance. Rula connects you with licensed therapists based on your needs—and works with over 100 insurance plans. Get started at rula.com/drmeg. Acorns Early – Teach your kids about money: ⁠acornsearly.com/drmeg⁠ WHO SMARTED? – A podcast that makes kids laugh while they learn. Search “WHO SMARTED?” wherever you get your podcasts. KiwiCo – $15 off your Summer Adventure Series at ⁠kiwico.com/DRMEG⁠ Børn Shoes – Crafted for all-day support, top-quality style, and made to move with you. Get 15% off plus free shipping with code DRMEG at ⁠BornShoes.com⁠ – comfort never looked so good. Summer Bridge Workbooks with IXL – Keep your kids learning and loving it this summer at ⁠summerbrains.com/DRMEG⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Race the rudder. Raise the sails. Raise the sales!
0:04.0	Captain, an unidentified ship approaching. Over.
0:07.0	Roger that. Wait. Is that an enterprise sales solution?
0:12.0	Reach sales professionals, not professional sailors.
0:16.0	With LinkedIn ads, you can target the right people by industry, job title and more.
0:21.4	To get £100 off your first campaign, go to LinkedIn.com slash lead to claim your credit.
0:26.6	That's LinkedIn.com slash lead. Terms and conditions apply.
0:32.0	Adobe Express is the quick and easy create anything app. It's a game changer for my business, my go-to for creating content.
0:39.3	From social posts to images, videos, flyers, whatever I need to stand out.
0:45.3	With customizable templates and smart features, it saved me endless hours.
0:50.3	And the best bit, it's free.
0:53.3	Search for Adobe Express to find out more and get started today. And the best bit, it's free.
0:57.9	Search for Adobe Express to find out more and get started today.
1:03.5	On today's episode of Parenting Great Kids.
1:08.8	I was in group therapy with people who had reasons to be depressed while I didn't.
1:12.9	I grabbed my car keys one day in San Jose in Silicon Valley and I stuck out of the house and I went to the Glen Gate Bridge with the attention to end my life
1:18.2	by jumping off. And I was driving recklessly. I was near the bridge. I was approaching the bridge
1:25.2	and I got a flat tire. This is parenting great kids with
1:30.7	Dr. Meg Meeker. Today we're talking with Allie Marie Smith, life coach speaker and author of the new
1:36.9	book, Social Media Reset. Allie has walked this road herself and now she's inviting women and girls to unplug,
1:46.2	reconnect with God, and rediscover the joy we've been missing by trading screen time for real
1:53.1	time with God, ourselves, and the people we love. That's a big introduction. Allie, thanks for coming on today.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Dr. Meg Meeker, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Dr. Meg Meeker and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.