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The Mom Room

Why Parenting Topics Become So Toxic Online + My Perimenopause Wake-Up Call

The Mom Room

Renee Reina & Podcast Nation

Society & Culture, Kids & Family, Parenting

4.8602 Ratings

🗓️ 21 May 2026

⏱️ 38 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Thursday May 21 2026: Welcome back to The Mom Room! In today’s solo episode, I’m diving into one of the most misunderstood topics online: parenting “data.”

After seeing endless debates and ignorant comments surrounding Tuesday's episode with Emily Oster, I wanted to explain what people actually mean when they reference “the data.” Spoiler alert: it’s not one magical study that tells parents how to raise their kids. I break down how research typically works, why the public gets flooded with misleading clickbait headlines from single studies, and how nuance completely disappears once parenting conversations hit the internet.

I also talk about why certain parenting topics trigger such intense emotional reactions, and why I think so much of it is connected to identity, guilt, societal pressure, and the impossible standards placed on mothers.

Then we switch gears into a very personal rant about perimenopause symptoms that completely blindsided me. Sensitive skin? Perioral dermatitis? Melasma? Apparently hormones can wreak havoc in ways I had absolutely no idea about. If you’ve been feeling like your body is suddenly doing strange things for no apparent reason… this conversation might make you feel a little less alone.

As always, this episode is honest, unfiltered, educational, and sprinkled with a healthy amount of ranting. Enjoy!

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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

This episode is brought to you by Merritt Beauty. This is a dream sponsor for me because there's lots

0:06.4

of days where I'm just trying to get everything done in the morning. Get Milo ready, get his lunch made,

0:12.6

get myself ready. And if I manage to do something for myself or I'm like, you know, put on a little

0:18.6

bit of blush so I don't look like a ghost at drop off.

0:22.7

That means I'm having a good morning.

0:24.2

And let me tell you, my absolute favorite beauty product for the last, I would say, four months is the merit flush balm.

0:33.8

It's like this little thing.

0:34.9

Honestly, I put it on my cheeks and sometimes I put it on my lips

0:37.6

because you can put it on both. It just gives me a natural, healthy glow without overdoing it. And now

0:43.2

I have two different shades depending on what I'm feeling that day. I feel like everybody wants that

0:48.5

quick five minute makeup routine. And Merritt is a minimalist beauty brand that makes that possible. I'm not even kidding.

0:56.6

Their products are designed to help you look put together in minutes. Gone are the days of having

1:02.5

a makeup bag filled with products. No, you literally just need a handful of Merit products,

1:09.3

five minutes in the morning, and you're done.

1:11.6

All of Merritt's products are clean, vegan, cruelty-free, and made with nourishing

1:16.1

skin care ingredients that leave your skin looking better long after taking your makeup off.

1:20.8

Right now, Merit Beauty is offering our listeners their signature makeup bag with your first order

1:26.4

at Meritbeautcom. That's M-E-R-I-T-Beautcom to get your

1:31.9

free signature makeup bag with your first order. Meritbeauts.com. This episode is brought to you by

1:39.1

Quince. And my mom and I just had a conversation about quince because she is obsessed with making capsule

1:46.3

wardrobes and having pieces that all go together and that will last for years and also have a

1:53.1

timeless feel. And she's not wrong. When you do that, getting dressed is so much simpler.

...

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