Why Parenting Topics Become So Toxic Online + My Perimenopause Wake-Up Call
The Mom Room
Renee Reina & Podcast Nation
4.8 • 602 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
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| 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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