Dear Nina: Conversations About Friendship

Author: Nina Badzin

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Description

“Dear Nina: Conversations About Friendship” is for anyone who wants to make sense of the gray areas of adult friendship: changed closeness, uneven effort, group dynamics, hurt feelings, and what to say and do next. As Nina always says, "Friendship issues are ageless and timeless." You can listen and relate to these topics no matter your age or your stage of life.

And Dear Nina is a top 1% podcast so people of all ages are listening!

Whether you've agonized over a text, wondered why you're always the one reaching out, found yourself drifting away from an old friend, or you want to make (and keep!) friends at ANY stage of life—this show gets it. It’s serious and practical, but you’ll laugh a lot too as you recognize the universality of human behavior when it comes to friendships.

"Dear Nina" is hosted by Nina Badzin, who has been answering anonymous questions with "warm directness" in her friendship column since 2014 and in other writing about friendship for over 20 years. Every episode digs into the questions adults don't always want to ask out loud. Should you salvage a friendship that's fading or let it be? How do you kindly turn down an acquaintance who wants to be closer, but you're just not feeling the same chemistry? With over 200 episodes, the examples are endless.

Nina has been writing about friendship in various capacities for two decades, and her advice has been featured in NPR, Real Simple Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, Time Magazine, The Skimm, and many other outlets.

Every episode leaves room for the fact that there are no perfect answers. There's only real talk, a lot of warmth, and the reminder that if you're overthinking your friendships, you're probably just someone who cares deeply about the people in your life.

Social connections MATTER deeply for your health and happiness! Let's talk about how to make it all easier.

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226 Episodes

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#215 - When Your Child Gets Dropped From a Friend Group

2026-10-1241:58

What can you do when your child gets deliberately pushed out of a friend group? Andrea, founder of Strong Mom, Strong Girl, joins me to discuss the difference between ordinary friendship disappointments and targeted exclusion, why parents shouldn't try to fix every social problem, and how our own reactions can make a difficult situation better or worse. We talk about navigating relationships with the other parents, helping kids move forward, and Andrea's powerful reminder that our children can “borrow your peace rather than pick up on your panic.” Special thank you, as always, to my assistant producer, Rebekah Jacobs!

#214 - Are We Giving Up on Our Friends Too Quickly? (Melissa Radke)

2026-10-0546:00

Are we too quick to decide a friendship isn’t working? Melissa Radke and I talk about friendship breakups we regretted, jealousy, uneven effort, fear of rejection, friendship “tests,” and the urge to run before giving a friend the chance to respond. Sometimes a friendship can be hard without being wrong. Special thank you, as always, to my assistant producer, Rebekah Jacobs!

#213 - Friendship "Flings," Uneven Effort, and Being Stuck in the Middle (Dr. Miriam Kirmayer)

2026-09-2852:12

What does it mean when a friendship gets intense fast, one person always does the reaching out, or a friend treats you differently in a group? Dr. Miriam Kirmayer is back to unpack those gray areas, plus what to do when you’re caught between two friends and how to tell the difference between a friendship pattern and a real shift in the relationship. Special thank you, as always, to my assistant producer, Rebekah Jacobs!

#212 - What Your Behavior May Be Saying to Your Friends (Laura Tremaine)

2026-09-2237:02

What does your behavior communicate to your friends—even when you genuinely care about them? Author, Laura Tremaine, joins me to talk about the gap between good intentions and follow-through, why close friendships can’t always run on history alone, and what it means to make friendship a real priority. Special thank you, as always, to my assistant producer, Rebekah Jacobs!

#211 - You Don’t Have to Be Fully Secure to Have Good Friendships (Dr. Marisa G. Franco)

2026-09-1437:01

Dr. Marisa G. Franco returns to talk about her new book, Worth, and how self-worth shapes the way we experience friendship. We discuss why old rejection can follow us into new relationships, how insecurity can affect reciprocity and reassurance, and why our assumptions about what friends think of us aren’t always accurate. Marisa also explains why the goal isn’t to become perfectly secure—it’s to become “secure-ish.” Special thank you, as always, to my assistant producer, Rebekah Jacobs!

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ALL THE DEAR NINA LINKS + CONTACT INFO

Dear Nina: Conversations About Friendship