Join host Robin Breuner in this week’s episode of the Step Stories Podcast as she welcomes renowned stepfamily expert Dr. Patricia Papernow, who has spent five decades researching, teaching, and practicing in stepfamily relationships and is the author of Surviving and Thriving in Stepfamily Relationships and The Stepfamily Handbook. Dr. Papernow explains why stepfamilies differ fundamentally from first-time families, why clinicians receive little stepfamily training despite widespread prevalence, and why what works is not intuitive. She emphasizes that parents should retain discipline and authoritative limit-setting, while stepparents build trust through “connection, not correction,” warmth, and one-to-one time; harsh discipline by stepparents can be toxic. They discuss “stuck insider/outsider” dynamics, moving slowly for kids, communication skills, gray divorce and later-life stepfamilies, and planning for end-of-life care, inheritance, and sentimental items, including after a parent’s death.
Dr. Patricia Papernow
Email:\t\tppapernow@gmail.com
Website:\thttps://stepfamilyrelationships.com/
Books:\tSurviving and Thriving in Stepfamily Relationships
Robin Breuner
Email: robinbreuner@gmail.com
Website: www.robinbreuner.com
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Podcast: StepStories Podcast
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