Blended Families Unfiltered: Real Talk on Co-Parenting, Boundaries, and Healing

This Week on Dishing on Divorce: Navigating the Complexities of Stepparenting & Blended Families

In this heartwarming and deeply personal episode, hosts Mandy Pullen Barr and Deanna Coyle explore the often unspoken challenges—and surprising joys—of stepparenting, co-parenting, and blended family life.

Joining them is the remarkable Maria Natapov, founder of Synergistic Step Parenting and host of the Synergistic Step Parenting Podcast. With over 12 years of lived experience as a stepparent and a background in trauma-informed coaching, Maria shares her powerful personal journey: stepping unexpectedly into full-time parenting during a family crisis, ultimately becoming the legal mom to her stepdaughter, and transforming her challenges into a thriving coaching practice.

Together, Mandy, Deanna, and Maria explore:

• The emotional layers and cultural stigmas around stepparenting (goodbye, wicked stepmother trope)

• How to set healthy boundaries and build authentic, trust-filled relationships in blended families

• Why “you knew what you signed up for” is one of the biggest misconceptions

• Tools for parents and stepparents to create safe, open communication with kids — and why the stories children tell themselves after divorce matter so much

• How Maria works with families to move from chaos to connection, empowering both adults and kids to thrive

Mandy and Deanna also reflect on their own blended family experiences, sharing candid moments of what worked, what didn’t, and how important it is to have the right resources and support.

Whether you’re a stepparent, co-parent, bonus parent, or someone navigating love and family after divorce, this episode offers wisdom, humor, and practical takeaways you won’t miss.

Listen now, subscribe, and leave us a 5-star review — and remember, your next chapter might just be your best one yet.

Contact Maria

Email: maria@synergisticstepparenting.com

Website: https://synergisticstepparenting.com/