Aged Out: Life After Foster Care

瓜神app

Aged Out: Life After Foster Care

By Kaia Findlay,

Amanda Magnus, Anita Rao

Published August 5, 2022 at 11:39 AM EDT

An illustration of a young white person with brown hair walking away, wearing a backpack and rolling a suitcase. On the left is a sign that says "Department of Health & Human Services" and on the right is a bus stop. Over the bus stop are the words "Aged Out" in red.

Anita had a terrible 18th birthday (she'll tell you later), but not much changed for her when she legally became an adult. For tens of thousands of young folks in the U.S. each year who turn 18 while in foster care, "legal adulthood" brings a slew of new challenges. Two women who aged out of foster care tell Anita about their experiences and how they informed the relationships they're building today. Plus, she meets someone who's seen the foster care system from both sides 鈥� as a kid, and as a foster parent.

Meet the guests:

Stephani Smith, a mental health professional, shares how her time in foster care shaped her philosophy on relationships 鈥� especially the relationship with her stepdaughter
, holistic purpose coach and author of "," explains how her foster care experience impacted her romantic relationships
Jessica Lloyd-Rogers, chair of the Council of State Affiliates, talks about how her own time in the system informed how she parented her daughter and the young people she fostered

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Kaia Findlay

Kaia Findlay is the lead producer of Embodied, 瓜神app's weekly podcast and radio show about sex, relationships and health. Kaia first joined the 瓜神app team in 2020 as a producer for The State of Things.

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Amanda Magnus

Amanda Magnus is the executive producer of Embodied, a weekly radio show and podcast about sex, relationships and health. She has also worked on other 瓜神app shows including Tested and CREEP.

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Anita Rao

Anita Rao is an award-winning journalist, host, creator, and executive editor of "Embodied," a weekly radio show and podcast about sex, relationships & health.

See stories by Anita Rao