The Bobby Bones Show - TAKE THIS PERSONALLY: The Other Side of The Holidays: Real Voices, Real Struggles

Episode Date: December 21, 2025

The holidays can be magical: full of twinkly lights, sweet treats, and time with people we love. But they can also shine a spotlight on grief, change, loneliness, and the complicated emotions so many of us quietly carry this time of year. In this episode, Morgan shares vulnerable listener voice notes about the real struggles happening behind the highlight reels. From divorce, illness, mental health battles, and career changes to navigating grief after losing parents, partners, or friends, these stories remind us we’re never as alone as we think. Morgan opens up about her own mixed year and responds to each message with empathy and honesty, creating space for anyone who’s simply doing their best to make it through the season. If this time of year feels heavy, messy, bittersweet, or complicated… this episode is for you. 🎧 Subscribe to the podcast for more episodes. 📲 Follow @takethispersonally on Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me. Clivert Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits,

my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated.

So let's get to it. Listen to the. the Clifford show on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects.

From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make to the players flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice podcast on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slicel Life 12

and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. When a group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist, they take matters into their own hands. I vowed, I will be his last target. He is not going to get away with this. He's going to get what he deserves. We always say that, trust your girlfriends.

Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Wood. My next guest, it's Will Ferrell. My dad gave me the best advice ever. He goes, just give it a shot.

But if you ever reach a point where you... you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck.

Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In 2023, Bachelor star Clayton Eckerd was accused of fathering twins. But the pregnancy appeared to be a hoax. You doctored this particular test twice, Ms. Owens, correct? I doctored the test once. It took an army of internet detectives to uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Greg, a lesbian, Michael Ranjini.

My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trapped. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Listen to a love trapped podcast on the EyeHawks. Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. It was the same time last year where I decided to do an episode that addressed a lot of

holiday struggles. And it was one that I didn't realize so many of us needed. Christmas is my favorite time of year. I love the warm lights. I love the yummy treats and spending time with family and friends and going to holiday pop-up bars where there's all kinds of pretty sparkly decorations. and I put up my Christmas decorations way earlier than the world approves of because I can't wait for the season to come.

But what I realized in doing that episode and gearing up to do that first episode was how much this holiday also means grief and sorrow and sadness and anger and comes with many more emotions than just joy. And so I had done that episode in hopes to bring people together even more. a season that's meant to bring people together, but not through the happiness and the lights and the presence, but through things that are hard. And you guys all shared so many things about your lives and you've done it this year again in audio form so people can hear your voices through the things that you've gone through. And I cannot wait to share these things that you've shared

with me and been vulnerable enough to open up so that other people can feel less alone through similar things they may be facing. And I know that. that not only with Christmas, New Year's follows soon after, and that means people are going to be posting a lot of highlight reels, a lot of things that you're going to see where they had this banger year and you're going to look at it and say, holy crap, that's not what my life looks like at all. And I need you to know that it's not what most of our lives look like. Now, I'm going to give you a vulnerable moment for me. This has been a beautiful year for me. along with a really hard year. I've lost certain people close to me in different friendships,

and a lot of things have happened in my family, and I have been heartbroken over dealing with my dog and my cat, both being diagnosed with two lifelong diseases that we're now having to face and treat for the rest of their lives. And at the same time, meeting some of the someone who I genuinely believe I'm going to spend the rest of my life with and also having my dog and cat make full recoveries at this moment in time and having people who do surround me that love me and support me in so many ways. So while this year, thankfully, hasn't come with much grief in the passing since. I do identify with those as I've lost both of my grandparents and the holidays often bring that grief back up because I miss going to their house on Christmas

Eve to play poker with all my uncles when I was very much not good on it, but I'd sit on my dad's lap and steal all those coins to play it. And the holidays do bring up hard things as much as it be a beautiful year and it has been an awesome year. I look at this life that I've gotten to live in the past year and I got to host my first ever show that's going to be on streaming platforms and my health is improving after years of me putting it through the ringer and I did meet someone incredibly special. So I know that a lot of us are feeling mixed feelings with the holiday approaching and with the season happening already. So it's why I do this episode. And I can't wait to now dive into all of the things that you guys have shared. And I hope all of us throughout this

episode can feel seen and connected. And maybe, just maybe, it will make this holiday a little bit easier. And if you're watching this on YouTube, then I have my emotional support water bottle here because one, I don't drink near enough water, but also I have a feeling I'm just going to need a few water breaks throughout this episode. I almost already needed one. So we're going to start here. I'm not going to share any names. People were kind enough to share them, but I think it's best just to share their voices and let you hear their stories. So we're going to start here with the first one. Honestly, 2025 was the hardest year

walked through and as we just went through Thanksgiving and now we're approaching Christmas and the new year it's hard. I don't feel excited or joyful and you see all these people

around you and on social media and it feels like everybody else is so happy and joyful and has wonderful friends and family and yes i'm surrounded by people but i'm surrounded by people yet i feel so alone and i know as the new year approaches everyone's going to be posting their highlight reels and all the things that they've accomplished this year. And truly, I feel like the only thing I've accomplished this year is surviving it. Well, I think a lot of us can relate to that because surviving, not thriving, has been the phrase for many, for several years.

And it is a very isolating feeling to feel like you're just surviving all the time. When the health struggles I've dealt with this year, I've realized a lot about myself and about my body and that I was, in fight or flight for a really long time following a very traumatic episode in my life. And it just continued to spiral with the way that I was treating and allowing myself to feel. And I think it can be so difficult to find our way out when we feel alone, when we feel like we can't come back from something. I know that feeling all too well where you sit in a room and you're surrounded by people.

and it seems like it'd be beautiful, but everything in you is numb or everything in you can't feel what's happening in that moment and you need away from it. I hope you know that's normal. I don't think anybody for 100% of their life ever feels completely on. And we've all had these moments, whether it be because of hard things or just because mental health has been pushed to the limits. It's okay to feel that way, and you're definitely not alone in that struggle. We got another one here.

In January, I bought the family business. In April, I left my abusive ex-husband and became a single mom. Yesterday, a judge granted me said divorce, despite him fighting against it every step of the way. And this month, I turned 30. even though good things have happened to me this year, it still feels bittersweet because I'm grieving the life I thought I would have by the time I turned 30. First, I want to say if you, again, are watching on YouTube, you saw my fist bump because anybody leaving an abusive relationship should have all the praise in the world. It's one of the hardest things to get out of, and especially with kids. I cannot imagine the extra toll it took on your body to go through that divorce, to fight like hell to get out of it and put yourself first for once in what was probably years.

And I know that it's going to be a long road ahead, a long road for healing for you and a long road of recovery for your whole family. But I'm proud of you. I'm so proud that you did take that step and put yourself first and fought to do it. and while the road is going to be long, it's going to be bright and it will be beautiful. And you're going to thank yourself a whole lot. I'm sure you already are as you sent that voice note because I would imagine a weight has been lifted off of your shoulders in a whole bunch of different ways. And taking over a family business while also doing all of that is absolutely wild and you're a superhuman. And I think it's so cool that you believed in yourself to do all of it.

And we should praise us getting to do the things that we've always wanted to do and finally doing them. That's an accomplishment all in itself. But I can also imagine the grief that's coming when I had left my abusive relationship. It was incredibly difficult to remember all the bad things that happened, not only just because I blocked them out, but because he had me really believing in a life that was supposed to happen. And I had to rewrite the entire life that I wanted for my future and rewrite a lot of my story that didn't have another narrative in it. So that grief that comes with that will be hard.

But I'm just so proud of you. And I think this is going to be your next best season yet. and I hope that your community rallies around you and your village to help you raise your kiddos in a way that's beautiful and protected. And I hope that just all the good things come your way. This is kind of up the same realm, so I put these two together. This season is rough for me because it's a constant reminder that I had to give up the line. I was living to pursue the life I was dreaming of. I've been divorced from my husband for 10 years now.

We have both moved on. I've been with my fiance for a little over three years now. But me and my ex share three kids. So the holiday season is a constant reminder of missed tradition memories and moments that I didn't get to have with my kids and he didn't get to have with them either it's just rough it's hard to put your mental well-being over everything else so this is just a reminder that it's hard It's worth it. It is absolutely worth it.

And two things can be true, right? That it's the best thing you did to get a divorce while also it was hard and you wish that it did work out. And it's beautiful that you have both moved on and found different lives. But I don't know that the grief ever goes away. I don't have kids so I cannot speak from that perspective. but I don't know that you'll ever not grieve that life. I think it will always be part of you. I think anything we lose is always part of us,

but over time it develops into different shape, form and memory, if you will. And I believe that this new life that you're creating is going to bring new memories that will start to make the old ones easier. But I just don't believe. it'll ever go away, unfortunately. And there is a beautifulness to that that you can always have those memories and remember a life that you did have and a life that you created and you should be proud of. Because just because something ended doesn't mean you shouldn't be proud of it. You still did it. You still had that marriage. You still created beautiful children.

And you're still living a beautiful life after that. We often have this finite reality when it comes to things ending. And there are some situations that it should absolutely be the case, as in the one just before this talking about an abusive relationship that should be over and ended and no repeating and going back to it. But just because something ends, doesn't mean it ends in our hearts and in our lives. And it doesn't have to. Just because you decided to close the chapter doesn't mean the whole story's over. And anybody could tell you. you a million different ways of how you should handle that and I'm never going to tell anybody how to handle anything but I think believing and replaying those memories has actually beneficial to you

to continue to be proud of yourself that not only did you create a beautiful life first but you also chose another path for you because you thought it was going to be better and I think that's a great choice in so many ways. So there's the two things can be true in that scenario. And I often know that that saying is easier said than done. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying.

Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagine. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment.

And the next, we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. If you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. What's up, everyone? I'm Ago Vodam. My next guest, you know from Step Brothers Anchorman, Saturday Night Live, and the Big Money Players Network, it's Will Ferrell. Woo, woo, woo, woo, woo. My dad gave me the best. advice ever. I went and had lunch with him one day and I was like, and dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings. I'm working my

way up through and I know it's a place that come look for up and coming talent. He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you, which is really sweet. Yeah. He goes, but there's so much luck involved. And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, It's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there.

Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest, the director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galko, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects.

From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make to the players flying under the radar, this is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice Podcast on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, for wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slica Life 12 and TikTok Podcast Network. work on TikTok. In 2023, former bachelor star Clayton Eckerd found himself at the center of a paternity scandal. The family court hearings that followed revealed glaring inconsistencies in her story.

This began a years-long court battle to prove the truth. You doctored this particular test twice in someone's, correct? I doctored the test ones. It took an army of internet detectives to crack the case. I wanted people to be able to see what their tax dollars were being used for. Some lights the greatest disinfected. They would uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Gregalespian and Michael Marantini. My mind was blown.

I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trap. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Ladies and gentlemen, breaking news at Maricopa County as Laura Owens has been indicted on fraud charges. This isn't over until justice has served in Arizona.

Listen to Love Trapped Podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. There's two golden rules that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl. You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes.

And rule two, never mess with her friends either. We always say that trust your girlfriends. I'm Anna Sinfield, and in this new season of the girlfriends, Oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist. I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me?

The cops didn't seem to care. So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed. I will be his last target. He's going to get what he deserves. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Here's another one. Rare change. I decided I'm going to switch and go to the medical field and get into occupational therapy. And so this year was the first year where it was, I had a spring, summer, fall semester. And I'm 30. And going back to school full time like this has just been wild to me. I never thought that I would be able to do this. When I finished my marketing degree, I was like, hell yeah,

get me out of school kind of thing. So it's really funny that I am going back to school full time and doing this. But I guess my advice is that you can always change your mind. You can always change your dream. And opportunities will come for you. And you just have to walk through that door. And it's going to be hard and it's going to be challenging.

But you can get through it and you can survive this. Can I just say holy crap that you guys got. married and then this happened, I cannot imagine that experience for both of you. And also incredible that you were by his side through it all to work through those things. And I bet he is incredibly appreciative of the support that you provided him. But wow, what a crazy turn of events to then see a profession and say, you know what I'm going to change what I'm doing and walk through this door because much like, She said, I applaud anybody who can see a crack opening and say I'm going to go after that

because I know there's times where I've seen cracks open and I haven't taken it. Or heck, even a window open and I won't jump out of it. To completely change the life that to go after something potentially even better is an accomplishment all on its own. And it's so cool that you're doing it and it may feel crazy. and I think this world is going to try and make you do anything to stay comfortable, to stay in the position that you're always in, because it's easier to be comfortable than it is to be uncomfortable,

than it is to try something new. And the fact that you're doing that, all amidst a whole lot of things happening, is wild and awesome. So, dang, inspirational. And you probably didn't even expect. That was going to be my response, but I think it's awesome. The month of November was extremely hard.

I got anxiety and ADD symptoms that resurfaced that I haven't felt in 10 years since college. And after struggling for an entire month, productivity decreasing, realizing that I was doom scrolling and staring at my computer screen at work without getting any work done, finally decided to go get help for the first time. I saw a psychiatrist for the first time ever, started therapy, and started anxiety medicine for the first time ever. And I'm honestly feeling much better and shedded my shame in regards to getting that help. But so happy that I did. Okay, I want to give some snaps here because getting help is awesome. I think if you ever feel the need, there is a lot of shame associated with that from a multiple.

of places, but there shouldn't be. Getting help is you putting yourself first, and you put yourself first to take care of you. And mental health is no joke. And getting medication to support you, to go through life is incredibly important. It's incredibly brave. And I love that you shared this because I know there's a lot of people out there where getting help could be shameful. But I don't want you to feel shame. I want you to be proud. I want you to say I did that. Wear that badge of honor because getting help means you're setting aside your pride, your ego, and saying, I need to do better for me. And you're showing up for yourself. There's not a lot of people who can actually say they're showing up for themselves. They actually put themselves on the back burner. I'm one of them often.

And to say, hey, no, I need to set this aside and take this step forward is incredible. And I hope more people do. I hope in the new year we can have less mental health issues because it's clear that each year it keeps getting worse and worse with financial issues, the economy, the different things that people are experiencing from job loss to losing people. we are on a very difficult stage with mental health. And talking to someone unbiased, like a therapist or a psychologist or whatever that may be, is a brave and great thing to do. And there should be absolutely zero shame attached to that. Hi, Morgan.

I'm Sherry. Currently live in Tennessee, but moved just under three months ago from Maryland. diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer about 15 months ago and currently my struggle is because of my treatment I've gained a lot of weight and despite a lot of effort my treatment is preventing me from losing weight so not feeling myself struggling with body image really wanting to get back into the dating world and new state, not knowing anybody, having cancer, meddling weight issues. It's been a lot. Thanks for letting me vet for a second. Love your pod. Sherry, I hope you know that you are beautiful. And I know that just in the way that you

presented yourself, you're, gosh, and it sounds like you need to give yourself some grace because you've been through it and you can't fix the world in one day and you can't fix yourself in one day you are fighting an illness that shouldn't exist in the frickin first place fuck cancer but you're taking care of yourself you're doing treatments to help you get better and I hate that it's taking away your confidence and it's hurting you in ways that you didn't imagine probably when this all happened you were just thinking about the diagnosis and how you're going to survive and now you're having to face the body image struggles and the confidence and things that you just probably were not anticipating. And I hope you know that focusing on surviving and taking care of

yourself and your health right now is all that matters. The dating will come, the confidence will come back, the ways that you want to take care of yourself when you've fully healed will still be there. and I also hope you feel supported by whoever is around you and is reminding you that you're beautiful and going through any of this, especially, heck, if you are trying to date and all of this, props to you, because I know that's incredibly difficult. But more so than that, hopefully it will help you weed few even more red flags that are out there because hopefully if you do meet someone, They show you how incredibly awesome, strong, and supportive they are. And if not, kick them to the curb really fast. But more than anything, I want you to give yourself some grace because you're going through a really tough time and moving in all kinds of things that are happening at one time for you.

And sometimes it's okay to just survive. There will come a time in your life when you will thrive and you will heal and you will feel amazing. And that's not going to be every day. And that's okay. There are a lot of days where I often don't feel great. And I feel like, holy crap, what has happened? And that's just on a normal day. I can't imagine dealing with a fight that you're fighting right now and trying to feel great about yourself. So I hope you give yourself grace. I hope you find your sparkle again. And hopefully you can also take some time for yourself over the holidays and treat yourself to something, whether it's to a dinner date or a spa or, heck, your favorite guilty pleasure treat. I just want you to give

yourself grace and treat yourself because I think that's what you deserve this holiday. Is my under sedation and she's still alive, but you're trying to get her brain to stop swelling and everything to go down and look normal, and we're just waiting, and not knowing when she's going to get better, when she's going to wake up, and it's just hard, like right now, and not having her here for the holidays.

That's our hardest thing, so please keep us in your prayers. Thank you. Well, we absolutely are, and one of the first of the ones, the hardest things is to be in a situation where you're not getting quick answers and you don't know what's going to happen and the silence of that is really deafening. Anytime I've had loved ones in the hospital, it feels like I'm just waiting by the phone for that call or any call for that matter to

know what's next or what's coming and to be there and witness it is even more difficult. and right around the holidays when you just want to all be together. And it gives you a lot of perspective. The hospital visits will always bring perspective of how you just wish you had time back or you just wish you had one more moment of this. My heart's with you guys. And I hope that she is able to recover so great and be back with you guys soon. And hopefully you can celebrate a really late holiday.

but we're thinking about you. I think the hardest part of the holidays is learning to navigate them without your parents. It's a whole new normal that you're absolutely not used to, especially when you don't have a lot of family around, or when you possibly do have a lot of family around, but you are not close with them. And it's absolutely a struggle. That's a very hard thing to navigate through the holidays,

regardless of what holiday it is. And it's especially hard when those holidays were your parents' favorite. So for anyone that's dealing with that, whether it be a new normal or an old normal, my heart absolutely goes out to you. And just know that it's a struggle for all of us. I can't imagine. The idea of even losing my parents makes me tear up. So I cannot imagine what that day will be like when they're no longer here. and the grief I hear in your voice is heartbreaking and to face a holiday that they loved that you

probably spent together and did all kinds of wonderful things that's hard and I wish there were magic words that I could say and to make it all better and give you a band-aid to help the pain but there isn't. I have a few of these that are about grief, so I'm going to let them share, and then I will give you guys my perspective on grief. Just the first Christmas since my dad passed away, and I'm having a hard time.

It's hard just to keep going on with life as usual when it feels like my world is standing, still. My name's Logan. I live in Maryland. Me and my wife had our first baby in January. And on November 9th of this year, from non-small cell lung cancer. So that's been tough to navigate. But just got to keep pushing through my bone show. I listen to you every day. And thank you for what you do. Hi, my name is Nicole. I lost my husband to brain cancer two years ago. the Christmas season has become a bit more difficult because of that reason. We celebrate with our friends and our family,

but that only illuminates that my family is not all together in seeing all of their families together. And the new year just signifies like another year that he won't see. There's a lot of grief messages that I, I received in lieu of this podcast. I'll feel lost when we miss her. There's a few more that I'll get into here in a second, but I just want to address grief because grief to me is love.

And I think I saw a quote somewhere online. I definitely know I didn't make this up, but grief is love with nowhere to go. And I always thought that was really pretty because just because somebody's gone doesn't mean you stop loving them. Doesn't mean their story's over in your life. Heck, it probably means that their story is more so a part of your life. Like I had mentioned earlier, just because there's an ending, doesn't mean the entire story is closed. And how those people will carry on through each of you that shared that and how you're going to share their stories. as your life goes on. It's really cool to think about because they get to live on through you.

But man, I just, my heart breaks for anyone who has to experience loss on any level. Because grief is hard. And you'll get hit with it at random parts of any day. And so many of you are losing parents and the idea of that, even thinking about losing mine or, thinking about the loss of my grandparents just it rattles in my brain. And for you guys who have lost people so near and dear to your heart while experiencing, like, the guy who shared that they had just had a baby.

And it sounds based on that timeline, she got to meet your guys' first child, which is so beautiful. But I know hard. Do things can be true, always. But grief is just one of those prices we pay for loving and showing up. And it's easy to look at the other side of that and say, well, if I didn't love and I didn't show up, then I don't have to feel that pain one day. But I don't know about you guys. I think I'd feel the pain a million times over to experience the love that I get experience in my life.

Even without those people still here. Dang, I need a water break. My emotional support water bottle is calling my name. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football,

or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations,

stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network

on TikTok. What's up, everyone? I'm Ago Wodam. My next guest, you know from Step Brothers Anchorman, Saturday Night Live, and the Big Money Players Network.

It's Will Ferrell. Woo, woo, woo, woo. My dad gave me the best advice ever. I went and had lunch with him one day, and I was like, and dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings.

I'm working my way up through, and I know it's a place they come, look for up and coming talent. He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you, which is really sweet. Yeah. He goes, but there's so much luck involved.

And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar

of, you know, the cat just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be... Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft, and we've got a special guest.

The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects, from hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make to the players flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice Podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more, follow Timbo Slica Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. In 2023, former bachelor star Clayton Eckerd found himself at the center. of a paternity scandal. The family court hearings that followed revealed glaring inconsistencies in her story. This began a years-long court battle to prove the truth. You doctored this particular test twice in so-ins, correct?

I doctored the test once. It took an army of internet detectives to crack the case. I wanted people to be able to see what their tax dollars were being used for. Sunlight's the greatest disinfected. They would uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing.

Grega Lesbian, Michael Marantini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trap. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Ladies and gentlemen, breaking news at Americopa County as Laura Owens has been indicted on fraud charges. This isn't over until justice is served in Arizona.

Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. There's two golden rules that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl. You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes. And rule two, never mess with her friends either. We always say that trust your girlfriends. I'm Anna Sinfield, and in this new season of the girlfriends,

Oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist. I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me? The cops didn't seem to care. So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed I will be his last target.

He's going to get what he deserves. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Okay, I told you guys, I'm an impact. I feel the pain. and I feel the hurt in a lot of these.

And gosh, there's a few more that addressed that, but also some other things. Morgan, thanks for asking. It has been a rough season and not many people want to hear about it or talk about it. I lost my best friend nearly 30 years in March. She passed away from pancreatic cancer. We raised our daughters together who were also best friends. So this holiday season has been difficult without her. We walked through her cancer trial together the last two years.

So, yeah, there's that. Also, can I just say work? I've been doing my job for over 40 years now, and there's just been a lot of changes with the computer and a lot of changes, basically. And I feel like everything I've known for 40 years, I no longer know. So that has been overwhelming as well. But we'll get through it.

2026 will be another new year. Another loss that unspeakable, I can't imagine. I know that you guys are probably supporting her daughter, being that your daughter is her best friend. she probably feels like you're a second mom to her. So I hope that friendship continues to be such an important part of your guys' lives because, again, her memory is going to live on through that. But I can't imagine that kind of loss. And my heart goes out to you. The work side of this is fair. You guys can share audio message about anything that's bothering you guys. I love hearing

from you guys because this is real life. Work is hard. It doesn't matter if you have the most perfect job in the world or people think you have the best job in the world. Work is hard. Work is work. And anybody who says work isn't work is lying to you. It takes time and effort and it's draining and we don't get near enough breaks to feel things that are going on through our lives often, which means we're balancing 80 different plates all the time. So work is very real, especially around the. the holidays. Everybody's about to finally take a big break and I feel like it's the one time of year, everybody resets. We talk about New Year's Eve and New Year's and the new resolutions, but can we talk about the break that we get at Christmas? Everybody, for the most part, and if anybody else

doesn't get one, I think we should just shut everything down. The world should shut down for a week. And we all just get a break from life and each other and do whatever we want to do for that week. And then reopen. Everybody can breathe a big sigh of relief because we got the break that we all deserved. Let me just say that. So, here's another one about work. Hi, Morgan. The emergency room is the usual. We're not considered as professional. To everyone's opinion. Yeah, it's just very tiring and

yeah, it makes my anxiety very high. My depression's kicking in. And it's just very overwhelming. Congratulations to you and the new boyfriend. I'm very happy. that you found somebody who can treasure you and value your values. Thank you for everything that you do, your podcast. If it wasn't for your podcast, I would not be able to get through the day. I enjoy listening to it. I hope you, your family, and your boyfriend have a happy holiday and a good year. Bye. First of all, this felt like an actual voice memo coming from one of my friends in a text message, which was so sweet.

thank you to the kind woman who shared that because there's a lot of effort that goes into this podcast and hearing that it helps you and it gets you through the day means a lot to me. So thanks for listening. One. Two, I just want to shout out all the people out there, the educators, those that work in the medical field, nurses, teachers, teachers specifically. Everybody has a role to play in our lives. Everybody has a role that matters and an education that matters. And we need teachers. We need nurses. We need people to support us through every phase of our life. And what you do matters. The work you're doing matters.

I have two educators in my family. I have nurses in my extended family. And I recognize you as very important and very valuable. And I think the work that you're doing is hard and the things that you guys deal with is unimaginable. And just as I feel that every job that we have out there is necessary right now. And there's things that change and develop over time, but we're always going to need teachers and nurses in some form or fashion. And there's so much crazy noise happening on social media around them, but just know that I appreciate you. I appreciate the work that you're doing and the work that went into you guys being able to do that work.

So I know it's a really rough time and I know that you guys are in a really hard space. But please know, I appreciate you. I know there's a whole lot of people that appreciate you. And I don't want you to stop doing what you're doing. But take a deep breath. Take some time for yourself over the holidays. And hopefully you can come back and be stronger. ever to keep serving in the ways that feel meaningful for you. In another work capacity, we have a few

of these. I was let go at the end of May a month before moving to a brand new place, hours from friends and family. And it's been really hard. I've been looking for a job. I've been trying to settle in a new place, but that's hard to do when you're working retail part-time with a variable schedule to try to make some money, money that does not make ends meet. And when you need a little help or talk to about it, people tell you that you're not working hard enough or you're not doing enough or you just need a job as if I'm not applying and interviewing and being told things like, great, you made it to the top 10, we got a thousand applications in three days, and then you don't make it to the final round or you make it to the final round and they choose

a different candidate because they've got a thousand to choose from. It's really frustrating and been a tough season, which I hope is coming to a close. I hope for you. I hope for you you too that's coming to a close because I'm going to say this and people probably disagree but looking for a job is a job in itself to apply for jobs these days takes a whole lot of work and a whole lot of effort so as long as you're applying and trying things you are doing a lot you're trying a lot of things heck even if you're not applying and you're taking a break because things went to crap and you're trying to regroup and reset, you're also doing a lot. So I hope you quiet out the noise, put some earmuffs on, and take everything out of this picture and know that your new season is coming.

This is just a bump in your road. And there will come a time when you look back in your life and you will have gotten over it. And you did it because of how strong you are, because of how much you push yourself and the willpower that you do have. So quiet the noise around. do because sometimes the people around us can also be really detrimental to us when we're going through a certain season. They're really helpful and they're necessary and important, but sometimes it's also necessary and important to focus on you and go into your own shell cocoon and focus on what's the most important thing for you right now in this moment. And I hope that season does come to an end so you can start your new one. And it's incredible and you kick ass at a new job. And you

job because you will and you'll find it even if it's a small job to get to a big job there's always seasons of this where we never know what is just around the corner and i think there is more around your corner because this isn't the ending half the time it's only the beginning after my mom thought breast cancer in one my husband and i struggled with fertility miscarriages still struggling probably can't have kids and then lost my dad this summer. So really struggling this season with being grateful that my mom survived and with the loss of someone you loves, the hardships that go along with fertility issues. All of those things that I can't personally imagine and I've never walked through, but

gosh, to be able to celebrate your mom. mom beating something while also losing another parent and to be really wanting something to happen and hoping that this is going to happen for you guys while experiencing those two things. Holy crap. I simply couldn't put myself in your shoes even if I wanted to. And I'm sorry that this is all happening at the same time. When it rains, it pours or something to that effect. And man, it does.

Sometimes you're dealt with a hurricane. instead of a tornado or a light rain instead of a tsunami. But I'm sorry that yours seems to have been a tsunami for the last several months. And I hope that, one, you are able to find some love and light in the memories of your dad and also hopefully receive some good news soon or a new door opening in some way. if it isn't the path that you guys want to be on, but maybe it's an even better one. So my heart goes out to you.

I can't imagine balancing all of those things at one time. Hey, it's Michelle from Apple Valley, California. It's been a rough year. Some health issues, some financial issues, being 56 and single. I'm not sure how to navigate this. I do have two great kids and four amazing kids. grandkids so that keeps me going and some great friends but I would really like to figure out life

and be happy on my own with myself so hopefully this helps I do hope you're able to find the happiness within yourself because it's a really fun season when you can hit that I heard the hurt in your voice of 52 and single. I hope you know that love doesn't have an age limit. That's going to come at any point in time in your life when it's supposed to happen. I know. I can't believe I'm saying that, but it will. And you're more than capable of it because here's the thing. This is what I always told myself. I exist and I have love in my heart and I have so much love to give. And if I exist, then someone else out there exists to give me that same thing in return. And it's really hard often to see that.

It's hard to see through all the mud and things that you've gone through to hope that there's a light at the end of that tunnel, but there always is. And unfortunately sometimes it takes a really long time to get to that light, but you always will. Maybe it's more of a lighthouse than a shining studio light. light. But you will, and it will happen. And I think it's going to be beautiful when it does, and it's going to be a new season for you because you're going to be like, 52 and married, and it's

going to be awesome. And you're deserving of that. You're deserving to find love as many times as you want to. You're deserving to never get married again if you don't want to. If you want to be 52 and maybe you're single and you're like, heck yeah, I really like this life. Never again, do I want to be married. And whatever you choose, I hope you know that it's going to be an awesome decision either way. But I want to also recognize that I know how hard a single season is, especially being a single mom and having beautiful kids and also knowing you have history in certain scenarios and all of those things are hard and they're difficult all on their own. So I hope you're another one where gosh, I hope everybody here is giving themselves a lot of grace and understanding because

the new season will come. And I think it's going to be pretty awesome for you, Michelle, and Apple Valley. I would say that one of the toughest parts about the season is newly dating someone else or you've been with someone for a year and it's time to start sharing holidays. Which holidays do you spend with which family? and you want to make sure you do it when you choose the family to spend, let's say, Christmas with, you want to do it in a way that doesn't hurt the other family.

And I'm finding that this is harder than I thought it would be to make sure that no feelings are hurt. I'm currently going through this. It's so much fun to get to have new people in your life and more people to spend holidays with. It's almost a blessing. At the same time, it's also difficult. where you're trying to balance everybody's feelings.

You're trying to not hurt anybody's. You're trying to make sure you're nurturing relationships while also keeping your family and those relationships that you've had for decades happy. And oftentimes people do get hurt in the mixture of changes because it's bound to happen. You can't make everybody happy. You can only do all the things that you can do, right?

And there's only enough time in so many days. but I think there's also an excitement to it where you get to add new people into your life and find new traditions and find new things that you never knew existed. But this is one of those scenarios where it can also be equally as hard if you have family who has a lot of opinions and has a lot to say and they want things done a certain way. And that challenge can be really tough, especially on partnerships. So one of the things that I know I keep doing with my boyfriend is checking in and saying, how are you feeling?

Give me your actual feelings about this. Tell me what you think. I need to know where you stand. And it's checking in with each other because oftentimes our two opinions could get lost in that mix of deciding what's best and how we're going to go this way or that way, where we're going to spend each holiday. And there's a lot of conversations that him and I have had of just trying to make sure, him and I are both happy and are both getting what we want and how do we do that? What does that look like?

So really open, honest conversations and that is on both partners to share all their honest feelings and thoughts when I know it's hard. But it's also on both partners to own situations too, right? It's on both of them to not only be able to share their real feelings, but also help navigate their families. They have to show up and say, hey, we're going to do this. And you're owning that as a partnership, not just saying, oh, well, my husband wants to do this or, well, him saying, my wife wants to do this. It's owning that. You're a team and working through that together.

And we're very much in the real thick of that right now as I'm doing this podcast episode. So communication is such a big part of that. But also just how cool that we get new traditions and new memories and things that never in my wildest dreams did I see happening in my life. And here is our last entry for the podcast. Hi, this is Jennifer in Oklahoma City. And for me, I am at the age where I still have children. I have my youngest is a freshman, or actually she's a sophomore in college, and she's out of state.

So I'm trying to help her along. But then I also have aging parents who have reached the age where they need a little bit of help too. So I'm caught between my kids and my parents, and I will say. say this, aging parents are much harder to raise than even teenagers, but I just am trying to find other people that are in that phase of life and build that support. I'm really throwing myself into the holidays because it's my favorite time of year, and I'm lucky that I get to rely on my faith. And I'm grateful, Morgan, that you asked us to share, because I think that's really what it's about, is connecting to others, and finding out that you are not alone can be

incredibly powerful. So as always, I'm grateful for you. I'm grateful for your podcast. And I just wish you the merriest of Christmases and to all of your listeners as well. This is a beautiful one to end on for a lot of ways. One, because this is someone who is navigating multiple different changes in their life, but who's trying to do it with support in a community and find friends while there is a lot of things happening in life. And I think that's one of the hardest things of life. It's one of the lessons that I've learned this year is that when you go through life changes and when people in your life go through life changes, oftentimes friendships end and relationships change. And it's hard. It's hard. It's really difficult to,

you know, as I get older and I see my parents getting older and encouraging them to take care of themselves in certain ways and do this and do that while also trying to just let them live their lives how they want to and wanting to talk to my grandma about doing things so she's around forever and I think it's hard when you're in a season of life where everything just feels up in the air and not anything is settled and that very much feels like this situation to me and I could be completely wrong but in trying to find friends who can relate to that right because we like to have friendships that connect to where we're at in our stage of life. It's often why we see people who are single and all single together,

and then you get in our relationship, and hopefully those friendships stay. That's always the goal, but oftentimes they don't because people get into relationships and others don't, and sometimes people have kids or they get married, or they go through grief, or they move away, and our situation changes, which makes our lives a lot harder in that experience. because we don't have the same support system that we once had. So finding community alone is really tough and finding people who can relate. So I'm hoping that this person is able to find that and maybe it connects with some of you guys and maybe I can connect you guys on the internet because internet friends are

also awesome, especially in a season of life that you're already polled in so many which ways. Connecting in person is often difficult. So that is the beauty of social media, the good side of social media and I just want to say that I'm so eternally grateful to everyone who shared their story, whether it was in messages or in these audio messages that were left. I think it's so cool that I've created a community here where we can all share our hardest things and hope that it connects with somebody else because we deserve to feel seen and heard. And again, it was the entire point of doing this, of creating this podcast was, I often see so many things on the internet about trying to take away our attention or trying to focus on things that aren't hard

or working on ourselves. But I love community. I love connecting. I love hearing people's stories. And this alone shows us, right? When you are out doing things for the holidays and shopping and in the madness and chaos of the holidays, I hope you see people for more than face value. I hope you see them as someone who could be going through X, Y, and Z, as someone who could be having the best year of their life while also somebody else having the worst year of their life. This holiday is meant to remind us to give grace to each other

and have patience and be kind. And hearing all of those messages reminds me that I do not know a single thing that's happening in any one person's life on any given day. And it's my job and my responsibility to show up and be kind and smile. And because I can, because I'm in this season of my life where even though it's been hard and there's been hard moments while also good moments, it is my responsibility as a person in this world to show up and share love where and when I can. So I hope we can all own that and I'll show up in different ways. And if this is not your season to show up, that's perfectly fine.

I hope you have people like me that you'll run into where you get to experience the love and the kindness of someone. And thank you. A million times over for sharing. I hope everybody's holiday is everything that they need it to be. And I hope that this next year brings a lot of joy for a lot of you. and hopefully new memories, new seasons, new chapters. And maybe for some of you, the beginning of a story,

and maybe some of you, the ending of a story, whatever it may be, I'm really happy that you're here and you share things with me. And I am eternally grateful for all of you guys. Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and happy almost 2026. A win is a win. A win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th.

You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network. on TikTok. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft, and we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East-West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galko, joins the Sports Slice podcast

to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects. From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make, to the players flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft

like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice podcast, on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slice of Life 12 and TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. When a group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist, they take matters into their own hands. I vowed. I will be his last target. He is not going to get away with this.

He's going to get what he deserves. We always say that trust your girlfriends. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Vodam. My next guest, it's Will Ferrell.

My dad gave me the best advice ever. He goes, just give it a shot. But if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an instant. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that.

There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In 2023, Bachelor star Clayton Eckerd was accused of fathering twins. But the pregnancy appeared to be a hoax. You doctored this particular test twice, Ms. Ellen's, correct? I doctored the test once. It took an army of internet detectives to uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing.

Greg Gillespie and Michael Ranchini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trapped. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast.

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