Family Secrets

In the second part of this inspiring two-part episode, writer and musician Jessica Willis Fisher finishes her powerful story of survival.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the first part of this harrowing two-part episode, writer and musician Jessica Willis Fisher courageously speaks the unspeakable truths of the abuse she faced at the hands of her father. But this is just the beginning.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From the outside, Priscilla’s family life looks dazzling. Her parents are both revered in the literary community and she and her sister grow up in an artistic home. But things change when their parents decide to do something they said they never would: they divorce. After this, their father’s hidden life begins to rise to the surface.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kyleigh and her older sister Kait couldn’t be closer. They lean on one another all throughout childhood. But at a certain point, Kait’s mental health begins to fray and with it, so does Kyleigh’s grip on her relationship with her beloved sister. When Kait disappears, Kyleigh is left to grapple with incredible loss and the painful reality of questions that can never be answered.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Letty’s life is laced with “shanda”—the Yiddish word for shame or disgrace. And the shanda is not hers alone; it stretches back and through many generations of suppression, secrecy, and the enormous heft of overcoming stigma and breaking the cycle for once and for all.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Emi is a brilliant child caught in the storms of the adults around her. As such, her own troubles begin to brew and her secrets compound. From foster care to homelessness to an Ivy League education and robust career, Emi’s trajectory is an extraordinary lesson in what is possible when resilience wins the day.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Allison knows something is fundamentally different about her. She looks different and she feels different from the other girls in school. But when her parents refuse to acknowledge just how different she is, it becomes harder and harder for her to reckon with who she is, and who she wants to become.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Forever punctuated by shame, secrecy, and danger, Isaac's search to know himself has always been a precarious journey. But as he walks the rocky road toward self-acceptance, he must reconcile his need to be both strong and vulnerable.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From a very young age, Sophia is taught to deflect when people ask questions. Her parents teach her this lesson, and they tell her to keep a low profile as an American living abroad. When she finds a letter she’s not supposed to read, she learns what her parents do for a living – and that changes everything.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Growing up among conflicting cultures and customs, Carmen feels a profound sense of otherness. When her mother reveals their family secret, Carmen’s conflicts deepen and the puzzle pieces of her identity scatter before eventually— they finally snap into place.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.