How Humor Heals: Robin Hopkins on Trauma, Identity, and the Power of Storytelling | ANEW Ep 87

On this episode of the ANEW Insight Podcast, Dr. Supatra Tovar sits down with award-winning writer, producer, and podcast host Robin Hopkins for a refreshingly candid and deeply funny conversation about healing, identity, and the messy beauty of being human. Robin, known for their hit podcast Well...Adjusting and Substack Shit I Learned From My Crappy Childhood, shares how personal trauma, a smart mouth, and a lifetime of self-discovery led to a creative career centered on humor, storytelling, and helping others navigate life’s chaos.

From stand-up comedy clubs in New York City to major TV credits on Boardwalk Empire and Teen Mom Reunion, Robin reflects on their nonlinear path to becoming a creator whose work speaks to the heart. In this episode, Robin reveals how childhood emotional turbulence shaped their relationship with humor, why they used jokes to defuse pain, and how hosting informal living room “seminars” helped queer couples build families in a world not always built for them.

The conversation dives deep into topics rarely covered with such levity—like childhood trauma, emotional suppression, addiction, and the long road toward self-esteem. Robin shares powerful insights on using laughter to process difficult experiences, the healing role of therapy (shout-out to Patricia), and why self-growth is a lifelong commitment—not a quick fix.

Listeners will also hear how Robin’s podcast became a space for guests to unpack real struggles—parenting, career changes, relationship challenges—and discover clarity, connection, and next steps through thoughtful conversation and shared humanity. Dr. Tovar and Robin discuss the importance of emotional safety, the misconception that people need to be “fixed,” and the profound joy that can come from laughing in the middle of hardship.

Whether you’re navigating your own healing journey, curious about the role humor plays in mental health, or simply looking to feel seen and inspired, this episode offers warmth, wisdom, and plenty of laughs.

Here are the social media channels links of Robin Hopkins: https://www.robinhopkins.org/, https://www.instagram.com/realrobhops/?hl=en, https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRDKsrEdGF4MwYhOUvl98nQ, https://www.linkedin.com/in/robin-hopkins-564813101, https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/well-adjusting/id1649386566. 

If you’re ready to stop dieting and start building a compassionate relationship with food and your body, visit anew-insight.com to join the Deprogram Diet Culture course and begin your journey toward sustainable health.

Tune in now to explore how humor, honesty, and human connection can change lives.

 #robinho

Thank you for joining us on this journey to wellness. Remember, the insights and advice shared on the ANEW Body Insight Podcast are for educational and informational purposes only and do not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before making any changes to your health routine. To learn more about the podcast and stay updated on new episodes, visit ANEW Body Insight Podcast at anew-insight.com. To watch this episode on YouTube, visit @my.anew.insight. Follow us on social media at @my.anew.insight on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Threads for more updates and insights. Thank you for tuning in! Stay connected with us for more empowering stories and expert guidance. Until next time, stay well and keep evolving with ANEW Body Insight!

Transcript

Dr. Supatra Tovar: 0:00

Hello and welcome to the ANEW Insight podcast. I'm Dr. Supatra Tovar and I am very excited and I cannot wait. I have award winning writer, producer, and host of the Well...Adjusting podcast, Robin Hopkins, with us today. Robin, thanks so much for joining us. Her acting credits include appearances on television shows like Boardwalk Empire, Louie, and Hindsight. As a writer, Robin has contributed to publications like HuffPost and Medium, and her television writing includes work for VH1's Big Morning Buzz Live and Divas, as well as MTV's Teen Mom Reunion Special and O Music Awards. Wonderful. So I would love to know about your journey as an actor and then how it has evolved into writing and podcasting. What is your inspiration?

Robin Hopkins: 0:03

So I'm sure that says a lot about my psyche. And then, you know, but I think that starting off as a standup, like you don't, you You have to write your own material and that started me on the journey of being a writer is that when I left stand up one of the things I realized I missed was my voice, was being able to like have an opinion and a viewpoint on on an issue or a thought or about something personal to me and then find something interesting and unique to say about it. Well, they weren't necessarily very safe in my in my childhood. You know, it's like I had, I had a couple of parents were both drinkers and there was just a lot of like explosive, explosive emotions in my house, especially between my mom and I, we were very, very similar. And there was like the whole, like there's this running joke in the family of like, I'd go in my room and slam the door and then she would open the door and say, don't you dare slam that door. And then the next day we just. Would never talk about them. And I think it created this kind of environment of like, it's not necessarily safe and it's, and it's, and I also felt very much like, I'll take care of everything. I'll take care of all the things and I've got this. And that to me always meant for a very long time, it meant you keep that, you keep that to yourself until it's clean and you could share it as a life lesson for someone else,

Dr. Supatra Tovar: 0:06

to cope, to get through it. And did you find yourself using that? In your childhood growing up?

Robin Hopkins: 0:07

You have to—not right now, Robin, not right now. You do that later. Like, you know, and it's funny cause I'm, I'm, I'm going to whisper, but I'm watching my son go through it now. He's in the other room gaming, so I'm just to be a little quiet about it. He'd be mad if he knew I was talking about him, but yeah, it's, it's, it's, it's but it's like, I'm watching him try to find the line now. And I'm just like, I will get that mother to laugh. Like, I will make them, you know, it was like, and it was like, and you didn't feel like you did good unless you made that one person like, you know, there's like a whole obsessive, like thing around it. It's, it's, it's. weird and exciting and fun. And it's like, still like, I don't do it on a stage, but it's one of my favorite things to do is like to just go into a story and get somebody to laugh. That's such an interesting question. I don't think anybody's ever asked me that. Don't. I, I do think that sometimes there was like jokes to kind of like lighten the mood for sure, like, cause you know, I think when you grew up in a house where there's addiction, there's always an undercurrent and I, that you become very aware of and you're in tune to the emotion of the house and what's going on. And so there was definitely like moments of that. I definitely used it for say, like, you know, I, I've struggled with weight. Oh, like gain 60 pounds. I've lost 60 pounds. You know, it's like, like, I always say that my, my food stuff is like, I'm just glad it didn't show up for booze for me, the way it did for my parents. If you don't, it's often not. I'm just like, what do you do all day? This is like, that just seems so serious. And, and life is so hard. Like I love laughing, you know, laughing with my friends is possibly one of my favorite things in the world to do, you know, just to like, when you have that, it's such a connection and so. You know, so I it was part of it, but I feel like in order, like building up my self esteem was something I had to do on my own. It was something I had to do like in therapy and in self help workshops and, and just figuring out why, why did I believe that my value wasn't, wasn't enough or that I wasn't worth what I believe I am today, if that makes sense. Okay. So there's that. Beautiful, beautiful moment where Sally Field is crying over the loss of her daughter and she's sobbing and Olympia Dukakis grabs is her name? Shirley McLean. And it's like, Hit Weezer, you know, and it's like, and then they all are howling, you know, and you're going from laughing to crying. I love whether it's writing, Or whether it's in the podcast or whether it's in talking to people, like I love creating moments because I think that's the human experience. And I just think that is what that's like, that's all that life is about to me is just those moments of like hardship and funny and the, and the growth and the journey. So, you know, like, so Well...Adjusting my podcast came out of that idea. Like I, I have a Sub Stack as well. Like, I love to say that I I'm on all the platforms that no one asked me to be on. Like, I, like, I'm like, no one asked me to do any of this, but here I am like. Listen to my podcast, read my Sub Stack. So the sub stack is called Shit I Learned From My Crappy Childhood and that was the impetus for creating the Well...Adjusting podcast too, was just this idea of, I don't have a single accredited accreditation, like I'm not, I'm not an MFA, I'm not an LSW. And I'm like, absolutely sit down. I got a spreadsheet for you. You know, it's like, I, I once like there was a guy on my floor who his landlord didn't give him back his security deposit. I said, absolutely not. I said, give me the phone. And I pretended to be his lawyer. I called up, got a security deposit. But the idea of someone else just. you go, you know, you've said that 10 times, you're like, what's going on with your mom. You know, I think that sometimes that's just really helpful and it's, and we try to do it in a fun and funny way, because again, I just think that's important.

Dr. Supatra Tovar: 0:16

Yeah. And I love that. And I don't think you need to go to school. I think what you're doing is amazing. So keep doing it because it is helping people. Give, give me a picture too, of like one personal experience that taught you the most about adjusting to life's challenges. Hmm.

Robin Hopkins: 0:17

I'm like, I, I hope not. But the end of it, like I went in being like, Oh, there's just these two issues. If I can just get some movement on these two issues, of course, one of them was food and the other one was was a deeper issue. And I was like, I just get some clarity or heal these, then I will be good. And when I came out, I did not, I did not heal them and I didn't get taken into the cult, thankfully. But what I did come out thinking was. I made a commitment to work on myself forever. Like it was just something clicked that like, it's not like I, like they love to say in 12 step programs, you, you, you brush your teeth every single day. I want to be here for my kids and I want to, I want to find just. A little more joy every day, if I can, if I'm able to, you know, just like a little bit more. And I just, that commitment, I think changed everything. Cause then out of that, I was willing to, I was willing to put myself in uncomfortable conversations and therapy.

Dr. Supatra Tovar: 0:19

Yes. And I'm sure Patricia's like, when she hears you talking about her, she made such a difference. Maybe she's a little creeped out, but she's like, yay. But I think that a lot of people go into therapy and I can see this with people coming into my, my office thinking that they have to fix themselves.

Robin Hopkins: 0:20

Well, I think one of the, the biggest ways is that me and producer Steph, we are out there just airing our laundry. We are just like high fiving our guests because we're like, we, you know, we always love to make the joke. We're like, I have no idea what you're talking about. Meanwhile, I did that earlier today. Like, it's like, you know, I see so much of myself in them in, in the growth. And it's like, I just, you know, I just want to create a space where people feel like no, one's talking down to them. We're just like all in this mess together and like, Hey, if, if this conversation, it's going to help me just by having it with you, but if it also helps you too, that's great. You know, we all want to close up, lock the door and go home. I think about like help like that too. Like I I'm willing to share my junk to be like, if it helps you see something, I'm willing to do the same work that I'm asking of you. Like we've done, I feel like Steph and I've gotten to do some really cool things. Since I've gone gluten free my mood is significantly better,which is like insanity on stilts. That was the sidebar, but. My, my point is, is that like, I was struggling to find joy and my voice memos were like sad clown. They were just like, I don't know. I was thought my joy would come at this party. It was going today, but it was weird. I guess my job. And then like, by contrast, Steph was like, out on the streets of London and there's a lovely rain coming down and I feel delightful.

Dr. Supatra Tovar: 0:23

I mean, absolutely. And I think that you know, that's one thing that I help my clients with in my practice is being mindful. And that's exactly what she was being in London. She was like, Oh, I am observing right now. And right now it's raining and it's really nice actually. And she was just in the moment.

Robin Hopkins: 0:24

Well one that you already touched on which is you can be fixed. and I, I think that extends to that. Like I, I, I, it extends to at least for me, I don't want to make this a sweeping generalization that like, as I understand myself, like some wires were created. Whether they were, you know, like, like lines were like, there was an electrician in my body and, and like things were hooked up and they may be hooked up like that forever. And it was like, you cross the thing, it created a current could, you know, the metal touched and it created a current and the electricity flowed, I like the idea of circumventing it, like that little switcher to stop the current so that it like runs off to another path, that's a more positive one and, you know, and so I, I think. Just, you know, that you can't be fixed, but like you can maybe you can maybe like circumvent. I think that would probably be the biggest misconception. I have, I think, I think, yeah, I think that's what I would say.

Dr. Supatra Tovar: 0:26

And I think it's so important for people to really delve inside and figure out who they actually really are aside from what everyone else has told them. And then when they actually realize that they realize that they actually don't need fixing. And that's, that's powerful. And so we're going to delve into some of this more in the next half of this podcast, but we're actually out of time for this half.