Emi Nietfeld
@eminietfeld.bsky.social
Journalist / author of "Acceptance" / Speaker / ex-Google engineer / Words @nytopinion @theatlantic @teenvogue @thenation @theinformation | emi@eminietfeld.com
Maddie McGarvey spent 15 years photographing a young girl growing up in the natural splendor and deep poverty of Appalachia. McGarvey's act of witness is breathtaking and heartbreaking and life-changing. I'm honored to write about it for the New York Times.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/o...
Opinion | Seeing Those Who Are Forgotten: An Act of Witness in Appalachia
www.nytimes.com
November 6, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Maddie McGarvey spent 15 years photographing a young girl growing up in the natural splendor and deep poverty of Appalachia. McGarvey's act of witness is breathtaking and heartbreaking and life-changing. I'm honored to write about it for the New York Times.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/o...
Excited for Class Not Dismissed this Monday about reporting on class -
with the Economic Hardship Reporting Project! Speaking w/ @jiatolentino.bsky.social @alissaquart.bsky.social and more!!
It's free! RSVP here: pp.events/bgAA6xxa
with the Economic Hardship Reporting Project! Speaking w/ @jiatolentino.bsky.social @alissaquart.bsky.social and more!!
It's free! RSVP here: pp.events/bgAA6xxa
You're invited to "Class Not Dismissed." Tap here to RSVP - Paperless Post Card
The Economic Hardship Reporting Project (EHRP) is building a media that spotlights the stories - and the storytellers - often left in the shadows: the working-…
pp.events
September 26, 2025 at 7:57 PM
Excited for Class Not Dismissed this Monday about reporting on class -
with the Economic Hardship Reporting Project! Speaking w/ @jiatolentino.bsky.social @alissaquart.bsky.social and more!!
It's free! RSVP here: pp.events/bgAA6xxa
with the Economic Hardship Reporting Project! Speaking w/ @jiatolentino.bsky.social @alissaquart.bsky.social and more!!
It's free! RSVP here: pp.events/bgAA6xxa
Would die for @karaswisher.bsky.social's take on this one...
Surrogate pregnancies are increasingly popular in tech circles, and the practice is expected to explode globally in the coming decade. It’s also shockingly unregulated. This is a story about what happens when it goes horribly wrong.
The Baby Died. Whose Fault Is It?
When her son died in utero, a venture capitalist went to extremes to punish her surrogate.
wrd.cm
September 8, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Would die for @karaswisher.bsky.social's take on this one...
Bi sees a model for surrogacy in the antiabortion laws that 'recognize and protect the right of a fetal life.' She thinks that when doctors see surrogates go against medical advice, they should report it to the police.
Thanks so much to my expert @michelebgoodwin.bsky.social!
Thanks so much to my expert @michelebgoodwin.bsky.social!
Surrogate pregnancies are increasingly popular in tech circles, and the practice is expected to explode globally in the coming decade. It’s also shockingly unregulated. This is a story about what happens when it goes horribly wrong.
The Baby Died. Whose Fault Is It?
When her son died in utero, a venture capitalist went to extremes to punish her surrogate.
www.wired.com
September 5, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Bi sees a model for surrogacy in the antiabortion laws that 'recognize and protect the right of a fetal life.' She thinks that when doctors see surrogates go against medical advice, they should report it to the police.
Thanks so much to my expert @michelebgoodwin.bsky.social!
Thanks so much to my expert @michelebgoodwin.bsky.social!
Reposted by Emi Nietfeld
A stillbirth transforms a surrogacy arrangement into an absolute nightmare. The intended parent, a venture capitalist, wages a ruthless campaign against the surrogate, exposing the perilous landscape of America's unregulated surrogacy industry.
Excellent job by @eminietfeld.bsky.social
Excellent job by @eminietfeld.bsky.social
The Baby Died. Whose Fault Is It?
When her son died in utero, a venture capitalist went to extremes to punish her surrogate.
www.wired.com
September 3, 2025 at 2:16 PM
A stillbirth transforms a surrogacy arrangement into an absolute nightmare. The intended parent, a venture capitalist, wages a ruthless campaign against the surrogate, exposing the perilous landscape of America's unregulated surrogacy industry.
Excellent job by @eminietfeld.bsky.social
Excellent job by @eminietfeld.bsky.social
A private investigator. Psychics. Calls to the FBI. Dozens of reports to regulators. A million dollar legal battle. A restraining order. An arrest warrant.
American surrogacy raked in approximately $5 billion in 2024. What can go wrong?
American surrogacy raked in approximately $5 billion in 2024. What can go wrong?
When her son died in utero, a venture capitalist went to extremes to punish her surrogate. www.wired.com/story/the-ba...
The Baby Died. Whose Fault Is It?
When her son died in utero, a venture capitalist went to extremes to punish her surrogate.
www.wired.com
September 3, 2025 at 11:33 AM
A private investigator. Psychics. Calls to the FBI. Dozens of reports to regulators. A million dollar legal battle. A restraining order. An arrest warrant.
American surrogacy raked in approximately $5 billion in 2024. What can go wrong?
American surrogacy raked in approximately $5 billion in 2024. What can go wrong?
I'm looking for men who got depressed after having a baby to talk about their experience. Please DM me if this is you or someone you know! Looking to talk by Thursday!
#journorequest
#journorequest
May 27, 2025 at 3:10 PM
I'm looking for men who got depressed after having a baby to talk about their experience. Please DM me if this is you or someone you know! Looking to talk by Thursday!
#journorequest
#journorequest
I can't wait for this event tomorrow. all my Brooklyn folks, I hope I see you there!!
partiful.com/e/HLgL5MLN3P...
partiful.com/e/HLgL5MLN3P...
May 19, 2025 at 11:47 PM
I can't wait for this event tomorrow. all my Brooklyn folks, I hope I see you there!!
partiful.com/e/HLgL5MLN3P...
partiful.com/e/HLgL5MLN3P...
I started going to church after Trump was elected for his second term. Looking for other folks who are looking for faith (any faith tradition!) post-election for a story. TIA!
February 21, 2025 at 4:33 PM
I started going to church after Trump was elected for his second term. Looking for other folks who are looking for faith (any faith tradition!) post-election for a story. TIA!
I'm SOLD! Wish I were in Atlanta
If you're in Atlanta and looking for a reason to feel demoralized, alienated and existentially at sea, come to Emory tomorrow and listen to a conversation about my book, The Occasional Human Sacrifice.
@carlelliott.bsky.social to speak at the Center on Jan. 15. His book is an intellectual inquiry into the moral struggle that whistleblowers face, and why it's not the kind of struggle that most people imagine. For more information: bit.ly/3OZfCTy
January 16, 2025 at 6:32 PM
I'm SOLD! Wish I were in Atlanta
You must read this absolutely gutting essay about DV and the fear of CPS removals that keeps moms trapped in abuse. About PTSD, veteran mental health, how racism hurts everyone.
About trying to be a good human and not knowing how
@moashort.bsky.social @thecut.com
www.thecut.com/article/repo...
About trying to be a good human and not knowing how
@moashort.bsky.social @thecut.com
www.thecut.com/article/repo...
To Care for My Family, I Thought I Had to Hide My Abuse
I wanted to believe my children’s father wouldn’t hurt us. I wanted to prove I’d care for him no matter what.
www.thecut.com
January 16, 2025 at 4:38 PM
You must read this absolutely gutting essay about DV and the fear of CPS removals that keeps moms trapped in abuse. About PTSD, veteran mental health, how racism hurts everyone.
About trying to be a good human and not knowing how
@moashort.bsky.social @thecut.com
www.thecut.com/article/repo...
About trying to be a good human and not knowing how
@moashort.bsky.social @thecut.com
www.thecut.com/article/repo...
Reposted by Emi Nietfeld
thanks for the holiday break reading, @eminietfeld.bsky.social !!
December 24, 2024 at 12:23 AM
thanks for the holiday break reading, @eminietfeld.bsky.social !!
Reposted by Emi Nietfeld
Dr Inna has some great resources on What's problematic about Van de Kolk.
tr.ee/BfxplAJD6C
tr.ee/BfxplAJD6C
@dr_inna | Linktree
Dr. Inna Kanevsky: psychology professor, educatior and mythbuster of fake psychology on TikTok Instagram Twitter
tr.ee
December 24, 2024 at 8:25 PM
Dr Inna has some great resources on What's problematic about Van de Kolk.
tr.ee/BfxplAJD6C
tr.ee/BfxplAJD6C
The idea that indulging my 6 month old daughter’s selfishness now will inspire her future charity sounded as preposterous as putting Mountain Dew into her bottles in hopes she’ll love water later.
thecut.com/article/teaching-kids-to-share-gentle-parenting-experts-sharing-children.html
thecut.com/article/teaching-kids-to-share-gentle-parenting-experts-sharing-children.html
The Parents Who ‘Don’t Teach Sharing’
Is this gentle-parenting trend accommodating kids’ developmental stages, or catering to their worst impulses?
thecut.com
December 26, 2024 at 3:15 PM
The idea that indulging my 6 month old daughter’s selfishness now will inspire her future charity sounded as preposterous as putting Mountain Dew into her bottles in hopes she’ll love water later.
thecut.com/article/teaching-kids-to-share-gentle-parenting-experts-sharing-children.html
thecut.com/article/teaching-kids-to-share-gentle-parenting-experts-sharing-children.html
In the age of gentle parenting, sharing itself, once the most basic playground skill, is now being called into question....
My latest, for @thecut.com
www.thecut.com/article/teac...
My latest, for @thecut.com
www.thecut.com/article/teac...
The Parents Who ‘Don’t Teach Sharing’
Is this gentle-parenting trend accommodating kids’ developmental stages, or catering to their worst impulses?
www.thecut.com
December 26, 2024 at 3:03 PM
In the age of gentle parenting, sharing itself, once the most basic playground skill, is now being called into question....
My latest, for @thecut.com
www.thecut.com/article/teac...
My latest, for @thecut.com
www.thecut.com/article/teac...
Thrilled I got to dig into my @motherjones.com story about #thebodykeepsthescore with a survivor advocate.
#therapistsky
open.spotify.com/episode/3AOb...
#therapistsky
open.spotify.com/episode/3AOb...
Guest Host: Alisa Zipursky interviews Emi Nietfeld. What The Most Famous Book About Trauma Gets Wrong.
The Trauma Therapist · Episode
open.spotify.com
December 24, 2024 at 4:46 PM
Thrilled I got to dig into my @motherjones.com story about #thebodykeepsthescore with a survivor advocate.
#therapistsky
open.spotify.com/episode/3AOb...
#therapistsky
open.spotify.com/episode/3AOb...
Every Xmas, my mom made peanut butter/chow mein noodle mangers with red M&Ms in the center. She declared “That’s the baby Jesus!!”
The older (and richer) I get, the more grateful I am for my mom’s lessons in giving. Grateful to @washingtonpost.com
www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/20...
The older (and richer) I get, the more grateful I am for my mom’s lessons in giving. Grateful to @washingtonpost.com
www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/20...
Perspective | As a poor kid I was ashamed of my mom’s shabby gifts. Now I get it.
Charity alone would never solve the problems that plagued my youth, but giving to others reminded me that I could help keep people from falling through the cracks.
www.washingtonpost.com
December 23, 2024 at 9:35 PM
Every Xmas, my mom made peanut butter/chow mein noodle mangers with red M&Ms in the center. She declared “That’s the baby Jesus!!”
The older (and richer) I get, the more grateful I am for my mom’s lessons in giving. Grateful to @washingtonpost.com
www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/20...
The older (and richer) I get, the more grateful I am for my mom’s lessons in giving. Grateful to @washingtonpost.com
www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/20...
Wow this story is like every workplace harassment nightmare come true. I thought I had a bad time going to HR at Google but jeez...
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/21/b...
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/21/b...
Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni and a Smear Campaign After ‘It Ends With Us’
Private messages detail an alleged campaign to tarnish Blake Lively after she accused Justin Baldoni of misconduct on the set of “It Ends With Us.”
www.nytimes.com
December 23, 2024 at 3:14 PM
Wow this story is like every workplace harassment nightmare come true. I thought I had a bad time going to HR at Google but jeez...
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/21/b...
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/21/b...
Trauma "is psychology’s response to what in theology is called ‘The Problem of Evil’... Like an evangelical healer, a therapists's job is to face evil head on to open the door to redemption, not from sin, but from trauma."
Thought about this a lot
beiner.substack.com/p/the-truth-...
Thought about this a lot
beiner.substack.com/p/the-truth-...
The Truth About Trauma: Bessel van der Kolk, Rachel Yehuda and George Bonanno
How the mainstreaming of trauma is changing culture
beiner.substack.com
December 22, 2024 at 2:42 AM
Trauma "is psychology’s response to what in theology is called ‘The Problem of Evil’... Like an evangelical healer, a therapists's job is to face evil head on to open the door to redemption, not from sin, but from trauma."
Thought about this a lot
beiner.substack.com/p/the-truth-...
Thought about this a lot
beiner.substack.com/p/the-truth-...
For survivors who are already stigmatized and told not to talk about what happened... I feel it's so damaging to hear "don't discuss it" from a therapist.
If people don't want to talk, no one should make them, but many of us have been desperate to share what happened to us
If people don't want to talk, no one should make them, but many of us have been desperate to share what happened to us
My profession is embarrassingly prone to faddish bullshit. This book is treated like a sacred text by so many therapists, but it’s honestly done a lot of damage, in large part due to its central argument that *talking* about one’s pain will make it worse. But talk therapy remains the gold standard.
“The Body Keeps the Score stigmatizes survivors, blames victims, and depoliticizes violence. While masquerading as care for survivors, it creates a hierarchy where marginalized victims are even more marginalized.” My latest, for @motherjones.
www.motherjones.com/media/2024/1...
www.motherjones.com/media/2024/1...
December 22, 2024 at 2:25 AM
For survivors who are already stigmatized and told not to talk about what happened... I feel it's so damaging to hear "don't discuss it" from a therapist.
If people don't want to talk, no one should make them, but many of us have been desperate to share what happened to us
If people don't want to talk, no one should make them, but many of us have been desperate to share what happened to us
Reposted by Emi Nietfeld
My profession is embarrassingly prone to faddish bullshit. This book is treated like a sacred text by so many therapists, but it’s honestly done a lot of damage, in large part due to its central argument that *talking* about one’s pain will make it worse. But talk therapy remains the gold standard.
“The Body Keeps the Score stigmatizes survivors, blames victims, and depoliticizes violence. While masquerading as care for survivors, it creates a hierarchy where marginalized victims are even more marginalized.” My latest, for @motherjones.
www.motherjones.com/media/2024/1...
www.motherjones.com/media/2024/1...
What the most famous book about trauma gets wrong
People kept telling me to read "The Body Keeps the Score." I was shocked at what it actually says.
www.motherjones.com
December 20, 2024 at 6:05 PM
My profession is embarrassingly prone to faddish bullshit. This book is treated like a sacred text by so many therapists, but it’s honestly done a lot of damage, in large part due to its central argument that *talking* about one’s pain will make it worse. But talk therapy remains the gold standard.
Reposted by Emi Nietfeld
this absolutely savage read
December 22, 2024 at 12:02 AM
this absolutely savage read
I really wanted to talk about how the Matisse cover and title of "The Body Keeps the Score" do SO MUCH heavy lifting. You don't even need to read the book to have your "a-ha!" TED talk moment. All you have to do is see it at the airport and you're like "it checks!"
I couldn’t finish the book and agree with many points here. The author misses why fans are so defensive: the central thesis is psychologically powerful. The idea that the body holds an inbuilt history of trauma resonates deeply with survivors. Whatever the book’s flaws, that core idea holds merit.
December 22, 2024 at 2:16 AM
I really wanted to talk about how the Matisse cover and title of "The Body Keeps the Score" do SO MUCH heavy lifting. You don't even need to read the book to have your "a-ha!" TED talk moment. All you have to do is see it at the airport and you're like "it checks!"
Reposted by Emi Nietfeld
Am I the only one who cannot hear about this book without immediately chanting LET THE BODIES KEEP THE SCORE, LET THE BODIES KEEP THE SCORE in my head
www.motherjones.com/media/2024/1...
www.motherjones.com/media/2024/1...
What the most famous book about trauma gets wrong
People kept telling me to read "The Body Keeps the Score." I was shocked at what it actually says.
www.motherjones.com
December 21, 2024 at 2:30 PM
Am I the only one who cannot hear about this book without immediately chanting LET THE BODIES KEEP THE SCORE, LET THE BODIES KEEP THE SCORE in my head
www.motherjones.com/media/2024/1...
www.motherjones.com/media/2024/1...