Ex-Homeschoolers Club

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What happens to the friendships you make as a homeschooled kid once you grow up? In this episode of Ex-Homeschoolers Club, I sit down with three longtime friends, Cari, Noah, and Jenève, to talk about the friendships that started through homeschool groups, co-ops, extracurriculars, and family connections — and how those relationships changed as we became adults. We talk about childhood memories, long-distance friendships, reconnecting after college, and what it means to have someone who understands where you came from. We also get into the complicated rules many of us grew up with around opposite-sex friendships, dating, physical affection, and the pressure to avoid anything that might look romantic.

In this episode, we talk about:

• How homeschool communities can create friendships that feel more like family.
• Why some childhood friendships naturally deepen while others don't become close until adulthood.
• Maintaining friendships across distance, college, relationships, and major life changes.
• The strange pressure many homeschoolers experienced around boys and girls being friends and the assumption that friendship must mean dating.
• How purity culture and fear of romantic relationships affected the way we understood attraction, dating, and physical affection.
• Why protecting kids from every painful experience can leave them unprepared for adulthood — and how supportive friendships can give young people a safe place to learn from difficult experiences.
• The healing that can happen when adult children and their parents finally have honest conversations about the past.

Wanna Join Book Club?

• Grab a copy of Educated by Tara Westover: https://tarawestover.com/book
• If you want to join the conversation during the month, follow along on Fable: https://fable.co/club/ex-homeschoolers-book-club-with-jacob-gooden-585330795145
• And lastly, if you want to join our virtual Zoom meeting on August 29th 1pm EST - 10am PST, sign-up here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/bxCrsDpgTFGNvsWVgVdHXA

Check Out My Previous Episodes With Cari, Jenève, and Noah!

• Cari: https://youtu.be/8cizKkNyLSo?si=5Y6IScdbDOnio0DJ
• Jenève: https://youtu.be/bxf9T5GFk4A?si=_eoI2xsjBCgi1ewV
• Noah: https://youtu.be/trh9iD3SvvA?si=8PTTowtUtKWG78se

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Connect with Me

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Chapters

00:00 A Few Things Before We Get Into The Episode

02:10 Welcome Back To The Ex-Homeschoolers Club

03:09 Cari's Homeschool Elevator Pitch

05:20 Jenève' Homeschool Elevator Pitch

07:19 Noah's Homeschool Elevator Pitch

09:37 How We First Met

15:00 Favorite Memories Together

25:35 Post College Friendship Shift

33:55 Opposite Sex Friend Stigma

38:36 Prom Night Pressure

41:27 Homeschool Dating Rules

44:16 Rumor Mill Trauma

45:30 Taboo And Modesty

50:46 Side Hugs And Shame

54:39 Friend Zone In College

01:01:33 Protection Vs Preparation

01:12:36 Healing With Parents

01:14:45 Hugging Younger Self