Jennifer Wider (or Jena as she is often called!) is not only a mom of 3 here in Westport, but also a nationally renowned women’s health expert and author. Jennifer is also a medical advisor to Cosmopolitan magazine and hosts a weekly radio segment on Sirius XM Stars called “Am I Normal?” She absolutely loves what she does, and if you are ever in need of a good laugh, she apparently does a pretty stellar impression of Donald Duck!
How old are your kids and how long have you lived in Westport? My kids are 15, 12 and 6. We’ve lived in Westport for 12 years!
What has been the most difficult age with your children to date? What helped you overcome the challenges at that time? I think every age has it’s challenges, but I’ve always trusted my instincts and have tried to instill good values in my kids. That and a rabbit’s foot and a glass of wine ; )
What is your favorite family activity to do in Westport or the surrounding towns? When I moved out of the city to the town of Westport, I pinched myself for the first year that we lived here. I couldn’t believe this beautiful place was my home. We love going to the beach, watching the sunset, and making S’mores.
What was your most memorable family vacation and why? Disney World, hands down. I suffered from a terrible fear of flying for years and that was my first trip back on an airplane. Seeing my kids’ faces watching the Fireworks outside the Disney Castle brought tears to my eyes and was priceless.
What’s your can’t live without beauty product? La Mer Illuminating Eye Gel
What’s your favorite restaurant in town for a family dinner? A night out with friends? I love Estia in Sono for Greek Food. Girls night out at Bar Taco.
What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you? I do a pretty good impression of Donald Duck!
If you had 24 hours to do whatever you wanted – what would you do? Exactly what I’m doing ; )
What do you most value in your friends? Honesty, communication and trust.
What is one piece of advice you would pass along to other moms? To not be so hard on themselves. We put way too much pressure on ourselves to be perfect for our families and often relegate ourselves to the bottom of the totem pole. Very important to give yourself a break and find time for you, every single day, even if it’s for 15-20 minutes.
How did you end up where you are now in terms of your job, or whatever passion project it is you might be doing? I had an internship in medical school at CBS News and fell in love with educating people about their health through the media. I left my residency to work for CBS HealthWatch and Medscape and never turned back. My first book was a The Doctor’s Complete College Girls’ Health Guide: From Sex to drugs to the freshman 15—the book got a lot of media attention and I went onto SiriusXM as a guest on Cosmo Radio. They asked me to stay on and I’ve been the resident doctor on the morning show for 10 years (can’t believe it’s been that long)— that led to me becoming a medical advisor to Cosmopolitan Magazine.
