Suleika Jaouad

Suleika Jaouad

From Reclaiming with Monica Lewinsky by Wondery

March 31, 2026 · 1h 8m · Episode 60

About this episode

Suleika Jaouad joins Monica Lewinsky to discuss her journey through illness, creativity, and reclaiming joy in life's challenges.

Bestselling author and artist Suleika Jaouad joins Monica this week on Reclaiming, for a profound conversation about creative alchemy, navigating uncertainty, and the defiant joy of living in life’s messy middle. Suleika retraces her path from being diagnosed with leukemia at 22, to writing her Emmy-winning New York Times column, “Life, Interrupted,” from her hospital bed. She reflects on the radical choice to marry her husband, Grammy award winning musician Jon Batiste, the day before a bone marrow transplant and how turning to watercolors when she could no longer write taught her that survival is always a creative act. Along the way, Monica and Suleika connect on the long shadow of narratives held by women, the power of journaling to find your way back to yourself, and the hard-won wisdom that comes from reclaiming a life you weren’t sure you’d get to live. Expect a conversation brimming with insight, gentle humor, and a powerful lesson in how to alchemize our deepest pain into our greatest purpose. Head to cozyearth.com and use my code RECLAIMING for an exclusive 20% off. And if you get a Post-Purchase Survey, be sure to mention you heard about Cozy Earth right here! See…

People in this episode

Host: Monica Lewinsky

Guest: Suleika Jaouad

Topics covered

  • creative alchemy
  • navigating uncertainty
  • defiant joy
  • survival
  • journaling
  • reclaiming life

Keywords

  • leukemia
  • creative act
  • Emmy-winning
  • hospital bed
  • watercolors
  • marriage
  • journaling
  • life lessons

Sponsors

Cozy Earth

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: New York Times

More episodes of Reclaiming with Monica Lewinsky

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Reclaiming with Monica Lewinsky podcast page.