Can a Mormon Musical, Birth Parent Reunion & IKEA Panic Attack Exist in One Episode?

What happens when a transit strike cab ride turns into a lifelong friendship… and that friend grows up to write a Mormon musical, reunite with her birth parents, launch a songwriting podcast, and casually sing about having a nervous breakdown in IKEA?

This week on Put Your Books Down hosted by Natalie Sanderson Jones and Angela Bingham, we sit down with pianist, singer-songwriter, and human beam of light Deidre Struck — and let's just say… we laugh, we cry, we overshare.

From writing lullabies through Carnegie Hall's Lullaby Project to interviewing musicians on her podcast The Song Inside, to creating a bold Mormon musical called Fun Spot, Deidre shares how art isn't frivolous — it's survival.

We talk:

• Finding your voice in your 40s & 50s
• Growing up in high-control religion
• Reuniting with birth parents (bring tissues)
• Why teenagers are actually awesome
• And yes… the IKEA panic-attack song you didn't know you needed

If the world feels heavy, this is your 45-minute pop culture meditation. Take a breath. Laugh with us. Then put your books down.

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