Parenthood

This week is our Real Talk segment with my bestie Liv. We’re talking all things ‘the unexpected’ when it parenthood. We delve into:✔️ Our identity crisis once becoming mums✔️ Judgement, guilt, overwhelm, burnout and all the motherhood feels ✔️ Our cheeky childhood pasts✔️ Unrealistic expectations we place on ourselves as mothers✔️ Handling supermarket meltdowns and so much moreSome lockdown entertainment for us all. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week’s episode is one of pure strength, resilience and the importance of having a rad attitude. I bring on friends of the podcast, Nat & Nate, and we discuss:·     Life in San Francisco during the Coronavirus pandemic·     Giving birth and raising twins, with no support·     Juggling work commitments·     Trying to relocate back to AustraliaThis beautiful couple bare it all, the crazy journey that was their first year of parenthood. Through insomnia, overwhelm and uncertainty, they found they were tougher cookies than they ever could have imagined. Living by the mantra ‘it’s all about attitude’. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I have my bestie Liv back on the podcast to talk all things 'mental load'. You know all of the invisible work that you do at home, to keep your household running; cooking dinner, childcare drop-off, packing lunches, washing clothes… the list goes on.We discuss what the mental load looks like in our households and how we manage the great juggle of parenthood. We also share the results from the Mental Load quiz that you all answered a few weeks back. The response was VERY insightful and really just a good laugh. References:ABC podcast: Ladies we need to talk - 'Solving the mental load' https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/ladies-we-need-to-talk/solving-the-mental-load-update/12325472 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We hear a lot about 'mum guilt', but have you ever wondered if dad guilt is a thing? I am so excited to announce that this week we have our first dad on the podcast, and we will be asking him ALL of the questions you've been wanting to know! In this episode, I speak with couple; Toneya and Lochie, about their parenthood journey so far, raising 2 under 3.Having been faced with sleepless nights, reflux and everything in between, we discuss the realities of being new parents, as well as:🍼 The initial moments of being a dad🍼 Dad guilt - is it a thing?🍼 Common relationship challenges faced by new parents🍼 How we can better support each other as a couple...and so much more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I speak to the brilliant Imogen Carn from the Good Mourning Podcast , about her motherhood journey. Imogen's mum tragically died when Im's daughter was just 9 months old. In this convo we cover...🍼 Emotions felt when we experience an unexpected pregnancy🍼 Traumatic birth experiences🍼 Navigating being a new mum, after losing your own🍼 Channeling pain into something positive ...and so much more!Please note, we do talk about suicide loss in this episode, so if you or someone you know is going through a difficult time, just know that there is help available, and the number for Lifeline is 13 11 14. References:@goodmorningpodcastwww,goodmourning.com.au Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I speak to my dear friend and business mentor Justine about her motherhood journey. Justine went from career woman, to stay at home mum, to CEO of her own business. Join us as we flesh out her journey and cover...*What it's like to be a stay at home mum for 7 years*How to navigate those tricky conversations with your child*From 'parenting' to 'consulting' in the teenage years*How to keep it real with our kids ...and so much more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I have my bestie Liv on the podcast to discuss our experiences of life in Melbourne lockdown with 2 under 3 and we answer questions from our audience re how we're surviving. We talk all things working from home with kids in tow, the impact on our relationships, the 'mental load', 'languishing', nannies v childcare, mastitis and so much more. Melbourne mums we feel you and you've got this! Resources: NY Times 'There's a name for the blah you're feeling: It's called Languishinghttps://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/19/well/mind/covid-mental-health-languishing.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this conversation I speak with Dr Louise Metcalf, a psychologist for the past 30 years. We discuss all things anxiety; including how to best manage our own anxiety as parents and the anxiety of our children. 5 years ago, Louise had her son and after talking with early childhood educators, realised just how many children in Australia experience childhood anxiety. Once Louise conducted research and realised that Australia can’t create psychologists fast enough to support the anxious kids who need help, she came up with the idea to create an app so kids would always have someone to support them. And so Gheorg was born. Gheorg [pronounced “George”] is a friendly robot app that supports kids to build resilience and understand their mental wellbeing. Co-designed with kids, the app allows kids to perform a daily check-in as well as breathing exercises to calm themselves, and parents can see on overview of how much their kids are engaging with the app and how they're feeling. Gheorg has been designed to be used for only a few minutes a day so kids experience long term positive brain benefits without being addicted to a screen. Louise has been awarded places in startup accelerator programs, government grants and additional support from leading medical institutions to develop Gheorg, but it’s still only the beginning of the journey. After a few years of development, the Gheorg app finally launched in September 2020 and now almost 3,000 families have already downloaded the app. ReferencesWebsite: https://www.gheorg.com/Instagram: @gheorgtherobot Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this conversation with Kate we're talking all things mum juggle. Juggling demanding careers with young children. How we navigated maternity leave, starting back at work and our relationship with our partners with equally demanding jobs. The mum juggle is real! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this conversation we discuss Sonya's journey in conceiving her 2 children. We talk about miscarriage and struggling to fall pregnant. I’m bringing you this conversation today as I think it’s so important to talk about how different our journey’s can look like when we’re trying to conceive. Even though progress is being made around talking more about miscarriage and struggling to fall pregnant it still seems to carry immense shame in our society and is still considered relatively taboo. In this conversation with Sonya today we discuss how she felt when both of these things happened to her; when she miscarried and also struggled to fall pregnant for 2 years. We talk about how she managed this tough time, what supported her and how we can best support each other during these difficult times.Warning: This content may be triggering to some people. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this conversation with Nataly; the CEO of The Nappy Collective (TNC), we discuss her motherhood journey. Nataly underwent numerous rounds of IVF in order to conceive her first child. Nataly is so honest and open about her IVF journey and the very challenging time she experienced. We also discuss why she felt compelled to join TNC as CEO and support families across Australia in reducing nappy stress.Nappy stress is not having enough nappies to change your child, to ensure that they stay clean and healthy. TNC aims to reduce this stress for families across Australia by requesting that the community donate unused nappies at nappy bins. Those nappies are then distributed to community partners who distribute the nappies to families experiencing disadvantage. 1 in 5 Australian children don’t have enough nappies and 1 in 10 mums can’t afford nappies. Can you imagine making decisions like ‘do I have enough nappies to keep my child clean today? If not, then I may have to sacrifice buying dinner for myself in order to pay for nappies for my child.’ This is unfortunately a very real scenario for many families.You can support by:Donating clean unused nappies at a nappy collection point near you. Visit: https://www.thenappycollective.com/nappy-collection-pointsDonating funds to enable TNC to stay in operation. Visit: https://thenappycollective.raisely.com/donateReferenceshttps://www.thenappycollective.com/@thenappycollective Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this conversation I chat with Shae; a sexual wellness coach who supports women in finding a deeper connection to their body and sexuality. We’re talking all things sex including how we can claim our sexuality as new mothers and how we navigate our sexual relationship with our partners. We also talk about sex positive parenting; how we as parents can best support our children to feel grounded in their bodies and not placing shame around feeling pleasure in the body. What I love about this conversation with Shae are the tips she provides. It’s a reminder that although the early years of motherhood demand so much from us, we can still find ways to be sexy mamas one act of self love at a time.ReferencesIG: @shaeeliseallenFB: https://www.facebook.com/shae.elise Webpage: https://www.motherofdesire.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this conversation Toneya and I discuss our experiences at sleep school. We discuss our journey's as first time mums navigating things like colic, sleepless nights and complete uncertainty when it came to how to best navigate sleep. For parents out there who want to know what options they have re educating themselves around sleep, this one is for you.References@toneyatangas Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this conversation Kat discusses how she navigated the incredibly taxing first 6 weeks of motherhood, as her newborn had a congenital heart disorder. Kat talks us through her journey from pregnancy; experiencing pelvic girdle pain through to having a very medicalised birth and watching her newborn endure a number of life saving procedures during his first few weeks. We discuss how Kat stayed grounded during this time, what strategies helped with her mental mindset, how to best support a friend who may be experiencing similar challenges and tools that can help us all during traumatic experiences. This is an open, raw and honest conversation that we hope may help others experiencing similar challenges, feel that little less alone. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this conversation with Dee (nutritionist and founder of Cell to Soul) we discuss how mothers can find easy ways to keep a balanced diet whilst juggling all things mum life. Dee opens up about how winning multiple titles in the beauty pageant world, being a PT and then dealing with polycystic ovarian syndrome led to her quest in supporting people with their health via nutrition. Dee's hope is that we can all learn to understand our bodies and form a positive routine around wholistic health so that we can live our best lives. Resources:https://www.celltosoul.com.au/@celltosoul Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Briony Kennedy (Founder & CEO of Adorn Cosmetics) joins me for today's discussion. We talk about her experiences during the early years of parenthood when she was navigating life with her twins whilst starting Adorn Cosmetics. We discuss everything from Briony's pregnancy where she suffered from hyperemesis gravidarum (HG), the impact that pregnancy had on her mental health, her struggles to stay grounded when her twins were newborns which was compounded by premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and Adorn Cosmetics in the early years. There are so many great takeaways from this conversation, including how to learn to stay present as parents, as we juggle all of life's priorities. Resources:Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/beauty-business-babies/id1494558229@brionyakennedy@adorncosmetics Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today I'm chatting with Giulett Moran; a psychologist for 10 years and a proud mum to three little boys. We talk about key challenges we experience with toddlers and how to navigate their wild emotions. Specifically how to handle tantrums, transitioning to childcare, fussy eaters, why positive affirmation results in positive behaviour and so much more. Resources:https://www.empoweringparents.com.au/@empoweringparentsau Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lauren Oliver the founder of Mums Who Wine joins me for today's discussion. We talk about her motherhood journey; feeling mum guilt, feeling as though she wasn't a good enough mum and her transition from corporate life to founding Mums Who Wine. We also discuss how as parents we need to prioritise our relationships, why community and self care is vital for our mental health, why we compare ourselves with others and how being authentic about our journey's is so important particularly in this day and age where 'the highlight reel' of social media seems to dominate. Resources:https://www.mumswhowine.com.au/@lauren_mumswhowine@mumswhowine_au Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr Amber and I discuss key challenges that new parents face within their relationships and how to best navigate these. We talk about the changes in roles and responsibilities when the first child is born, the importance of open communication, feelings of envy and being misunderstood. We tackle how to navigate financial pressure in a partnership, the need to invest in your relationship, why as mum's we tend to put so much pressure on ourselves to meet a standard of perfection that doesn't exist and so much more. Dr Amber has been working with couples as a clinical psychologist for over 10 years. Her doctoral research focused on attachment theory and conflict patterns in couples. Amber works from her own private practice called Next Wave Psychology in St Kilda. Resources:Next Wave Psychology - https://nextwavepsychology.com.au/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chelsea and I discuss her journey as a new mum, experiencing severe post-natal depression. Her story is a powerful example of how through great adversity you can transform yourself and your life. Chelsea is now a key note speaker, the Founder and Director of EQ Minds, an ambassador for The Gidget Foundation and supports many mental health initiatives. She is passionate about retelling her story in the hope that it may resonate with even just one other mum and save a life. We discuss the signs and symptoms of post-natal depression, how dark depression can get and where to turn to for help. Note this episode has a trigger warning as we discuss suicide.Resources:The Gidget Foundation - https://gidgetfoundation.org.au/EQ Minds - Insta handle @eqminds Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode I take off my 'mask' and discuss my journey prior to and after becoming a mum. I give it to you straight, no sugar coating. We discuss vulnerabilities, why we push ourselves to the limit, the implications of a work hard play hard lifestyle, prenatal depression and why I decided to launch Mum Life. Maybe you see some of your journey in the retelling of mine. Maybe my lessons resonate and maybe this episode will make you realise that you're not alone in the ups and downs of motherhood... of life. Enjoy x Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is a snapshot of the Mum Life podcast where we talk all things motherhood. We share stories from mums and parenting experts so that we can prepare mothers-to-be about the challenges of motherhood and also normalise the experience for current mums. In this trailer I share why I started this podcast and provide snippets from conversations to come. Stay tuned, this podcast launches in Feb 2021!Connect with Leonie Akhidenor on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leonie.akhidenor Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.