In todays episode I speak to Julianne Boutaleb about grief and growth through motherhood, exploring the expectations we have of ourselves, our children, and motherhood and what happens when our expectations don't match our lived experiences.

Julianne is the Clinical Director and Founder of the Parenthood In Mind practice. She is a passionate and highly experienced perinatal psychologist who has worked for over 15 years in the NHS and private practice with parents-to-be, parents, and their babies. Julianne is a member of the Birth Trauma Association and the Association for Infant Mental Health. She specialises in working therapeutically with birth trauma, PTSD, and tokophobia (fear of giving birth) as these issues impact the mother, the couple's relationship, and parent-infant attachment.

In addition, she is also affiliated with BICA (British Infertility Counselling Association) and offers therapy to individuals and couples who are pregnant or parenting following ART (IVF, ICSI, donor conception, surrogacy), or adoption. In her practice, Julianne draws on a range of perspectives including psychodynamic and attachment models, CBT, integrative work, ACT, and compassion-focused work. She also engages in couples' work and can offer parent-infant sessions using the Watch, Wait & Wonder model.

You can connect with Julianne here:
https://www.instagram.com/parenthoodinmind/
https://www.parenthoodinmind.co.uk/

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

Today we talk with Fiona Weaver from Mama Matters. Fiona is a social worker turned infant sleep specialist. She provides attachment-centred, real-life parenting and sleep support to responsive parents and their renegade babies & kids. Fiona is passionate about busting through the missed truths of the mainstream sleep industry. She aims to empower parents in alignment with their values, with evidence-based, biological normal sleep advice and relationship-centred approaches to optimising sleep and well-being for families.

In this episode, Fiona and I discuss what being a highly sensitive person (HSP) means. Fiona shares how high sensitivity can manifest for both children and adults and how this can impact our experiences as mothers who are highly sensitive ourselves or who have children who have high sensitivity. She shares the gifts and challenges of high sensitivity and offers some practical self-care strategies.

Connect with Fiona
https://www.mamamatters.com.au/
https://www.instagram.com/mamamatters.au/

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

In today's podcast I am speaking to Melanie Dimmitt, a writer, author, editor and broadcaster and mother of two young children. In 2019 Melanie released her debut book; Special: Antidotes to the obsessions that come with a child’s disability after she was thrust into the disability space when her six-month-old son was diagnosed with cerebral palsy.

Special is an uplifting, candid companion for parents in the early stages of navigating their child’s disability. Combining content from dozens of interviews with parents of children with wide-ranging disabilities (including Jocelyn Moorhouse, Chloe Maxwell and Ricky Stuart) alongside professional input from psychologists, researchers and specialists, it shares stories, advice and actionable coping strategies for parents not yet ready to sign up to ‘the special-needs club’. 

In this episode Melanie shares her journey of becoming a mother, her son Arlo’s diagnosis with cerebral palsy, the challenges and joy of raising a child with a disability, her journey of writing her book Special and how this supported her to find acceptance and healing.  If you’d like to connect with Melanie you’ll find all of her contact details and a link to purchase her book Special in the show notes. 

You can connect with Melanie here:
https://www.instagram.com/the_special_book
https://www.melaniedimmitt.com.au/

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

Arden Cartrette is a Certified Birth & Bereavement Doula and Trauma Support Specialist who focuses on helping mothers navigate pregnancy loss and life afterwards. Following her personal journey with infertility and two traumatic miscarriages, she is passionate about breaking stigmas, providing education and validation to those who are suffering. Arden currently lives in North Carolina with her husband, two living children following her loss journey along with her four pets!

In this episode, I speak to Arden about her own journey of loss, the role of a bereavement doula, our cultural stigma around grief and pregnancy loss and how to offer support to mothers and families who have experienced loss.  

I hope you enjoy my conversation with Arden. If you’d like to connect with Arden or her team of bereavement doulas you’ll find all of her contact details below.

Connect with Arden here:
themiscarriagedoula.co
instagram.com/themiscarriagedoula

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

Today I'm speaking with Yara Heary from Life after Birth Psychology. Yara is a Perth Psychologist who works exclusively with women throughout conception, pregnancy & motherhood. Yara started Life After Birth Psychology following the birth of her first son, which started her on yet another journey of self-discovery. Her experiences throughout early motherhood sparked her passion to support other women as they navigate their own family-of-origin dynamics - the social programming of the good mother, relationship changes with those around them, identity shifts and role changes to find their place of balance and authenticity as mothers.

Yara offers 1:1 and group coaching programs for mothers, including her group program 'The Re-Birth', alongside e-courses and workshops and her own podcast 'Life After Birth with Yara'.

In today's episode, I speak with Yara about how mothering can be a time of re-experiencing and, in many ways, grieving our own experiences of childhood and how this can be both painful and an opportunity for growth and healing. We talk about exploring our triggers, reparenting ourselves and nurturing our own inner child.

Connect with Yara
https://www.lifeafterbirth.com.au/
https://www.instagram.com/lifeafterbirthpsychology/

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

Today's episode is with Sarah Ashton, Perinatal Occupational Therapist and graduate of the Seasons of Matrescence program.  Sarah focuses on supporting mothers both pre- and postnatally with the preparation, transition, adaptation, and transformation occurring with Matrescence. 

Sarah's particular interest is in perinatal mental health and nervous system regulation - helping new mums manage overwhelm in motherhood. As a mother of two children aged 3 and 5 years old herself, Sarah takes her knowledge from both personal experience as well as her training as an occupational therapist to give women the guidance they need on this journey. 

My discussion with Sarah centers around overwhelm in motherhood

• We unpack the sensory system and how our sensory system interacts with our nervous system 
• We talk about identifying our sensory preferences and triggers 
• Using what we know about our preferences and triggers to create practical strategies that support our wellbeing

You can connect with Sarah here:
www.sarahashtonot.com.au
https://www.instagram.com/matrescencematters/

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

Today's episode is with Sarah Graham, founder of Matrescent Muse. Before welcoming her baby girl in May 2021, Sarah was a high school English teacher. During her maternity leave, Sarah found herself wanting to express the complex emotions she was feeling during her transition into motherhood.  With pandemic-related border closures separating her from family and friends, she turned to writing. On one of her slow afternoon pram walks, an attempt to get her baby to sleep, she started mentally forming a poem about her experience which became her first postpartum poem entitled ‘Two Hearts’.

Sharing her poetry online has connected Sarah with a wonderful community of mothers with whom she has been able to explore the emotions, challenges and triumphs of motherhood. Now working in publishing, Sarah’s writing gives voice to the complexities of motherhood and connects mothers through the shared experiences of matrescence and parenting. 

In this discussion with Sarah, we talk about her own journey of matrescence, her experience of isolation during the pandemic, the themes she explores in her writing and using creativity as a medium for self-expression, community and connection. 

Connect with Sarah here:
https://www.instagram.com/matrescentmuse/
https://www.facebook.com/matrescentmuse
https://www.matrescentmuse.com/

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

Today I'm speaking with Shelley Rahim. Shelley is a birth doula, Ayurvedic Postpartum Caregiver, Postpartum chef and educator. Shelley has over 15 years of experience supporting mothers during their child bearing years.

Shelley feeds, massages, loves and cares for postpartum mothers during their first 40 days after birth, and her journey of offering these services has now led her to create resources for teaching families to provide this love and care to the new mothers in their lives. Shelley offers this education to ensure families and communities can provide loving care and nourishment for postpartum mothers. enabling mothers to emerge from their first 40 days feelings strong, confident, healed and in love with their babies.

Connect with Shelley
https://newmothercaregiving.com
https://www.instagram.com/newmothercaregiving/
Birth story exercise: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1As2DPxiO6blHJS8Jgis-Y91N6WcA9rGfh30MwH9D5bI/edit

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

Catherine Counihan is an Integrative Psychotherapist with over 12 years of clinical experience, working in private practice in London. She specialises in complex trauma, perfectionism, nervous system healing, shifting dysfunctional patterns in our families and parenting. 

Cath had done a lot of personal trauma therapy prior to kids and, despite this, was set back to emotional ground zero by motherhood. One of her areas of expertise is exploring and understanding how our own childhoods impact our parenting journey.

Cath also writes, teaches and hosts  the weekly podcast 'Grow Yourself Up' focused on how we can learn to tend to ourselves in adulthood when we have not had our needs met as children and the way that parenting can challenge our ability to do this.

In this episode I sit down with Cath and have a very gentle, compassionate and open hearted conversation about the ways in which experiences of childhood trauma can shape and impact how we experience mothering and raising children. 

We cover a lot of ground in this episode, 

• The ways in which childhood trauma can impact and shape our experience of mothering and raising children 
• We talk about the nervous system and our window of tolerance and how trauma can travel through families and generations 
• Why playing with your children can be feel overwhelming or dysregulating 
• The power of rupture and repair for our children and ourselves 
• We talk about how we can bring in more compassion in our mothering and our  journey of healing from childhood trauma

There is so much wisdom in this episode, and I know that it’s going to be really supportive for you. 

Connect with Cath here:
https://www.instagram.com/cathcounihan/
https://www.psychotherapymum.com/

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

We're back! With a new name and look and the same powerful conversations about matrescence, motherhood and personal development you've come to know.

In this episode I'm catching you up on:

• Why I took a break from podcasting + why I’ve come back 
• What I’ve been doing over the last 18 months 
• Why the change of name from 'Dear Mama Project' to 'Seasons of Matrescence - the podcast'
• What you can expect from the podcast going forward 
• My intention to make this collaborative and a two way conversation

I'd love to know how this episode lands with you, send me a DM on my Instagram @nikkimccahon or via email [email protected] - I'd love to hear from you 

I'd be so grateful if you could leave a written review for the podcast to help support the re-launch and ensure the podcast reaches more mothers who need to hear these conversations.

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

After an - unexpected - 18 month break the Dear Mama Podcast is coming back on Monday 17th July, with fresh new episodes and a brand new name - Seasons of Matrscence the podcast.

Whilst the name is new, we’ll be continuing to share the same honest, open and compassionate discussions about matrescence, motherhood and personal growth that you have come to know since 2019.

Thank you to everyone who has supported the podcast and who have  patiently waited for its return! We have been working hard to make sure it’s worth the wait. I have been busy recording some really inspiring, informative conversations with incredible guests and I can’t wait to share them with you.

I’ll be sharing more about the name change, and all that has happened over the last year and a half when we relaunch, but till then know that I am *so excited* to be back and I can’t wait for you to hear the episodes we have lined up in the coming months.

I’ll meet you back here on Monday 17th July. Till then, you can connect with me on instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz

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You can connect with me on Instagram @nikkimccahon and the Seasons of Matrescence Instagram account @seasonsofmatrescence.

Website:
https://www.nikkimccahon.com
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com

Free Discover Matrescence e-book
https://courses.nikkimccahon.com/discovermatrescence

Free Seasons of Matrescence quiz
https://www.seasonsofmatrescence.com/quiz