A lot of milestones for our podcast: we turned one in October, and overall we released 63 new episodes in 2018 (92 episodes overall). As we get closer to our hundredth episode, I wanted to take time to look back and reflect back on the journey we’ve been on, the women we’ve interviewed, and share our top ten podcasts from 2018.
Insights, Themes, and Lessons Learned
Before I get to the top 10 episodes (below), I want to take some time to say what I’ve gleaned from looking back at the episodes that resonate. These episodes talk about the truth. About real food, about the challenge of postpartum recovery, about changing your life, about the struggle and the work that your body undergoes.
The key words in these titles include “Work in Progress’ and “Truth Bombs” and “Support” and “Recovery” and “Team” and “Healing.” They also overwhelmingly talk about postpartum recovery, wellness, and taking care of yourself. And they address the anxiety that can happen in pregnancy when you’re trying to plan ahead for something—new motherhood—that you’ve never planned ahead for. It’s hard.
Thanks for listening, and for making these the top ten episodes of the 2018 year. We’ve got your back, mamas and parents, and we have more shows coming your way in 2019 to talk about all of it, as we like doing here on the podcast.
And now, counting down from ten:
#10: Building a Postpartum Support Team and Roadmap to Recovery
Episode 62 was a solo episode that took a look inside the world that is postpartum recovery, health, and wellness. Here’s how you can prepare for the first weeks and months after you’ve given birth, and how to build a support team (you’ll need it!) to help you through the challenging period of brand new motherhood? The recovery time might be longer and slower than you expect, and that’s okay. Here’s one roadmap to help guide you.
#9: Morning Routines: What It Looks Like as Parents
There is a lot of noise on the internet around creating the perfect morning routine. But here’s the thing about being a parent: There is no such thing as ‘routine.’ The demands placed on you by the tiny human in your life are ever-changing, and every morning looks vastly different from the one before. Episode 66 deals with morning routines, as parents.
#8: Postpartum Depression, Daycare and Whether or Not to Be a Parent
What if you’re doing everything right—exercising, eating right, self-care and meditation—and you’re still not okay? After Kathleen Shannon gave birth to her son, Fox, she was doing all the things, using every strategy in the Emotional Resilience toolkit, and on the outside, she appeared to have it all together. But she just didn’t. Though she didn’t realize it at the time, Kathleen was suffering from postpartum depression. After a visit to an insightful midwife, Kathleen learned that extreme sleep deprivation had her battery running dangerously low. On Episode 51 Kathleen shares her thoughts on gettin help (daycare), how she recovered from PPD, and how hard new motherhood was for her.
#7: Planning Ahead For Maternity Leave As An Entrepreneur — With Arianna Taboada
How do you keep the business moving forward when you’re taking time off to have children? Here’s how maternal health consultant and parent Arianna Taboada helps women plan ahead for their maternity leaves. It’s not easy, and you’ll need an ecosystem of support–and map and tool she has for women to use when planning. You’ll also need to strategize and begin delegating work as soon as you can. Episode 65 looked at how to prepare for your leave if you’re planning on taking one, and how to think about being able to work as a new parent.
#6: Starting A Company While Pregnant: Building a Tech Product and Iterating Forward.
When Michele Hansen and her husband started planning for the birth of their daughter, they quickly realized that the cost of childcare—approximately $24k per year—was going to require an additional income stream. So they decided to build a tech company together on the side. Listen to Episode 57 to hear how it played out.
#5 Postpartum Recovery: Being an Athlete Before and After Pregnancy — With Dr. Shefali Christopher
If you’re a new mom, and working out is a big part of your identity, then you may be itching to regain a sense of normalcy after you birth your child. It’s important to remember what your body just went through, and phase in an exercise program slowly over time. In Episode 61, physical therapist Dr. Shefali Christopher shares what she’s learned both in her research and in her own experience with her postpartum body.
#4 Changing Your Life in 4 Minutes—Self Care as a Mother of Five
How do you do self care as a mother of five? It’s possible, and in less time than you think. Rebekah Borucki tells us her stories in Episode 63: from finding a few minutes per day to meditate, to how meditation saved her life, and how she manages the motherload while working from home with five different children of all ages.
#3 Truthbombs on Parenting, Entrepreneurship, and Pleasure—Danielle LaPorte
Danielle LaPorte shares her parenting and entrepreneurial journeys, explaining how the two paths coincide and develop together. For her, the first two years were a time of immense change, and she shares how she made her business work while parenting a very small one. She offers her insight on parenting, the physical exhaustion of it, and how to make decisions for your own parenting journey. We also chat about what to share (and not share) about your kids online, and why.
#2: Postpartum Recovery: Healing, Being a New Mom, and Nutritional Health—Lily Nichols (Part 2)
We place a lot of emphasis on planning for the perfect birth and making sure that our bodies are healthy during pregnancy. But what about after the baby arrives? How do we recover, eat, and nourish ourselves? In Episode 59, Lily Nichols shares her postpartum journey, discussing her caution around physical exertion and sharing the nutrients new moms need to heal damaged tissue and meet the energy demands of breastfeeding.
#1: Real Food, Prenatal Nutrition, and Mindful Eating—Lily Nichols (Part 1)
How should you be eating when you start eating for two? And how do you interpret the data you find on food that is nutritionally right for new moms? In Episode 43, Lily Nichols shares her research, insight, and personal experience on correctly feeding our hunger and getting the right nutritional intake when you’re pregnant.