Femammal

Femammal

By GreerSociety & CultureHealth & FitnessEducationSelf-ImprovementRelationshipsSexuality
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Femammal episodes

  • Signing Off

    Today's episode will be my last. I reflect back on the season, explain my reasons for signing off, and share some exciting news. For more information about hosting a high school exchange student, visit EF Exchange

    Contact Femammal:

    If you have feedback or want to be a future guest, please get in touch!

    Logo design: copyright Darragh Hannan

    18 min
  • Doula Download

    Kimberly Sharpe, who has practiced as a postpartum doula, explains the role of a doula in pregnancy, delivery, and after delivery, and discusses others forms of women-centric birthing care a mother may receive. She shares these resources: 
    In the Flo, by Alisa Vitti 
    The Business of Being Born 
    Pacific Birth Collective  
    DONA International 

    Contact Femammal:

    If you have feedback or want to be a future guest, please get in touch!

    Logo design: copyright Darragh Hannan

    39 min
  • Being a Foster Mom
    Today's guest is Rachel Bergin. Rachel is a middle-grade science teacher in Nashville, Tennessee. In her freetime, she is also a contra dance caller who is particulary adept at calling family-friendly dances as well as techno/pop dances. In this episode, she shares the story of how she and her husband became foster parents, with all of the joys and challenges that the role of a foster mom brings.

    Contact Femammal:

    If you have feedback or want to be a future guest, please get in touch!

    Logo design: copyright Darragh Hannan

    43 min
  • Shifting Fertility in Perimenopause
    Today's guest is Christina Valenzuela, who is the owner and creative director of Pearl & Thistle, LLC, where she offers a unique blend of theology and science to bring better body literacy to Catholics. She has been a certified instructor in the Boston Cross Check™ method of Natural Family Planning since 2013. Her latest book, The Language of Your Body: Embracing God's Design for Your Cycle, is scheduled for release with OSV in 2024. In this conversation, she shares information from her Perimenopause Prep: Navigating NFP with Shifting Fertility resource, and reflects on the transitions she is getting ready to navigate as she approaches perimenopause. She also shares these resources:https://fertilityscienceinstitute.org/directory/https://readyourbody.com/educators-directory/https://www.larabriden.com/hormone-repair-manual/https://pearlandthistle.podia.com/perimenopause-prep-navigating-nfp-with-shifting-fertility

    Contact Femammal:

    If you have feedback or want to be a future guest, please get in touch!

    Logo design: copyright Darragh Hannan

    58 min
  • Marriage Equality and Authentic Identity

    Today's guest is Meli Barber, who works in the field of family social services in Indianapolis. She holds a Master's of Social Work degree and a Master's of Arts in Theology degree. She shares the story of her marriage to her wife, Carli, and the professional transition out of Catholic parish ministry she had to make to prioritize her relationship. She also reflects on the ways in which her imagination for what her family could be expanded after coming out in college and after marriage equality was federally recognized in the United States.

    She shares this resource for LGBTQ+ Catholics and allies:
    Dignity USA
    https://www.dignityusa.org/

    Contact Femammal:

    If you have feedback or want to be a future guest, please get in touch!

    Logo design: copyright Darragh Hannan

    33 min
  • Motherhood Supported by Surrogacy

    Today's guest is Mia McCarthy. Having navigated a long journey to parenthood, Mia is a proud mother of one who works in the area of sustainability. Having spent many years working focused on social justice issues, both professionally and personally, Mia is currently running in local elections in Ireland hoping to bring her knowledge and experience to ensure equitable access to the infrastructure needed to ensure a connected liveable community for residents. In this conversation, Mia shares about her journey to parenthood, which included several rounds of IVF and ultimately included surrogacy.

    For another perspective on surrogacy, she shares this information about a new short documentary from Netflix, entitled "Two Mothers," by filmakers Anna Rodgers and Zlata Filipovic (not available in all countries):

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CRxJAgIYtY

    https://www.joe.ie/movies-tv/two-mothers-netflix-documentary-irish-films-790944

    Contact Femammal:

    If you have feedback or want to be a future guest, please get in touch!

    Logo design: copyright Darragh Hannan

    58 min
  • Motherhood through Embryo Adoption

    Amy Houghtaling is a graduate of Fuller Theological Seminary and has spent most of her career working with people struggling with homelessness. She now holds the position that she believes will do more good in the world than any job she’s ever had:  she is a stay at home mom to her son and daughter, biological siblings adopted as embryos.  In this episode, she shares about the process she went through to adopt six embryos and attempt to give birth to each of them. She reflects on how she grew into her motherhood and developed a deep sense of connection to all six embryos through this challenging process. And she's offered to be in touch with anyone considering embryo adoption who would like to connect with her personally—you can do that by emailing [email protected], and I will make sure your message reaches Amy.

    Contact Femammal:

    If you have feedback or want to be a future guest, please get in touch!

    Logo design: copyright Darragh Hannan

    1 hr 23 min
  • Infertility and Deciding not to Parent

    Today's guest is Catie Eichhorn. Catie and her husband, who have been married for over a decade, are not raising any children, a decision which was impacted by Catie's endometriosis diagnosis. She shared the story of her struggle with endometriosis in the first season, so if you missed that episode, be sure to check it out. Catie has worked as an engineer, a nonprofit business manager, and currently a full time professor of business. She does have two fur kids that keep her on her toes. In this episode, Catie reflects on how she was able to reframe her image of family, and how she intentionally builds community and finds joy in her connections within extended family, her friends, and her church.

    Contact Femammal:

    If you have feedback or want to be a future guest, please get in touch!

    Logo design: copyright Darragh Hannan

    58 min
  • Persisting through Postpartum Depression

    Jessica Mannen Kimmet reflects on her battle with postpartum depression, how it impacted her family and her choices, and how she got to a healthier place. She recently published the book, Groaning in Labor, Growing in Hope: Scripture Reflections for the Hard Days of Early Motherhood, in which she draws from her own experience of postpartum depression to help women find spiritual resources to accompany them through similar experiences. 

    Contact Femammal:

    If you have feedback or want to be a future guest, please get in touch!

    Logo design: copyright Darragh Hannan

    47 min
  • Stories of Family Formation for Season 4

    This season, we are listening to women share their stories of how they formed their families, especially when health factors or medical issues impacted their decisions. Women's health matters for its own sake. At the same time, for many women, health issues not only impact their own quality of life but also their paths to forming families, and many women have wanted to share those stories here, too. For our purposes, “forming families” means the creation of any home-life that generates safety, belonging, connection, and joy, and it doesn't exclusively mean becoming a parent and raising children. I hope you will listen to each story this season with a sense of curiosity and compassion. And if you're going through something in your life right now where you're not in a place to listen to stories like these, I hope that you find compassion and support for what you're going through, and you can return to this podcast when you're ready.

    Contact Femammal:

    If you have feedback or want to be a future guest, please get in touch!

    Logo design: copyright Darragh Hannan

    18 min

About Femammal

From the publisher's feed

Finding joy in the experience of being female mammals through frank interviews with women about our bodies, life cycles, communities, and families. Holding space for women to explore what it means to…