First Time Mum's Chat

As a baby massage instructor, I'm always striving to impart to new parents the importance and massive benefits of massaging and touching their little one.

When they are born, after 9 months in a safe, nurturing environment, they find themselves in a very different place with much to adjust to.

However, their journey is far more challenging and dramatic when they are born prematurely. Firstly they are likely to find themselves in the NICU with the goal of keeping them alive and then they face being poked and prodded with an endless barrage of tests.

This week's guest Tracey Kondrasuk-Brander is no stranger to this environment. Tracey is a neonatal and early intervention, occupational therapist, as well as a licensed massage therapist and has worked with children from birth to three as well as premature infants over many years.

In this episode, you'll hear Tracey and I talk about:-

• Why touch is even more important with babies born prematurely.
• The importance of skin-to-skin time with their parents and how it benefits sleep, heart rates and oxygen levels.
• How massage can benefit sensory integration issues that kids who are born premature often face.

AND much more.

So go ahead, my dear mum. Click to listen and get started.

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"I love Helen and First Time Mum's Chat." <-- If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people -- just like you -- for a smooth journey into the exciting world of parenthood. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select "Write a Review." Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode!

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In this week's episode of First Time Mum's Chat I'm thrilled to have the opportunity of chatting with Sue Atkins. Sue is an internationally recognized parenting expert, broadcaster, speaker and author.

Sue has written numerous books and regularly appears on the award-winning flagship ITV show "This Morning", Good Morning Britain and Sky News as well as being the parenting expert for many BBC Radio stations around the UK. She is also the parenting expert for Disney Family and is the host of "The Sue Atkins Parenting Show".

I can't wait to tap into Sue's wealth of knowledge and experience!

So go ahead, my dear mum. Click to listen and get started.

Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts

"I love Helen and First Time Mum's Chat." <-- If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people -- just like you -- for a smooth journey into the exciting world of parenthood. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select "Write a Review." Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode!

Also, if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast.

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So what do you do when your little one isn't speaking or trying to communicate with you verbally? In our modern hustle and bustle and highly competitive world, it's easy for parents to worry if their baby's verbal development seems slow or delayed.

As a childcare educator and baby massage instructor, it's second nature to me to look for and interpret those non verbal cues. I highly recommend that all parents learn to read their little one's non verbal communication and to help you, in this week's episode, you'll hear me speaking with Louise Day, who is a speech and language therapist.

Louise works with children under 5, often who are non-speaking and you'll hear us talk about:-

• Accepting your child for who they are and not projecting your own beliefs and expectations on them.
• Reading your child's non-verbal behaviour and looking for their cues and subtleties of communication.
• The importance of face to face contact and observing your child.

AND much more.

So go ahead, my dear mum. Click to listen and get started.

Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts

"I love Helen and First Time Mum's Chat." <-- If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people -- just like you -- for a smooth journey into the exciting world of parenthood. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select "Write a Review." Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode!

Also, if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast.

Subscribe now!

Bringing a little one into the world and raising them is a big thing, right! I think it's fair to say that we generally anticipate that our moms will help support and guide us during the start of our new parenting journey and help share the load a bit. But what about those of us who are isolated and don't have that luxury due to living far away from family, no longer having a mum or being estranged from our family?

Going through this challenging time of your life is tough on your own and this week's guest, clinical psychologist, Melissa Reilly knows all about how this feels! Melissa's mom had passed away years before she had her first child and having her son stirred up a grief process. Melissa's mission is in helping momless moms dealing with motherlessness and in this episode you'll hear her explain:-

• Why it is extremely important that you create your own mom community of people who can help and support you.
• The four crucial people that you need to include in your mom community to ensure you get all the support you need.

AND much more.

So go ahead, my dear mum. Click to listen and get started.

Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts

"I love Helen and First Time Mum's Chat." <-- If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people -- just like you -- for a smooth journey into the exciting world of parenthood. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select "Write a Review." Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode!

Also, if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast.

Subscribe now!

Bringing children into the world and raising them is often a stressful time for you as a parent, so why make it harder on yourself by projecting your expectations and demanding perfection from your children. Whilst it's important to provide that guiding hand, you also need to "live and let live" and allow your kids to make their way in the world, warts and all!

Trying to protect them from everything and wrapping them in cotton wool is likely to prevent them from reaching their full potential and may also put strains on your relationship with them. You need to ensure your children can handle life, take care of themselves and speak for themselves.

This week's guest Lisa Sugarman is a mother of two, a parenting author, columnist and radio show host. Lisa has written a number of books on parenting and is currently working on her next one. In this episode you'll hear Lisa and I talk about:-

• Why you don't need to be the perfect mom or expect to raise the perfect child.
• Why it's ok to screw up and make mistakes and why you should celebrate them as well as your wins.
• Why you must accept your child as they are and not fall into the trap of comparing them to other children or their siblings.

AND much more.

So go ahead, my dear mum. Click to listen and get started.

Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts

"I love Helen and First Time Mum's Chat." <-- If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people -- just like you -- for a smooth journey into the exciting world of parenthood. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select "Write a Review." Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode!

Also, if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast.

Subscribe now!

It's a really big deal to bring another human into the world and many of the moms I speak with rush into this journey before planning and thinking ahead with their partner. Preparing for your pregnancy is extremely important and I urge you to think ahead and take steps to ensure you are both in the best of health and in the right mindset.

This week's guest Dr. Jane Levesque is a naturopathic doctor who specialises in fertility. Dr Jane helps her clients plan and think ahead and ensure they are in good health to minimise the likelihood of problems conceiving. Dr Jane's second pregnancy ended in a miscarriage so she's been through the feelings of loss, confusion, feeling broken and asking why me?

In this episode you'll hear Dr. Jane talk about:-

• The importance of preparing your body and ensuring both you and your partner are healthy.
• The importance of following your intuition and practicing self-empowerment, to ensure you have the birth experience you want.
• Ensuring you have the right mindset and are in the right space so you have success and a way better pregnancy!

AND much more.

So go ahead, my dear mum. Click to listen and get started.

Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts

"I love Helen and First Time Mum's Chat." <-- If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people -- just like you -- for a smooth journey into the exciting world of parenthood. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select "Write a Review." Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode!

Also, if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast.

Subscribe now!

Moms certainly face a challenging time when faced with postpartum depression and anxiety. At a time in their life when they are at their most vulnerable and stressed and overwhelmed, they need support and understanding.

However, when they turn to others, the reaction often is "get yourself together and toughen up".

This week's guest Suzanne Yatim Aslam went through this journey with her two kids and her personal experience with postpartum depression and anxiety left her feeling alone and confused. She has put her personal experience into her book, Post Pardon Me which is written in the form of journal entries. You get to go inside Suzanne's head and she addresses the dark thoughts that so many mothers have but are too scared to say out loud. If you're struggling with postpartum depression and anxiety then don't miss this episode.

So go ahead, my dear mum. Click to listen and get started.

Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts

"I love Helen and First Time Mum's Chat." <-- If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people -- just like you -- for a smooth journey into the exciting world of parenthood. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select "Write a Review." Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode!

Also, if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast.

Subscribe now!

The COVID pandemic has been a challenging time for us all and many of us have needed to find new ways to keep ourselves engaged and busy whilst stuck in our homes for long periods.

This week's guest, Aruna Lepore, is a mom of two and found herself in this exact situation and decided to embark on a journey as a writer. She even painted all the illustrations for her book, Peanut the Penguin and the book is already winning awards including the prestigious Creative Child Magazine 2022 Book of the Year Award and was the Wishing Shelf Book Award Red Ribbon Winner.

Aruna has strong views on parenting and you'll hear her recount her experiences from her two children's early days and how she built an inseparable bond and attachment with them.

So go ahead, my dear mum. Click to listen and get started.

Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts

"I love Helen and First Time Mum's Chat." <-- If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people -- just like you -- for a smooth journey into the exciting world of parenthood. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select "Write a Review." Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode!

Also, if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast.

Subscribe now!

Often when I'm speaking with moms about baby massage, they ask me whether it can help improve their little one's sleep. So I thought I would put together an episode specifically about how baby massage can help with sleep.

In this episode you'll hear me explain:-

• How baby massage is especially helpful as part of your baby's sleep routine.
• How to prepare the environment for baby massage and the importance of being in a good frame of mind.
• Some techniques to help your baby sleep better.

AND much more.

So go ahead, my dear mum. Click to listen and get started.

Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts

"I love Helen and First Time Mum's Chat." <-- If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people -- just like you -- for a smooth journey into the exciting world of parenthood. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select "Write a Review." Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode!

Also, if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast.

Subscribe now!

Many women who have recently given birth, ask me about topics such as strengthening their bodies. I've interviewed a number of guests on the podcast who have shared their expertise in this area.

This week's guest Christina Whelan has a mission to shift the dialogue around movement, so that more women will get moving with the purpose of finding the freedom that a healthy body and mind will give them.

Christina teaches body awareness using tools including Pilates, the Franklin Method and Eldoa myofascial stretching. Through her training, she also helps women who are pregnant and/or postpartum to regain core control and to aid recovery.

Christina shares many pearls of wisdom in this episode including:-

• The importance of encouraging movement in your little one early on so they get the vibe towards beginning an active life, instead of a sedentary one.
• Tips to help moms begin their recovery after they've given birth and after six weeks has elapsed.
• Ways to improve your breathing and why it is so important to do this correctly.
• How Eldoa myofascial stretching helps strengthen your spine.

AND much more.

So go ahead, my dear mum. Click to listen and get started.

Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts

"I love Helen and First Time Mum's Chat." <-- If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people -- just like you -- for a smooth journey into the exciting world of parenthood. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select "Write a Review." Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode!

Also, if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast.

Subscribe now!