Today I’m reflecting on the year that was and how things have changed over the first 12 months of How To Live Slow.

A Huge thank you to all of my lovely guests, listeners and subscribers for being here over this time. It’s truly a privilege and an honour to be here with you, supporting each other in learning How To Live Slow.

It’s been so beautiful to see that we are all the same - the circumstances of our lives might be different - but we all feel that deep desire to love and know another, and be loved and known.

What I’ve realised that almost all of life’s problems can be solved by slowing down a little and allowing time to work its special magic.

Want more slow living inspo?

If you’re ready for a slower life, join us on Facebook in the How To Live Slow Community

Take care,

Rachelle x

The Perfect Mother Myth - it’s a construct of patriarchal motherhood that keeps us in martyrdom.

That’s why, I’m really excited about today’s episode as it’s going to be so helpful to so many mums.

My guest today is Louise East a certified Mindset and Life Coach and fellow Matrescence Facilitator. She works with overwhelmed mums who are ready to release guilt and perfectionism and live a calmer, more intentional life that makes their heart happy.

Louise shows us that it is possible and valuable to release yourself from the binds of the perfect mother myth.

"The mental load of perfectionism prevents you from having peace”

In this episode

1. What is the perfect mother myth and how does it affect modern mums?
2. Where does this message even come from?
3. What are some things we do out of perfectionism?
4. Louise’s practical strategies to move past perfectionism and the perfect mother myth
5. Supporting our friends when they struggle with perfection too

Want more slow living inspo?

If you’re ready for a slower life, join us on Facebook in the How To Live Slow Community

Take care,

Rachelle x

My guest today is Bec Ellison, who lives in Darwin in Australia's Tropical North and is the mother of three beautiful children. She works with women as a motherhood mentor and is particularly passionate about keeping things as simple, joyful and connected as possible for families. She aims to lead by example in her parenting and life and totally acknowledges that we are all perfectly imperfect and doing the best we can.

Our chat today is all about the benefits of slow parenting and what this looks like in Bec’s own life.

“Slowing down, being mindful and creating s p a c e in life and in parenting is so important to me. It’s what allows our family to live in flow.”

In this episode

1. Why it’s so important to create a slower life for our kids, especially in the early years
2. The benefits for mums in slowing down too
3. The issues with the rigged system
4. Bec’s non-negotiables and rituals for her family
5. Bec’s words of encouragement to families feeling the pull to simplify

Want more slow living inspo?

If you’re ready for a slower life, join us on Facebook in the How To Live Slow Community

Take care,

Rachelle x

In todays episode, I answer some of your slow living questions!

1. How to explain slow living to others
2. When you can’t say no, do the YES TEST instead
3. How to stop being so overcommitted
4. Ways to feel more time abundant
5. Dealing with FOMO and what it really means
6. First steps to sharing the mental load

Want more slow living inspo?

If you’re ready for a slower life, join us on Facebook in the How To Live Slow Community

Take care,

Rachelle x

My guest today is Rachel Roberts, a relationship and family mentor who works with individuals, couples, and families focusing on self-discovery, communicating our needs and boundaries with grace, translating the masculine and feminine for loving and meaningful connections, and tuning into What Your Soul Holds.

It’s a deep conversation about the elements of getting to know yourself before you try to improve your relationships. Rachel shows us why its important to do inner work - and when you do, you may just find you don’t need to improve anything else!

1. Becoming self-compassionate when you have a tendency to be self-critical
2. Committing to self-responsibility for your needs and reactions when relationships get hard
3. Tools for getting to know yourself
4. Masculine and feminine energy and cycles
5. Why looking at our anger and nervous system responses can be a great way to get to know ourselves on a deeper level

Find Rachel online

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/rachelrobertswysh

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/rachelrobertswysh

Want more slow living inspo?

I've been hosting a Slow Sunday Session in the group, which is a co-planning session designed to prepare you for the week ahead with less overwhelm, more time abundance and even takes into account where you are in your hormonal cycle.

It's free when you join the How To Live Slow Community on Facebook!

Take care,

Rachelle x

There's a quote I've seen that goes something like "Your body whispers to you but if you don't listen, it will shout". My guest today, Cerenity Incze, has earned the wisdom from this lesson in huge ways. After receiving a diagnosis of Hashimoto's, an autoimmune thyroid disease, she and her family made a drastic move to declutter their lives, move countries and create a lifestyle that promoted healing and connection.

In this episode:

• The inner split - navigating work, motherhood and illness
• What happens when you don't listen to the whispers from your body?
• Letting go of what life should look like
• Cerenity's story and lessons from her family's international move
• The benefits of slow living on family life
• Why the ordinary moments are the most memorable

Want more slow living inspo?

I've been hosting a Slow Sunday Session in the group, which is a co-planning session designed to prepare you for the week ahead with less overwhelm, more time abundance and even takes into account where you are in your hormonal cycle.

It's free when you join the How To Live Slow Community on Facebook!

Take care,

Rachelle x

My guest today is psychologist and hypnobirthing practitioner Rebecca Black who I invited on the show to talk about maternal rage. If you've felt that simmering feeling of anger like you're on the edge, a sense of frustration and a tinge of resentment, you're likely experiencing the completely normal feeling we lovingly call mum rage.

The problem with mum rage is that we hold this story that a "good mother" is always calm and level headed. So when we explode, it's immediately followed by a sense of shame and failure. It's because of the good mother stereotype that we can't speak up about our feelings, compounding the problem.

Rebecca and I want to do our part to normalise feeling a bit ragey sometimes, because parts of motherhood are hard. So we started this conversation to share whats normal, and what might mean you need extra support - and we want to normalise seeking that support when you need it, shame free.

In this episode:

• What Maternal Rage is
• Why it's so taboo, some of the signs and what it really means
• What's normal and when to seek help
• Things you can do to support yourself

Where to find Rebecca online

Website and Instagram

Book recommendation: Burnout by Emily Nagoski and Amelia Nagoski

Want more slow living inspo?

It's not too late to join my new workshop series The Martyr To Matriarch Method! Click here to get the replay for the first and join us live in workshop 2 and 3.

Take care,

Rachelle x

What is a matriarch? And what has that got to do with slow living? In this episode we define the matriarch and learn how we can become more of the matriarch of our family, develop our self worth so that we don't fall into the energy of martyrdom. Martyrdom is when we get stuck in the negative emotions and experiences of motherhood like resentment, overwhelm, exhaustion and sacrifice.

Let's change that?

In this episode:

• What Is A Matriarch?
• How does a matriarch live a slower life?
• Ways we get stuck in martyrdom
• Interpreting the deeper meaning of our feelings and emotions
• The Martyr To Matriarch Method

Want more slow living inspo?

My new workshop series The Martyr To Matriarch Method is now open for registration! Click here to reserve your spot.

Take care,

Rachelle x

Erin Bourke is the founder of The Parents Hub, a space in Melbourne for parents and carers who want to be part of a community and feel supported in their parenting journey. I invited her on the podcast to talk about the importance of in-person connection and how to reconnect after the socially distanced year that was 2020. Many of us, even the most socially extroverted, have found ourselves feeling a little socially awkward after periods of lockdown or isolation due to coronavirus.

Erin shares what we can do to move past that and find ways to start feeling good about social connection again.

In this episode:

• The importance of in-person connection
• The effects of lockdown and social distancing
• The problem with masks (even though they are essential for our health)
• How to ease back into meeting people
• What 2020 taught us about making friends and needing people

Where to find The Parents Hub online - website or Facebook or Instagram

And if you're in Melbourne, why not sign up to attend an in-person playgroup session!

Want more slow living inspo?

If you liked this episode, you might also find episode 22 interesting. It's about creating quality time with your kids through craft activities.

My new workshop series The Martyr To Matriarch Method is now open for registration! Click here to reserve your spot.

Take care,

Rachelle x

Dr Zali Yager is a body image researcher and an Associate Professor in the Institute for Health and Sport at VU. Zali has three kids, aged 7, 5, and 5 who have forced her to slow down, refocus priorities, and look within for validation instead of seeking it from external sources. Zali joins us today to talk about how to develop self-compassion and be kind to yourself even when you experience change, loss or failure.

In this episode:

• Zali's pregnancy loss and how she healed from it
• Moving interstate for a lifestyle - what works and what doesn't?
• External validation and cultural conditioning
• Body Image
• How all of these relate to self-compassion

Where to find Zali online  website or Instagram

Body Confident Mums resources or Instagram 

Download Zali's beautiful pregnancy loss workbook/journal HERE

Want more slow living inspo?

It's the perfect time of year to start transforming your daily routines into rituals, because every day should be a celebration. Join my 5-day series Creating Family Rituals and create more memories.

Take care,

Rachelle x