More Than Mama

In this special episode (PART 1 of 2) we dive deep into a topic that will be on so many people's minds as it is NICU awareness month, with the incredible Naomi Southern-Augustine.

While ultimately this story has an incredible ending against all the odds with Wren continuing to thrive to this day, I want to include a trigger warning here for anyone not feeling in a space to listen to this story today, as we discuss at length Naomi's birth at 22 weeks 6 days, and the associated risks including potential infant loss as prior to 24 weeks this is not considered medically viable, as well as her NICU journey with a micro preemie, a whole host of challenges and eventual post partum PTSD.

Naomi runs the instagram account @lifeinourarchford documenting her journey with her partner Rob and daughter Wren, and in this episode we discuss Wren’s absolutely amazing, miraculous, resilient, intensely challenging journey, including:

• Birth at 22+6
• NICU
• Palliative care
• Medical challenges and complications
• Feeding challenges
• Why connecting with other NICU families was so essential
• Caring for a micro-preemie
• The long journey home
• Tests needed to pass to get home
• Having to fight to get proper communication from doctors and questions answered about issues with care
• 9 attempts at discharge to get home
• Celebrating her 100th day
• The feeling of being told it was ok to go
• Huge appreciation for NHS and NICU teams, how amazing the staff were
• Rob passing his driving test with Wren in NICU!
• Support from community nurses
• Today (day of recording) - Wren’s corrected FIRST BIRTHDAY!!!! (16 months old, corrected age 12 months)
• Intensity of weekly appointments even after discharge, at one point being under 10 different specialties (and seeing nurses and consultants continues, still under optomology for eyes, still under cardiology, respiratory specialist) - it doesn’t stop once you leave NICU
• Mental health during NICU and the first year afterwards
• Post partum PTSD and flashbacks and intrusive thoughts
• Naomi’s first day back at work tomorrow (the day after recording)
• Talking therapy and CBT
• Loving her job as a nurse but difficulty of leaving Wren
• That it’s not all doom and gloom, they’ve celebrated and laughed, made friends for life with other NICU families
• NICU’s sole purpose is to help your little one survive (and to help those who can’t have a good death and support families through that unimaginable time)
• How lucky we are in the UK to access NICU on the NHS
• Naomi’s message for other NICU parents

You can follow Naomi, Rob and Wren's journey on instagram here.

Bliss is also a useful resource for supporting families of babies born premature or sick.

Follow this podcast on @themorethanmamapod.

Reminder

This podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and does not provide (or purport to provide) medical, legal, financial, business, nutritional or other advice. Please always consult the appropriate professional for such advice. This podcast is a judgment free space sharing a range of views, experiences and perspectives and those expressed in these conversations are not necessarily those of the host or any brands or corporations referenced.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode I chat with Suzanna Clark, who ditched a 6 figure salary and career at one of the world's largest investment banks JP Morgan to build her dream life in Bali and support other high achieving women to do the same (even if they have no idea what they want to do or what business to start!)

Suzie Clark is an entrepreneur and founder of the Female Leadership Collective, retreat host, podcast host, sales, mindset and business expert, course creator and 1:1 business coach for women who want more.

We discuss:

• Suzanna's story
• being funnelled into what society deems success and not finding fulfilment
• quitting and flying to Bali
• the humbling move from moving from a banking salary to budgeting hard
• needing to find a business idea
• launching a blue light glasses business with a charity model
• Suzanna's learnings from ecommerce
• failing fast
• finding a business model that works for you
• the problem with freelancing
• Suzanna’s lightbulb moment
• starting The Female Leadership Collective
• how can you make the money you need & design a life that you enjoy
• being realistic with business design, goals and growth
• business isn’t what makes you happy - it’s a tool
• taking a holistic view when structuring our lives for happiness
• building and planning for a flexible life around having freedom (whether it’s for family or travel or other!)
• the moment Suzie realised she needed to leave finance
• taking goals like motherhood seriously and knowing their value
• making our own rules
• not trading time for money
• key considerations for tailoring business to maximum flexibility for travel/freedom/future family
• online services business model benefits
• purpose & fulfilment
• Suzie’s advice for you if you want to build that flexible business but don't have a business idea yet
• how to find a business idea
• feminine energy, femininity and male dominated workplaces
• feeling safe to be yourself and fully authentic in business and life

& so much more!

Where to find Suzanna Clark and The Female Leadership Collective

IG: @suzannasspace + @femaleleadershipcollective

Website: https://femaleleadershipcollective.com/

Podcast

BALI RESET RETREAT with Suzie Clark here

IG: @theresetretreatbali

Signature course LAUNCH ACADEMY to launch your own business step by step

Reminder

This podcast is for entertainment, educational and informational purposes only and does not provide (or purport to provide) medical, legal, financial, business, nutritional or other advice. Please always consult the appropriate professional for such advice. This podcast is a judgment free space sharing a range of views, experiences and perspectives and those expressed in these conversations are not necessarily those of the host or any brands or corporations referenced.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I was honoured to chat to Shayla Christine of @heyshayla for this episode, as she had literally just given birth to her THIRD BABY, a beautiful son (after two daughters!) named Colford, and was about 3 weeks postpartum and rocking up to record from her newborn bubble (albeit less of a bubble third child round!) all the way from Minnesota, US.

Shayla is a mom of 3, YouTuber, content creator, influencer and entrepreneur, who started out full-time travelling and found herself full-time mom-ming for the first time in the midst of a global pandemic, and shares really amazingly relatable motherhood videos that strike the balance between acknowledging the challenges and tough moments of motherhood without being doom-and-gloom or mommy wine culture negative, and celebrating the joys and highs and how incredible motherhood is without toxic positivity or denying the struggles.

In the episode we jump into all things motherhood mindset and:

• going from full time travel to SAHM (stay at home mom / stay at home mum)
• first time mom life during covid
• the importance of partner support
• transitioning to being a mother of 3 children with her third baby
• choosing to (probably) be done at 3 babies
• exclusive breastfeeding challenges,
• transitions from 0-1, 1-2, and 2-3 kids,
• kids personalities and the impact that has on your parenting experience
• being on the same page as your partner
• logistics with 3 kids
• travel being actually easier with your third baby in some ways, but also some challenges
• perspective shifts with more babies and knowing how fleeting it is
• unsolicited advice
• do what works until it doesn’t
• finding your flow in motherhood
• worrying about yelling
• making mistakes and repairing after tough moments
• Shayla's new journalling guide to help you handle the challenges of motherhood and be the mum / mom you want to be
• deciding the kind of mother you want to be
• getting what you want out of motherhood
• travelling to Hawaii with multiple kids and how journalling made the process smoother
• relationship changes after 3 babies

and so much more!

Where to find Shayla

IG: @heyshayla

Youtube: Hey Shayla

Website: https://www.heyshayla.com/

Podcast: Hey Shayla

Find Shayla's FREE downloads, Mindset Flip Book, Journalling Guide and motherhood merch here (I love and live in her Grow Good Humans sweater!)

Want to start a YouTube channel? Check out Shayla's 'Youtube with Confidence' course

Reminder

This podcast is for entertainment, educational and informational purposes only and does not provide (or purport to provide) medical, legal, financial, business, nutritional or other advice. Please always consult the appropriate professional for such advice. This podcast stands for supporting mothers and lifting them up, whatever their journey looks like. Where guests and the host have made certain choices does not mean we believe everyone else should do the same. You know your family best.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Female pleasure, sex toys, and orgasms, oh my!

Seriously though, what a woman, what a business and what a chat. Can't wait for you to hear this incredibly insightful and empowering episode, Female pleasure, sex toys, taboos & female founded business with SheSpot Co-Founder Kalila Bolton.

In this episode we have an incredible guest who is making waves in the world of women’s wellness, sexual health and community-building, transforming the way women shop for sexual wellness - and ditching the taboos.

Kalila Bolton is the cofounder of SheSpot, voted the Best Sexual Wellness Destination 2023, a groundbreaking platform dedicated to empowering women to prioritize their pleasure, wellness, and self-care. You may have seen them featured in household names Cosmopolitan, Women's Health and the Independent, or come across their range of products in Superdrug and Selfridges, or even spotted their diverse partnerships from working with Zoe Sugg 'Zoella' and Killing Kittens.

Through SheSpot, Kalila is challenging taboos and creating spaces where women are empowered to reclaim and explore their pleasure as part of their wider health and wellness.

In today’s episode, we’ll be diving into Kalila’s journey as an entrepreneur, her passion for transforming how women approach their well-being, and the mission behind SheSpot. We’ll also discuss the importance of pleasure and self-care in our busy lives and why it’s something I personally feel is so important for mums and their mental health, and how SheSpot is helping women everywhere reclaim their bodies.

Get ready for an insightful conversation that will inspire you to challenge taboos, feel empowered to take charge of your pleasure and think differently about self-care and wellness, perhaps even start your own paradigm shifting business. 

Where to find SheSpot

Instagram: @shespotuk

Website: www.shespot.co.uk 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/shespotuk/ 

Facebook:

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@shespotuk

Reminder and disclaimer

This podcast is for entertainment, educational and informational purposes only and does not provide (or purport to provide) medical, legal, financial, business, nutritional or other advice. Please always consult the appropriate professional for such advice.

This podcast is a judgment free space sharing a range of views, experiences and perspectives and those expressed in these conversations are not necessarily those of the host or any brands or corporations referenced.

This podcast stands for supporting mothers (parents and carers too!) and lifting them up, whatever their journey looks like. Where guests and the host have made certain choices does not mean we believe everyone else should do the same. You know your family best.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What an episode to kick off this first series of More than Mama! In this episode I chat to the lovely Carly Rowena, one of the OG instagram fitness influencers, personal trainer, entrepreneur, app founder, 1:1 mentor, retreat host and more, known for her raw honesty from fitness + body image to pregnancy + parenting, birth + babies, relationships + sex… and to top it off, she’s just the nicest human being.

*trigger warning here as we have a free and open discussion which includes difficult birth experiences

In this episode we talk about SO many things, including:

• Life in the jungle and raising children there
• Handling siblings
• Consent
• Different generations’ parenting
• Repair when you lose it in front of kids & healthy arguing
• Educating parents
• Moving to Costa Rica
• Motherhood in different cultures
• Loneliness and isolation in UK motherhood vs community
• Post partum bodies, body image, body confidence, self love
• Being attacked on social media for having a positive pregnancy
• 2 very different pregnancy experiences  
• Having a bump with visible abs
• Hating her 6 pack
• Losing 2,000 followers when she stopped sharing images of Jax’s face online
• Banning Peppa Pig
• Eating vegetables
• Carly’s book on death for children
• Carly and Jax’s beliefs around death
• Body safety
• Talking about sex and birth with kids
• The #1 super simple miracle product Carly recommends that helped her beautiful, positive, ‘dream’ home birth

Where to find Carly Rowena

IG: @carlyrowena

TikTok: @carlyrowena

Youtube: Carly Rowena

Website: https://www.carlyrowena.com/

App: www.moodment.com

‘My Beautiful Body’ available on Amazon worldwide here

‘Butterflies Live for 30 Days’ available on Amazon worldwide here

Carly’s 2024/2025 Costa Rica retreat dates and booking

Trial Carly’s App, as featured in Glamour, Stylist & Women's Health

Carly Rowena’s FREE workout + meditation

Reminder

This podcast is for entertainment, educational and informational purposes only and does not provide (or purport to provide) medical, legal, financial, business, nutritional or other advice. Please always consult the appropriate professional for such advice.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to More than Mama: the podcast for every type of mum, where we'll be diving into all things motherhood and beyond. In this short trailer I go into the 'why' behind the name, and how there is no 'just' about being a mum.

Instagram: @themorethanmamapod + @brionywrites

More than Mama - the podcast for every type of mum where we dive into all things motherhood and beyond - the highs, lows and everything in between.

The vibe here is coffee or a cocktail with friends meets interesting or inspirational TED Talk. This is a judgment-free space where no topic is off limits; a community for all mums, moms, mamas, mothers to be or those interested in asking the big questions about motherhood and more.

Join us as we chat with incredible guests, exploring different perspectives and celebrating the journey, whatever it looks like for you. If you're all about cheering on other women, making choices that work for you and your family, finding your virtual village, and loving motherhood on your own terms - you're our people. Let's dive in.

Our amazing guests are from all over the world - Bali, Costa Rica, the US, the UK, Australia... we've got entrepreneurs, authors, influencers, activists, female founders, YouTubers, experts in so many fields from mindset to parenting to nutrition to business... so many incredible women and amazing mothers - come join us and be part of the community.

Navigating the wild ride of motherhood? This one's for you, whether you're thriving or just about surviving!

Reminder and disclaimer

This podcast is for entertainment, educational and informational purposes only and does not provide (or purport to provide) medical, legal, financial, business, nutritional or other advice. Please always consult the appropriate professional for such advice.

This podcast is a judgment free space sharing a range of views, experiences and perspectives and those expressed in these conversations are not necessarily those of the host or any brands or corporations referenced.

This podcast stands for supporting mothers (parents and carers too!) and lifting them up, whatever their journey looks like. Where guests and the host have made certain choices does not mean we believe everyone else should do the same. You know your family best.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.