Mum As You Are

Mum As You Are

By Erin BoweParentingKids & Family
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Mum As You Are episodes

  • 80 Feel like you're not doing alone time properly?

    You find an hour to yourself. A moment you’ve potentially been anticipating

    for weeks. What do you do? You fantasize about what you *could* do - book a
    massage? see a friend? read a book?

    Then the moment comes. Is this excitement or anxiety in your body? Is

    this feeling calm or am I just frozen? Somehow you can’t think of a single
    thing you want to but instead are filled with thoughts – I’m feeling ok now,
    maybe I should just fold laundry. I’ll just go online for a bit, just to get
    ideas and chill.

    Next thing you’re looking at photos of your kids on your phone and the

    hours is almost up. Now you’re all frustrated and angry at yourself again for
    not doing alone time ‘properly’.

    What happened?

    As a mother, I’ve found myself fantasising about the second I can hand

    the kids over to be alone, only to find that the moment I’m truly alone, I
    don’t know what to do with myself.


    Social Media Detox for Mums

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠Amazon Australia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    More than a healthy baby: finding strength and growth

    after birth trauma

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3cAuvfu⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    If you'd like to follow along my

    slow living journey on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠my YouTube channel ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    I also send a ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠weekly email⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and

    have old school-style pen pals rather than use social media :)

    My Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    Mental health courses I teach: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    12 min
  • 79 psychologist recommended books for mums June/July

    *NB this episode is available on YouTube if you want to follow along with the visuals

    Life in the Five Senses, Gretchen Rubin

    https://amzn.to/3qjroyI

     

    Feeding the Soul (Because it’s my Business), Tabitha Brown

    https://amzn.to/439h0Zd

     

    The Art of Growing up, John Marsden and Take Risks, John

    Marsden

    https://amzn.to/43tAhEq

    https://amzn.to/3C0tLsV

     

    Coretta: My Life, My Love My Legacy, Coretta Scott King

    https://amzn.to/3C5kb80

     

    Dissociation made Simple, Jamie Marich

    https://amzn.to/3C19NhD

    Other books I often recommend to clients

    The Postnatal Depletion Cure, Dr Oscar Seralach

    https://amzn.to/3IHgvx6

    The Power of Fun, Catherine Price

    https://amzn.to/3IGrO8T

     

    Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids: How to Stop Yelling and Start

    Connecting, Dr Laura Markham

    https://amzn.to/3MYWWmA

    AKA Calm Parents, Happy Kids (UK adapted version)

    https://amzn.to/3OK6nr5

    There's also my books :)


    Social Media Detox for Mums

    ⁠⁠⁠Amazon Australia⁠⁠⁠⁠

    More than a healthy baby: finding strength and growth

    after birth trauma

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3cAuvfu⁠⁠⁠⁠

    If you'd like to follow along my

    slow living journey on ⁠⁠⁠⁠my YouTube channel ⁠⁠⁠⁠

    I also send a ⁠⁠⁠⁠weekly email⁠⁠⁠⁠ and

    have old school-style pen pals rather than use social media :)

    My Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/⁠⁠⁠⁠

    Mental health courses I teach: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠

    17 min
  • 78 should you get up earlier?

    Getting up at dawn to journal, exercise and smash goals might work well for well-rested people. But what if you're not yet a member of the well-rested Mum's club? Is getting up earlier the answer?

    Social Media Detox for Mums

    ⁠⁠⁠Amazon Australia⁠⁠⁠⁠

    More than a healthy baby: finding strength and growth

    after birth trauma

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3cAuvfu⁠⁠⁠⁠

    If you'd like to follow along my

    slow living journey on ⁠⁠⁠⁠my YouTube channel ⁠⁠⁠⁠

    I also send a ⁠⁠⁠⁠weekly email⁠⁠⁠⁠ and

    have old school-style pen pals rather than use social media :)

    My Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/⁠⁠⁠⁠

    Mental health courses I teach: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠

    8 min
  • 77 How to winter in difficult times

    Wintering doesn’t have to occur in the physical season of winter. It can represent a time in life that’s challenging and depleting. A time when your soul needs to rest and pull back.

    Today I share 4 lessons I've learned in wintering

     

    This book might also be helpful:

    Wintering: The Art of Rest in Difficult Times

    https://amzn.to/43a1Pio


    Social Media Detox for Mums

    ⁠⁠Amazon Australia⁠⁠⁠

    More than a healthy baby: finding strength and growth after birth trauma

    ⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3cAuvfu⁠⁠⁠

    If you'd like to follow along my slow living journey on ⁠⁠⁠my YouTube channel ⁠⁠⁠

    I also send a ⁠⁠⁠weekly email⁠⁠⁠ and have old school-style pen pals rather than use social media :)

    My Website: ⁠⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/⁠⁠⁠

    Mental health courses I teach: ⁠⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/shop⁠⁠⁠


    12 min
  • 76 Anxiety Tools to Steal from your Kids 🦸‍♀️

    Some of the best anxiety tools around are ones that people often assume are just for kids. I'll share with you a few fun, playful tools to introduce or re-introduce into your stress and self-care practise.


    I recently learned about a tool called Calm Strips. I haven’t tried them yet, and not sponsored, but they look interesting. They look like a sensory toy in sticker form. You can choose a range of textures – bumpy, soft etc. for focus and de-stressing. 


    Social Media Detox for Mums

    ⁠⁠Amazon Australia⁠⁠⁠

    More than a healthy baby: finding strength and growth after birth trauma

    ⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3cAuvfu⁠⁠⁠

    If you'd like to follow along my slow living journey on ⁠⁠⁠my YouTube channel ⁠⁠⁠

    I also send a ⁠⁠⁠weekly email⁠⁠⁠ and have old school-style pen pals rather than use social media :)

    My Website: ⁠⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/⁠⁠⁠

    Mental health courses I teach: ⁠⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/shop⁠⁠⁠






    10 min
  • 75 When it feels like everything you do is wrong

    Like pretty much every mum I know, I have too many tabs in my brain open: when did I last worm the

    dogs? How am I going to find time to go to the dentist? Does my youngest have allergies? Is it bad that I stopped taking my kids to swimming lessons? Is every choice I make as a mum somehow always "wrong"?

    The internet regularly gives the message that if only you tried a bit harder, or focused a bit more, you could have the cake and eat it.

    But don’t eat cake, OK? Because of sugar, white carbs and gluten, oh my. Am I doing anything right?

     

    Turns out there's a is a word for this experience: Paro

    It means the feeling that everything you do is somehow wrong.

    It works best as a visual example, so if you haven’t seen

    this short video explaining it

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7l2hUp0CkQ

    I encourage you to watch it. It comes from a book I just discovered and am slightly
    obsessed with – the dictionary of obscure sorrows by john Koenig. Basically its
    new words for emotions we all feel but don’t have the language for.

    https://amzn.to/3OMlu3A


    Social Media Detox for Mums

    ⁠Amazon Australia⁠⁠

    More than a healthy baby: finding strength and growth after birth trauma

    ⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3cAuvfu⁠⁠

    If you'd like to follow along my slow living journey on ⁠⁠my YouTube channel ⁠⁠

    I also send a ⁠⁠weekly email⁠⁠ and have old school-style pen pals rather than use social media :)

    My Website: ⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/⁠⁠

    Mental health courses I teach: ⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/shop⁠⁠




    9 min
  • 74 Hate playing? Listen to this

    One of the dirty secrets of parenting that not too many mums seem willing to talk about is that sometimes parents don’t enjoy playing with their children. Or maybe they never enjoy playing and would go so far as to say they hate it. There’s a few reasons for this, and with a few tweaks the concept of ‘play’ might shift for you.


    *NB* that's cockatoos in the background in case you're wondering. I live in the bush, this is life!


    Social Media Detox for Mums now on sale!

    ⁠Booktopia⁠

    ⁠Angus & Robertson⁠

    ⁠Amazon Australia⁠

    ⁠Amazon US & REST OF THE WORLD⁠

    ⁠Book Depository for UK/EUROPE⁠

    Get a copy of my birth trauma book: ⁠https://amzn.to/3cAuvfu⁠

    If you'd like to follow along my slow living journey on ⁠my YouTube channel ⁠

    I also send a ⁠weekly email⁠ and have old school-style pen pals rather than use social media :)

    My Website: ⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/⁠

    Mental health courses I teach: ⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/shop⁠



    16 min
  • 73 Coping with scary thoughts as a new parent

    Something like 90% of new parents will have intrusive, scary thoughts. I'll explain what they are about, how to cope with them and a bit about what situations are expected or 'normal' and what situations would be considered problematic or a psychiatric emergency.


    Social Media Detox for Mums now on sale!

    ⁠⁠Booktopia⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠Angus & Robertson⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠Amazon Australia⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠Amazon US & REST OF THE WORLD⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠Book Depository for UK/EUROPE⁠⁠

    Get a copy of my birth trauma book: ⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3cAuvfu⁠⁠

    If you'd like to follow along my slow living journey on ⁠⁠my YouTube channel ⁠⁠

    I also send a ⁠⁠weekly email⁠⁠ and have old school-style pen pals rather than use social media :)

    My Website: ⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/⁠⁠

    Mental health courses I teach: ⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/shop⁠⁠



    14 min
  • 72 Can birth debriefs make trauma worse?

    Following on from last week's episode about EMDR for birth trauma I thought it would be useful to delve into birth debriefs. They've become popular, and I do offer them myself but are their practice standards? What does the research say? And, in what circumstances could they make trauma symptoms worse?


    You can read the accompanying blog post on EMDR for birth trauma ⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/2023/04/21/emdr-for-birth-trauma/⁠


    Social Media Detox for Mums now on sale!

    ⁠⁠Booktopia⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠Angus & Robertson⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠Amazon Australia⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠Amazon US & REST OF THE WORLD⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠Book Depository for UK/EUROPE⁠⁠

    Get a copy of my birth trauma book: ⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3cAuvfu⁠⁠

    If you'd like to follow along my slow living journey on ⁠⁠my YouTube channel ⁠⁠

    I also send a ⁠⁠weekly email⁠⁠ and have old school-style pen pals rather than use social media :)

    My Website: ⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/⁠⁠

    Mental health courses I teach: ⁠⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/shop⁠⁠



    17 min
  • 71 EMDR for birth trauma

    In this episode, I explain as best I can in lay language what EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing) is and how it can help process past and future births. This type of therapy is intense but it tends to work faster than exposure therapy or CBT based techniques.


    You can read the accompanying blog post on EMDR for birth trauma https://doctorerin.com.au/2023/04/21/emdr-for-birth-trauma/

    In 2019 I interviewed Krysta Dancy about EMDR for birth trauma on the birth trauma training for birth workers podcast. If you’re in the USA, Krysta’s work would be a great place to start.


    Social Media Detox for Mums now on sale!

    ⁠Booktopia⁠

    ⁠Angus & Robertson⁠

    ⁠Amazon Australia⁠

    ⁠Amazon US & REST OF THE WORLD⁠

    ⁠Book Depository for UK/EUROPE⁠

    Get a copy of my birth trauma book: ⁠https://amzn.to/3cAuvfu⁠

    If you'd like to follow along my slow living journey on ⁠my YouTube channel ⁠

    I also send a ⁠weekly email⁠ and have old school-style pen pals rather than use social media :)

    My Website: ⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/⁠

    Mental health courses I teach: ⁠https://doctorerin.com.au/shop⁠


    16 min

About Mum As You Are

From the publisher's feed

Mum as you are is a place for self-compassionate reflection to use what you have within you, right now as you are, perfectly imperfect to find your way through motherhood.