Now What? Podcast

Introducing Now What? — Take It to the Group Chat.
Your stories, shared anonymously on the podcast. Dating, separation, money-what you’ve got right and wrong. A space to get advice, share a laugh and hear from other single mums navigating their own “now what?” chapter.

Share your story

• 15 minutes maximum.

• Selected stories may be edited and will be shared anonymously on the podcast. Listeners can comment on episodes, and stories will also be shared in the Now What Podcast private group chat for additional advice and discussion. Some may also be shared on social media to invite further perspectives and conversation.

• Choose one topic per recording. (Because these are short, 15-minute episodes, you’re welcome to send multiple recordings on different topics.)

• Your story could cover dating, separation, navigating friendships, boundaries, living arrangements, mistakes or something that makes your life work.

• You don’t need a polished story or a happy ending. You can still be in the middle of it.

• Maybe you’re struggling to navigate something and want other perspectives. Or maybe you’ve finally figured out something that challenged you and can’t wait to share it with other single mums going through the same thing.

• Share a little background, what happened, and what you’ve learned—or what you’re still figuring out. Include any question you’d like to take to the group chat.

• Honest accounts of difficult relationships are welcome. Keep the focus on your experience, its impact and the conversation you want to open up, rather than naming and shaming an ex.

• Record somewhere quiet using your phone’s voice recorder. Headphones with a clear microphone can help—check a short test recording first. Email the audio file to [email protected].

• Leave out real names and identifying details about children and other people. Your name won’t be published, but your voice may be recognisable.

• Please include written confirmation that you consent to your recording being edited and shared on the podcast, in the private group chat and potentially on social media.

• I’ll do my best to get to every submission, but not every recording will be published. If yours can’t be included, I’ll try to get back to you and explain why.

• Make sure you are connected to our private Facebook Group to connect over stories
  JOIN HERE:

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Content note: This episode discusses domestic violence, strangulation, homicide and suicide.

What actually happens when you report domestic violence? And why do so many women feel let down by the system that’s meant to protect them?

This week I’m joined by Professor Heather Douglas from Melbourne Law School, one of Australia’s leading experts on domestic and family violence and the law. Heather walks us through what really happens when you go to the police, how protection orders work, and why the system can feel so slow and confusing when you’re already in survival mode.

We talk about why some perpetrators come across calm, cool and collected in court while victims look like the “messy” ones, why women sometimes withdraw their complaints, and whether protection orders actually keep people safe. Heather also explains the warning signs that point to the highest risk, including non-fatal strangulation, and what the evidence really says about false complaints.

We get into misidentification and reactive violence, what happens with kids and supervised visits, and the big question: is domestic violence getting worse, or are we just talking about it more?

This is a heavy one, but it’s so important. Whether you’re going through it, supporting someone who is, or just want to understand the system better, I hope you walk away feeling a bit more informed and a lot less alone.

If you need support, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, or Lifeline on 13 11 14. If you’re in immediate danger, call 000.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens when you leave a marriage that, from the outside, looked like a good one?

This week I’m joined by Zoe George, better known as The Subtle Mummy. You might know her from Big Brother, her pranks, or the hilarious moments with her Greek parents. Growing up in a culture where divorce just wasn’t an option, Zoe never expected to be the one to walk away. Her marriage wasn’t full of fighting or yelling. There was friendship and fun. So when she found out things she couldn’t come back from, she had to ask herself a hard question: is this enough to leave?

We talk about telling her parents on Christmas Day and not getting the support she hoped for, nearly staying because she was terrified of losing control over her kids’ lives, and why she has a strict no sleepovers rule (and the story that proved her dad right). Zoe also opens up about fighting to keep the family home, being self-employed with an income that changes every month, and caring for her dad through his dementia diagnosis.

And of course we get into dating again. From the guy who squeezed two dinner dates into one night, to seeing rejection as protection, to why she’d get married again but never have another wedding.

It’s honest, it’s funny, and it’s a reminder that life after divorce can be so much better than we’re told it will be. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When I found out I’d be raising my son on my own, one of my biggest worries was what it would mean for him not to have a dad around. So I was so excited to sit down with Dr Billy Garvey to talk about it.

Billy is a developmental paediatrician, co-host of Pop Culture Parenting and author of two books on children’s mental health and raising boys. He was also raised by a single mum, who came over from Ireland on her own and worked three jobs to keep a roof over her boys’ heads.

We talk about what kids actually need from us (spoiler: it’s not a second parent), why the quality of male role models in a boy’s life matters more than how many there are, and what you can do when you can’t control what’s happening in the other house. We also get into the “golden boy” dynamic, why mums need to stop putting themselves last, and why you can let go of the guilt about screens.

Billy finishes with a message to single mums that had me in tears. If you’re a solo parent raising a boy, this one’s for you.

Content note: This episode includes discussion of family violence and abuse, and Billy briefly talks about a time he didn’t want to live. Please look after yourself while listening.

Dr Billy Garvey
Buy Billy's latest book: Ten things I wish you knew about raising boys

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Meghan McTavish is a writer, mum and founder of The Plotline Journal, who’s been called a “divorce influencer” for her honest, often hilarious take on life after marriage. Having rebuilt her own life after divorce, she talks openly about losing herself in a relationship, dating again, and learning to stop shaping herself around what someone else wants.

In this episode, we get into the real stuff: the difference between wanting to stay and being scared to leave, why Megan has stepped away from dating apps, and how becoming friends with men has been healing for her in rebuilding her trust in men. We also talk about her shift from shared care to full-time parenting, the pressure to be chosen, and whether you can love your life as a single mum and still want partnership. There’s room to want love, protect your peace, and still be figuring it all out.

Meghan McTavish:

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This episode talks about domestic and family violence, including sexual violence, as well as grief and loss. Please look after yourself while listening.

Zoe Marshall was barely an adult when two things happened at once. Her mum, a solo mum and her whole world, was dying of cancer, and she'd just met the man who would go on to abuse her.

This week I sat down with Zoe, author, speaker, podcast host and founder of Arise, to talk about how abusive relationships actually start, and why strong, smart women still end up in them. Zoe shares what it was like to be controlled down to what she wore and how she did her hair, the pros and cons list that finally helped her see it clearly, and what it really takes to leave when you have no money, no car and nothing that's yours.

She also has a message for anyone who has a friend or sister who keeps going back. Please don't stop answering the phone.

Then we get into the good stuff. Zoe talks about being raised by a solo mum, and her words for every single parent worried they're putting too much on their kids honestly made us both cry. We also talk about identity, people pleasing, why healing is never really "done" and how to start when you don't know where to begin.

This one is raw, honest and full of hope. I hope it lands for you the way it did for me.

Find Zoe:
Ariise

Content note

This episode talks about domestic and family violence, including sexual violence, as well as grief and loss. Please look after yourself while listening.

If you need support:
1800RESPECT: 1800 737 732 (24/7)
Lifeline: 13 11 14
If you're in immediate danger, call 000.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lauren Hunter is the founder of Cinqe Matchmaking Australia, and after years of sitting across from single men and women, she's seen exactly what's going wrong in dating, and what actually makes it work. Lauren is also a mum of two who went through her own divorce and had to learn to date again after marriage and motherhood.

In this episode, we get into the real stuff: what dating looks like after divorce and as a single mum, why the apps have people so burnt out, what men and women are actually asking for (and how different that is from what we assume), chemistry versus real compatibility, and whether the checklists we build for ourselves are actually helping us or just keeping us stuck. Lauren doesn't sugarcoat any of it, and this conversation will hit differently depending on where you're at in your own story.

Find Lauren Hunter's instagram here:

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, I sit down with Amy Appleton, the founder of Steps of Style, who built a fashion and styling career out of the hardest chapter of her life. What started as a blog during infertility and IVF became a full creative business, and eventually her exit plan from a nineteen year marriage.

We talk about what it really looks like to leave a long marriage without framing it as a failure, why financial independence matters even when things feel stable, and how ageing became a source of power for her rather than something to fight. Amy is refreshingly unfiltered about anger, dating after divorce, raising kids solo, and why she stopped chasing relationships altogether. If you've ever felt like you lost yourself somewhere inside a marriage or a family role, this conversation is a reminder that rebuilding is possible, and that finding yourself is the whole point, not a consolation prize.

Amy Appleton: 

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This episode dives into one of the messiest and most misunderstood dynamics in modern parenting, the relationship between a mum and the woman who steps into her kids' life. Step parent coach Kris joins the conversation to unpack the assumptions that get made on both sides before anyone's even met, the moments that quietly break trust, and the role dads and partners actually play in how these relationships unfold, which turns out to be a lot more than they usually get credit for. Real experience gets shared throughout, including what it's like to step into a partner's kids' world without any of the rulebook, and neither guest holds back on the harder, messier parts of it. For anyone who's ever felt threatened by, competitive with, or unsure how to navigate the other woman in their children's life, this conversation offers a rare, honest look at both sides.

Find our guest: Kris, Step Parent Coach
Find our host: Rachel Maksimovic

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Today's guest is Megan Dalla-Camina, author, women's leadership expert and PhD researcher, whose work explores what happens when women start questioning the lives they've built and begin reconnecting with themselves. Her latest book, She Who Remembers, makes the case that so many women aren't actually lost, they've just become disconnected from who they are beneath years of expectations, achievements and caregiving.

Megan and I get into what it really means to stop "fixing" ourselves and start remembering ourselves instead, especially in the wake of divorce or separation, when identity can feel completely fractured. We talk about honouring where you're at before you try to figure out who you're meant to be next, why motherhood (and single motherhood especially) can intensify all of this, and how the collapse of a relationship can actually become a doorway back to yourself rather than just a failure. Megan also shares the daily rituals that have made the biggest difference in her own life, sleep, meditation, nature and nourishment, and why protecting your energy from mindless distraction matters just as much as any of it.

If you've ever felt like you don't know who you are anymore, this conversation is a really gentle, honest place to start.

Megan Dalla-Camina: Instagram

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