Where's the Village?

We covered a lot... ooft! Most notably; Rosie's struggle to successfully fall pregnant and having PCOS, what her big family taught her about support vs. the support she has available to her now, guilt and giving ourselves permission to receive help and what that can look like, and... POSTPARTUM CARE, POSTPARTUM CARE, POSTPARTUM CARE. And, of course, cultivating community and branching out.

If you have a newly pregnant friend and/or know a first-time parent, this is the episode you should be sending their way! <3

With love...

- TORS (and Rosie) xxx

CW: pregnancy loss and postpartum depression

Last episode for 2020! This year's last episode is with Carla Muhling - a doula and mother of two! Carla has an interesting story, having lived in and out of intentional communities and off grid during her first pregnancy and postpartum period. She shares what that was like versus her current situation living in town.  Carla shares postpartum strategies that she uses with her clients, and how her work as a doula was informed by her two very different postpartum experiences. We talk about catharsis and the realisations born from that, healing and learning through loss, and whether or not we can achieve some sense of a 'village' in our modern, nuclear structures.

I hope you enjoy - and will see you back here in the new year!

- TORS

CW: early pregnancy loss

In this week's episode of WTV I spoke with mothers counsellor, Kate Benton. As a counsellor, Kate has the unique insight of being able to share her experience with postnatal depression and anxiety, and what it's like to take that leap and seek professional help. We speak about her adventurous life pre-kids, her positive experiences with mothers group (four separate occasions!), the impact of going from one to two children, and speaks openly about taking medication to assist her own anxiety. We speak about her own support system, as well as the support system she provides to others, hosting group counselling sessions for mothers - um, GENIUS.

This is the second-last episode for 2020 (one more coming before the end of the year!) so lap it up, and thank you for listening!

- TORS xx

In this week's episode of WTV I got to chat with Vanessa (Ness) Voigt - mother of 3, proud Māori woman and creator of the Mana Wahine Affirmation Cards (amongst a whoooole bunch of other stuff!) She's full power!

We speak about her family and how she became a parent, her experience with depression both pre and postnatally. The conversations dips into the importance of educating our village and asking ourselves important questions, how we can work towards staying connected with our partners, the non-linear path of healing and authenticity, as well as some beautiful Māori rituals surrounding birth and postpartum. So many take aways in this episode! I really hope you enjoy!

- TORS xx

CW: suicide and depression, sexual trauma.

Pls note: I accidentally mention early pregnancy loss in the intro - disregard.

REFERENCE NOTES:

@nessvoigt - Ness' Instagram, you can find her Linktree in her bio.

@ngaroma_art - Haylee Ngaroma's Instagram, artist for Mana Wahine Cards.

You can purchase the Mana Wahine Affirmation Cards here

In this week's episode of WTV, I got to chat to a friend-of-an-old-friend, Kayla Bird. Kayla is a SAHM (Stay At Home Mother) to two daughters - both born in despite of challenges with conceiving! She speaks about her experiences with infertility, her decision to speak openly about it and share her story with others, and how she's learning to parent a child with specialised needs following a recent diagnosis for Global Developmental Delay and suspected Autism. We touch on the recent birth of her youngest daughter, the art of giving and receiving support, a mother's decision to return to work, and moving to a new town in the time of Cov!d.

Hope you enjoy!

- TORS xx

CW: pregnancy loss

RESOURCE NOTES:

Instagram: @kayla_bird1 if you feel called to connect with Kayla.

In this week's episode of WTV I spoke with Nadia Abdelal, a strong woman of Lebanese Muslim background, and a mother to 3 older children (aged 21, 18, 16)... where to begin... what a beautiful, profound and interesting episode. In addition to her journey to parenthood, Nadia and I chat about her culturally conservative upbringing, her marriage story, pregnancies, and experience with trauma. She shares her story with such honesty and self-reflection, including her exposure to mental health issues and trauma that presented in her father, herself, and her brave daughter. So beautiful.I hope you enjoy listening - join me in holding space for this story. Please be aware of the usual language warning and also the content warning below!- TORS xxCW: trauma, pregnancy loss, suicide, self harm and mental illness.

In this episode I have the pleasure of speaking with Jemma Bennett - proud Mauri woman and a mother to five! We speak about loss, intergenerational trauma, the wounds that shape us, the importance of heritage and healing, and the sacred work of grief. We could've kept chatting for hours about this stuff, but I'm so excited to share what we did get to cover! 

- TORS xx

CW: pregnancy loss, intergenerational trauma.

In this episode I'm chatting with Georgina, a friend of a friend, who is a work-from-home-stay-at-home mother to two (plus some doggos) Georgina really touched me with her wisdom and frankness about her experience with parenting and support. We talk about family dynamics and the impact of distance, the unexpected desire to become a parent, career vs. parenting, mental health, and juggling self care.

Georgina is articulate, intelligent and an absolute delight to speak with! I'm sure we'll all take some of her wisdom on board.

In this episode of WTV I got to interview Indi Williams, the host of Keep Birth Wild podcast. Indi interviewed me for her podcast earlier in the year, so I was really excited when she agreed to be interviewed for mine!

We talk about her birth, her unexpected road to parenthood, her healing, gender roles in hetero-cis relationship and what she's learned about the importance of support. I was so moved by Indi's story of resilience and discovery of deep love in mothering Alice. She's an incredible woman, and an inspiring parent.

In the first ever episode of WTV I have the pleasure of talking with Ashe Davenport, author of Sad Mum Lady, and mother to two! Ashe and I talk about her birth experiences, shame, her non-linear experience with postpartum depression and anxiety, how she navigated her healing... and managed to write an incredible book on top of all that!