Motherhood & More - The Podcast: Recent Episodes
Paula Fitzgibbons & Annie Reneau
Annie Reneau and Paula Fitzgibbons are writers and mom BFFs who have successfully run the gauntlet of our kids’ early and middle childhoods. Now that we’re navigating the teen and young adult years, we’re exploring what we’ve learned—and are still learning—on our journey through motherhood.
SHOWNOTES:
Annie’s Essays:
This is 18 and I Didn’t Expect the Emotions: https://grownandflown.com/18-legal-adult/
Paula’s Essays:
5 Tips to Prepare for Parenting Teens NOW: https://www.scarymommy.com/prepare-for-parenting-teens
Parenting the Teen Who Didn’t Go Off to College: https://grownandflown.com/parenting-teen-didnt-go-college/
Essays We Reference:
There Is No Road Map for the Longest Phase of Parenthood: https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2022/09/parenting-advice-adult-children/671304/?fbclid=IwAR23bi72xe9XcnEAsdcddZ1K5EbCK_Y1l2mQQng99TRe6QFYkea1DmhLb80
5 Signs of Empty Nest Syndrome: https://www.verywellfamily.com/signs-of-empty-nest-syndrome-4163787
Stop Pretending that Intensive Parenting Doesn’t Work: https://tinyurl.com/msn78ur2
Contact us:
Email: podcast@motherhoodandmore.com
YouTube: Motherhood and More Podcast
IG: @motherhoodandmorepodcast
Annie’s IG: @motherhoodnmore
Paula’s IG: fiberstoryteller
SHOWNOTES:
We recorded this prior to the most recent mass shootings. While there is no one thing that can soothe our children’s hurting souls as they continue to navigate an environment that feels perennially scary and anxiety-producing to them, we hope conversations like this can offer a starting point for parents.
CONTENT WARNING: We reference trauma and suicidal ideation. For immediate help in the US, call 911 or the National Suicide Prevention Hotline (800-273-8255). Otherwise, please consult with your local services.
REMINDER: We are not currently medical or mental health professionals. This podcast is not meant to replace medical/mental health treatment. We share personal experiences alongside information from experts in an attempt to help parents begin navigating parenting through mental health challenges.
Disclosure: Book links are affiliate links.
When you have concerns about your child’s mental health For help with emetophobia (fear of vomiting): emetephobiahelp.org and The Emetophobia ManualOnline therapyFor help with RBTSFrom a pediatrician on when to seek help for your childOn talking to kids about their mental health Books on simple CBT tricks: The As-if Principle and Panic Free Books on Trauma: The Body Keeps the Score and What Happened to You
Our Essays:
AnnieThe Day I Let My Baby Drive the CarA huge thanks to those who openly share their mental illnesses. You saved my daughter.Ever heard of emetophobia? The oddly common phobia often misdiagnosed as anxiety or anorexia
PaulaWatching My Daughter Develop the Same Anxiety I Struggle WithPushing Children: Lessons From Chronic Pain
Contact us:
Email: podcast@motherhoodandmore.com YouTube: Motherhood and More Podcast
IG: @motherhoodandmorepodcast
Annie’s IG: @motherhoodnmore
Paula’s IG: fiberstoryteller
Annie and Paula discuss friendships for mothers—what friendship is, how we make friends, how we nurture friendships, and some obstacles that might make friendships challenging for mothers. We are together in person for this one and our peri-menopausal/menopausal memories (or lack thereof) plus lack of a producer present are on full display.
In this podcast, we reference the following:
Daniel Pink on Armchair Expert: https://armchairexpertpod.com/pods/da...
Annie’s essay on travel hacking: https://www.upworthy.com/travel-hacki...
Annie's essay on talking to strangers: https://www.upworthy.com/ditch-small-...
Reach us:
email: podcast@motherhoodandmore.com
IG: @motherhoodandmorepodcast
Annie’s IG: @motherhoodnmore
Paula’s IG: fiberstoryteller
In this two-part episode, we explore the hot topic of homeschooling. As moms who’ve each homeschooled our kids throughout their childhoods, we’ll explain why we decided to homeschool, our approach to education, what we loved and hated about it, what’s changed since we started our homeschooling journeys, and what we’d do differently if we could go back and do it again. We reference information from the following sources:
- A Brief History of Homeschooling from the Coalition for Responsible Home Education (https://responsiblehomeschooling.org/research/summaries/a-brief-history-of-homeschooling/)
- History of education in the United States on Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_education_in_the_United_States)
- John Taylor Gatto
- John Holt
- “The Rise of Black Homeschooling” by Casey Parks, The New Yorker
In this two-part episode, we explore the hot topic of homeschooling. As moms who’ve each homeschooled our kids throughout their childhoods, we’ll explain why we decided to homeschool, our approach to education, what we loved and hated about it, what’s changed since we started our homeschooling journeys, and what we’d do differently if we could go back and do it again. We reference information from the following sources:
- A Brief History of Homeschooling from the Coalition for Responsible Home Education (https://responsiblehomeschooling.org/research/summaries/a-brief-history-of-homeschooling/)
- History of education in the United States on Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_education_in_the_United_States)
- John Taylor Gatto
- John Holt
- “The Rise of Black Homeschooling” by Casey Parks, The New Yorker
Note that we briefly mention a statistic involving suicide in this episode.
In this episode, we explore our own journeys of mental health as moms. Paula shares what it’s like to parent while living with PTSD, anxiety, and depression, and Annie shares how parenting has affected her mental health despite not living with mental illnesses. We get into what has helped us through and what we wish we had done earlier.
We also share a bit about our activities, including Paula’s fiber obsession and Annie’s deep reverence for the sewing machine.
Though Paula has clinical training and experience in counseling, neither of us are currently mental health professionals. This discussion should not be taken as mental health advice. If you are struggling with your mental health, we encourage you to seek help from a medical professional.
We reference information from the following sources in this episode:
Dad makes baby stop crying in 18 seconds, by Annie Reneau
https://www.upworthy.com/dad-makes-baby-stop-crying-in-18-seconds
Maternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance Fact Sheet
https://www.mmhla.org/factsheets/
To the Mom on the Brink of Breaking, by Annie Reneau
https://www.scarymommy.com/motherhood-mom-on-brink-breaking/
Parenting After Abuse by Paula M. Fitzgibbons: https://mommymeansit.com/parenting-after-abuse/
YouTube: Motherhood and More Podcast
IG: @motherhoodandmorepodcast
Annie’s IG: @motherhoodnmore
Paula’s IG: fiberstoryteller