E33 - Journey into Motherhood, Step Parenting - The Hidden World of Women

Some women dream of becoming parents, other women make life choices not to become mothers and then the universe works in mysterious ways and when they meet the man or woman of their dreams the new partner comes with children.

Being a stepparent has many challenges, negotiating different parenting styles, not wanting to overstep but wanting to do the best you can for children that come into your life.

No parenting is easy, there are lots of additional stressors and challenges that come with step parenting.

In this episode Emma talks with Jen about her experiences of being a step mother of two young girls.

Books that Jen speaks about; StepMonster https://www.amazon.com.au/Stepmonster-Look-Real-Stepmothers-Think/dp/1517071380 , The Happy StepMother https://www.amazon.com/Happy-Stepmother-Empower-Yourself-Thrive/dp/037389225X , StepCoupling https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/976033.Stepcoupling .

And don’t forget if you want to keep up to date with what we are offering at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Services www.whws.org.au

Check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthandwellbeingservices

We also continue to add content to our Youtube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCju-8oH3lDHZYi18wvgSJTQ

WHWS (and this podcast) rely on donations to support our community. If you would like to make a donation you can head to our Give Now page. https://www.givenow.com.au/whws

Or check out The Hidden World of You our online learning platform https://hiddenworldofyou.com.au/

E32 - Journey into Motherhood, Same Sex Parenting Part 2 - The Hidden World of Women

Journey into Motherhood – Same sex parenting part 2

This is the second part of the episode talking to Kelly and Sam Pilgram-Byrne about their experience and journey into motherhood and having to be a part of changing laws to be able to become mums. This episode picks up just after I have asked them if everything they went through was worth it.

I would love to give a brief synopsis of what we covered in this episode but oh my goodness, what didn’t we cover? Fostering, same sex marriage reform in Australia, raising a non-binary child, and so many more tangents.

HWW episodes are normally around an hour but this conversation dug into places the three of us weren’t expecting. We diverted off topic (surprise, surprise) but the conversation was too valuable to cut after the journey to motherhood discussion sort of wrapped up so I have cut the episode into two parts and this second part is an adventure that’s for sure!

And don’t forget if you want to keep up to date with what we are offering at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Services www.whws.org.au

Check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthandwellbeingservices

We also continue to add content to our Youtube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCju-8oH3lDHZYi18wvgSJTQ

WHWS (and this podcast) rely on donations to support our community. If you would like to make a donation you can head to our Give Now page. https://www.givenow.com.au/whws

Or check out The Hidden World of You our online learning platform https://hiddenworldofyou.com.au/

E31 - Journey into Motherhood, Same Sex Parenting Part 1 - The Hidden World of Women

Journey into Motherhood – Same sex parenting

Where do babies come from? Well when a mummy and daddy love each other very much…. But what happens when the couple doesn’t involve a daddy? What happens when it’s a mum and a mumma who love each other very much?

In this episode I talk with Kelly and Sam Pilgram-Byrne about their experience and journey into motherhood. I was amazed to find out that only a short time ago it was illegal for single women and women in a same sex couple to be able to access IVF. If Sam and Kelly wanted to have a baby they would have to take a man with them to the appointment and get him to lie and say he was one of their partners. They did not want to start their family based on a lie (not to mention one of them not being able to be on the birth certificate and the ‘dad’ having custody rights!) They made a decision. They would have to change the law.

Obviously they didn’t change the laws alone, but can you imagine having to change the laws so you can become a parent? I can’t.

HWW episodes are normally around an hour but this conversation dug into places the three of us weren’t expecting. We diverted off topic (surprise, surprise) but the conversation was too valuable to cut after the journey to motherhood discussion sort of wrapped up so I have cut the episode into two parts and the second part will be released in a fortnight.

And don’t forget if you want to keep up to date with what we are offering at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Services www.whws.org.au

Check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthandwellbeingservices

We also continue to add content to our Youtube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCju-8oH3lDHZYi18wvgSJTQ

WHWS (and this podcast) rely on donations to support our community. If you would like to make a donation you can head to our Give Now page. https://www.givenow.com.au/whws

Or check out The Hidden World of You our online learning platform https://hiddenworldofyou.com.au/

E30 - Journey into Motherhood, IVF Egg Donation - The Hidden World of Women

This is the third episode in a new series ‘Journey into Motherhood’.

This series focuses on the fact that not all journeys into motherhood look the same. There are many different ways to become a parent.

Journey into Motherhood – IVF egg donation

Approximately one in 35 women are unable to produce their own oocytes (eggs). For those women their options for having a family are to 1) not have children, 2) look to adopt, or 3) experience pregnancy via oocyte (egg) donation.

In this episode of The Hidden World of Women, I speak with Monique who went through the process of donating eggs twice. In the episode Monique says that you have to be under 40 to donate eggs however the requirements have been updated and now women have to be under the age of 35 to donate eggs. For more information you can check out this document https://www.conceptfertility.com.au/files/3415/9287/6930/Egg_Donation_12-3-3_UserTemp_15.pdf

In the episode Monique talks about an article she read in the local paper highlighting the shortage of donor eggs for IVF. I said I would try to find out if there were still the long waitlists to access donor eggs. Not surprisingly I have found it difficult to find that information. Some clinics advertise that there are no wait times but an article that specifically focuses on how hard it is to access donor eggs https://www.childmags.com.au/how-hard-is-it-to-access-donor-eggs/ states that Australia has an egg donor shortage.

I found it fascinating to talk to Monique. As the saying goes ‘you don’t know what you don’t know’ and I am fast realising just how much I don’t know about the alternate routes to becoming a mother. I had no idea what the process was to donate eggs and as always I am very grateful to Monique for sharing her experiences so freely.

And don’t forget if you want to keep up to date with what we are offering at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Services www.whws.org.au

Check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthandwellbeingservices

We also continue to add content to our Youtube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCju-8oH3lDHZYi18wvgSJTQ

WHWS (and this podcast) rely on donations to support our community. If you would like to make a donation you can head to our Give Now page. https://www.givenow.com.au/whws

Or check out The Hidden World of You our online learning platform https://hiddenworldofyou.com.au/

E29 - Journey into Motherhood, Young Mum - The Hidden World of Women

This is the second episode in a new series ‘Journey into Motherhood’.

This series focuses on the fact that not all journeys into motherhood look the same. There are many different ways to become a parent.

In this episode Emma speaks with Cinta about her journey to become a mother. While not an unconventional journey into motherhood Cinta did start a little earlier than some and was pregnant while sitting her TEE (now ATAR). Cinta talks of how her Irish Catholic upbringing added an extra layer of concern over having to break the news of a teen pregnancy to her family and friends.

In the episode Cinta mentioned the adolescent clinic at King Edward Memorial Hospital and information is available here https://www.kemh.health.wa.gov.au/Our-services/Service-directory/Adolescent-Clinic Cinta also mentioned special considerations (now called Special Provisions) she had for sitting her TEE (now ATAR) and information is available here https://senior-secondary.scsa.wa.edu.au/assessment/examinations/special-provisions

Emma and Cinta also spoke of high schools that are in Perth with childcare provisions for young parents. In the episode there were two schools mentioned however it turns out there are a lot more options available. Information around the inclusion of pregnant students at school as well as specialist schools with childcare facilities and young father inclusion can be found here http://det.wa.edu.au/detcms/inclusiveeducation/child-protection/public/resources/Guidelines.en?page=14

And don’t forget if you want to keep up to date with what we are offering at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Services www.whws.org.au

Check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthandwellbeingservices

We also continue to add content to our Youtube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCju-8oH3lDHZYi18wvgSJTQ

WHWS (and this podcast) rely on donations to support our community. If you would like to make a donation you can head to our Give Now page. https://www.givenow.com.au/whws

Or check out The Hidden World of You our online learning platform https://hiddenworldofyou.com.au/

E28 - Journey into Motherhood, Adoption - The Hidden World of Women

This is the first episode in a new series ‘Journey into Motherhood’.

This series focuses on the fact that not all journeys into motherhood look the same. There are many different ways to become a parent.

In this episode Emma speaks with Rebecca about her journey to become a mother. Rebecca and her husband both knew from an early age that conceiving naturally may be challenging for them and so they explored both IVF and adoption.

Rebecca shares her story looking into both adoption and IVF while focusing on sharing her and her husband’s experiences with adopting their son here in Western Australia.

Rebecca talks about the requirements and stages of the adoption process. If you want more information about the process of adopting here in Western Australia you can check out this link https://www.dcp.wa.gov.au/FosteringandAdoption/AdoptionAndHomeForLife/Pages/AllAboutAdoption.aspx

And don’t forget if you want to keep up to date with what we are offering at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Services www.whws.org.au

Check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthandwellbeingservices

We also continue to add content to our Youtube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCju-8oH3lDHZYi18wvgSJTQ

WHWS (and this podcast) rely on donations to support our community. If you would like to make a donation you can head to our Give Now page. https://www.givenow.com.au/whws

Or check out The Hidden World of You our online learning platform https://hiddenworldofyou.com.au/

E27 - Sharing stories of Motherhood - The Hidden World of Women

In this episode Emma speaks with Kate about the importance of sharing stories of motherhood. Kate is the online learning co-ordinator at WHWS and Hidden World of You and recently MC’d the perinatal mental health symposium. During that event it was really highlighted how our birth stories impact us. During the symposium it became a bit of a running joke with Kate saying ‘I’ll tell you my birth story’. With a hiccup in the guest schedule leaving this episode without a guest Kate stepped in at the last minute and we thought ‘great, a chance to finally hear Kate’s birth story’.

It didn’t quite go to plan and instead, in the conversation Emma and Kate talk about how we can create spaces to share birth stories, how we can talk about our experiences of pregnancy, birth and motherhood and ways that we can support mums and create safe spaces.

During the episode Emma and Kate mention that we are trying to create a space where parents can share their birth stories (where mums can share their experiences and where support people can share their stories as well). We see this as having two main benefits, one is a space for people to share experiences that shaped and impacted them and the other is that for expectant parents it can be a village to learn from. If you would like to share your birth story please send it to info@whws.org.au

In the episode Emma mentions a previous episode where Georg and Joanne share their experiences of perinatal mental health issues, that is available here https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-nngt7-10881c2

And don’t forget if you want to keep up to date with what we are offering at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Services www.whws.org.au

Check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthandwellbeingservices

We also continue to add content to our Youtube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCju-8oH3lDHZYi18wvgSJTQ

WHWS (and this podcast) rely on donations to support our community. If you would like to make a donation you can head to our Give Now page. https://www.givenow.com.au/whws

Or check out The Hidden World of You our online learning platform https://hiddenworldofyou.com.au/

E26 - Surviving a Childs Suicide - The Hidden World of Women

Friday the 10^th of September is World Suicide Prevention Day. World Suicide Prevention Day is about raising awareness of suicide in our communities. In this episode Emma speaks with Claire about her experience of losing her son Kai to depression, ending in suicide.

Almost 10 million Australians know someone who has been impacted by suicide, that’s almost half the country. With 6 boys and 2 girls taking their lives every day in Australia there are 8 families every day who are losing a child. We want them to know they are not alone while also recognising that everyone’s experience is different. This is one person’s experience of being impacted by suicide, everyone’s experiences are different, but we hope that by talking to Claire we will let others know that they aren’t alone.

Claire channelled her focus after losing Kai to raise money to fund Tomorrow Man to be able to deliver workshops in schools to with the aim to save lives of young men by changing the stigma around men expressing their emotions. 

If you are looking for more information about how you can support people in your life who may be at risk of suicide this website has a range of useful information https://www.suicidecallbackservice.org.au/worried-about-someone/

Kai Eardly Foundation, Kai Fella https://thekaieardleyfoundation.com.au/

Kai Fella facebook page https://www.facebook.com/kaifella

Youtube clip of skateboarding https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kq2elrkEBTU

Tomorrow man https://www.tomorrowman.com.au/

And don’t forget if you want to keep up to date with what we are offering at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Services www.whws.org.au

Check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthandwellbeingservices

We also continue to add content to our Youtube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCju-8oH3lDHZYi18wvgSJTQ

WHWS (and this podcast) rely on donations to support our community. If you would like to make a donation you can head to our Give Now page. https://www.givenow.com.au/whws

Or check out The Hidden World of You our online learning platform https://hiddenworldofyou.com.au/

E25 - Interracial Marriages in 2021 - The Hidden World of Women

Last year I was surprised to learn that people in interracial marriages still experience negativity, at times to the point of violence, about their relationships! I had heard Carisa and her husband Sam speak on Loving Day (the 50^th anniversary of The Lovings vs State of Virginia in which the Supreme Court ruled that laws banning interracial marriage violate the Equal Protection  and Due Process Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the laws were over turned. This was cited in precedence of overturning the laws banning same sex marriages in 2013) and I loved hearing that Carisa and Sam have experienced acceptance and love for their marriage.

The reason that I love this (well other than it’s no one elses business!) is because ‘if you can see her you can be her’ the more we see things the more we perceive them as ‘normal’ and ‘no big deal’ and that’s the goal isn’t it? That we fall in love with the person and without fear of any persecution because of colour of skin (or religion, gender, culture etc).

In this episode I talk to Carisa Montooth about her experiences of an interracial marriage, raising a biracial daughter and dating in 2021!  

The episode started out intending to talk about how attitudes to interracial marriages have changed over the years, it started out with Carisa talking about her and her husband’s experiences and meandered from there! We went on to talk about dating in 2021 (where do you even start!), healing from past relationships, relationship counselling, the importance of boundaries to protect relationships and just about every topic in between.

If you want to connect with Carisa you can find her on social media:

Website: www.carisamontooth.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/carisamontoothlovecoach

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CMontooth

YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/carisamontoothlovecoach

And don’t forget if you want to keep up to date with what we are offering at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Services www.whws.org.au

Check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthandwellbeingservices

We also continue to add content to our Youtube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCju-8oH3lDHZYi18wvgSJTQ

WHWS (and this podcast) rely on donations to support our community. If you would like to make a donation you can head to our Give Now page. https://www.givenow.com.au/whws

Or check out The Hidden World of You our online learning platform https://hiddenworldofyou.com.au/

E24 - Living as a young widow - The Hidden World of Women

In this episode Emma talks to Amy about her experience of the sudden death of her husband at an early age from heart failure. Being a young widow with three very small children, the process of trying to look after herself while looking after her children and the toll that took.

While the statistics tell us that Heart failure accounts for almost one in 50 deaths, equating to one person dying of heart failure every three hours, or eight deaths each day being due to heart failure Amy was not expecting her fit and healthy 36 year old husband to die in his sleep.

In the episode Amy speaks of her experience of looking into the ocean and thinking it would be easier to swim out and never come back in. If you are experiencing thoughts like this you can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue https://www.beyondblue.org.au/ for support or reach out to a loved one the way that Amy did.

Amy has written a book about her journey called Sink or Swim it is available from good book shops or via Amy’s website http://www.amyowilliams.com.au/

If you want to connect with Amy you can find her on social media:

Amy’s facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/sinkorswim.amywilliams/

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/amyowilliams_author/

And don’t forget if you want to keep up to date with what we are offering at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Services www.whws.org.au

Check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthandwellbeingservices

We also continue to add content to our Youtube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCju-8oH3lDHZYi18wvgSJTQ

WHWS (and this podcast) rely on donations to support our community. If you would like to make a donation you can head to our Give Now page. https://www.givenow.com.au/whws

Or check out The Hidden World of You our online learning platform https://hiddenworldofyou.com.au/