As a newborn and family photographer, I spend a lot of time celebrating motherhood and talking about all the wonderful parts of becoming a parent. While becoming a parent is a momentous milestone, for me, it also came with moments heartache and profound loneliness. Even four years in, I still have hard days where I don’t recognize myself and yearn for my life before kids.
One of the things that got me through it all was listening to podcasts. Today, I am sharing three podcasts for new moms.
When Luca was first born, I found so much comfort listening to podcasts. Looking back, I spent hours with a cup of tea, listening intently as I cuddled my little sleeping baby. Listening to other women voice the same frustrations that I was experiencing reminded me that I’m not alone and that my feelings were completely normal.
Listening to podcasts opened a whole new world to me. I am so grateful that these shows share an honest and frank perspective on parenting and a motherhood. It is so refreshing to hear perspectives often left out of the traditional narrative on parenting. Next time you feel lonely, or stuck in a rut, I high recommend listening to one of these podcasts.
The Longest Shortest Time
The Longest Shortest Time was the first parenting podcast I ever really got into. The amazing thing about this podcast is that it showcases such varied perspectives on parenting. It’s amazing to hear from such a wide cross section of people. The Longest Shortest Time is a podcast all about the stories, surprises and absurdities of raising other humans- and being raised by them. While this is a parenting podcast, you don’t need to be a parent to enjoy it. The Longest Shortest Time covers a wide range of topics and feature the voices of both parents and non-parents, many of who are often left out of the traditional family narrative.
Favourite Episodes
- The Accidental Gay Parents
- Should I have Kids?
- The Shortest Day
- It’s a Real Mother
- Parent’s Guide to Doing it
Food Psych
While Food Psych, is not a parenting podcast, it is such an amazing resource for moms who are struggling to accept their postpartum bodies. Food Psych is a podcast by registered dietitian and certified intuitive eating counsellor, Christy Harrison. She specializes in helping people make peace with food and helping you reclaim the time and energy lost to the life thief of diet culture.
Favourite Episodes
- Raising Kids With Body Trust and Intuitive Eating
- Mental Health, Intuitive Eating and Postpartum Body Image
- How to Handle Body Changes, Pregnancy and Postpartum Issues
- How to Heal Your Body Image Through Photography
- Bringing Plus Sized Bodies Into the Mainstream
To Birth and Beyond
While I didn’t listen to this podcast while I was pregnant, host Jessie Mundell, has had a profound impact on my life. Jessie is a trainer and her philosophy on food and postpartum exercise was exactly what I needed after having my babies. I can’t say enough good about her strength training program that I’ve been following for the past 18 months. Her new podcast, To Birth and Beyond is co-hosted by pelvic floor physiotherapist, Anita Lambert. This is mandatory listening for new moms who are getting back into exercise. To Birth and Beyond is all about the stuff no one talks about surrounding your body, core and pelvic floor during pre-conception, pregnancy and postpartum stages of life.
Favourite Episodes
- Getting Your Body Back After Baby
- The First Six Weeks Post-Partum
- Diastasis Recti- The Myths and the Facts
Listening to Podcasts is the perfect thing to do when you are stuck at home with a baby and you are longing for adult company. Are you a big podcast listener? What are your fave shows to listen to? I am always looking for suggestions to add to my list.