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Whether your baby is six weeks old or six years old, this episode is for you.

There’s a moment so many mothers reach (somewhere between the exhaustion and the endless to-do list) where you quietly wonder: why don’t I feel like myself yet?

Not new-mum tired.

Something deeper. Something that no amount of early nights or green smoothies seems to touch.

In this deeply personal episode, I share my own experience of burnout after my first child – the months of being dismissed, the years it took to recover, and the moment I finally found the language for what had actually happened to my body.

Because what I experienced had a name: postnatal depletion. And according to Dr. Oscar Serrallach, whose work changed everything for me, it can last up to ten years after having a baby.

This isn’t an episode about pushing through. It’s about finally understanding why you feel the way you do and what you can actually do about it.

For new mums navigating the early fog. For women years into motherhood who are still waiting to feel like themselves. And for anyone who leads or manages someone returning from parental leave.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

– What postnatal depletion actually is and why it’s so much more than tiredness

– Why high-achieving women are so often the last to be taken seriously when they say something is wrong

– The cultural practices around early motherhood we’ve lost in our modern world and how to reclaim something of them

– Why “insight without capacity doesn’t translate into change” and what that means for your recovery

– Five practical steps you can take right now to start rebuilding your system

– What compassionate leadership looks like for someone returning from parental leave

This episode is for you if…

– You’re a new mum who feels like something is off…even though everyone keeps telling you you’re fine

– You’re months or years into motherhood and still waiting to feel like yourself again

– You’re a high-achiever who keeps trying to “fix” the exhaustion with better habits… and nothing is sticking

– You’re a leader or line manager with someone returning from parental leave on your team

– You’ve ever been told “you’re just tired, you’re a mum” and known, in your gut, it was something more

Resources mentioned in this episode:

The Postnatal Depletion Cure – Dr. Oscar Serrallach

The Fourth Trimester – Kimberly Ann Johnson

Did this episode resonate with you?

If it did, the kindest thing you can do is share it with another mother who needs to hear it. Whether she’s in the early fog of new motherhood, or years down the line and quietly wondering why she still doesn’t feel quite right. Sometimes just knowing there’s a name for it is enough to change everything.

Share this episode with a friend, a colleague, or someone on your team returning from parental leave.

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Click here to read the transcript