41. A Silent Sisterhood No One Wants To Join: Mother Hunger episode artwork

EPISODE · Dec 19, 2025 · 1H 16M

41. A Silent Sisterhood No One Wants To Join: Mother Hunger

from The Truth About Mental Health: What They Don’t Tell You · host Andrea Clark

So many women carry the ache of Mother Hunger in silence. We grow up believing our childhood was “fine,” yet our bodies tell a different story. The emptiness. The over-functioning. The longing we can’t name. And for so many of us, it takes becoming women, or mothers ourselves, to finally see what we survived.A raw conversation between best friends who read “Mother Hunger,” lived it, and are healing it.In this episode, I sit down with Jen Wernicke, a holistic nurse and nervous system expert, to talk about the mother wound, emotional neglect, and the grief that lives inside women who never got the nurturing they needed. We share our own experiences of childhood trauma and disconnection, the deep hunger for safety and attunement, and how these patterns show up in adulthood, in our relationships, our parenting, and our sense of self.We also explore the insights from the book “Mother Hunger” and why naming this wound is such a powerful part of healing. Jen brings a raw, grounded perspective shaped by her own survival story and the work she now does helping women shift out of chronic stress and finally feel safe in their bodies.If you’ve ever felt alone in your pain, confused by your triggers, or unsure why you carry so much responsibility and grief, this conversation will help you feel seen. You’re not broken. You’re not dramatic. You’re responding to a wound that began long before you knew how to name it.📕Grab this book: “Mother Hunger” by Kelly McDaniel, the inspiration for this episode.🔖 Check out Jen’s Free Guide "Mom Stress Reset: 3 Little-Known Ways to Chill Out"✅ Join Jen's Facebook Community: Mom's Who Snap💌 Subscribe to Jen’s Substack📱 Follow Jen on Instagram @jenwernicke & Facebook ---------------------If you're interested in my recommended red light therapy tools, visit boncharge.com and get a 15% discount with my code: MHM---------------------Reach out to me on Instagram @andrea.clark.mftFollow @truthaboutmentalhealthpodcast on InstagramFollow @truthaboutmentalhealth on TikTok

So many women carry the ache of Mother Hunger in silence. We grow up believing our childhood was “fine,” yet our bodies tell a different story. The emptiness. The over-functioning. The longing we can’t name. And for so many of us, it takes becoming women, or mothers ourselves, to finally see what we survived.A raw conversation between best friends who read “Mother Hunger,” lived it, and are healing it.In this episode, I sit down with Jen Wernicke, a holistic nurse and nervous system expert, to talk about the mother wound, emotional neglect, and the grief that lives inside women who never got the nurturing they needed. We share our own experiences of childhood trauma and disconnection, the deep hunger for safety and attunement, and how these patterns show up in adulthood, in our relationships, our parenting, and our sense of self.We also explore the insights from the book “Mother Hunger” and why naming this wound is such a powerful part of healing. Jen brings a raw, grounded perspective shaped by her own survival story and the work she now does helping women shift out of chronic stress and finally feel safe in their bodies.If you’ve ever felt alone in your pain, confused by your triggers, or unsure why you carry so much responsibility and grief, this conversation will help you feel seen. You’re not broken. You’re not dramatic. You’re responding to a wound that began long before you knew how to name it.📕Grab this book: “Mother Hunger” by Kelly McDaniel, the inspiration for this episode.🔖 Check out Jen’s Free Guide "Mom Stress Reset: 3 Little-Known Ways to Chill Out"✅ Join Jen's Facebook Community: Mom's Who Snap💌 Subscribe to Jen’s Substack📱 Follow Jen on Instagram @jenwernicke & Facebook ---------------------If you're interested in my recommended red light therapy tools, visit boncharge.com and get a 15% discount with my code: MHM---------------------Reach out to me on Instagram @andrea.clark.mftFollow @truthaboutmentalhealthpodcast on InstagramFollow @truthaboutmentalhealth on TikTok

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41. A Silent Sisterhood No One Wants To Join: Mother Hunger

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This episode is 1 hour and 16 minutes long.

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This episode was published on December 19, 2025.

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So many women carry the ache of Mother Hunger in silence. We grow up believing our childhood was “fine,” yet our bodies tell a different story. The emptiness. The over-functioning. The longing we can’t name. And for so many of us, it takes becoming...

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