The Feral Mammy Podcast

In this season finale, Aoife Lennon sits down with doula and all-round truth-teller Nicole O'Kelly for a chat that’s part therapy, part rebellion, part “how did we all accept this as normal?”We’re talking about birth, yes — but also about power, instincts, and the quiet (and not-so-quiet) ways women are taught to doubt themselves from the minute they see two lines on a test.This isn’t about doing birth “right.”This is about remembering that you were never doing it wrong.What We Get Stuck Into:How the system gently (and sometimes not so gently) nudges women away from their own instinctsWhy “informed choice” often comes with an asterisk the size of Croke ParkThe holy trinity of fear, guilt, and “good girl” conditioning in motherhoodWhy your mental and emotional wellbeing deserves more than a pamphlet and a pat on the headThe absolute nonsense we’ve been fed about birth thanks to dramatic TV and whispered horror storiesPostpartum: where you’re expected to heal, feed a baby, and transcend as a human with zero support (grand, like?)Finding your people — because lone-wolf motherhood is a myth and a miserable one at thatFind Nicole:Instagram: @NicoleOKellyYogaWebsite: NicoleOKelly.com

Celine Nelli and I are talking postpartum recovery as it actually is, hormones doing whatever they like, and how women are expected to just… cope. We get into the reality of feeling wrecked, touched out, isolated, and still somehow being told you should be “fine.”We’re calling that out.We talk about why understanding your body changes everything, why education isn’t optional — it’s power — and why you’re allowed to stop handing over the reins of your health to everyone else.There’s a big thread through all of it: be kinder to yourself. This isn’t a phase you “bounce back” from. It’s a full-body, full-life shift. And you deserve support through every bit of it — not just the shiny newborn days.Also? We get into the loneliness, the environmental load, the constant giving, and what it actually takes to heal, replenish, and feel like yourself again — or at least a version of yourself that you recognise.TakeawaysKnowing what’s happening in your body is powerYou’re allowed to take ownership of your health — fullyPostpartum can feel isolating, and that mattersSelf-compassion isn’t soft — it’s survivalSupport should be standard, not a luxury

You didn’t lose your instincts. You were taught not to trust them.Somewhere between pregnancy and bringing your baby home, the noise got louder than your own voice.In this episode, we’re pulling that apart.Because your brain didn’t just “cope” with pregnancy—it changed. On purpose.You were wired to notice, to respond, to know your baby in a way no app, routine, or well-meaning opinion ever could.So why do so many mothers end up second-guessing everything?We talk about:what’s actually happening in your brain during pregnancywhy newborn behaviour (like constant feeding and needing to be held) makes perfect biological sensethat gut feeling when your child is unwell—and why it mattersrecognising and trusting what you notice in your own child, including when things don’t follow the “typical” pathand how we’re conditioned, slowly and subtly, to doubt ourselvesThis isn’t about rejecting support or expertise.It’s about not abandoning yourself in the process.Because you don’t need to become a different kind of mother.You need to come back to the one you already are.If you need to reach out to someone after this episode, go to www.cuidiu.ie and find details of your local parent supporter or breastfeeding councellorAoife xx

Right, strap in.This episode rips through the full hormonal saga — from your first period to the “sweet Jesus, why am I sweating through my bra at 3am?” postmenopause chapter. Mood swings, rage, tears over absolutely nothing, and the wild expectation that you’ll just carry on like a serene goddess.Bean Bindloss is in the mix dropping truth bombs — what’s actually happening inside your body, why you’ve been made feel like you’re losing the run of yourself, and how to take your power back without shrinking to make anyone else comfortable.Because no — you’re not dramatic. Well no more so than you were already - Queen!! But now, you’re informed too!

This week's episode with Selina Donnelly from Pitter Patter Studios in Kilmessan, Co. Meath is about the absolute whirlwind that is becoming a mammy, the mad, tender, heart-bursting mess of it all. It’s about grabbing those blink-and-you-miss-it moments with your babies before they’re off legging it away from you, and how those squishy newborn photos end up meaning more than your sanity some days.It doesn’t shy away from the tough bits either—the standing in the mirror thinking “who even is she?”, the learning (slowly, painfully) to be a bit kinder to yourself when your body’s been through the wars. It’s about someone actually minding new parents properly, not just handing them a baby and wishing them luck, but holding them up when they’re wrecked and wobbly.And underneath it all, it’s a bit of a rallying cry—stop waiting to feel perfect, because you won’t. Get in the photo. Hold your baby. Keep the memory. The dishes can wait, but that tiny version of your child? Gone in a blink, love.

You were never meant to do this alone.Not pregnancy.Not birth.And definitely not those long, blurry, sleep-deprived weeks after your baby arrives.But somehow… we’ve normalised mothers doing all of it with barely any support — and then wondering why they feel overwhelmed.In this episode, I’m joined by Orla Nealis, doula and founder of Takes a Village Doula, and we’re talking about the pressure to get everything “right”… the reality of postpartum… and why the problem isn’t you — it’s the lack of a village.If you’re pregnant, newly postpartum, or just barely holding it together — this one will land.

Sleep is one of the biggest sources of anxiety for new parents – and one of the most misunderstood parts of early parenting.In this episode of the Feral Mammy Podcast, Aoife Lennon talks to Majella Mordaunt, founder of Tiny Tummies and Little Dreamers, IBCLC and infant holistic sleep coach, about what normal infant sleep really looks like.They discuss the role of co-regulation between parent and baby, the natural connection between breastfeeding and sleep, and the myths that often leave parents feeling guilty or like they’re doing something wrong.Majella also shares realistic ways to support better sleep while acknowledging the very real exhaustion many families experience in the early months.An honest, reassuring conversation for tired parents everywhere.

Trying to conceive is often spoken about in practical terms – ovulation, timing, tests – but the emotional side can be the hardest part of the journey.In this episode of the Feral Mammy Podcast, Aoife Lennon is joined by fertility coach Finola McConville to talk honestly about the emotional challenges that can come with trying to conceive. Together they explore the weight of hope, the pressure of expectations, and how difficult it can be to hold onto yourself when every month feels like a cycle of anticipation and disappointment.Finola shares compassionate, practical advice for people who are currently trying to conceive – including ways to navigate uncertainty, protect your emotional wellbeing, and find steadiness in a process that can feel anything but predictable.This is a conversation for anyone who is in the middle of the waiting, the wondering, and the hoping.You are not alone in it.

In this episode of Feral Mammy, I sit down with Mary Maguire from Solas — psychotherapist and researcher working with NUI Maynooth — to talk about the gaps in Ireland’s perinatal mental health system that too many women fall straight through.We’re told to watch for postnatal depression. We’re told to ask for help. We’re told support is there.And yet, women wait ten months. A year. Finally get assessed. And are told they’re not sick enough.Meanwhile, over 40% of women experience symptoms of post-traumatic stress after birth. Not a small minority. Not a fringe group. Nearly half.So what happens to the woman who is replaying her birth at 3am but can still load the dishwasher? The mother who is functioning but not flourishing? The one who doesn’t meet the threshold for specialist care but is quietly drowning?We talk about matrescence — the seismic identity shift of becoming a mother — and how often it’s pathologised instead of supported. We talk about trauma that doesn’t “count.” We talk about systems that are crisis-driven rather than prevention-focused. And we ask the uncomfortable question: who exactly is perinatal mental health care designed for?Mary shares insights from her clinical work at Solas and her research with NUI Maynooth exploring how systems could better support parents’ mental and emotional wellbeing in the perinatal period — not just when they are at breaking point, but long before.This is a conversation about thresholds, gatekeeping, and the myth that if you’re coping, you’re fine.It’s also about self-compassion. Because when the system measures severity, mothers measure themselves against impossible standards. And that’s a heavy load to carry alone.If you’ve ever been told you’re “doing great” when you feel anything but, this one is for you.

Strong as a Mother (But Louder) is the debut episode of The Feral Mammy — and we are starting exactly where we mean to continue.Aoife is joined by Edel Woods from Bump Buddies and Beyond for a bold conversation about strength in pregnancy and postpartum.Together they dismantle bounce-back culture, challenge fear-based advice around movement, and explore what it really means to train, recover and take up space in the perinatal period. This episode is about redefining strength — not as aesthetics, but as capacity. Not as shrinking, but as expansion.Motherhood isn’t a weakness to fix.It’s power to build.This one is for the women ready to feel strong — and say it louder.

In this second teaser for the Feral Mammy, Aoife introduces herself — mammy, IBCLC, birth worker, and woman who learned the hard way that the system doesn’t always serve us.She shares the experience that lit the fire, why this podcast had to exist, and what “feral” really means in the context of modern motherhood. Expect honesty, evidence, a little righteous rage, and a refusal to sugar-coat the seismic shift that is matrescence.This is the space where science meets instinct, where we question the narrative, and where mothers are trusted as the experts of their own bodies and babies.If you’ve ever thought, “surely it’s not just me?” — it’s not.Welcome in.

The teaser for Feral Mammy has landed — and this season is not here to play nice.We’re talking real sleep (without the shame), birth power and informed consent, matrescence and mental health, fertility and nourishment — the conversations that actually matter when you’re becoming a mother.Expect evidence. Expect empathy. Expect the odd swear word.No fluff. No patronising. No pretending it’s all grand.If you’re pregnant, postpartum, trying to conceive, or knee-deep in the chaos of modern motherhood — this is your space.Feral Mammy is coming.Cold tea optional. Fire in your belly required.