The First Six Months

Chine McDonald has many hats and she wears them well. However, during those first six months, she had to figure out which hats to wear, when. This is a brilliant episode for any 'highlighter girls' out there - the kinda of person who might be looking to get an A* in motherhood. We unpack the many mysteries around where our unconscious ideals might be coming from, as well as visiting Chine's first six months which included forceps, A&E, Bursitis, so much love and a poonami in a Board Meeting. You can follow Chine on Instagram @chine_mcdonald and her book Unmaking Mary is on sale now. Her podcast Motherhood vs The Machine is also worth a listen. 

After reading Mother Animal by Helen Jukes I KNEW we would have such a fantastic conversation about all things pregnancy and matrescence. Helen was a wonderful guest and we get right into it about what the animal kingdom has to teach us about our still pretty victorian birth and parenting practises. We discuss everything from chaos and structure, baboons, the use of the phrase 'baby brain' and why we love bats. You can find Helen on Instagram @helen.jukes and her book, Mother Animal, is out now in the UK.

Elizabeth Oldfield is one of my wisest pals and I am so glad she agreed to come on The First Six Months. We talked about leading a ThinkTank whilst being secretly pregnant (spoiler:no one noticed), the pros and cons of having a Midwife for a mother and missing that soft, soft baby. Elizabeth is the host of @sacred_podcast - an exploration in talking to people different than ourselves.

Helen Duff is a brilliant comedian (@duffmarvel) and VoiceOver artist (enjoy her dulcet tones) who brings to The First Six Months a vast array of topics as she shares her experiences, whilst heavily pregnant with her next one. We talk about prolapses, mastitis, other cultures honouring new mothers rather than hiding them away and many, many other things. 

Minia is a massage therapist who lives in Bristol with her partner and her six year old daughter. We talk about the joy of being surrounded by women, dislocating her arm within the first two weeks, having a fabulous birth despite bits of placenta being left inside and the realisation that despite being committed to breastfeeding, she just wanted her breasts to be hers again. #birth #sixmonths #placenta #IVF #miraclebaby #Bristol #mums #instagrammums #life #mothering 

Margaret Cabourn Smith is a podcaster and actress and mother to two children. She talks about how she found the first six months really, really hard and how she kept Bridget Christie and Lucy Montgomery's names written down to remind her that people had had children and managed to have a career in comedy. We talk about the contradiction of how any minute spent with your child is not a wasted minute but also that there's a lot of time to fill when you have a baby.#mcs #crushed #Margaret #Sixmonths #baby #mama #lifelessons #fog #delights 

Jay Lafferty discusses all things IVF, fear of a C-Section, going back to work almost immediately and how one of the less talked about aftereffects of birth can be blood clots in your vajayjay. Always a pleasure to speak to one of my favourite Edinburgh comedy pals. #bloodclots #firstsixmonths #baby #mum #backtowork #csection #IVF 

Alyssa Kyria is a fantastic comic who performs as The Funny Mummy around the UK. Married to Will with one daughter Lola, Alyssa talks about the ups an downs of her first six months, including her panic at the sudden realisation that children are forever. She also opens up about her depression and the support she received from a Mental Health Midwife. @thefunnymummyuk 

Melissa Jacques is one of the UKs West End Royalty and also mum to two girls. She talks about juggling Mamma Mia and a new baby, the kindness of custard creams and how if they are the only person awake, you need to call Mary Poppins. @melissajacques

Ali is the local Sing and Sign leader in Edinburgh, where Pippa lives. Ali is married with three children and talks all things mastitis, PND and deciding to have more children when the first-first six months is so tricky. We also agree that Sleep When The Baby Sleeps is the most annoying advice. 

Whilst at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Pippa went to see Good Luck, Cathrine Frost - a brilliant show about pregnancy, miscarriage and motherhood which somehow manages to talk about all these things with a lightness and a seriousness, whilst spanking Socrates on the bottom. Pippa leapt at the chance to interview Cathrine about her First Six Months and to discuss some of the themes of the show. If you have a chance to see her performances at Edinburgh Fringe 2024, you can book tickets here https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/good-luck-cathrine-frost#pregnancy #theatre #miscarriage #socrates #bonding #love #sixmonths #birth #motherhood #csection 

Content Warning: Difficult birthPippa talks to Sophie about a tricky birth, body autonomy and uncovering health issues later in life that may have impacted those first six months.

TW: MiscarriageIn this episode, Pippa talks to Gemma about having a baby in a different country, sleep deprivation and the fear that comes when you have experienced multiple losses; how it can feel impossible to believe this pregnancy is going to make it. They also discuss, at length, piles and what to do about them.

CONTENT WARNING: Attempted suicideIn this episode, Pippa is talking to Carrie Carlisle about her First Six Months. Carrie's husband tried to take his own life when she was six months pregnant, which meant her first six months was  dominated by trying to get her husband well.She talks about the amazing care she received, the loneliness of people not knowing what to say and how life doesn't have to be picture perfect to be perfect. It's your perfect, not everyone else's. www.clarkeandcarrie.com#firstsixmonths #suicide #suicidalthoughts #gettingwell #amazingNHS #mum #mom

Pippa talks to Clare Bourne (@clarebournephysio), a pelvic health specialist and full time mum. She loved her first six months but her second six months was disrupted by covid, meaning her husband couldn't come home as a GP in the NHS. Clare talks about navigating loneliness and anxiety but ultimately finding her way through. Being a Pelvic Health Specialist, we also talk A LOT about vaginas. So if you have any crotch concerns, this is the episode for you.  We decide, in fact, that Clare is the Bear Grylls of Vaginas.#firstsixmonths #pelvichealth #vagina #vaginalhealth #changes #crotchchat 

Michelle talks to Pippa about her relatively easy pregnancy and birth experience (amazing what we count as easy, that's all I'll say), having a Lockdown Baby and many tales of trying to express milk. #mum #newmum #firstsixmonths #matrescence #express #lockdownbaby #SpritzForBits

"If you've waited so long for this, are you allowed not to enjoy it sometimes?"In this episode, Pippa speaks with Prachi, a mother and sexual health doctor based in Edinburgh about her experiences of the first six months. After a difficult time with IVF, Prachi was determined to make the best of her first and (most likely) only six months. There is a lot of joy in this episode, as well as travel tips alongside the stresses of navigating fertility treatments.#IVF #FirstSixMonths #Newmum #Mom #Stories #womensstories 

Two weeks late, double mastitis and a 27 hour labour. Anything else you want to throw at me?Pippa talks to the delightful Cariad Lloyd about her first Six Months and how she managed to navigate the unbelievable number of challenges sent her way. We had to label this episode 'explicit' because of Cariad's potty mouth.#hipdysplacia #mastitsis #csection #breastfeeding #hormones #brownies #phonescrolling 

Pippa talks to the delightful Roddie about becoming a dad for the first time and how he navigated supporting his partner, Natalie, through a difficult birth, in Covid conditions. Content Warning: We discuss the fear of cot death quite a lot, as something that played on our minds hugely for the first six months. 

Being a mum in the 80s. Has anything really changed?I got the unusual privilege of interviewing my own mother, Trish Evans, about her four (yes, four) births. It was really lovely to talk about that experience with her and I had no idea of what a struggle it had been for her at times. Great episode if you have multiple children, are feeling blue or overwhelmed or are about to have a 'surprise' baby.

Last episode in this series. Athena talks to Pippa about suspected PTSD,  moving in with her mum and how Capitalism is telling us we need things we don't. Had to mark this one EXPLICIT but only for a couple of swears. 

Lara talks to Pippa about becoming a mother at 20, buying everything the books tell you to and then regretting it and how hard it can be to maintain friendships when you are the first one of your group to have a baby.

Jen talks to Pippa about being a solo IVF mum, horrific mastitis and an obsession with Bourbon biscuits.

Pippa talks to Victoria about the joys of losing all bodily autonomy, the impact of her child arriving prematurely, particularly on her mental health and now looking back longingly at the excuse to simply enjoy the sofa and watch all those box sets. 

Pippa talks to Siva about her memories of the first six months which include drinking garlic milk, an obsession with breastfeeding and perhaps the best way to look at unsolicited advice ever proffered. 

Sarah talks about adopting her daughter and the joys of juggling bureaucracy with all the usual first six months. And there's another vote for Tommy Tippee's formula maker. 

Pippa talks to Jo about having a generally rosy memory of her first six months and what it's like for your contractions to start during a lovely pub roast. 

Tess and Maria talk about their comparative experiences during the first six months and what is is like to navigate the world of new motherhood as a same sex couple. 

Lucy talks to Pippa about the loneliness she felt during her first six months and the frustrations of trying to pump in a disabled toilet.