When you're on leave from work, you imagine rest, holidays and time for yourself. That was certainly me when I submitted my maternity leave. I was in a job I hated and counting down the days. I had so many plans. I was going to rest, nest, and finally rewatch every episode of Desperate Housewives (which I'm actually doing now, and I have to say... as a mum, I completely understand Lynette in a way I never did before!). After a pregnancy that had stolen so much of my joy, I imagined maternity...

Many mothers I work with in online therapy say some version of the same thing: "I don't know what's wrong with me. I just don't feel like myself anymore." They often assume something has gone wrong. That they're failing. That they should be coping better by now. But what if what you're experiencing isn't failure at all? What if it's a normal response to one of the biggest transitions a human being can go through? When we think about becoming a mother, we often focus on the practical changes –...

When I was pregnant with my first daughter, I had a very clear vision of how I wanted to give birth. A water birth, no medication, gas and air only and relaxing music playing in the background. I had been meditating for about three years before my pregnancy and the year before I had climbed Kilimanjaro, meditating every night in my tent at altitude. My oxygen levels during daily tests were consistently strong and I knew firsthand the power of breathwork and a calm mind. I was going to use...