Dear Mum

“The first thing she said to me was, can you pick me up now?" That's Giorgina Falcone on meeting her daughter Summer-Rae after her C-section.

She had to tell her no… not for six weeks.

Giorgina and I only met recently and talked for hours, so she had to come on. She's mum to Summer-Rae and Dylan, and this one is the full mum chat. Two emergency C-sections, including two days of labour before Dylan, how she was living with her sister, Giovanna, who she called her live-in midwife when she gave birth, and the NCT group that left her feeling worse - before the friendships that came later.

We also talk about mourning the life you had (not the person you were), the loneliness nobody warns you about, and perimenopause hitting so hard she couldn't remember her kids' names.

And along the way she tells me how her pregnancy underwear brand, MuthaProject, was born, and why we ALL need underwear like this!

I hope you love this episode of Dear Mum. We’re hoping to start production for Season 3 super soon, but can’t do it without your support - so please hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE wherever you’re listening or watching 💛

Links
Follow Giorge:
https://www.instagram.com/giorgina_falcone
The Mutha Project:
https://www.instagram.com/themuthaproject/
https://themuthaproject.com/
GET 20% off when you enter 'DEARMUM' at the checkout until Midnight on October 1st to celebrate

Charlie:
IG - https://www.instagram.com/charlielaunder
TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@charlielaunder
YT - https://www.youtube.com/@charliebarkerr

💪 Bumps & Burpees:
https://www.instagram.com/bumpsandburpees
www.bumpsandburpees.com

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️Music licensed via PremiumBeat - 4WJJ2ROAVKXSJCGW

"You're too young to be going through perimenopause." That's what Kelly Taylor was told the first time she asked for help — so the second time, she didn't ask.

She walked in and said, "I have perimenopause. I want HRT."

Kelly's the comedy creator behind those painfully accurate class WhatsApp sketches (if you know, you know), and mum to two very different girls.

We talk about the early days of motherhood she spent "really, really good at masking", including the moment she broke down on a work Zoom call and had to shut it off entirely, and the years-long fight to get properly diagnosed with perimenopause (despite family history stacked against her).

We also get into "question your no": her simple, genuinely brilliant parenting reframe for catching yourself before an automatic "no," and why mum brain deserves way more credit than it gets. Kelly had me REALLY laughing - and I hope this makes you feel both entertained and seen.

Don’t forget to FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE wherever you’re listening or watching. It really helps us create this podcast for the mums who need it

Links

Kelly Taylor:
https://www.instagram.com/thisiskellytaylor

Charlie:IG - https://www.instagram.com/charlielaunderTT - https://www.tiktok.com/@charlielaunderYT - https://www.youtube.com/@charliebarkerr

💪 Bumps & Burpees:
https://www.instagram.com/bumpsandburpees
www.bumpsandburpees.com

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️Music licensed via PremiumBeat - 4WJJ2ROAVKXSJCGW

Content Warning: this episode includes conversation around a serious postpartum health scare (sepsis). Please listen with care.

"You can't let me die tonight."

That's what Aimee Vivian said to nurses four weeks after having her daughter — the night she genuinely didn't know if she'd make it through sepsis.

Aimee's a Capital Radio presenter, mum to 14-month-old Charlie, and one of the most refreshingly honest guests we've had on this show. We talk about her whirlwind route into radio, going back to work at four months postpartum out of financial necessity as a self-employed presenter, and the sepsis diagnosis that nearly took her life — and completely changed how she sees herself.

We also cover the stuff that makes this show what it is: judgment between mums, the pressure to be a "cool mum" online, and why she's started buying twenty pairs of jeans just to find the one that actually fits (and returning the rest).

Thank you SO much for being here - don't forget to follow or subscribe wherever you're listening to support the pod! 💛

Links:
Aimee:
@aimeevivian

Charlie:
IG - https://www.instagram.com/charlielaunder
TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@charlielaunder
YT - https://www.youtube.com/@charliebarkerr

💪 Bumps & Burpees:
https://www.instagram.com/bumpsandburpees
www.bumpsandburpees.com

Produced by Bear Lane Productions
🎙️Music licensed via PremiumBeat - 4WJJ2ROAVKXSJCGW

TRIGGER WARNING - this episode includes an honest conversation about miscarriage and pregnancy loss, in case that's a hard topic for you to hear right now. Listen with care.

"It took me about six months to really bond with them."
Dr Anita Mitra is a gynaecologist, cancer surgeon, and the voice behind Gynae Geek… and is here on Dear Mum being honest about something almost nobody admits to out loud.
Anita and I go back years, long before either of us had kids, and this conversation covers a lot: meeting her husband on labour ward mid-emergency, self-scanning herself pregnant with twins in an empty ward on a bank holiday, and the miscarriage she went through before them — including being asked, the same weekend, whether she was still able to come in for an on-call shift.
We talk honestly about not feeling the instant "rush of love" everyone promises you'll feel, the intrusive questions people ask twin parents, and why "no is a complete sentence" might be the best piece of advice we've had on this show yet.
I hope you loved this episode as much as I did - and please consider hitting SUBSCRIBE or FOLLOW wherever you get Dear Mum, as it really helps us continue to bring these conversations to mums who need them most 💛
Links
Anita Mitra:
IG - @gynaegeek
Linktree - https://linktr.ee/gynaegeek
Charlie:
IG - https://www.instagram.com/charlielaunder
TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@charlielaunder
YT - https://www.youtube.com/@charliebarkerr
💪 Bumps & Burpees:
https://www.instagram.com/bumpsandburpees
www.bumpsandburpees.com
Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️
Music licensed via PremiumBeat - 4WJJ2ROAVKXSJCGW

"Have you tried putting your baby down drowsy but awake?"

A statement SO many of us mums have been told… but why!? It’s a question the wonderful Alice Liveing has us all asking in this episode, which will make you laugh (and maybe swear a little) on Dear Mum.

Alice is a personal trainer, an old gym friend of mine from way before either of us had kids, and mum to eight-month-old Jeanie - she’s also a much loved content creator and blogger.

We talk about the reality-check of early motherhood - the four months of relentless crying, not leaving the house for weeks, and the strange identity shift of going from a packed, busy career to feeling, in her words, "like the most uninteresting person ever."

We also get honest about the mental load of feeling like you're never quite doing anything well enough - as a mum, a friend, a wife, a business owner - and why she's back in therapy to work through it.

If you want to follow Alice, the links are below - and please do hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE wherever you’re listening, as it helps us keep growing this show and bringing you more Dear Mum Moments 💛

Links
Alice Liveing
IG - https://www.instagram.com/aliceliveing/

YT - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAjZSBvf4ymFRw9Z9Ff9duQ
Give Me Strength App - https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/give-me-strength/id1560651240

Charlie:
IG - https://www.instagram.com/charlielaunder
TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@charlielaunder
YT - https://www.youtube.com/@charliebarkerr
💪 Bumps & Burpees:
https://www.instagram.com/bumpsandburpees

www.bumpsandburpees.com

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️Music licensed via PremiumBeat - 4WJJ2ROAVKXSJCGW