Mother Tongue

Today we're talking about something that, if we're honest, most of us know surprisingly little about... perimenopause.
Because if you're anything like me, you've probably blamed feeling exhausted, anxious, overwhelmed or just a bit "off" on everything else. Work. Motherhood. Stress. Lack of sleep. Life.
But what if it isn't just that?
The more I learn about perimenopause, the more I realise how many women are living through it without even knowing they are. We spend years preparing for puberty, pregnancy and childbirth, yet one of the biggest hormonal transitions we'll ever experience is rarely talked about.
Joining me today is entrepreneur and Re.her Dubai founder Kat Lebrasse, who is on a mission to change that.
Kat shares her own experience of navigating perimenopause, the symptoms she initially dismissed, and the changes that finally helped her start feeling like herself again. We also dive into HRT, hormones, sleep, brain fog, fitness, longevity, peptides and why community is such an important part of this stage of life.
And I think that's what makes today's partnership with M&S feel so relevant. As we talk about hormones, body changes and learning to work with our bodies rather than against them, it feels fitting to partner with the new Body by M&S collection. Designed for real women through every stage of life, it's all about helping us feel comfortable, supported and confident in the body we have today.
Whether you're in your 30s, 40s or simply want to better understand what's ahead, this is one of those conversations I genuinely think every woman should hear.

Find Kat on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katlebrasse/
Find re.her.dubai on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/re.her.dubai/
Find us on instagram: @wearemothertongue
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mothertonguethepodcast

SHOW NOTES:
This episode of Mother Tongue is proudly brought to you by the new Body by M&S collection.
Our bodies are constantly evolving. Through pregnancy, motherhood, hormones, changing routines, new seasons of life and everything in between, what feels comfortable and supportive today might not be what worked a few years ago.
That's the thinking behind the newly relaunched Body by M&S collection. Designed for real women living real lives, it combines thoughtful innovation with everyday comfort, creating pieces that move with you through every stage of life.
Because confidence isn't about changing your body. It's about feeling comfortable in it. When what you're wearing fits well, supports you properly and helps you feel your best, it's one less thing to think about.
Discover the Body by M&S collection online at https://www.marksandspencer.ae/en/fashion or visit your nearest M&S store.
Support the show

Today we're talking about something I think so many of us know we should be getting better at... AI.
Because if you're anything like me, you've probably opened ChatGPT, asked it to write an email or caption, thought, "this is useful"... and then carried on doing almost everything else yourself.
But what I'm quickly realising is that AI can do so much more than that.
When you're juggling work, family, appointments, emails, meal planning and the million little things constantly taking up space in your head, AI can actually become an extra pair of hands. From managing your inbox and organising your calendar to taking meeting notes, planning meals and even helping run parts of your business, it's about finding ways to make everyday life feel that little bit easier.
And I think that's why today's partnership feels so fitting. Today's episode is proudly sponsored by M&S and celebrates the new Body by M&S collection. Because when we're already juggling so much, feeling comfortable and supported in what we wear should be one less thing to think about. The collection has been designed for real women living real lives, helping us feel comfortable, confident and supported through all the different stages our bodies go through.
Joining me today is AI expert Shweta Scott, who has worked in tech and AI since 2019 and now helps mums, founders and businesses understand how to make AI genuinely useful in their everyday lives.
Shweta shares how she uses AI as a "second brain", the difference between ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini, the tasks we should probably stop doing manually, and how to get AI to actually understand you rather than constantly giving you generic answers.
We also explore the other side of AI: how we keep our creativity and human connection in an increasingly AI-powered world, what happens when we rely on it too much, and what all of this could mean for the way our children learn in the future.
So if "learn how to actually use AI" has been sitting on your to-do list for months, this is a really good place to start.

Find Shweta on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shwetascott/
Find us on instagram: @wearemothertongue
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mothertonguethepodcast

SHOW NOTES:
This episode of Mother Tongue is proudly brought to you by the new Body by M&S collection.
Our bodies change so much throughout our lives - through pregnancy, motherhood, hormones, work, exercise and everything in between - but how often do we stop and think about whether what we're wearing underneath our clothes is actually working for the body we have today?
The newly relaunched Body by M&S collection has been designed for real women living real lives, combining comfort, innovation and confidence with pieces created to support you through every stage of life.
Because feeling good isn't about perfection or changing your body. It's about finding pieces that make you feel comfortable, supported and confident in your own skin, so you can spend less time adjusting what you're wearing and more time focusing on what actually matters.
Visit the M&S website [ https://www.marksandspencer.ae/en/fashion] or your nearest store to discover the new Body by M&S collection.
Support the show

I am so excited for today's conversation because I have a feeling it's one that so many of you are going to relate to.
I don't know about you, but I sometimes find myself wondering... when did life become so busy?
Between work, the school run, remembering PE kits, replying to emails, making dinner, trying to exercise, seeing friends, spending time with our partners, keeping on top of the house and somehow finding five minutes for ourselves... it can feel like we're constantly switching hats.
And whilst I absolutely love this season of life, I also think it's really important that we acknowledge just how much women carry.
Today's episode is all about the realities of modern motherhood. The invisible mental load, balancing ambition with family life, raising children, relationships, confidence, identity and, perhaps most importantly, remembering that we're women as well as mums.
Today's episode is proudly sponsored by M&S and celebrates the launch of their new Body by M&S collection. I actually think it's a really lovely partnership because it's centred around something we don't talk about enough – the idea that confidence often starts with feeling comfortable. When you feel supported, comfortable and good in yourself, it has a ripple effect on everything else. It changes how you show up at work, how you parent and how you feel every single day. And I think that's such an important conversation to be having.
Joining me today is the lovely Helly.
Helly is the creator behind My Little Loves and has built an incredible online community by sharing family life exactly as it is – honest, funny, relatable and reassuring. She's a mum to three girls, including two teenagers and a younger daughter, which means she brings such a unique perspective on motherhood and all the different seasons that come with it.
I'm really looking forward to chatting about what modern motherhood actually looks like, how we raise confident girls, how we balance ambition with family life, and why it's so important that we don't lose ourselves along the way.

Find Helly on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mylittlelovesblog/
Find us on instagram: @wearemothertongue
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mothertonguethepodcast

THE MOTHER TONGUE PODBOOK
The Mother Tongue podbook is a collection of interviews with experts on everything you need to know about parenthood from pre-conception all the way through to when your kids starts school. Over the course of 43+ chapters, the podbook delves into the topics that all mums and mums to be wants the answers to.
Buy yours now: https://mother-tongue.zbooni.com/products/mother-tongue-podbook

SHOW NOTES:
This episode of Mother Tongue is proudly brought to you by the new Body by M&S collection.
Motherhood changes our bodies in countless ways, and with every new season of life, comfort, confidence and the right fit become even more important.
The new Body by M&S collection is designed to support women through every stage, with the Body Invisibles Collection offering seamless, second-skin essentials for everyday comfort, the FlexiFit Collection moving with your body for all-day support, the Body Define Collection providing smooth, sculpted confidence under your clothes, and the Cool Comfort Collection featuring breathable fabrics to help regulate your body temperature throughout the day.
M&S also offers a complimentary Bra Fit Service in stores, helping you find the perfect fit for the body you have today, because our bodies are always evolving.
Visit https://www.marksandspencer.ae/en/fashion to discover the new Body by M&S collection and book your complimentary Bra Fit Service.
Support the show

Today we're talking about something I know so many mums will relate to... getting dressed again.
Not getting dressed in the sense of throwing on whatever's clean before the school run, but genuinely feeling excited to open your wardrobe, putting something on that makes you feel good and reconnecting with the person you are beyond motherhood.
Because I think for so many of us, having children changes our relationship with style. We spend years dressing for practicality, comfort and everyone else's needs, and somewhere along the way we stop dressing for ourselves. Our bodies change, our priorities change and often our confidence changes too.
Today's episode is proudly sponsored by M&S and celebrates the launch of their new Body by M&S collection. Throughout today's conversation we'll be exploring why confidence often starts with the foundations, how the right fit can completely transform the way we feel, and why getting dressed should never be about changing who we are—it's about feeling comfortable, supported and confident in the body we have today.
Joining me today is the wonderful Holly Elgeti. Holly is a personal stylist and content creator who has built an incredibly loyal community by helping women simplify their wardrobes, rediscover their personal style and, perhaps most importantly, feel confident in themselves again. Her approach isn't about following trends or buying an entirely new wardrobe—it's about making fashion feel accessible, wearable and realistic for real women living real lives.

Find Holly on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hollyelgetistyle/
Find us on instagram: @wearemothertongue
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mothertonguethepodcast

THE MOTHER TONGUE PODBOOK
The Mother Tongue podbook is a collection of interviews with experts on everything you need to know about parenthood from pre-conception all the way through to when your kids starts school. Over the course of 43+ chapters, the podbook delves into the topics that all mums and mums to be wants the answers to.
Buy yours now: https://mother-tongue.zbooni.com/products/mother-tongue-podbook

SHOW NOTES:
This episode of Mother Tongue is proudly brought to you by the new Body by M&S collection.
Motherhood changes our bodies in countless ways, and with every new season of life, comfort, confidence and the right fit become even more important.
The new Body by M&S collection is designed to support women through every stage, with the Body Invisibles Collection offering seamless, second-skin essentials for everyday comfort, the FlexiFit Collection moving with your body for all-day support, the Body Define Collection providing smooth, sculpted confidence under your clothes, and the Cool Comfort Collection featuring breathable fabrics to help regulate your body temperature throughout the day.
M&S also offers a complimentary Bra Fit Service in stores, helping you find the perfect fit for the body you have today, because our bodies are always evolving.
Visit https://www.marksandspencer.ae/en/fashion to discover the new Body by M&S collection and book your complimentary Bra Fit Service.
Support the show

Today's guest is someone who has built an incredibly engaged community by sharing the everyday moments of life with honesty, warmth and authenticity.
Poppy Owen is a content creator and digital storyteller whose beautifully curated platforms inspire hundreds of thousands of women every day. From fashion and interiors to motherhood, lifestyle and travel, she's created a space that feels both aspirational and refreshingly real.
But beyond the beautiful images, what I love most about Poppy is that she's never been afraid to show the reality behind the highlight reel. She shares the highs alongside the challenges, reminding women that confidence isn't about perfection - it's about embracing who you are, whatever season of life you're in. 
Today we're talking all about confidence. Where it comes from, how it changes throughout our lives, why so many women struggle with comparison and body image, and the small everyday things that can help us feel more like ourselves.

Find Poppy on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepoppyowen/
Find us on instagram: @wearemothertongue
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mothertonguethepodcast

THE MOTHER TONGUE PODBOOK
The Mother Tongue podbook is a collection of interviews with experts on everything you need to know about parenthood from pre-conception all the way through to when your kids starts school. Over the course of 43+ chapters, the podbook delves into the topics that all mums and mums to be wants the answers to.
Buy yours now: https://mother-tongue.zbooni.com/products/mother-tongue-podbook

SHOW NOTES:
This episode of Mother Tongue is proudly brought to you by the new Body by M&S collection.
Women's bodies are constantly changing. Pregnancy, breastfeeding, hormones, stress, and age all play a role, which is why comfort and the right fit matter more than ever.
The new Body by M&S collection is designed to help you feel supported and confident through every stage, with the FlexiFit Collection adapting to move with your body for all-day comfort, and the Body Invisibles Collection offering seamless, no-show styles you'll reach for every day.
M&S also offers a complimentary Bra Fit Service in all stores, helping you find the perfect fit for your body as it is today.
Visit https://www.marksandspencer.ae/en/fashion to find out more.
Support the show