14 episodes
No One Ever Told Me Paige McGregor
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- Kids & Family
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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Welcome to No one ever told me, a podcast that interrogates the role of motherhood, career culture and societal norms through a series of essays. This isn’t a how-to for the things new parents google at odd hours of the night. Nor is it a place to find solace in all the reasons we may find parenting hard. It’s an interrogation of the things no one ever told us about motherhood, societal norms and our current culture.
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No one ever told me it's time to rebuild the village.
The notion that it takes a village has become a euphemism for ‘parenting is hard, don’t go at it alone’. And it’s truer today more than ever. But it doesn’t just take a village or tribe to raise a child, it takes a village to raise a mother. It’s time for us to rebuild the village.
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No one ever told me ignorance isn’t bliss.
It takes courage to look at all the dark unexamined places within yourself. But no one gets a free pass in life from dealing with themselves. Ignorance isn’t bliss, it’s an unexamined life.
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No one ever told me I wouldn’t miss the mental stimulation of work.
It takes effort to feel mentally stimulated in motherhood. It takes effort to connect with other mothers in the community who may be on a similar path. It takes effort not to get sucked up in what can feel like groundhog day of the same routine. We’re willing to put that effort into our careers, so why not do so for our role as mothers?
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No one ever told me you shouldn’t want to be loved unconditionally.
So many of us are searching for partners, with long lists of criteria that need to be filled in order for us to give them a second glance on a dating app. But few of us would put ‘loves conditionally’ at the top of the list. And maybe it’s time we start doing so.
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No one ever told me busy-ness is the antidote to a meaningful life.
Being busy is a mindset, not a state of being. More often than not, busy-ness means we aren’t being present in the in-between moments of our lives. Busy doesn’t mean fulfilled. It doesn’t mean important, purposeful, or productive. It means our lives are frenetic, lacking thoughtful contemplation and consideration of how we spend our time. And it can be difficult to actively avoid this tempo of modern life. No one ever told me it’s time to switch off.
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No one ever told me chasing happiness is a fruitless pursuit.
We live in a culture that continually chases happiness and as a result, we are destined for a life of disappointment. This eternal chase is a type of toxic positivity that is burrowing deep into our minds and preventing us from pursuing lives worth living. I’m not happy in my relationship so I’ll leave it. I'm not happy as a parent so I’ll drown my sorrows in alcohol and pharmaceuticals. I’m not happy at work so I’ll continuously job hop instead of doing the inner exploration to find out what my soul’s true calling is. Happiness is not a destination, it is a fleeting feeling that punctuates a purposeful life. And we should view it as that.