Adult Conversation Parenting Podcast Brandy Ferner

You don’t want to miss this episode where I share some BIG news, and my close friend and guest, Britta Bushnell, helps me process it all, as she talks about the Apollo and Artemis myth and the mind-blowing way it applies to my news, and also to motherhood. Britta and I discuss phases and seasons of life, why one part of ourselves is always starved in this culture, how to transition into beginnings and endings more intentionally, and more.   

My guest, Emily, and I talk about parenting a special needs child - the real deal of it, not just the saintly “special needs mother” archetype that can only be endlessly patient. Emily shares about her early motherhood journey and how she knew something was different with her daughter, the endless searching for answers, the lifelong theme of “othering” she’s felt, and the elevated expectations, stress, and beauty that parents of special needs kids live with. We also discuss recurrent grief when milestones aren’t being hit, how she broke apart while trying to hold it all together, and she explains what “heterospect” is.   

There are lots of stats about pandemic divorce, but few personal stories because of the sensitivity of this topic. Lucky for us, fellow writer, Tara, opens up about her story and how it went down, the agreements she had about romance and soulmates, her insecurities about being a single mom, what’s getting her through it, other people’s opinions about her choice to write through her wounds, and more. 

My favorite medium of over 20 years, Tim Braun, shares how his gift felt like a curse as a child, a dream that changed his path, and responds to my question about if we can contact my favorite dead famous people! He also answers the very light question of what happens when we die (and he has specifics!), shares what happens when he watches Forensic Files, and divulges his most memorable sittings of the past 23 years (PG and R-rated). This episode is beyond interesting!

Working mom advocate and researcher, Leslie Forde, and I talk about moms’ needs, the destabilizing effect of motherhood, the positive shifts she’s seeing in workplaces, the three things moms reported wanting most in the pandemic, and the “grabbing the crappy potato” theory, which you’ve likely experienced too. 

Mom coach, Graeme Seabrook, and I discuss what I call “The Great Reckoning” that’s coming for us parents after the pandemic. We talk about what moms have lost most during the pandemic, unexpected side effects of returning to some normalcy, the summer ahead, and what Graeme sees coming up for moms after this wild year of emotional and logistical scrambling. And I also share a maddeningly relatable story about my teen and the violence that is wearing a belt.