Parenting Unpacked

Re-live the trauma of the baby days with Siobhan and Kristyn as they recount just how many baby “must-haves” turned out to be “must-have-NOTs”, from carseats, prams to mamaroos and owlets. Get the full low down as we dive in to all things baby.

Kristyn and Siobhan catch up and talk about Social Media, maternal mental health, and influencers - do social media influencers have a responsibility to account for how their content affects their followers' mental wellbeing?

In this episode, we chat with two amazing women - Bec and Krista. Krista has a medical condition that means she  is unable to fall pregnant, and when she shared this information with her friend Bec, Bec offered to act as her surrogate.  As a result, Krista is now mum to a beautiful 8-month-old baby girl! Bec and Krista very generously share with us the highs and lows of their journey and how they navigated both the legal and medical hurdles involved. We are so honoured and grateful that they shared their story with us - and we are so excited to share it with you.

We start this year the way we left the last, with chaos! In this episode, we chat about how we celebrated Christmas and the gifts we gave our toddlers (some were immediate winners, others have taken time). We also talk about the whining phase, the onslaught of “why's” from our toddlers, what is happening with daytime naps and what we’re planning to do in 2023 (apart from Siobhan giving birth and Kristyn trying to find another job because hers finishes in January 2024)!

Journal club is back for its final 2022 installment! This week we are talking about a new sleep training study that's been making A LOT of (unfounded) headlines. So, to help you parse fact from fiction, to give you an insight into the strengths and weaknesses of this research AND to help you figure out what the research ACTUALLY says (hint it is definitely not what the media is saying) tune in and listen.

In this episode of parenting unpacked we chat with Dr. Jess Stokes Parish. 

Jess is an ICU nurse, researcher, and science communicator.  She has created a really useful template called CRABS which helps you interpret the reliability of the information you see on social media.

Also, Siobhan is back and healthy (and hiding in a cupboard in an effort to improve our audio quality)!

Welcome back to journal club! This week we're all about the new article on mothers' tendency to apologize to their children and how it impacts their behavior. Watch along to hear about the findings and what we think! On today's journal club we have Jess Guy @infantsleepscientist, Laura Gainche @scienceforallwomen and Cara Goodwin @parentingtranslator. Check out the full article here: https://tinyurl.com/34jefyuf

Welcome back to journal club! This week we're talking all about the new article on the effects of long daycare hours on children. Watch along to hear about the findings and what we think!   

Find the article here: https://tinyurl.com/h4c4psku

In this episode of Parenting Unpacked we talk with baby & toddler holistic sleep coach, and fellow scientist, Dr. Laura Gainche @scienceforallwomen. 

We talk about the variation in infant sleep, why wake windows, pitch-black rooms, and white noise might not work for your child, and how tiny changes can have a huge impact.

We also dive into a little bit of the science behind Santa with much more to come in the next (or a future) episode,  

And you'll get to hear a little about journal club which is heading to this podcast feed very soon!

‌

As promised in the episode, here is the link to the dinosaur construction toy: https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B0995KVK9G/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?smid=A1JCZI0SMBWQA5&psc=1 and to the little positive self-talking snowboarder https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N38rK8fj58g&ab_channel=BYUUniverse or https://www.tiktok.com/@chasing.sage/video/7146268559554071854?is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1&item_id=7146268559554071854&lang=en

Helloooooo parenting unpacked crew! We're dropping something a little bit different into the feed this week, it's called journal club. I know I know, you're probably asking "WTF is journal club!?" Journal club is something we do in universities where we all read the same academic paper and then we meet to talk about it. It gives us a chance to stretch our critical insight muscles, helps the junior academics learn from the senior academics and honestly let's us all learn from each other. Each person in journal club has a different set of knowledge and expertise that they bring to the table and we all get to learn from each other. Usually these meetings happen behind closed doors high up in the ivory tower, but I managed to find myself a wonderful crew of scientists who wanted to tear down the ivory tower with me and bring journal club directly to your ears. So please join us as we walk you through an article, discuss it's findings, it's methodology and statistics, and expand upon it using our own knowledge in the area. I hope it is interesting for those of you who tune in. Please jump onto @drkristynsommer and put your own thoughts or questions on the journal club video there if you have any! We would love love loveeeee to hear from you!!!! 

I'll post the upcoming journal club paper every week @drkristynsommer and @parentingunpackedpodcast if you'd like to have a go at reading ahead. We're going to try to read only open access papers that you can get outside of institutions but it might not always be possible (because sometimes there's a really important article to read that is paywalled - like next weeks article!) 

This week we are reading "Parents’ Use of Social Media as a Health Information Source for Their Children: A Scoping Review" which you can access here: https://tinyurl.com/2s4x9k4b 

Joining journal club this week was Emma Shipton (@mama_together_), Jess Guy (@infantsleepscientist), Lisa Dillon (@drlisa.researcher) and Kristyn Sommer (@drkristynsommer).

A quick heads up: you will hear tiny human noises in the background. We are not just scientists and science communicators, but we are also mothers, some of us are still on maternity leave. So if you hear a tiny human in the background, be in awe of the fact that the tiny human's mother was able to focus and translate the science while juggling a tiny human without so much as missing a step (hint: it was Lisa, she's a rockstar!!)

In this episode, we are joined by Dr Lisa (@drlisa.researcher) to talk about science communication in the parent and child space.  We also chat about her own personal journey with having a second baby after postpartum depression and '2 under 2'.  Partway through the episode, Kristyn starts to have a panic attack during what seems to be a beautiful and healing conversation for Lisa and Siobhan - illustrating that everyone can perceive and experience something different when hearing someone’s story.

Tune in to find out about Dr. Lisa’s experience and hear how Siobhan, Lisa and Kristyn navigated the 'almost panic attack' and how they shifted perspectives to alleviate the guilt and fear.

Trigger warning: we talk about postpartum anxiety and depression, suicidal ideation, and thoughts of harm to self and baby in this episode. If you aren’t ready to hear this one yet, that is okay! If this episode brings up challenging feelings for you please seek out some support - the PANDA helpline (1300 726 306) is one option for support in Australia.

We have exciting news, Siobhan is having a baby!! If you haven't been with us from the start, go back and listen to episode 4 “Siobhan’s story”. It describes the challenges Siobhan faced in early motherhood and gives some context as to why having a second baby was such a huge decision. Kristyn isn’t there yet, so asks Siobhan a billion questions about how she and her partner decided to have another baby and what postpartum plans she has in place to protect her mental and physical health this time around.

In this episode of Parenting Unpacked we chat with Jess Guy @infantsleepscientist about, well, infant sleep! We talk with Jess about the differences between sleep trainers and 'not' sleep trainers and the red flags on social media that may help you spot sleep trainers in disguise.  In this episode, we also discuss the trouble with not being able to rate businesses on Instagram and how kids learn from technology better the more familiar with it they are.

In other news, we need a nickname for our listeners so please send in your suggestions to @drkristynsommer, @science_minded or @parentingunpackedpodcast!

Welcome back to Parenting Unpacked! In this week's episode, we take a trip back in time. We discuss the historical context behind some of the weird and (not so) wonderful parenting practices still common today. We start by chatting about how parenting changed (in Western culture) during the Industrial Revolution; when we started to lose the 'village' and the community support that went with it.
We go on to talk about the big names in parenting throughout history including Dr. Luther Emmet Holt, Dr. John Watson, Dr. Benjamin Spock, Dr. Richard Ferber, and Dr. B.F. Skinner. They all had some pretty interesting contributions to how many people still parent today, listen in to find out more!

In this episode, we ask Dr. Jess Paynter the hard questions about Autism. Jess is an expert in Autism as both a clinician and a researcher in the area from Griffith University. We discuss with her the prevalence of Autism, parenting children with autism versus neurotypicals, her research around reading and Autism, and touch on the controversy around ABA (Applied Behavioural Analysis) Therapy. Before we dive into the interview, we also talk about the Autism diagnostic criteria and how Kristyn's symptomology maps onto these. Siobhan shocks Kristyn by sharing that she noticed many of Kristyn's symptoms well before her diagnosis!

Disclaimer: Siobhan's audio cuts in and out a bit for around the 8-minute mark - but what she has to say (if you can make it out!) is so good we've decided to leave it in. But feel free to jump ahead to about 9 minutes if it annoys you!

In today's episode, we're talking sleep and 'regressions'. We discuss the research on infant sleep supports (extinction vs gentle sleep approaches) and how it can be distorted. And on the topic of distorted research, we also talk about the WonderWeeks and 'regressions' - what they are and what the evidence really says about them. 

In this episode, we talk about time out and time in - what they are, whether they work, and when they might be useful.

Helloooo parenting unpacked crew and welcome back. This week we talk about a bunch of the science behind spanking. Specifically whether there is any scientific support for spanking. To cut to the chase... yes, there is. But it's not that simple. And there is a very big reason why it is now illegal in over 50 countries. Listen along and hear all about the science. 

Welcome back crew! This week we chat about yelling at our kids. Is all yelling equally bad? Is some yelling worse than other yelling. Stay tuned to find out! 

Helloooo and welcome back to parenting unpacked. This week we chat all about skin to skin contact, why its the best thing ever to hold your baby and it won't ruin them. We've also got a new segment called recommendations because parents deserve to consume recreational media that has nothing to do with their kids sometimes and that's what we're bringing you. 

Welcome back! We accidentally had easter off because Kristyn got lost to the joy of taking a break and forgot to put an episode up (sorry!) so we're back with a vengeance for a super cool episode (in our opinion). We chat how to raise gender positive kids with a cameo from Molly Speechly, a PhD student at Griffith University currently research the development of gender diverse identity. We also talk about how to raise body positive kids, because honestly, all children need as much positivity as we can give them! 

Welcome back to parenting unpacked! This week we tackle the worst parenting debates of all time, sensationalised by none other than social media (cue massive eye roll). We set the record straight with no small amount of sass and a decent amount of swearing, so little ears should be warned. Have you heard any of these awful myths touted as facts designed to make other parents feel inferior? 

Welcome back to parenting unpacked! This week we're talking about a topic that is a little bit different. We're talking about religion, child development and parenting. We'll bring some research in, talk about different religions, how religion emerges in geographically isolated places and why it is pervasive across many generations. This is a topic that we talk about from a unbiased perspective. If there's something in this episode that you don't agree with or that doesn't mesh with your own religious beliefs, that is okay. Everyone all around the world have different beliefs and experiences of the world. We'd love to hear your experiences growing up and parenting under your religious beliefs, so please slide in to our DMs on instagram! 

Welcome back to parenting unpacked! This week we do Kristyn's favourite thing which is talk about contentious topics with no filter while marvelling at Siobhan's well balanced and level headed answers. Kristyn's... not so much, but she's learning so we'll take it. We hit all those chaotic, guilt inducing, social media viral, judgemental parent topics that you've probably always been curious about the science behind. I hope you enjoy and feel a little less guilty, a little more confident in your parenting decisions and get a giggle somewhere along the way. Catch you in the next one! 

Well, as per usual, Kristyn speaks before she thinks through things too thoroughly (to be fair... I get excited about things I'm passionate about and don't always evaluate every single implication of such things). Recently Kristyn made all her content free and kept banging on about how she doesn't believe parenting should be paywalled, completely ignoring the fact that her co-host, Siobhan Kennedy-Costantini, charges for her evidence based parenting resources. Tune in to listen to the awkward (yet, honestly not at all awkward) conversation Kristyn and Siobhan dive into as they talk about how they navigate different pay structures in the parent education space, how on earth they ended up in the social media space despite spending the majority of their careers in academia and more. We hope you love this episode and the chattier style we're moved into lately. Catch you next Tuesday for your next listen! 

Welcome back to parenting unpacked! We're tackling a topic that is the source of infinite mum guilt, screen time. We're talking all things cocomelon and whether it's addictive, what harm befalls your child by letting them watch TV and whether children can actually learn anything from what they watch. 

We hope you enjoy this weeks episode! 

Welcome back to parenting unpacked. This week's episode comes with a trigger warning. Siobhan goes in depth into her experience with perinatal anxiety and depression during the first year of her son's life. Siobhan details her experience having a baby with GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) whom struggled considerably with sleep for the first 10 months of his life. Siobhan touches on some very challenging but important topics such as intrusive thoughts and suicial ideation. This episode has a lot of hard moments, but also a shining light at the end of the tunnel, which is the promise and proof of not only surviving perinatal anxiety and depression, but thriving in the year following a serious nervous breakdown.

Please join us next week as we delve into how we recovered and where we are now!

If you or someone you know is experiencing any of the symptoms discussed in this episode, please visit the following resources for support and further information:

PANDA: https://www.panda.org.au

COPE: https://www.cope.org.au

GIDGET: https://www.gidgetfoundation.org.au

Welcome back to parenting unpacked where you're guaranteed to find evidence, empathy and common sense. This week's episode is heavy on the empathy side but also comes with a trigger warning. Kristyn goes in depth into her experience with perinatal anxiety and depression, both during pregnancy and in the first year after birth. This episode has a lot of hard moments, but also a shining light at the end of the tunnel, which is the promise and proof of not only surviving perinatal anxiety and depression, but thriving in the year following a serious nervous breakdown. 

If you or someone you know is experiencing any of the symptoms discussed in this episode, please visit the following resources for support and further information: 

PANDA: https://www.panda.org.au

COPE: https://www.cope.org.au

GIDGET: https://www.gidgetfoundation.org.au