

Momwell
Erica Djossa
We often enter motherhood envisioning joy, nurturing, peace, and love. But the reality can blindside us. Nobody tells us about Mom Rage, overstimulation, intrusive thoughts, or other mental health struggles. Unfortunately, when we seek help, we might face a lack of support, a system that doesn’t put moms first, and a world that turns a blind eye to the challenges of motherhood. We’re here to change that. We believe that moms deserve access to community, support, and mental health literacy. If you’re struggling with motherhood, you’re not alone–and you’re not failing. On The Momwell Podcast, host and psychotherapist Erica Djossa teaches strategies to help you cope with the psychological and emotional load of motherhood and prioritize your mental health and wellbeing. Erica shares the best kept secrets of the therapy world and interviews other professionals (psychologists, pediatricians, psychiatrists, fertility specialists, lactation consultants, and more!) who provide their expertise to empower you on your motherhood journey.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 23, 2020 • 1h 6min
049: Reducing Worry and Navigating the Health of Baby in 4th Trimester With Pediatrician Dr. Mona Amin
While pregnant, you read all the books in anticipation for the day your baby is born. Then you head home with your baby without a guide and you’re left wondering how do I navigate this fourth trimester? On top of figuring out the health of your baby, worry sets in. You start to wonder how am I qualified to take care of this baby? Are they eating enough? How is their sleep schedule? In this episode, Dr. Mona Amin and I talk about the important fourth trimester and how to lessen worry and anxiety, the importance of Mom’s mental health, and the overall health of your baby during this time. Show Notes: https://bit.ly/34FqIpX Book a Free 15 min Consult with a mom therapist: happyasamother.co/wellness Follow Happy as a Mother on Instagram: instagram.com/happyasamother Sign up for our weekly VIP Newsletter: happyasamother.co/newsletter Register for one of our popular workshops: happyasamother.co/shop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dec 9, 2020 • 1h 4min
048: The Secret to a Secure Bond with Dr. Tina Payne Bryson, New York Times Best Selling Author
As a parent, you may feel overwhelmed with all of the decisions you need to make about your child, their care, and ultimately how you are going to handle parenting decisions. In the end, there are many ways to be a great parent. If we look to science, it has shown us that secure attachment is one decision that will aid in brain development and build a connection with your child. In this episode, Dr. Tina Payne Bryson and I talk through the four pillars of secure attachment, the importance of secure attachment for children and adults, and how science can help guide your parenting decisions. Show Notes: https://bit.ly/382fLjd Book a Free 15 min Consult with a mom therapist: happyasamother.co/wellness Follow Happy as a Mother on Instagram: instagram.com/happyasamother Sign up for our weekly VIP Newsletter: happyasamother.co/newsletter Register for one of our popular workshops: happyasamother.co/shop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nov 25, 2020 • 57min
047: Conscious Boundary Setting With Family Psychologist Ashleigh Warner
We can all agree that children need boundaries, but it’s HOW we go about setting the boundary that makes ALL the difference. We can learn to set boundaries in a gentle and mindful way, while also preserving our connection and relationship with our children. In this episode, Family Psychologist Ashleigh Warner and I discuss conscious discipline, the importance of boundaries, tangible ways to maintain boundaries, and how to make sure your kids have a clear idea of your family’s boundaries. Show Notes: https://bit.ly/37m1hKH Book a Free 15 min Consult with a mom therapist: happyasamother.co/wellness Follow Happy as a Mother on Instagram: instagram.com/happyasamother Sign up for our weekly VIP Newsletter: happyasamother.co/newsletter Register for one of our popular workshops: happyasamother.co/shop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nov 11, 2020 • 1h 11min
046: Learning to Love Your Postpartum Body with Lexie Kite, Ph.D.
During pregnancy, your body is changing so much! It goes through so much in the span of 9 months and grows an entire human being in the process! It is truly mind-blowing to think about! After our baby is born, we are met with so much pressure to snap back and look like we never gave birth. Our body is more than an ornament. It is an instrument that as moms, we need to embrace. It’s important for us to realize that how our body looks does not define who we are as a mom. In this episode, Co-Founder of Beauty Redefined Lexie Kite and I discuss body image, share examples of our own journey with body image, and how we can love our body just the way it is. Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3phxWsN Book a Free 15 min Consult with a mom therapist: happyasamother.co/wellness Follow Happy as a Mother on Instagram: instagram.com/happyasamother Sign up for our weekly VIP Newsletter: happyasamother.co/newsletter Register for one of our popular workshops: happyasamother.co/shop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 28, 2020 • 58min
045: Maintaining Your Identity in Motherhood with Therapist Chasity Holcomb
Did you always daydream about the day you would hopefully become a Mom? Or envision yourself holding a new baby with all the magical feels? Then the day arrives and you have to shift into the reality of motherhood, an all consuming role we've had no training for. How do we make the shift into motherhood without losing who we are? How do we retain our pre-Mom identity? Motherhood has a way of shaping each of us. Every Mom evolves over time. We are challenged to explore depths of ourselves we've often avoided and learn the true meaning of unconditional love. In this episode, Therapist Chasity Holcomb and I talk about how we can maintain our identity in motherhood through exploration, rediscovery, and prioritizing that time spent on ourselves. Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3e0yk9W Book a Free 15 min Consult with a mom therapist: happyasamother.co/wellness Follow Happy as a Mother on Instagram: instagram.com/happyasamother Sign up for our weekly VIP Newsletter: happyasamother.co/newsletter Register for one of our popular workshops: happyasamother.co/shop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 14, 2020 • 55min
044: Managing Perfectionism in Motherhood With Psychologist Dr. Jen Douglas
Do you find you get stuck trying so hard to do things “the right way”? Do you have incredibly high expectations of yourself, both as an individual and now as a mother?. If so, you aren’t alone and are likely to be rewarded by society for this mentality. When you become a parent, suddenly you can’t do everything perfectly. You want so badly to give 100% in all areas, all the time….but then it happens, a sense of burnout and not knowing what to prioritize. How will others accept you if you are not perfect all the time? In this episode, psychologist Dr. Jen Douglas and I discuss perfectionism, ways to recognize it in our lives, and ideas on how to find ways to be purposely imperfect. Show Notes: https://bit.ly/375apo7 Book a Free 15 min Consult with a mom therapist: happyasamother.co/wellness Follow Happy as a Mother on Instagram: instagram.com/happyasamother Sign up for our weekly VIP Newsletter: happyasamother.co/newsletter Register for one of our popular workshops: happyasamother.co/shop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 30, 2020 • 1h 1min
043: Managing Tantrums According to Science With Cindy Hovington, Ph.D.
Having to handle our child’s behaviour and big emotions is to be expected, it comes with being a parent. But goodness, it is exhausting. The true work of parenting is being able to regulate ourselves in the face of their big reactions. To better understand what causes our children to react this way, we’ll learn about what’s actually happening in their brains. In this episode, we are joined by Cindy Hovington to help understand this perspective, discuss tantrums, big emotions, and how to make a connection with your child during this key time. Show Notes: https://bit.ly/36Go19s Book a Free 15 min Consult with a mom therapist: happyasamother.co/wellness Follow Happy as a Mother on Instagram: instagram.com/happyasamother Sign up for our weekly VIP Newsletter: happyasamother.co/newsletter Register for one of our popular workshops: happyasamother.co/shop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 16, 2020 • 1h 17min
042: Celebrating 1 Year - A Look Back at the Top 5 Episodes
Cue the confetti, it’s time to celebrate! The Happy as a Mother podcast is celebrating 1 year! A year ago, I had a mission and a clear vision to provide a space for Moms to learn and grow. It needed to be non-judgmental and acknowledge both the amazing blessings of Motherhood but also the taboo hardships that very few Moms speak openly about. I have loved every single moment together this past year! To celebrate today, we are going to take a look back at the five most downloaded episodes of the year. The topics include Mommy Rage, Boundaries, Independent Play, The Mental Load, and Intrusive Thoughts. As parents, we deal with so much along this journey and I’m so happy to share these top topics with you today! Show Notes: https://bit.ly/2RvEq7M Book a Free 15 min Consult with a mom therapist: happyasamother.co/wellness Follow Happy as a Mother on Instagram: instagram.com/happyasamother Sign up for our weekly VIP Newsletter: happyasamother.co/newsletter Register for one of our popular workshops: happyasamother.co/shop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 2, 2020 • 59min
041: Dealing With Your Child's Triggering Behaviour With Psychologist Dr. Becky Kennedy
We’ve all experienced parenting moments where our children just get under our skin. All the scripts and best practices go out the window, and we find ourselves struggling to parent the way we want to. What most of us don’t realize is that our own childhood plays a role, both in how we show up as parents and in how our children learn to behave. But reparenting and diving into our memories and experiences can help us shift our reactions, regulate ourselves, and help our children navigate their emotions and behaviours. Today, I’m joined by clinical psychologist Dr. Becky Kennedy to discuss reparenting and how to address triggering behaviour. Show Notes: https://bit.ly/32QFgB5 Book a Free 15 min Consult with a mom therapist: happyasamother.co/wellness Follow Happy as a Mother on Instagram: instagram.com/happyasamother Sign up for our weekly VIP Newsletter: happyasamother.co/newsletter Register for one of our popular workshops: happyasamother.co/shop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aug 19, 2020 • 1h 6min
040: Organizing All the Mess With Professional Organizer Holly Blakey
As Moms, we feel like we are constantly cleaning. Picking up a mess that you didn’t make is so hard and triggering. The trick is to find ways that make these times easier. Doing a few simple things to create an organizational system and part of our Mom routine is key. Once these are in place, you will experience more calmness, ease, and disconnect from the mess. Join professional organizer Holly Blakey today for some organization hacks to help you conquer all the mess in your home. Show notes: https://bit.ly/34eeAfW Book a Free 15 min Consult with a mom therapist: happyasamother.co/wellness Follow Happy as a Mother on Instagram: instagram.com/happyasamother Sign up for our weekly VIP Newsletter: happyasamother.co/newsletter Register for one of our popular workshops: happyasamother.co/shop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices