The early years of motherhood aren’t just hard; they completely shake and in many ways change your identity.

In this real and raw conversation, Hatien shares her journey through pregnancy during a pandemic, losing her job, experiencing postnatal depression, rebuilding her life and career.

If you've ever wondered why the early years feel so overwhelming, or questioned if you’re doing enough, this episode will feel like a warm, honest conversation with a friend who truly gets it.

In this episode:

• Navigating job loss while pregnant
• Returning to work after maternity leave with no village
• Mental health struggles and the power of asking for help
• Creating boundaries between work and motherhood
• Finding confidence and joy again after the early years

Please know, you are not alone in this journey. Every working mum has a story — and we’re here to share them.

Enjoyed this conversation and interested to share your story on the podcast, apply today to be a guest. Click here

Connect with Hatien on LinkedIn

Connect with Carina O'Brien and Working Mumma on Instagram @workingmummacommunity or @workingmummapodcast and follow Working Mumma on LinkedIn. Sign up for the Working Mumma newsletter

What does it really look like to juggle ADHD, two kids, and multiple businesses? Laetitia shares the messy, unfiltered reality of neurodivergent motherhood, and how she stays grounded.

Laetitia Andrac is a mother of two, former corporate strategist, business owner, and a passionate advocate for neurodiversity. When her daughter Zoe began showing signs of being neurodivergent, Laetitia found herself navigating a complex, exhausting system while trying to hold down a senior management role in one of Australia's largest organisations. What followed was a personal journey of burnout, late ADHD diagnosis, and ultimately, a complete career shift.

Laetitia opens up about the emotional toll of parenting a child with high support needs, what it’s like discovering her own neurodivergence later in life, and how she’s now using her experience to help other families through her new business and platform, Understanding Zoe. This is a raw and powerful conversation about identity, motherhood, advocacy, and what happens when the systems we’re part of no longer work for us.

Show links

• Connect with Laetitia on LinkedIn, discover more about Understanding Zoe understandingzoe.com or her business, the Essential Shift essentialshift.co
• Connect with Carina and Working Mumma Instagram @workingmummacommunity or on LinkedIn

Free resources

• Sign up for the Working Mumma newsletter
• Get your free 'How to share the mental load' checklist workingmumma.com.au/mental-load/

Have you ever paused and reflected on the woman you were before becoming a mum? In this special solo episode, I open up about the questions my pre-mum self might ask me today. From navigating identity shifts to managing relationships, careers, and the mental load – this is the episode I would give to my younger self, full of truth, insight, and a dose a reality.

From career ambitions and the mental load to the myth of balance and the messy beauty of mum life, I reflect on what I have learned and unlearned in my evolution from a driven professional to a working mum with perspective.

Whether you're a mum-to-be, new mum, or seasoned in the juggle, this episode offers a comforting reminder that it’s okay to evolve — and that version 2.0 might just be stronger than you imagined.

Key Takeaways

• How motherhood shifts your priorities, identity, and definition of success
• Why “balance” is a myth and what really matters instead
• The unexpected strength and resilience you discover in the messy moments
• Why you can still be ambitious and be a great mum
• The importance of finding your own rhythm, not the one society expects

Show links

• Follow Working Mumma on Instagram @workingmummacommunity
• Sign up for the Working Mumma newsletter
• Get your free 'How to share the mental load' checklist workingmumma.com.au/mental-load/
• Connect with Carina on LinkedIn