Sense by Meg Faure: Real Life Parenting

Ambition and mom guilt can live in the same brain at the very same time.
On this week's episode of Sense by Meg Faure we sit down with Madge Booth, host of the Moments podcast, who recently joined the Parent Sense team, to unpack why so many moms feel like they're failing at work and at home simultaneously.
We challenge the idea that moms can ever find a neat work-life balance and highlight that the traditional nine-to-five model was built before moms were such a big part of the workforce.
Meg shares the story of finding out she was pregnant with her third child the same week she launched Baby Sense.
The conversation moves into what employers get wrong when mothers return from leave and how the whole process needs far more humanity than most workplaces currently offer.
This episode gives working moms permission to let go of the guilt, and gives employers a picture of what real support looks like.

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN
Why the traditional nine-to-five was never built with mothers in mind
What matrescence is, and why returning to work can feel like reversing that transformation
How to stop chasing "work-life balance" and what to focus on instead
Why ambition and mom guilt can coexist without one having to win
What HR teams and employers consistently get wrong (and right) when moms return
Why careers don't need to be a straight line to still be good ones
ABOUT THE GUEST
Madge Booth is a working mom, media professional and the creator of The MOMents Podcast. After a decade in women’s magazines, she moved into marketing and recently joined the Parent Sense team.
She started The MOMents Podcast for working moms figuring out life, while walking the tightrope between her career and her family.

Follow the MOMents Podcast
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ABOUT THE SENSE BY MEG PODCAST
Sense by Meg is a weekly podcast for parents who want evidence-based, compassionate guidance. Hosted by OT, author and parenting expert Meg Faure, each episode brings together expert insight and real-world experience to help parents feel informed and supported. The podcast is proudly associated with Parent Sense, the all-in-one parenting app for routines, sleep, nutrition and expert advice.
Parent Sense App: Your all-in-one baby care app for routines, nutrition and expert advice.

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#SenseByMegFaure #ParentSense #WorkingMoms #MomGuilt #ReturnToWork #Matrescence #WorkLifeBalance #MegFaure #NewMoms #MaternityLeave

One in 500 000 pregnancies happens without fertility treatment and results in quads. Sam Smith is living that statistic right now, 23 weeks pregnant with four babies she never expected.
On this week's episode of Sense by Meg Faure we sit down with Sam Smith, who is 23 weeks into a spontaneous quad pregnancy, alongside returning guest Tasha, our resident multiples nurse. Sam and her partner Jan already have a toddler son, Teddy. They were hoping for one more baby. Instead, an eight week scan revealed four.
Sam walks us through that first scan in detail. She describes watching her doctor's expression change as he kept counting. Twins became triplets. Triplets became quads. There was no IVF involved.
Sam's honesty about the first trimester, the sleepless nights after the diagnosis, and the sheer physical discomfort of carrying four babies makes this one of the most human conversations we've had on the podcast.
If you've ever wondered what a spontaneous quad pregnancy actually looks like day to day, this episode answers it.
IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN
How a routine eight week scan turned into a quad diagnosis, and what that moment felt like for Sam and her partner Jan.
The difference between monochorionic (shared placenta) and dichorionic twins, and why it matters for risk.
What twin to twin transfusion is and why the 24 week mark is a milestone in multiples pregnancies.
How delivery planning works for quads, including hospital selection by gestational week and NICU team size.
Practical breastfeeding strategies for multiples: pumping, donor milk, tandem feeding, and combination feeding.
Why "getting help" isn't a compromise, it's the plan, according to multiples nurse Tasha.
ABOUT THE GUEST
Sam Smith is currently 23 weeks into a spontaneous quad pregnancy, expecting four babies with no fertility treatment involved. She lives in Cape Town with her partner Jan and their toddler son, Teddy. Sam is sharing her pregnancy in real time, from the shock of the diagnosis through to preparing for delivery and life with five children under three.
Follow Sam's journey on Instagram: @SamSmithofCapeTown
ABOUT THE SENSE BY MEG PODCAST
Sense by Meg is a weekly podcast for parents who want evidence-based, compassionate guidance. Hosted by OT, author and parenting expert Meg Faure, each episode brings together expert insight and real-world experience to help parents feel informed and supported. The podcast is proudly associated with Parent Sense, the all-in-one parenting app for routines, sleep, nutrition and expert advice.
Parent Sense App: Your all-in-one baby care app for routines, nutrition and expert advice.

FOLLOW US
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Parent Sense
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Most parents think legacy means a will they'll sort out one day. Certified financial planner from Meta Heights Capital, Lerato Mahasha says that's only half the story.
Meg and Lerato talks to about the "dual legacy": the assets you leave behind and the values that go with them. Lerato explains why families over-index on money and leave values to "someday."
They cover which debts to kill first, why retirement usually beats education savings and the biggest money mistake parents make in a child's first five years. Lerato also breaks down what happens to your children and your estate if you die without a will, and how to actually choose a guardian.
IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN
What the "dual legacy" is, and why most families only plan for half of it
The first financial move to make, even on a tight budget
Retirement or education savings: which comes first
The biggest money mistake parents make in the first five years
What happens to your children and estate if you die without a will
Simple ways to pass down values through stories and family traditions

ABOUT THE GUEST
Lerato Mahasha is a Certified Financial Planner at Meta Heights Capital, helping families build financial strategies alongside wills, trusts and estate planning.

REACH OUT TO META HEIGHTS CAPITAL

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ABOUT THE SENSE BY MEG PODCAST
Sense by Meg is a weekly podcast for parents who want evidence-based, compassionate guidance. Hosted by OT, author and parenting expert Meg Faure, each episode brings together expert insight and real-world experience to help parents feel informed and supported. The podcast is proudly associated with Parent Sense, the all-in-one parenting app for routines, sleep, nutrition and expert advice.
Parent Sense App: Your all-in-one baby care app for routines, nutrition and expert advice.

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#SenseByMegFaure #ParentSense #FamilyLegacy #FinancialPlanning #ParentingAdvice #WillsAndEstates #MoneyAndFamily #GenerationalWealth #MegFaure #ParentingPodcast

When a baby arrives, the spotlight falls on the mother. Her body, her recovery, her bond with the baby. But there's a quieter transformation happening on the other side of the room. A man is becoming a father, and almost nobody is asking how he's doing.
Meg Faure sits down with psychologist Dr Ange Nespola to talk about what dads actually go through in those first weeks and months. The identity shift, the loss of connection to their partner, the pressure to hold it together and the postnatal depression that often gets missed entirely.
In This Episode You'll Learn
Why becoming a dad is a major identity transformation, not just a support role
What "primary maternal preoccupation" is, and what it means for a father's place in the family system
Why marital satisfaction drops for most couples in the first year
How to bring dad into hands-on caregiving without pushing him out
Why so many dads feel like a third wheel, especially during breastfeeding
The real numbers on paternal postnatal depression, why it looks different to maternal depression and why it's so often missed
How to navigate the division of labour without turning it into a tally
A practical approach to splitting night shifts that doesn't leave both parents sleep deprived

ABOUT THE GUEST
Dr Ange Nespola is a psychologist who works with couples navigating the transition to parenthood, drawing on both clinical practice and her own recent experience as a mother of two.
Follow Dr. Ange
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EPISODE REFERENCES
Gottman Institute research on marital satisfaction after childbirth
D.W. Winnicott's concept of primary maternal preoccupation,

ABOUT THE SENSE BY MEG PODCAST
Sense by Meg Faure is a weekly podcast for parents who want evidence-based, compassionate guidance through pregnancy, babyhood and the toddler years. Hosted by Occupational Therapist, author and parenting expert Meg Faure. The podcast is proudly associated with Parent Sense.
Parent Sense App: Your all-in-one baby care app. Download HERE

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#NewFatherhood #PostnatalDepressionInDads #MarriageAfterBaby #ParentSense #EvidenceBasedParenting

On this week’s episode of Sense by Meg Faure, we explore the identity shift nobody prepares you for. Meg Faure hands the hosting mic to Madge Booth - founder of the MOMents podcast for working mums - and the conversation that follows is one of the most honest this podcast has ever held.
What Is Matrescence?
Matrescence is the term for the transition from woman to mother. Meg compares it directly to adolescence - with its hormonal upheaval, neurological rewiring, and complete identity reorganisation. The difference is that adolescence unfolds over years. Matrescence happens within hours of giving birth.
Research shows that grey matter in the maternal brain changes fundamentally after birth and stays changed for up to two years. It doesn’t mean cognitive loss - it means the brain’s energy is being redirected towards keeping a new human alive. Primary maternal preoccupation is real, biological, and entirely normal.
Grief and Love at the Same Time
One of the most powerful themes in this conversation is the grief that lives alongside love. Meg is direct: you can adore your child completely and at the same time mourn the woman you used to be. The woman who could leave the house without a nappy bag. Who went to the toilet alone. Who had full cognitive agency over her own life.
Returning to Work: The Juggle Nobody Acknowledges
The majority of mothers return to work within months of giving birth. Meg unpacks what happens in that transition: the expectation to step back into your old professional mould, while carrying a permanent cognitive load that never fully switches off. At least until your children reach their mid-twenties, she says, there is never a minute of the day that you don’t know where they are.
Who Is Most Vulnerable?
Some women face a harder transition. Meg identifies key risk factors: inadequate support structures, a history of anxiety or depression, fertility struggles or birth trauma, and the intergenerational patterns psychologist Fraiberg called ‘ghosts in the nursery’.
Five Ways to Hold On to Yourself
Meg offers five practical anchors for navigating this transition - especially for those without close family support:
Name it. Knowing that matrescence is real is the first act of self-compassion. When it feels like a mess, name it. You don’t have to have it perfect.
Keep one anchor to your pre-baby self. One yoga class a week. One date night. One thing that is just yours.
Build your village. Whether it’s Paddle and Prams, Stroller Strides, or Baby Hub in Cape Town - find your community and invest there.
Lower the bar deliberately. Say no to things. Let the laundry wait. Drop the balls that don’t matter.
You Are Not Less. You Are Becoming More.
The identity shift nobody prepares you for is also the one that quietly prepares you for everything that comes next. Meg’s closing words carry the whole episode: you have not lost yourself. You are being rewritten. The invisible developmental leap happening inside you - at the precise moment everyone is asking about the baby and not about you - is not weakness. It is the most significant transition of your adult life.
The parts of you that feel like they’re falling apart are quietly building something extraordinary. In the mess and the magic of this moment, you are not less. You are becoming more.
ABOUT TODAY’S GUEST HOST
Madge Booth is a mum of two with a background in women’s magazines and marketing. She is the founder and host of MOMents - a podcast for smart, tired, ambitious women ready to change the conversation around motherhood and work. Find MOMents wherever you get your podcasts.