Kinderling Conversation

Parents are notoriously short on time. And when you're managing your list of priorities, exercise can often fall off the list of "to dos". Lizzy Williamson discovered that short, incremental moments of exercise helped her climb out of postnatal depression. Her book, Two Minute Moves, redefines how exercise can exist in your life, and how possible it is to make time to move. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When parents-to-be attend anti-natal classes, they're meant to be given enough information to arm them for the birthing suite, and the first days of having a baby at home. But Amy Dawes, Executive Director and co-founder of the Australasian Birth Trauma Association, says there needs to be more information about birth injuries that occur. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Babies change at such a rapid rate in their first year, you can get on top of something and then the next day it changes. Mothercraft nurse Chris Minogue is here to help guide you through the constantly shifting sands of the baby and toddler years. With over 30 years of experience she can get to the heart of what's going on for your child. In this episode of Helpline, Chris gives advice for: How to keep a two-year-old with febrile seizures safe during episodes, getting a talkative 19-month-old go back to sleep in the morning, stopping a three-year-old from finger-sucking, recommended day nap schedule for a 10-month-old, weaning a two-year-old off constant comforter attachment, a 15-month-old who won't stay still during grocery shopping, a three-year-old who doesn't want to use the toilet, an early-waking four-month-old, a five-month-old who won't sleep in his cot, a six-month-old who wakes at 4:20 am on the dot, a seven-and-a-half-month-old who threw away his beautiful sleep pattern after one week on holiday.

Having a young baby can make you feel like you need to put life on hold. Some of us just need to buckle down and weather the storm. Amber Lawrence is a multi-award winning musician who has taken it all in her stride. Having a baby, getting married, releasing a new album, going on tour. Amber doesn't claim to be a super-mum, but she does value holding on to your dreams. In this interview Amber talks about how she juggles a creative working life with a young son, and why she wouldn't have it any other way. Amber Lawrence is currently on tour. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Parenting today looks very different to how it did even a generation ago. For Sean Szeps, even the way he had his family is worlds away from his own father's experience. And yet despite these differences Sean learnt a lot about parenting from his father. He explains how a dancing, feminine boy grew up thriving with a masculine, sports-loving dad, and the legacy his father left him as he brings up his own children. Check out Sean's writing at Bringing up Gaybies.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australians are taking more and more antibiotics, which has led to some bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotics. In fact, two-thirds of babies of babies have already received antibiotics by the time they are 12 months old. That's according to Dr Penelope Bryant, a Consultant in Paediatric Infectious Diseases and Medical Lead at The Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne. And while Penelope says there are definitely times that antibiotics are required and life-saving, we need to be more careful about how often they are prescribed to babies. Penelope talks about the risks of antibiotic use in young babies, and how parents can make sure they feel empowered in their decisions with medical practitioners. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You might think that fashion is a fickle thing, but Maxine Beneba-Clarke's latest book for kids shows that it is a deep, expressive medium. Fashionista is an exploration of all the wonderful ways that children can use clothing in fun and creative ways, and how to stand out from the crowd. Maxine talks about what clothing meant to her as a child, and why she wanted to write a book about fashion. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When a small child wakes up screaming uncontrollably it can be a sign of a bad nightmare, or it could be a sign of a night terror. Professor Sarah Blunden is a Paediatric Sleep Specialist with the Sleep Health Foundation. She explains the symptoms of night terrors, and what parents can do to help their kids. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's hard to watch your child struggle with anxiety, especially when you've suffered from it yourself. Dr Jodi Richardson is a wellbeing expert and co-author of Anxious Kids - How children can turn their anxiety into resilience. She explains why anxiety is so high in kids today, and what parents can do to help their children.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Research from the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre has found that men are being overlooked in the aftermath of miscarriage. Dr Jade Bilardi was a lead researcher on the study. She tells us what men are saying about the experience of miscarriage and how they can be better supported. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are many things small humans throw at us that leave us feeling baffled. Like sleeping through the night and then deciding to wake every two hours. Or refusing to accept a bottle feed right when you have to go back to work. Mothercraft nurse Chris Minogue joins Helpline every week to clarify your confusion, answer your questions, and to tweak things so that life runs a bit more smoothly. On this episode of Helpline Chris tackles: settling a baby when there are two older siblings in the house, toilet training a two-and-a-half-year-old with a history of constipation, an 18-month-old who wakes every morning at 5.13am on the dot, a four-month-old who appears to be gagging on their mother's milk, a ten-month-old who is waking through the night, a 16-month-old who wakes from naps crying hysterically, a six-month-old waking through the night and a seven-month-old waking through the night and waking his older sister.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Sanders is Australian born and bred, but he has always been fascinated with South America, and Bolivia in particular. When his children were five and seven, Ben and his wife decided to move to Bolivia for several years, transplanting his family to a completely different culture with a language they didn't speak. Ben talks about the challenges and benefits of living in Bolivia, and why his latest picture book, My Book (not yours), was dedicated to the street kids of Sucre. Ben's charity that he worked with is called Biblioworks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In Australia, most stay-at-home parents are still mothers, but not in the Szeps household. At different times of his twins' lives, Sean Szeps has been the stay-at-home dad. He's documented life with the twins in his blog Bringing Up Gaybies. There are good times and bad. And sometimes, like when he needs to change his twins, it sucks to be a dad. Sean talks about when the world hasn't caught up to the fact that dads are parents too. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For some mothers, giving birth once is enough. For others - the experience of childbirth makes them want more. Dini Martinez is a yoga teacher and mum of three. She decided she wanted to learn how to be a doula after an experience in her early 20s. She talks about why she loves being with a birthing mother and how she works with women and their partners.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Raising girls in today's climate can be a bit intimidating. How do you counter all the messages they get about their bodies from social media? Merissa Forsyth is the founder of the Pretty Foundation. She discovered that the most effective way to help children form a healthy body image is in their early years. She talks about how children as young as five are thinking about dieting, and what we can do to turn it around. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

According to the UN Environment Program, if food waste were a country it would be counted as the third biggest greenhouse gas emitter, behind China and the US. In Australia, over 5 million tonnes of food ends up in landfill. That's enough to fill 9,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools. So if Australians want to start making a difference, we can look in our own fridges and cupboards to make a real difference. Ronni Kahn, CEO and founder of Oz Harvest explains why food waste is such an issue in Australia (and the world) and Jessica Chapnik Kahn, the author of a new picture book, Lenny and the Ants, tells us why children can really help to make a difference. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you have children, you're probably not short on people telling you how to raise your kids. But how many of the critics can point to a time in history where parenting changed, and then show how that change has impacted the young adults walking around the world today? Jonathan Haidt is a social psychologist and a Professor of Ethical Leadership at New York University. In his book The Coddling of the American Mind he outlines how the changing nature of parenting has led to some long-term consequences that continue to affect adults today. Jonathan outlines the key things parents are doing wrong, and how we can correct these mistakes for the future of the children we're raising today. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Researchers from the Cerebral Palsy Alliance want mums to understand that kissing their toddlers on the mouth should go on the same list as not eating soft cheeses and raw fish. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a common virus that has been linked to developmental and intellectual difficulties in babies. Dr Hayley Smithers-Sheedy, a research fellow from the Cerebral Palsy Alliance, explains how CMV can be avoided. Hayley joins Pam Rogers, a mum who found out she had CMV at 26 weeks pregnant. For more information on CMV check out CMV Australia and the Cerebral Palsy Alliance.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the biggest challenges with small children is sleep. Whether it's trying to stretch cat naps into proper day sleeps, or getting a three year old to stay in her bed all night, most of us have to deal with a sleep challenge at some point. Mothercraft nurse Chris Minogue is here to help. She'll answer all of your questions, from sleep to feeding and behavioural issues. In this episode of Helpline, Chris helps parents with the following challenges: a six-month-old who refuses a bottle, a 19-month-old who is still having two day sleeps, the best time to wake an 18-month-old in the morning, a one-month-old with colic, a two-and-a-half -year-old who won't stay in bed at night, a shy 18-month-old and transitioning an 18-month-old to one day sleep.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Megan Blanford is a freelance writer, and in her first book, I'm Fine (and other lies), she explores the eight years that she went through postnatal depression. It's a book of light and humour, as well as raw honesty and darkness. In this interview, she talks about what it's like to revisit a difficult period in her life and why it took so long to get the help that ultimately made her better. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.