"My Pregnancy Saved My Life": Cancer, Resilience, and Motherhood

How to Survive a Renovation with a Newborn

Renovating a house is stressful, but doing it with a newborn baby while navigating grants, planning delays, and multi-generational living is a masterclass in survival. 👶🛠️ In this debut episode of The Tribe of Parents Experience, host Hannah sits down with corporate tech professional and mom Jenny Diamond-Kelly. Jenny pulls back the curtain on the raw reality of ripping the roof off a 1960s bungalow while raising her baby boy, Louis. Shifting away from polished social media feeds, this episode functions as a practical guide for young parents tackling the property market. Tune in to discover the exact strategies, AI tools, and grant hacks they used to survive a year of construction chaos without breaking their budget—or their marriage. 🕒 USEFUL HOW-TO'S & EPISODE TIMESTAMPS: * 00:00 – How to survive the newborn phase during a house sale and renovation * 01:09 – Introduction to corporate professional and mom, Jenny Diamond Kelly * 01:53 – How to navigate life with a two-year-old and toddler mispronunciations * 04:08 – How we decided to rip the roof off a house with a 10-month-old * 05:26 – How to handle the planning permission process and layout challenges * 08:57 – How to pivot when facing planning delays and losing your original builder * 09:29 – How to survive a 12-month build by moving in with parents and in-laws * 13:24 – How to manage the reality of moving back home in your mid-30s * 14:42 – How to choose design vibes and plan a home layout for the future * 17:37 – How swapping a bedroom to build a dedicated laundry room creates a functional haven * 21:20 – How to handle the corporate culture shock of dealing with unreliable tradesmen * 23:40 – How to project manage the site and catch costly plumbing errors early * 26:00 – How to evaluate one-stop-shop builders versus independent project managers * 27:32 – How to keep future neighbours happy using wine and chocolates * 29:25 – How to find real renovation style inspiration from Studio McGee and online accounts * 31:24 – How to navigate the reality of SEAI Grants and preferred supplier costs * 33:23 – How to utilize AI platforms (ChatGPT & Claude) to check construction costs and contracts * 36:15 – How to protect your mental health against influencer pressure versus real-life baby timelines * 39:07 – How to overcome severe decision fatigue by spraying the whole house white * 41:42 – How to select durable, child-proof materials and engineered wood flooring * 46:14 – How to shift your parental expectations away from "unicorn baby sleep routines" * 52:01 – How a 10% to 15% budget contingency saves you from disasters like attic termites * 54:05 – How to safely navigate Vacant and Derelict Property Grants in Ireland * 57:06 – How to reflect on motherhood and find grounding six months into a build * 01:00:25 – How postpartum nesting can be used to create a dedicated toddler space * 01:02:41 – How to balance blood, sweat, tears, and property luck. ✨ TOP 3 KEY TAKEAWAYS FOR PARENTS: * The 15% Rule: A financial buffer isn't optional. From unexpected architect redraws to attic termites, hidden costs will appear. * AI is Your Best Assistant: Learn how pasting contractor quotes into ChatGPT or Claude can help you spot missing clauses and compliance gaps before signing a contract. * Ditch the "Perfect Nursery" Guilt: Babies stay by your side for months. Focus your initial build energy on structural practicalities (like storage and durable flooring) rather than temporary decor. 💡 Found this useful? Please follow or subscribe to The Tribe of Parents Experience on your favorite podcast app, and leave us a review to help other parents find these survival guides! Connect with us online or share your thoughts on this episode by visiting our website or social channels. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

An Honest Homebirth Story: Aoife’s HSE Domino Experience

Minutes into labour, lying on her own bed in South Dublin, Aoife hit the wall. It’s the exact moment during childbirth known as "transition"—where the mind wants to give up, panic sets in, and you wonder why on earth you chose to bypass the safety of a hospital ward. But Aoife wasn't in a hospital. She was at home. In this episode, we sit down with Aoife Geary, a mum of two, to hear the raw, unfiltered reality of her homebirth story. She didn’t set out with a grand plan to have a natural homebirth. In fact, up until her 36-week appointment, it hadn’t even entered her head. Aoife walks us through her entire journey—from navigating a tough pregnancy after relocating from Sydney to Ireland, to accidentally discovering the HSE Domino Scheme (what she calls "the country’s best-kept secret"), to slowly breaking the news to her laid-back partner, Evan. If you are an expectant parent googling all the big questions—Is homebirth actually safe? What happens in an emergency? How do I even qualify under the HSE?—this episode is for you. Aoife isn’t a medical expert giving a lecture; she’s a mum who has been through it, sharing the honest truths about active labour, handling the pain, navigating a later tongue-tie diagnosis, and the surreal magic of a home-made cheese toastie in her own bed just hours after giving birth. Grab a cup of tea, pull up a chair, and listen to how one phenomenal birth experience completely anchored a family to Ireland for good. 🕒 TIMESTAMPS * 00:00 – The Transition Hook & Introductions * 03:13 – Giving Birth in Australia vs. Ireland * 06:34 – Discovering the HSE Domino Scheme * 10:31 – The 36-Week Assessment: "It Had Never Entered My Head" * 17:00 – The Home Risk Assessment & Prepping the Partner * 24:00 – Labour Day: Dropping Áine to Crèche & Switching focus * 31:36 – Midwives Arrive & Managing Active Labour at Home * 33:50 – “I’ve Made a Huge Mistake” (The Wall of Transition & Birth) * 37:26 – The Post-Birth High: Tea, Toasties, & The Golden Hour * 45:20 – Postpartum Care, Navigating Tongue Tie, & Final Reflections 💬 CONNECT WITH US Thank you for listening! You can watch the full episode on YouTube @tribeofparents. Don't forget to follow Tribe of Parents on Instagram for updates and information. If you enjoy the podcast, please subscribe and leave a review - it really helps us out! Stay tuned for more real, raw parenting related conversations. * Website: www.tribeofparents.ie * Instagram: @tribeofparents * Subscribe on Acast, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify! ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

How I Cleared My Son's Severe Eczema Naturally

What happens when your high-flying career directly collides with a family health crisis? In this episode, we sit down with Pia Crofton, a veteran of the Irish food industry, to explore the powerful intersection of maternal health, career burnout, and her child's healing journey. After 20 years of building multi-million euro export markets under intense corporate pressure, Pia faced the ultimate wake-up call when her second son’s immune system completely collapsed at just six months old. Faced with severe eczema, chronic respiratory attacks, and terrifying developmental regression, Pia stepped away from conventional prescriptions and turned to the healing power of ancestral nutrition. Tune in to discover how she used the GAPS diet philosophy, traditional nose-to-tail cooking, and nutrient-dense local foods to completely rebuild her son's gut health and reverse chronic illness. We also pull back the curtain on the corporate food system, the physiological debt of maternal depletion, and practical kitchen habits to heal your family from the inside out. In this episode, we discuss: * The Myth of "Having It All": Balancing maternity leave with intense business revenue pressures. * Maternal Depletion: The hidden physiological debt growing a child takes on a woman's body. * The Turning Point: Moving from conventional medical protocols to a food-as-medicine approach. * The GAPS Diet Philosophy: Rebuilding the gut lining using traditional meat stocks and ancestral cooking principles. * The Real Cost of Food: Why buying directly from local, regenerative farms is cheaper than chronic illness. * Nose-to-Tail Kitchen Efficiency: How to stretch high-quality ingredients to feed your family on a budget. Episode Timestamps: 00:00 — Meet Pia Crofton 01:18 — Career and Export Success 02:57 — Maternity Leave and Business Pressures 04:51 — A Child's Health Crisis 06:21 — Maternal Depletion & Physiological Debt 11:09 — The Turning Point with Nutrient-Dense Food 13:46 — Discovering the GAPS Diet Philosophy 22:42 — The True Cost of the Food System 25:07 — Practical Nose-to-Tail Cooking & Meal Prep 35:04 — Reversing Developmental Regression 40:13 — Principles of Ancestral Cooking for Gut Repair Thank you for listening! You can watch the full episode on YouTube @tribeofparents. Don't forget to follow Tribe of Parents on Instagram for updates and information. If you enjoy the podcast, please subscribe and leave a review - it really helps us out! Stay tuned for more real, raw parenting related conversations. Connect with the Show: * Website: www.tribeofparents.ie * Instagram: @tribeofparents * Subscribe on Acast, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify! Please note: The information shared in this podcast is based on personal experience and educational frameworks like the GAPS diet. It is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional regarding medical conditions. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

"My Pregnancy Saved My Life": Cancer, Resilience, and Motherhood

"My Pregnancy Saved My Life": Cancer, Resilience, and beginning Motherhood | Tribe of Parents Ep 1 Can being at your most vulnerable also be the thing that saves you? In this opening episode of the Tribe of Parents Experience, we sit down with Cliodhna Russell, a newsreader and researcher whose life was upended by a "rugby ball-sized" Sarcoma diagnosis while she was five months pregnant. From receiving a cancer diagnosis alone during a global pandemic to navigating the "black humour" of a crisis, Cliodhna’s story is a masterclass in psychological resilience. We dive into the "Journalist Mode" we use to process trauma, the burden of delivering life-altering news, and why "unplanned beginnings" can lead to a resilience we never knew we possessed. Key Learning Outcomes & Life Lessons The "Pregnancy Save": Cliodhna reflects on the terrifying reality that without her routine pregnancy check-ups, her tumour likely would have metastasized before being detected. Learning: Sometimes our greatest responsibilities—like carrying a child—are the very things that force us to care for ourselves. Managing High-Stakes Anxiety: When her consultant told her, "We’ll worry about this, and you just worry about the baby" she latched onto it as a survival strategy. Learning: In a crisis, "compartmentalizing worry" is a vital tool for mental endurance. The Weight of the "Sole Messenger": Due to COVID-19 restrictions, Cliodhna had to process her diagnosis alone and then "edit" the news for her husband in the car park. Learning: Isolation in medical trauma creates a secondary burden—the pressure of managing a loved one's reaction while processing your own. Perspective Isn't a Permanent State: Cliodhna is candid about the fact that surviving cancer didn't turn her into a saint. Learning: You can have "crystal clear" clarity during a crisis but still get annoyed by the small, "silly" things in the day-to-day—and that’s a normal part of being human. Navigate the Conversation 0:00 — The "It couldn't happen to me" mindset 2:15 — The Atmosphere Shift: Knowing you're in trouble 5:03 — The Birthday Call: Receiving the news 7:17 — Entering "Journalist Mode": Intellectualizing trauma 8:40 — Delivering the News: Being the messenger 12:45 — Black Humour at Christmas: A survival tool 13:08 — The "Breech" Devastation vs. Cancer diagnosis 44:59 — The Myth of the "New Person" The Power of the Unplanned Cliodhna’s story is a powerful reminder that many of our most significant chapters—and even our children—come from unplanned beginnings. There is no "single blueprint" for being a parent, especially when life throws you a curveball that no one could prepare for. She shows us that you don't need a perfect start to build a "solid foundation of structure and strength." It’s okay to not have all the answers; as long as you have your community to lean on, you can navigate the path you're on, even if it’s not the one you originally chose. MARK YOUR CALENDARS: Our episodes drop biweekly. Thank you for listening! You can watch the full episode on YouTube @tribeofparents. Don't forget to follow Tribe of Parents on Instagram for updates and information. If you enjoy the podcast, please subscribe and leave a review - it really helps us out! Stay tuned for more real, raw parenting related conversations. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

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10,000 hours. 1,000+ parents. 3 years in the making A podcast for anyone who parents, has parented, or hopes to parent one day. Today, we are finally stepping out of the research phase and into your headphones. The Goal? To burn the "perfect parenting" blueprint. No judgment. No filters. Just real conversations and a community that actually has your back. MARK YOUR CALENDARS: Our episodes drop biweekly. Thank you for listening! You can watch the full episode on YouTube @tribeofparents. Don't forget to follow Tribe of Parents on Instagram for updates and information. If you enjoy the podcast, please subscribe and leave a review - it really helps us out! Stay tuned for more real, raw parenting related conversations. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.