The Mum Mind Podcast

Dr. Bronagh Fitzpatrick is a Clinical and Health Psychologist with extensive experience across public healthcare systems. Known online as "The Parental Psychologist," she uses her platform to share practical, evidence-based guidance on child development, parenting, and co-regulation tools for managing both parent and child nervous systems. Following the high-profile Lindsay Clancy case i...

Families navigating serious childhood illness often say they feel invisible. While there is some excellent parenting and mental health content available, much of it doesn't quite fit the realities of hospital admissions, medical uncertainty, repeated procedures, or the unique challenges of supporting well siblings. It can be an incredibly isolating experience. Dr. Katherine Nunn (aka @drkather...

Dr Rhona Stallard, lecturer and researcher in early childhood education, and founder of The Play Lab. Today she talks to Stef about how to encourage independent play, how to set up your play space and how to notice where your little one may get 'stuck'. You can find Dr Rhona on Instagram @the_play_lab_ Stef McSherry is a mum of 2 and a pre-school activity specialist, working with that age...

Kel Galavan, widely known as Mrs Smart Money, is an Irish personal finance educator, money coach, and bestselling author who empowers individuals and corporate workforces to achieve financial security. Kel eliminated a six-figure debt and cut her household outgoings by over €27,000 in a single year through her widely publicized "No Spend Year". Combining her background in science (holdin...

Louise Brennan is a parenting coach, a mother of 3 teens, a teacher with 25+ years experience and she has multiple additional qualifications in the psychology and leadership field. Louise is chatting all things parenting with Stef today and sharing her extensive knowledge of tips, strategies, practices, and routines that have been proven to work, not only in scientific research, but also in her ow...

In this week's episode, Stef is joined by paediatric Occupational Therapist and founder of The Sensory Submarine , Grace Magennis. With over a decade of hands-on experience, Grace is passionate about making sensory integration and emotional regulation practical, accessible, and fun for families. Through The Sensory Submarine, she helps parents support children with sensory processing challenges, d...

School anxiety is one of the fastest-growing challenges facing families today, yet few parents know what to do when a child simply can’t bring themselves to walk through the school gates. In this episode Stef McSherry is talking to leading psychotherapist Bronagh Starrs as she unpacks the hidden drivers of school anxiety and explains why willpower, rewards and pressure rarely work. Drawing on a mi...

In our final episode for this season Stef chats to author Sinéad Moriarty. Sinéad   is an award-winning and much-loved novelist whose books have won over readers and critics by telling stories that are humane, moving and relevant. Her children’s books are now inspiring a new generation of readers to be empathetic and understanding. Saving Grace  follows Grace, who suffers burns to her ea...

Eating disorders can cause a lot of worry for families and things can spiral quickly. Laura Casey is Director of Services at the beautiful Lois Bridges Treatment Centre in Dublin. Laura is an enhanced psychiatric nurse who brings over 11 years of dedicated experience in supporting individuals with mental illness, with a particular focus on the treatment of eating disorders. Her approach is rooted...

Kelly Geoghegan has 25+ years’ experience working in childcare. She is a qualified Maternity Nurse, Emergency Medical Technician, First Aid Instructor, and CPO, holding a QQI Level 6 in Child Psychology. Kelly is a member of both the International Association of Child Sleep Consultants and the Association of Professional Sleep Consultants. For many years, Kelly has travelled the world, working wit...

If you have ever wanted to know more about fostering this is the show for you. This week Stef chats to Mary Adams from Fostering First Ireland to find out everything! Fostering First Ireland is a leading fostering agency that believes every child in care deserves a loving and supportive home. Fostering First is dedicated to providing exceptional, high-quality foster care placements and to support...

Olivia Farrelly is an alcohol free coach and mentor. In this day and age more and more of us are becoming sober curious or certainly questioning our relationship with alcohol. This 'grey area drinking' where we turn to alcohol to soothe or celebrate is exactly what Olivia and Stef are discussing in this week's episode. As Olivia says you don't have to hit rock bottom to assess your relationship wi...

Aimee Owens is a teacher and her dad is living with Alzheimers. Through her experiences she has realised how important it is to communicate with children about what is happening with their grandparent or relative and she is currently writing a children's book all about it. Aimee chats to Stef about ways to help children understand these delicate and sometimes upsetting situations. You can follow A...

Jennifer Davey is a Neuroscience life coach and global speaker. Also known as @wellbeingwarrior.ie, Jen works with women across Ireland, the UK and the US, helping them rebuild their confidence from the inside out. Today she is talking to Stef about those toxic family relationships that can be so tricky to navigate. It could be a parent, a sibling or an in-law but how do you handle them...

Marian Williamson is a nurse, midwife, mum, breastfeeding buddy and certified baby massage instructor. She is passionate about nurturing new mums in those vulnerable early months which is why she created her business https://www.instagram.com/the_nest_cork/ Marian joins Stef today to talk about the benefits of baby massage and what we can all do to support new mums. They also talked about https://...

In this week's episode Stef is talking to Sarah Kelly. Sarah is a mum, a specialist Speech and Language Therapist, and a trained Montessori teacher who has a passion for early intervention, which led her to establish  SpeakEasy SLT , her own speech therapy clinic in Dublin. Through her instagram page @playeasy.ie Sarah provides accessible and valuable information to both parents and professio...

Dr. Malie Coyne is a Clinical Psychologist with more than 20 years experience. She is also a Mum and a best selling Author of the book  'Love In, Love Out - A compassionate approach to parenting your anxious child'  . Dr. Malie is also the psychological lead for A Lust for Life programme taught in Primary Schools - all about resilience, wellbeing and emotional literacy. Today she is talk...

Dr David Coleman  is a practising Clinical Psychologist and an Adjunct Associate Professor in the School of Psychology in UCD. With decades of experience helping children, teenagers and families with issues such as anxiety, emotional regulation, behaviour and relationships, his work focuses on building resilience, empathy, connection and understanding within families. His new book,...

In this powerful episode, Stef chats with Jess, the force behind @jessrunsforsurvivors , to discuss the reality of navigating life after coercive control. While escaping an abusive relationship is a monumental feat, Jess sheds light on the "hidden" battle that follows: co-parenting under court orders with a high-conflict ex-partner. She shares her invaluable, battle-tested strategies for staying c...

We are kicking off 2025 chatting with Laura Crowley. Laura has spent the last twenty years plus working with children and families with an ASD diagnosis. She is full of useful information as well as practical ways to help families. Laura's work also led to her own diagnosis. Laura is open, honest and a pleasure to chat to. You can find out more about her and her work at www.lauracrowleyconnect.com...

Jackie Gowran is an holistic business coach who works on personal and business development alchemy through her business https://www.businessweaving.com/ Today she is chatting with Stef about our nervous systems. What are they? What do they do for us? How can we recognise the messages they are sending us and how can we rewire the not so useful messages. How can we attune more to our gut instinct? H...

https://thefamilyedit.ie/ is an online directory for baby classes, kids activities and family adventures around Ireland. A recent addition to the website is The Family Hub - created for parents who want trusted help and support through every stage of family life. The founder of The Family Edit, Gemma Kingston joins Stef to share her story and her passion for families. With a background i...

Developmental Coordination Disorder(DCD), commonly known as dyspraxia, is a lifelong neurological condition that affects motor planning, coordination, and organization, impacting daily activities. It affects fine and gross motor skills, often causing challenges with handwriting, sports, self-care, and balance. Dr Áine O'Dea trained as an occupational therapist and has spent 20 years in public...

Dr. Rebecca Quinn is a clinical psychologist who joins Stef this week to talk about big emotions! What are big emotions? What do they look and feel like, for us, and for our kids? How do we understand them and most importantly how do we keep ourselves in a state where we can deal with them? An excellent chat about the feelings and the practical steps. You can find Dr. Rebecca at https://thepsychol...

Shonagh O’Malley is a parenting expert with over 20 year’s experience in supporting parents. Her passion for empowering parents to make positive changes makes her a trusted mentor for countless families. Stef and Shonagh discuss boundaries, how to mean what you say and how to not be afraid of the fallout. You can contact Shonagh via her website https://shonaghomalley.com/ or on Instagram @sho...