Equal-ish

This week, Rachel Childs and Kate Mangino sit down with Professor Leah Ruppanner to unpack one of the most misunderstood (and underestimated) forces shaping modern relationships: the mental load. Leah is Professor of Sociology at the University of Melbourne and Founder of LightenLab . She is the author of Drained: Reduce Your Mental Load to Do Less and Be More and Motherlands: How States Push Moth...

What if the way you’ve been measuring yourself as a parent is the very thing making it harder? In this raw and reflective “After the Interview” episode, Rachel Childs and Kate Mangino unpack the uncomfortable truths from their conversation with parenting expert Anita Cleare, and what it actually means to live those insights in real life. Because it’s one thing to say “focus on the relationship, no...

What if the biggest mistake we’re making as parents is thinking it’s our job to shape our children? This week, Rachel Childs and Kate Mangino sit down with parenting expert Anita Cleare to challenge everything we think we know about “good parenting.” From the myth of perfect outcomes to the reality of relationship-building, Anita reframes parenting as something far less controllable and far more h...

We talk a lot about parental leave. But what happens after dads go back to work? In this After the Interview, Kate Mangino and Rachel Childs unpack the uncomfortable reality behind our conversation with Ian Dinwiddy and why support for fathers is still falling through the cracks. Ian is Coach, Mentor and the founder of Inspiring Dads, helping businesses who put supporting new dads at the heart of...

We’re told fatherhood is changing. That dads today want to be more present, more involved, more equal. But what if most men never actually get the chance? In this episode, Rachel Childs and Kate Mangino sit down with return-to-work expert Ian Dinwiddy to unpack the reality behind modern fatherhood. It’s far more complex than policy headlines suggest. Ian is Coach, Mentor and the founder of Inspiri...

After our conversation with Melissa Hogenboom, we couldn’t stop thinking about one thing: Power. Not the obvious kind, but the invisible, everyday power shaping how couples live, decide, and relate to each other. In this after-the-interview episode of Equal-ish, Kate and Rachel explore   Why the person doing the most at home can feel the least powerful How stress, silence, and resentment are linke...

This week Kate Mangino and Rachel Childs speak with science journalist and author Melissa Hogenboom about the hidden power dynamics shaping modern relationships. We often think of power as something that exists in politics or the workplace, but what if it’s quietly influencing the way we make everyday decisions at home? Drawing on research from neuroscience, psychology and sociology, Melissa expla...

What if the path to a more equal home life didn’t require a huge conversation… but just one small experiment? In this After the Interview episode of Equal-ish, Kate and Rachel reflect on their conversation with Hayley Swenson from New America and put some of the Better Life Lab behavioural experiments to the test in their own families. The idea behind the experiments is simple: instead of trying t...

What if the reason equality at home feels impossible isn’t a lack of commitment but a lack of time? This week, Kate and Rachel sit down with Haley Swenson, gender researcher and deputy director at New America, to explore the work behind the Better Life Lab Experiments (BLLX) — an initiative focused on practical, evidence-informed ways to rebalance household labor. Hayley shares how BLLX emerged fr...

What becomes visible about a relationship when the romance is removed? In this new After the Interview episode, Kate and Rachel reflect on their powerful conversation with mediator and parent coordinator Traci Cherrier. We unpack the realities of co-parenting after separation and why the same lessons apply to couples who are still together. The statistics are sobering: 39% of separated parents say...

What does “equal-ish” look like when you’re no longer a couple? This was a question Kate and Rachel have been pondering for a while.  In this powerful conversation, mediator and parent coordinator Traci Cherrier joins Rachel and Kate to unpack the emotional and practical realities of co-parenting after separation. From navigating the grief cycle to shifting from intimate communication to business-...

In this After the Interview episode, Rachel Childs and Kate Mangino unpack the conversations they couldn’t stop thinking about after speaking with behavioural economist Dr Corinne Low. Corinne Low, PhD is an associate professor of business economics and public policy at the Wharton School, and the author of Having It All (Femononics in the UK). We reflect on what it really means to bring “ruthless...

In this episode of Equal-ish , Kate Mangino and Rachel Childs are joined by economist and author Dr. Corinne Low , whose book Having It All blends rigorous data with deeply human stories about work, love and parenthood. Corinne takes us inside the economics of the modern household — explaining why gender equality at home has stalled, why parenting time has exploded, and why women’s stress and burn...

In this first After the Interview episode of Equal-ish, Kate and Rachel reflect on their conversation with Brian Page, founder of Modern Husbands, and explore the tensions that lingered once the microphones were off. We explore what happens when couples are encouraged to “support the career that earns more”, and why that logic might reinforce traditional roles rather than disrupting them. In this...

Achieving balance in both parenting and finances can feel overwhelming for couples. In this episode of Equal-ish, hosts Rachel Childs and Kate Mangino delve into the importance of teamwork in financial management with Brian Page, founder of Modern Husbands. Join us as we explore how childhood experiences shape our money habits, how gender norms around money, care, and breadwinning quietly shape ou...

Explore the science of modern parenthood, attachment, and partnership during our reflections from our interview with evolutionary anthropologist Dr Anna Machin. Dr Anna Machin is an evolutionary anthropologist, writer and broadcaster who is world renowned for her work into the science and anthropology of human love and fatherhood.  She is the author of the Life of Dad: The Making of the Modern Fat...

In this episode, evolutionary anthropologist Dr Anna Machin challenges everything you thought you knew about fatherhood. From hormone shifts and brain changes to the unique ways dads build attachment, Anna unpacks why fathers are wired to be caretakers, not just breadwinners, and how their involvement shapes resilience, social skills, and mental health in children. Kate and Rachel dive into: The e...

In the final episode of the season (and year!), Kate and Rachel unpack three themes that surfaced in their conversation with Alex Trippier and reflect on what the past year of Equalish has taught us about navigating parenthood and partnership. The discussion explores why parenting demands a process-driven mindset, why being a strong parent doesn’t automatically make someone a strong partner, and h...

Discovering concepts like mental load, matrescence, and motherhood ideals really can fundamentally reframe your understanding of parenting as a partnership. In today’s conversation, Rachel, Kate talk to Alex Trippier, host of the Be a Happier Parent podcast about his fatherhood journey, the strain young children put on his relationship, and the turning point—from believing he was an “involved dad”...

Kate and Rachel dig into the interview with psychotherapist Sarah Fishburn-Roberts, turning a rather theoretical interview into practical actions. Why should we expect to change? How can we change together? How can we have these hard conversations with each other without playing the blame game and getting defensive? You are both going to change.  It’s not “you vs them.” Think of it as “us vs the p...

Today Kate and Rachel talk to psychotherapist Sarah Fishburn-Roberts to explore the distinctions and intersections between couples therapy, coaching and facilitation - and when to reach out for extra support.   (Spoiler alert - we all need it. And the practitioner you find is as important as the process you choose).  If you like Sarah, you can find her services here .  Subscribe to Equal-ish on Ap...

Using father’s mental health as a starting point, Dr Fisher emphasized that it is really the “family system” that requires our attention. Kate & Rachel love this, and devote today’s coaching edit to go deeper into what family system caretaking looks like.  He might not be fine, even if he says he is fine.  Everyone can, and does, experience trauma. Fertility issues and difficult births affect...

Pregnancy and birth should be all about mom, right? Well - no, not really. In this episode Kate and Rachel talk to Dr. Sheehan Fisher from Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. Dr Fisher is a paternal mental health specialist - and agrees that mom’s health needs to be at the core of the conversation. But it’s good for ALL of us when we ALSO take into account dad’s health needs.  D...

We’re told the UK has paternity leave, but the reality for families says otherwise. Kate and Rachel reflect on what George Gabriel, co-founder of the Dad Shift, shared about how outdated systems, mixed messages and cultural norms are holding dads back, and what that means for the emotional and practical load inside relationships. This is the truth behind paternity leave, and why change matters for...

Women are socialised throughout their lives to be a mother. Meanwhile most dads won’t hold a baby until it’s their own. 90% of dads want to be more involved in their children's lives but we’re still prioritising a mother’s relationship with their children over a dad’s. Insufficient paternity leave is having serious consequences for families, men’s mental health and our ability to feel like equal p...