freemom, conversations for modern mothers

According to a study published in the Journal of Family Psychology , a whopping 67% of couples say they are discontented with their marriage after they have a baby . Are you surprised? Probably not. After all, many women take on the lion’s share of both childcare and household chores, creating an imbalance in the home that stokes a serious resentment fire. As for the men, a loss of freedom and the...

It’s no secret that corporate America kind of treats women like crap, with men earning roughly 16% more than us for doing the exact same jobs over the exact same time. If that doesn’t sound like a lot, tell your friends that they’d have to work 42 more days a year to even the score. No thank you.  What’s even more shocking than the gender disparity in this country is what’s known as the “motherhoo...

One of the things I have found most amusing in my current stage of parenting is just how absorbent my little people are. My kids repeat nearly everything they hear, including the rogue f-bomb, a habit that my husband and I are now working a bit more diligently to break. Good, bad, happy, or sad, if we are talking about something, my children want to be a part of it. All the more so if their parrot...

The thing I love most about hosting this podcast is getting to speak with women all over the country who have been transformed by motherhood. Many of my guests are experts in their field fighting for women’s rights or professionals who have dedicated their lives to the betterment of our physical and mental health. Once in a while, I get to meet someone who does both - a person who has been radical...

Here on the show, we talk a lot about how tough it is to raise kids, but if we’re being honest, sometimes it feels like the world is stacked against us from the moment we get that positive sign on a pregnancy test. Nearly all the women in my close circle of friends work full time and I would be lying if I told you that the thrill of their pregnancy news was met by an honest bit of fear.  That seem...

Have you ever heard the phrase “mom guilt”? If you’re responsible for any human beings and you also happen to work in some way, shape, or form, have a relationship that you’d like to keep, and live in a home that needs some form of maintenance, you will be all too familiar with it.  The very definition of guilt is “the fact of having committed a breach of conduct especially violating law and invol...

I was thinking back to why I started this podcast, which for those of you who are new was because I wanted to create a community to discuss topics that modern moms should be paying attention to. I wasn’t interested in parenting per se, but I was curious about politics, health, careers, and so many of the bigger picture issues that both offer opportunity and completely cripple parents, and specific...

Welcome back freemoms! We are absolutely thrilled to have you with us for Season 2. This batch of episodes promises to get you motivated about motherhood with experts and everyday moms who are making major moves in their communities. From business bosses to political powerhouses, we promise to get you thinking about how you can create your own change and dig deep to build a better future for yours...

When you host a podcast like this, one of the benefits is having really interesting conversations with people you barely know, and ones that have been in your life for ages. The latter happened recently when I got a call from an old college friend who is a listener and told me I had to absolutely have today’s guest on the show.  My friend, Nicolette, has two elementary-aged boys who are fun-loving...

So I had a thought. We get pregnant and we feel kind of crazy. Blame it on the hormones . Then we have our babies and we still feel pretty crazy. Blame it on the hormones. But then we hit that magical six-week mark when all is supposed to be back to normal but of course, it’s not, so we blame it on the hormones. But then we really progress through motherhood. Six months, one year, toddlerhood. Sle...

I don’t know about you, but back when I was in school, lunch was a bit of a free-for-all. I was lucky enough to have parents who educated us pretty diligently on making good food choices, but sometimes those crunchy, salty french fries with thick chocolate milk were just too good to pass up. There wasn’t much thought put into nutrition in schools back then. I realize now that unless kids had paren...

Here is some food for thought. By the time your kids are your age, it’s highly likely that there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish. Picture your little ones, splashing on a beach, enjoying a beautiful summer’s day. By the time you have grandchildren, the gorgeous ocean that brought your kids so much joy is going to look a lot different. Can you imagine? Our climate crisis is not new, but...

There is no denying the mental health crisis that is enveloping our kids today. Even before the pandemic, 13 percent of adolescents reported having a major depressive episode , which is 60 percent higher than it was in 2007. That’s eight million children aged 3-17 suffering from anxiety, behavioral disorders, or depression.  Remember back when we were young? Twenty or 30 years ago, our parents wor...

So here is the deal. Women live about five years longer than men on average, which doesn’t seem like it’s a bad thing, until you look at it from a financial perspective. It has long been documented that women have less saved for retirement than men and the reason for that is two-fold. Firstly we don’t get paid to stay home and raise our children. Secondly, we don’t get paid as much as men to work,...

Having children means that you can always expect the unexpected. One of my first big surprises becoming a mother was just how confusing it was to have kids in the first place. There were decisions to make that I didn’t quite understand, options that I didn’t know I had, and ways of doing things that I look back and wish I knew.  Here in the U.S., the vast majority of babies are delivered by an obs...

I don't know about you, but even as we’ve started adjusting to a life post-pandemic, a lot still feels off. As parents, there is an extra layer of worry we have to contend with, both for our physical health as well as what’s happening inside the minds of our families. The big question that seems so hard to answer is: Are kids going to be ok after all of this? The truth is, some might not be ....

I started freemom because I wanted to create a platform that gave women a chance to explore the big issues facing mothers today. I don’t think there is an issue bigger than the hijacking of our reproductive rights, right here and right now.  So what can we do about it?  Donate to the ACLU or the Center for Reproductive Rights or your local Planned Parenthood . If you don’t have the money, donate y...

During the pandemic, women here in the United States lost more than five million jobs . Now, of course, many people faced layoffs and have since been re-employed but those who are back to “business as usual” are mostly men. Women became the ones to quit their careers in order to care for their families while schools and daycares around the country shuttered, and many haven’t been able to return. T...

Being a parent today is more difficult and stressful than it has ever been. We have so many more external factors influencing how we bring up our children and a lot less help. But of all the unchartered territory we have had to navigate over the past few years, none was more challenging for parents than life without school. For over a year, we lost the foundation that we take for granted and our k...

I don’t know about you, but the journey through motherhood often has me dreaming up business ideas and solutions to the everyday issues that make being a parent so gosh darn hard. From gadgets that I wish existed to support solutions that I’ve spent late-night hours scrolling the internet for, I have more than once found myself wondering, “why doesn’t that exist yet?” I am in awe of the mamas who...

Very early on in my first pregnancy, I was struck by how confusing it was to have a child. I felt like a number to my healthcare providers, which, let’s be honest, was no fault of their own having to see anywhere from 20 to 30 pregnant women in a day. It seemed like everything from prenatal vitamins to preparing for labor and delivery was a bit “churn and burn” and that any deviation from the norm...

Hello There Mamas, my name is Chelsea and I am very excited to introduce freemom to the podcastiverse. We are so grateful to have you on this ride with us.  freemom was created for moms who want more. More time, more balance, more opportunities, more wellbeing, more than just being a mom. Whether you’re balancing work and kid-life or you’ve ditched a corporate career to raise your little ones full...