Feeling Lost Returning to Work After Maternity Leave? How to Rebuild Your Career Confidence with Natalie McDonald

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1. 

   E195 · 16 Jun 2026 · 21 min

   Returning to Work After Maternity Leave? How to Handle the Guilt and Separation Anxiety

   Missing your baby at work? Feeling like your heart is in two places at once? You’re not alone, and more importantly, there is nothing wrong with you. In this episode, Carina talk's about one of the most common (yet rarely spoken about) parts of returning to work after maternity leave: that quiet ache of missing your baby, the constant mental juggling, and the guilt that seems to follow you everywhere. If you’ve ever sat at your desk wondering how your baby is doing, felt distracted in meetings, or questioned whether you made the right decision going back to work, this conversation is for…

2. 

   E194 · 9 Jun 2026 · 45 min

   You're Not Less Ambitious. The World Around You Just Hasn't Caught Up Yet With Kat Francis

   Since going back to work after maternity leave, has anyone - a manager, a colleague, a well-meaning relative - implied that you've changed? That you're not quite as driven as you used to be? Maybe your focus has shifted? Because here's the truth: you haven't changed. Not in the way they think. Your ambition is still there, it's just evolved into something sharper, more purposeful, and more powerful than it's ever been. The problem isn't you. The world around you just hasn't caught up yet. This week on Working Mumma, I'm sitting down with Kat Francis, a Melbourne-based leadership coach for…

3. 

   E193 · 2 Jun 2026 · 14 min

   Going Back to Work Pregnant? How to Tell Your Employer Without the Guilt or the Panic

   Returning to work after parental leave is already a huge transition. But what if you're going back and you are pregnant? This week's episode comes straight from a listener DM, and it's one of the most relatable, raw, and important questions we've ever received on the show. In this episode, host Carina O'Brien tackles the fear, the guilt, and the very real practical questions that come with going back to work while pregnant. In this episode, I share: Why the guilt you're feeling is normal, and why you need to let it go The truth about how often this actually happens (hint: more than you…

4. 

   E192 · 26 May 2026 · 45 min

   Why Don't I Feel Like Me Anymore? Matrescence, Identity & Returning to Work with Amanda Jackson

   If you've ever returned to work after parental leave and thought, " I'm not the same person I was before I went on parental leave ", you are not imagining it. And there's actually a word for what you're going through. In this episode of the Working Mumma Podcast, I sit down with Amanda Jackson, founder of Motherhood and Matrescence and author of the book by the same name, to explore the concept of matrescence, the process of becoming a mother, and why understanding it is one of the most powerful tools a working mum can have. In this episode we chat about: • What matrescence is — and why…

5. 

   E191 · 19 May 2026 · 14 min

   Why the Mental Load Gets Bigger When Your Kids Start School (And What to Do About It)

   When you're in the thick of the baby and toddler years, it can feel like that's the hardest it will ever be. But what nobody tells you is that the challenge doesn't disappear as your kids get older - it just changes shape. In this solo episode, I'm getting real about a phase of working motherhood I didn't see coming: the school-age years. From navigating school hours that don't align with work hours, to managing a never-ending rotation of sports trainings, WhatsApp groups, Compass and Storypark alerts, school events, and the invisible mental load of coordinating everyone else's lives - this…

6. 

   E189 · 28 Apr 2026 · 27 min

   Are You the Mum You Want to Be? A Simple Values Framework to Help Close the Gap

   Have you ever felt like everything in your life looks fine on paper… but something still feels off? In this solo episode of the Working Mumma podcast, Carina explores the hidden tension so many working mums experience, the gap between the mother you are today and the mother you want to be. This episode isn’t about productivity hacks or doing more. It’s about alignment. Carina shares a practical and deeply reflective framework to help you: Define your version of motherhood (not society’s) Identify your core values and where you’re out of alignment Understand why guilt, burnout, and…

7. 

   E188 · 21 Apr 2026 · 51 min

   How to drop perfection in motherhood without dropping your standards with Lisa Taylor

   Why does motherhood feel so overwhelming, even when you’re doing everything “right”? In this episode of the Working Mumma podcast, I speak with Lisa Taylor, author of The Perfect Parent Trap, about the invisible pressure modern mothers are carrying and why so many working mums feel like they’re constantly falling short. From unrealistic expectations to the mental load, Lisa unpacks how the idea of “perfect parenting” has quietly shaped how we work, parent, and judge ourselves. We explore why this pressure is hitting working mothers especially hard, and what needs to change. This is an…

8. 

   E187 · 14 Apr 2026 · 32 min

   Is the system set up for working mums to fail? What we can do about it (without burning out)

   If you’ve ever felt like you’re constantly behind… like you’re failing at work, at home, or both…here is an episode for you. Because here’s the truth: You are not the problem. The expectations of you are. In this episode, I unpack why so many working mums feel overwhelmed, stretched, and stuck in a cycle of “trying harder”, and why it’s not about better time management or being more organised. I chat about: The viral ABC post "Working mums. The maths ain't mathing" and why it resonated so deeply The pressure of the “juggle” and why it’s actually a trap The mental load and invisible labour…

9. 

   E186 · 7 Apr 2026 · 59 min

   Carrying Most of the Mental Load? How to Get More Support at Home with Michael Ray

   When we talk about working parents, we often focus on mums. But what if one of the biggest missing pieces in the conversation is dads? In this episode of the Working Mumma podcast, Carina speaks with fatherhood advocate Michael Ray about why working mums cannot carry the load alone, and why fathers need to be seen, supported and expected to be equal parents from the beginning. Michael shares his own story of becoming a father at 49 and then unexpectedly becoming a solo dad to his daughter Charlie. From being banned from backstage at his daughter’s ballet concert because “no males were…

10. 

    E185 · 31 Mar 2026 · 17 min

    The 90 Days Nobody Prepares You For: Returning to Work After Maternity Leave

    If you're about to go back to work after maternity leave, or you're already back and wondering why it feels so much harder than expected, this episode is for you. The truth is, no one really prepares you for the emotional reality of the return. The guilt. The overwhelm. The strange feeling of being expected to show up as the same person you were before, when you are fundamentally, beautifully different. In this episode, I'm walking you through what the first 90 days of returning to work after parental leave actually looks like - the messy, the hard, and what genuinely helps. Episode…