small but certain happiness
seasonal shifts + my new book is here!
My new book is officially available to pre-order! It’s released in early July and you can order now from Australia, the UK + the US.
The Complete Guide to Postpartum cuts through the overwhelm and myth to give new parents evidence-based facts and kind reassurance — from the third trimester of pregnancy and all the way through the first year after birth. When I started researching I didn’t know if I could write a hopeful book. After interviewing over 60 perinatal health professionals and sifting through the research, I found the hope and it’s threaded through all the pages in the form of gentle suggestions, research distilled into simple language (for sleep-deprived brains) and a rallying cry for support people to step up.
We’ve got a long way to go till new mothers are supported in the ways that they need — extended and fair paid parental leave, accessible public healthcare, the banishing of the ‘perfect mother’ myth — but my greatest hope is that this book encourages the conversations we need to have so we can be there for new parents in meaningful ways and ultimately save lives. I know ‘save’ is a strong word here, but it’s reflective of the facts: 1 in 5 new mothers will be diagnosed with perinatal depression and anxiety (PDA), and suicide is one of the leading causes of maternal death in the year after birth.
Support is the solution to all the challenges that exist in postpartum. All mothers need it and all mothers deserve it.
"Finally - a warm, compassionate and intelligent mother-focussed book that offers up to date, research-informed guidance for every woman in the transition to motherhood. What I love most about this book is that it covers issues that other guides shy away from - struggles with breastfeeding, difficulties with attachment, and preparing for birth after a previously difficult experience- in a calm, realistic manner.” - Julianne Boutaleb Consultant Perinatal Psychologist
The light is shifting. It’s softer and lands a little more gently on my skin as I tilt my face to the sky and breathe the air that’s cooler than it was last week. These subtle changes signal a turning — of time and season — and they prompt me to make changes in my small life, too.
One of my favourite things about living on this island is the distinct seasons that don’t clearly follow calendar months but are marked by the light and air, the coolness of the roaring forties that pummel the west coast and continue moving east over mountains and through valleys.
The days are getting shorter and this slow but certain closing-in feels like sweet relief. I love that we start to huddle in autumn; the firewood is stacked, I fill the freezer with soups and curries and make all the beds with flannelette sheets and wool blankets. I do these things on days when I have the space and energy; it’s not planned, it just happens when time allows.
We’re coming into the cosy seasons that call for more rest and sleep because outside, everything is becoming sparse; leaves, light, warmth. Our energy is, too.
Are you sensing it? I definitely am. And I think this tilt towards the bare prompts us to indulge in what’s soft and warm and soothing. Light the candles! Buy a new pair of ruby red woollen socks! Roast the pumpkin and then turn it into creamy soup (dunk the sourdough, if you please. Throw a blanket on the lounge; add a cushion, maybe two). Cup of tea? Always! Delightful things that soften the cold’s hard edges.
In the book that I’m currently editing (it will be out in January), I’ve quoted author Haruki Murakami who refers to the tiny, beautiful joys in life as ‘a small but certain happiness’. I appreciate the assuredness of this statement; small, yes, but dependable.
I feel like that’s what we’re all craving right now: habits and routines we can devote ourselves to because we know we’ll find steadiness there.