# Motherhood

This year

2023

Voices

Physios: Incontinence, piles and painful sex - issues new mothers face that no one talks about

Physiotherapists Eimear Lynch and Aoife Harvey have some advice for new mums facing post partum issues.

27.7k

Jul 2nd 2023, 7:30 AM

Voices

Parenting: 'Learning the art of resting was a gamechanger for me'

Mum Margaret Lynch outlines the importance of self-care for parents. She says ‘you can’t pour from an empty cup’.

16.2k

May 6th 2023, 7:00 AM

Voices

Opinion: Women in work face extra challenges that men do not experience

Dr Emma Howard asks whether its time to address things like giving birth and pregnancy loss in CVs and hiring processes.

13.5k

Mar 8th 2023, 7:00 AM

Last year

2022

Voices

Author: 'Nobody told me about the loneliness that comes with having a new baby'

Read a motherhood diary from the author of crime thriller Hide and Seek, Andrea Mara.

25.4k

Aug 3rd 2022, 8:00 PM

All time

Voices

Opinion: Maternity leave in lockdown was no picnic, so please don't forget new parents

New mother Patrice Hosford is asking the government to improve the leave entitlements currently available to new parents.

31.7k

Jul 17th 2020, 7:00 AM

Voices

Opinion: Staying sober is really hard but life without booze is magic

Are you sober-curious? It can be hard to say no to drink but my life is so much better without it, writes Elaine Benson.

59.5k

Jun 16th 2019, 8:30 PM

# lucina

RTÉ received 31 complaints about a mannequin giving birth on the Late Late Show

The simulator is used by RCSI medical students to prepare them for the real-life labour ward.

97.3k

May 13th 2019, 5:40 PM

Voices

Opinion: 'I wanted to pursue my acting dreams - but having kids was a huge risk. What should I do?'

Actress Sarah Carroll held off on expanding her family because of her job – but writes about how she eventually managed to make it work.

23.1k

Apr 13th 2019, 7:30 PM

Voices

Opinion: The Supermum myth needs to be exposed

I can’t and won’t hide the fact that I find being Mum really tough, writes Geraldine Walsh

44.9k

Nov 11th 2018, 7:30 PM

Voices

'Your 30s are a tricky time for women. The biological and social pressures to conform are immense'

Actor and playwright Christiane O’Mahony wonders if seahorses have the right idea about how to live.

30.0k

Sep 19th 2018, 8:08 PM

# Motherhood

'I don't turn off from camogie but now, there’s something else there that’s more important'

Kilkenny’s Anne Dalton is facing into an All-Ireland semi-final today after becoming a mother two weeks ago.

9.8k

Aug 18th 2018, 8:15 AM

Voices

My unplanned homebirth: 'You can’t help but think "what if?"'

I will never forget the sound of my waters breaking, writes Jessica O’Neill.

29.9k

Apr 29th 2018, 7:30 PM

# Motherhood

Portuguese medics clear woman's bid to bear grandchild

Gestational surrogacy was legalised in Portugal in 2016.

15.8k

Sep 9th 2017, 7:15 PM

# Alcohol Abuse

Ireland has the worst rates in the world for drinking during pregnancy

A new study analysed the rates of drinking during pregnancy by linking them with a condition caused by alcohol consumption.

17.8k

Jan 17th 2017, 6:03 AM

# Scotland

Nicola Sturgeon opens up about miscarriage in hope of 'breaking taboo'

The Scottish First Minister said she wanted to challenge assumptions and judgements that are made about women who don’t have children.

24.6k

Sep 4th 2016, 2:27 PM

# putting on a show

DUP MP says that public breastfeeding is "exhibitionism"

Sammy Wilson is against mothers breastfeeding their children in the House of Commons.

146k

137

Jul 22nd 2016, 4:07 PM

Voices

My reality as a working mother: Anxiety, guilt, baby wipes and coffee

Being a working mother is a crash course in muddling through, writes Sharon Mannion.

1.4k

Apr 17th 2016, 8:15 PM

# Australia

There was controversy over this breastfeeding magazine cover - but not why you think

The fact it’s just on the subscriber issue has led to some complaints.

25.8k

May 22nd 2015, 8:30 PM

Voices

Am I alone in Mummy Martyr stakes? (Why are parents so bad at looking after themselves?)

Whether it’s standards, expectations, or good old-fashioned Irish Catholic guilt, most parents are guilty of putting their kids’ needs ahead of their own.

297

Apr 14th 2015, 8:00 AM

Voices

'I had the family I had always dreamed of, but I was plagued with self-loathing'

Postnatal depression affected me so badly I couldn’t leave the house, but I reached out for help – and it’s the best thing I’ve ever done.

259

Apr 13th 2015, 1:00 PM

Voices

'Ireland over-medicalises birth - and it is terrifying mothers-to-be'

Dil Wickremasinghe, since she has become pregnant, has found the maternity system is fraught with fear and discourages women from making decisions about the birthing process.

3.2k

133

Apr 8th 2015, 10:43 AM

# feeding time

The longer kids are breastfed for, the more they earn when they start working

A major new study of almost 3,500 children has found some interesting results about breastfeeding.

18.4k

Mar 18th 2015, 6:15 AM

Voices

Opinion: The 'frozen eggs' debate is really a societal issue – don't vilify corporations over it

Nowadays it’s seen as quite normal to have kids in your late 30s… but many women still want to start a family earlier.

Oct 25th 2014, 7:00 PM

Voices

Opinion: What happens when a pregnant woman or nursing mother gets sent to jail?

The question of women who are pregnant or parenting in prison is a complex one – and their number is rising.

7.8k

Oct 21st 2014, 8:00 AM

Voices

Opinion: 'Egg freeze' offer is putting a metaphorical gun to young women’s heads

Freeze in haste, repent at leisure?

129

Oct 16th 2014, 8:00 PM

Voices

Motherhood and Work: 'I accept that I'll never be Superwoman – I'll be Mediocre Mum'

‘Having it all’ can really mean ‘doing it all’ – and that’s just plain exhausting. So don’t put so much pressure on yourself.

238

Aug 7th 2014, 8:00 PM

Voices

Opinion: Struggling to entertain the kids over the summer holidays?

One of the things I love about the summer holidays is the fact that there are no rules – we are at nobody else’s beck and call.

652

Jul 21st 2014, 7:30 AM

Voices

Opinion: Post Natal Depression – should it discourage you from ‘going again’?

Literally tens of thousands of women out there must find themselves in a similar predicament to my own. Yet I have never seen or heard it openly discussed. Ever.

1.3k

Jul 9th 2014, 7:30 PM

Voices

Column: Is there really a glass ceiling for women in the workplace – or is it just for mothers?

The ‘glass ceiling’ is less to do with being a woman and more to do with having to care for small children.

565

Apr 17th 2014, 7:30 PM

Voices

Column: Peaches and Paula – a mum without a mum and a photograph that spoke a thousand words.

Nothing prepared me for how the birth of my own children would mercilessly rip the scab off the wound that my mother’s death had left behind. In that way, I could relate to the late Peaches Geldof, writes Claire Micks.

749

Apr 12th 2014, 12:00 PM

Voices

Column: Motherhood, guilt and the fantasy of 'choice'

Guilt may not be the defining emotion of motherhood but it is certainly one of the most consistent, writes Emily Hourican.

276

Mar 27th 2014, 1:00 PM

Voices

Column: Motherhood, feminism and the big decision

Should I stay at home with my baby or go back to work? There’s no ‘right’ answer, writes Ann Marie O’Sullivan.

147

Feb 9th 2014, 7:30 PM

Voices

Column: Five things I swore I'd never do if I had kids...

(… and guess how that worked out)

372

Jan 21st 2014, 7:00 AM

# Maternity

Burton: Maternity benefit cuts aren't a disincentive to women working

Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked Minister Burton about the new maternity benefit rate being brought in under Budget 2014.

10.4k

Dec 8th 2013, 7:45 AM

Voices

Column: Baby v Career – how to pick a path through the minefield of working motherhood

Throughout the eventful months of pregnancy, and amid all the changes a new baby brings, one question can remain the hardest to answer: “Will you be returning to work?”, writes Sarah Crown.

Sep 29th 2013, 7:30 PM