Episodes
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The Full Stop are joined by members of the online community to discuss personal growth, the importance of inclusivity and diversity within the childless community, and the therapeutic power of vulnerability. We share our struggles and the strength we have found in the community's empathy and support. We also discuss future directions, advocating for the community, and the value of challenging conversations. The episode underscores the The Full Stop’s role in creating a supportive environment and the collective appreciation for the sense of belonging it has provided.
Enter our competition to win a signed copy of Save Me From The Waves by Jessica Hepburn, biscuits from The Kitsch Hen and a year of membership for a childless not by choice person to the online Full Stop Community. Enter via social media or our online form. Please note that terms and conditions apply.
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Dr Joanne Lawrence-Bourne, founder of Natal Instincts Reproductive Psychology, and Dr. Robin Hadley, an independent research consultant and associate lecturer, shed light on the invisible pain of loneliness. In our conversations in our Full Stop online community and our personal experiences, we are very aware that loneliness can hit harder during holiday times and celebration days but often it can surface during our daily lives. We dive into an exploration of isolation and the impact on those without children, and share our personal encounters with this complex feeling.
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Episodes manquant?
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In this episode we catch up with Jessica Hepburn, who shares insights from her life as an author and adventure activist. Jessica discusses her upcoming book "Save Me from the Waves," the therapeutic role of nature and swimming in her life, and the influence of "Desert Island Discs" on her personal growth. She shoes her plans for a year of self-love and her writing on Substack. The conversation encompasses themes of resilience, self-discovery, and the importance of finding joy and connection in our found family.
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In this podcast episode, Sophie Hunter from S E Hunter Associates joins us for thoughtful discussion about the challenges that people without children face in professional settings, including workplace bullying and discrimination. We share personal experiences and emphasise the need for greater awareness, support, and genuine empathy from colleagues and managers. The conversation explores the differences in experiences between childless men and women, the importance of leadership training, and the potential for childlessness to become a protected characteristic. We share our advocacy for open communication, the creation of employee support networks, and encourage companies and business networks to foster an inclusive environment that values all employees regardless of family status.
Sophie Hunter is Managing Director of S.E Hunter Associates Limited, a Human Resource Management Consultancy based in North Wales. She has a specialism in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in the Workplace, having worked in an EDI Human Resource role for 8 years prior to leaving to set up her own company. Her interests include early morning swimming, volunteering with animal rescues and veganism. Her goal is to set up an animal sanctuary. Sophie is Childless through Circumstances.
Sophie's work includes Consultancy, Training, and Strategic Advice in a range of HR and EDI related areas. You can connect with her direct on LinkedIn or follow her on X @SophieHtweets.
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In this episode of the Full Stop hosts Sarah, Michael and Berenice, reflect on their year and discuss the challenges and highlights they've experienced. They talk about their recent meetup in Chester, the growth of their podcast and community, and the challenges of Christmas for the childless community. They also discuss the importance of setting boundaries in their personal and professional lives. The episode concludes with a messages of self-care and support from the community to their listeners during the holiday season. Our newsletter thanks our guests and shares more support.
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The 57th episode of The Full Stop podcast is recorded to raise awareness of childless men on International Men's Day, 19th November, #IMD2023 The recording features a panel of childless men discussing their experiences and perspectives. The speakers, from various backgrounds and professions, share their personal journeys with childlessness, discussing feelings of exclusion and inclusion and the impact of societal narratives around men who are not fathers, and the importance of finding support. They also address the lack of conversation around childless men and the need for more recognition and understanding. The discussion includes research findings from Dr Robin A Hadley who also shares a poem that reflects on the longing and emptiness experienced by men who are not childless not by choice.
The episode builds on an ongoing conversation including a panel on Childless Men and Creativity which took place at Storyhouse Chester in September 2023 as part of Storyhouse Childless Live, an in-person event that raises awareness of childlessness and childfree people. This panel featured two childless not by choice men - Robert Nurden and Andy Harrod - with Bransby Macdonald-Williams (who has chosen not to have children) and was chaired by our Sarah Lawrence, co-director, co-founder and co-presenter of The Full Stop.
How to contact our guestsOur guests are Don Martinz, Jay Palmer, Russ Pata, Mike Sparks and Dr Robin A. Hadley and they mention The Childless Men’s Community and The Full Stop Community in their conversation. We’re also indebted to the work of Andy Harrod and Robert Nurden who have both raised awareness for men too. World Childless Week also featured Men Matter Too which Michael helped to curate and you can find the 2021 page here, do browse the WCW website for more interesting contributions from childless men.
Dr Robin Hadley’s website details his extensive research into male broodiness and lists his publications and talks. He has also been on stage at Storyhouse Live in Chester.
Find out more about Mike’s restoration work and his story on his website.
Jay Parmar is a new voice to our podcast and he's a musician living on the South coast of the UK. He can be found on Youtube and online
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Join us for an incredibly moving conversation with Nina Thair and Danielle Hines, as we explore the impact of disability on childlessness. Listen in as Nina and Danielle bravely share their personal journeys, revealing how their physical disabilities have influenced their lives, from mobility challenges and educational delays to understanding their conditions. They touch upon the deep emotional aspects of being childless and how the support of friendships and relationships has empowered them through their journeys.
In the next segment, Danielle narrates her life with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) and chronic migraine with brainstem aura, and how these conditions drastically altered her life. Nina also talks about the complexities of her life with MS and how the childless community has become an important part of her life.
Finally, we explore the power of connection, storytelling, and writing, discussing how they can aid in making sense of personal experiences and building stronger bonds. Danielle and Nina also share how illness and childlessness have shaped their identities, enabling them to forge meaningful connections. The conversation wraps up with a discussion on the significance of acceptance, resilience, and finding strength through adversity. Tune in for an insightful and deeply personal conversation that promises to enlighten and inspire.
How to contact our guestsNina has a fantastic blog called Chao in Slow Motion - Nina’s Life and you can read it here. Danielle is an active member in the Childless Collective and you can find them both in our Full Stop Community.
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Please note that this reading contains a piece called The Babies Next Door and references maternal instinct.
Join us as we welcome our friend and author, Robert Nurden, to an enriching conversation that covers his personal and professional journey, from his journalism days to teaching, and the life-altering significance of a cup of Americano. Listen to Robert's fascinating story of shifting gears from mainstream journalism to teaching English in various parts of the world like Sweden, India, and Sydney.
Discover the emotional journey of a childless man, as Robert opens up about the complex feelings and experiences he went through, realising the unlikely chance of having children. Tune in as he narrates how he found The Childless Men's Community, and how it inspired him to write a play about childlessness for men, which evolved into a book. Learn about the creative process behind his book, ‘I Always Wanted To Be A Dad’ and what next including his play ‘Empty’, hear about his collaboration with Berenice, who designed the book, and his mixed feelings towards sharing his personal story publicly.
Listen to our engaging conversation as we discuss the power of relationships and community, and how Robert’s personal experiences have influenced his perspective on childlessness. Hear two reading from the book by and the reactions of his long-time friends. This conversation is a heartfelt exploration of a sensitive topic and an invitation to understand and empathize with the struggles of those who are childless not by choice.
How to contact RobertRobert can be found via his website and Instagram. He will be at Storyhouse Live launching I Always Wanted To Be A Dad on 23rd September in person with Berenice and Rosalyn. You can buy a copy there or online at Amazon.
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This month meet Gail Miller. She is a coach, and medical doctor working in healthcare in the USA. She’s made it her mission to challenge insensitivity and bias in the healthcare profession to help those who are childless as patients and non-parents who work in medicine to enable people to have a better, less triggering experience and create a place in which to learn. This podcast episode mentions miscarriage, IVF, cancer and infertility.
We were delighted to welcome members of our online Full Stop online community, some of whom work in medical organisations including the NHS and had some valuable contributions to make. We’re following up with them to see what we can to provide support and signposted to World Childless Week’s resources.
The Full Stop podcast is free to listen on our many listening channels and published monthly. To be a guest, please check our ‘Be A Guest’ page.
The Full Stop Community supports our podcast and provides in-depth access to the content, to us, our future plans and recordings in real time. It’s a warm, safe online space full of conversation and cheerleading and open to all genders.
We are committed to creating a diverse environment without regard to race, colour, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, or age.
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Our July 2023 guests are Janine Ford and Cecilia Rebild who talk to us about community and friendship. They met in Copenhagen in Denmark and generously shared their story about friendships that can be forged from childlessness experiences and the meaning of friendship as we come to terms with not being parents. They are co-creators of a support network in Denmark, a vision they shared and acted on during the height of the pandemic. You can read more details about their work on our website.
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This June 2023 episode is with Karin Enfield De Vries who many of you know a supportive moderator and counsellor. She is the founder of Pure Tranformations, a grief and loss counsellor with a focus on childlessness, a wellbeing coach and a change management consultant. Karin volunteers as a guest speaker for various cancer trusts in the Netherlands to help raise awareness of the long term consequences of being childless after cancer.
Listen for an empowering discussion about self-compassion, finding a support network, how to find help and Karin's Circle of Transformation, and so much more. We had some outstanding questions, too, which you'll hear us answer in the recording.
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In this episode, the three of us invite you into our space as we share three pieces of exciting news that will inspire and empower you.
They may concern some of you, and you almost certainly will have questions. You're welcome to ask us questions - all queries are welcome, and none are silly - and to be part of this journey with us. Please do get in touch with any of us.
What began as an idea on a post-it note after Michael and then Sarah mentioned to Berenice that they loved podcasts has far exceeded what we predicted.
To be honest, when we got to 8 episodes, we were amazed. When people wanted to be on our podcast, that was incredible, then we saw others having a go too and thanking us and inviting us to speak with them - wow! Now we're listened to in every continent apart from Antarctica, and we're award-winning! That's some going for a podcast that relies entirely on organic growth, love, and virtual coffee donations. If you've shared a post of ours, then the chances are you've helped someone in need, and that's all we've ever asked for. Not fame nor awards, and your donations have helped us along, so thank you so much for the Kofi too.
That said, almost everything we do is our time and expenditure. Growing what we do, sustainably securing our future, and giving you something extra matters. We realise that we have a thing' we may want to pass on one day and to keep our digital legacy secure.
More informationRead our blog post and access our press release
What is a CIC?
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We are delighted to bring you our next episode on solo ageing with Patricia Faulks and Denise Jackson (whom you may recall from our first year of broadcasting).
Patricia Faulks set up her blog, Lilley and Me, during Covid lockdowns to share the story of ageing alone with childlessness and the challenges that brings including learning how to use her computer and Zoom calls. Denise Jackson returns to the podcast to talk about bias around money saving having challenged UK money expert Martin Lewis to tackle solo households. You can find her on Twitter.
Patricia and Denise cover so much ground here that applies not just to childless people but to those who are creating online environments and apps as we discuss digital exclusion. They also discuss bias and exclusion around power of attorney, the cost of living crisis, human rights and make a call for more support and awareness.
Resources to help you:
Age UK
Carers Trust
Centre for Better Ageing
Ageing Well Without Children
United Nations Ageing resources
National Institute of Ageing (USA)
Meaningful Ageing in Australia
Dr Robin Hadley’s resources
Full Stop guest, Ming Ho’s words on Dementia Carers Count.
You can get involved too! Please email us with your news, events, and if you'd like to be a guest, you can do that here. You can also tag us on Twitter, and find us on LinkedIn and Facebook. We'd also like to say a huge thank you for the donations on Kofi.
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We’re joining by two guests who you’ve met before. Catch up with Ken and Lisa as we talk about step parenting when childless not by choice.
We cover the difficulties of Mother’s Day and daily life. Ken and Lisa talk about society’s perception of being a step parent both within the childless community and outside it. We ask about the problems of language and how that affects the sense of place in a family.
Here’s our guest detailsLisa Kissane is the owner of Silvertongue Copy & Content Writing, a project born of many years experience in sales, marketing and writing for pleasure. She is particularly keen to work with members of the childless and LGBTQ+ communities and offers a free trial in the form of one piece of content (e.g. a blog post, newsletter, web landing page) to business owners who identify as such. You can also find her on Twitter and Instagram
Ken Fenton is an founder member of The Childless Men’s Community and role model to his fellow members. He’s been a guest on our men’s episodes.
We thank Lisa and Ken for their time and words.
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We’d like to introduce you to Anastasia MacDonald who many of you may already know from her constant and reassuring presence online. We gather to talk about how the menopause affects us as the childless not by choice community. Is it a relief? A time of mourning and what’s it like on the other side?
Like many of our episodes, we connect our community both as listeners but also as guests and we have a feeling that there will be some interesting collaborations to come. We do love seeing our guests meet and share stories! If you’d prefer to read, you’ll find a transcript below..
Here’s our guest detailsAnastasia can be found on Instagram here and the book she mentioned is What Fresh Hell is This? by Heather Corinna (please do buy from an independent book shop if you can) and the podcasts are The Menstruality, and the Hit Play Not Pause podcast.
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We’d like to introduce you to our guests who are rather marvellous company, as you’ll find out in our 47th episode. Mike Sparks restores vintage electrics (yes, we also through he has a great name!) and teaches water skiing, how this two areas of his life come about? Caroline Stafford sells gorgeous biscuits and she talks about how she came to create a baking business. Also joining us is Vicky House who founded Clem’s Garden which we’ve long loved, and she explains her vision and her boundaries.
Here’s our guest detailsCaroline’s The Kitsch Hen bakes gorgeous biscuits which you can order from her website.
Mike Sparks restores vintage electrical items and sells them online.
Vicky can be found in Clem's Garden which is currently taking a rest but you’ll find lots of gorgeous images and their social media photography is a delight.
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In this episode we were joined by your words. We were delighted to receive messages from our community which we’ve shared with you. And it was a chance for the three of us to reveal our themes for 2023, ask if you’d like be a guest and a little on how we’ve grown over 2022.
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In this episode we were joined by Penny Rabarts from The Childless Wanderer and Elaine Ritchie, who works for the NHS; she provided palliative care during the height of Covid.
More people are childless due to being single than any other reason but it’s not spoken about. Are we in danger of creating bingos in our childless community and how we support each other? These were all questions we put to Elaine and Penny. Both were keen to share their experiences and be open about the triggers that have affected them. It’s an empowering listen.
Here's the link to the transcript.
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In this episode we were joined by Charlie Bishop, Palo Barker and Steph Penny. Often the wider world can assume that the only reasons we do not have children are failed IVF, failed adoption or didn't try. This narrative excludes many for whom getting pregnant can be life threatening or a hidden illness means one cannot conceive. Charlie, Palo and Steph all spoke about how invisible illnesses can compound and complete the unseen grief of not having children. We also asked them to share the support groups they have founded or are involved with, and resources that have helped them. We thank them all for speaking so honestly and informing us.
Show notes:MRKH Connect a registered charity founded in 2014 supporting those with MRKH (Mayer Rokitansky Kuster Hauser) Syndrome which affects 1 in 5000 female births leading to the absence of underdevelopment of the uterus, cervix and shortened vagina. MRKH Connect has been involved in numerous research studies on mental health and the psychological impact of MRKH, runs events and aims to Connect those with MRKH together whilst providing valuable resources for the community and the public. Our Guest, Charlie, is the Director of MRKH Connect and also an advocate for MRKH and for the childless community also being part of the Tutum Journal editorial team, a magazine for, and by, childless women. Find out more by following @mrkhconnect across social media, @tutumjournal or email Charlie.
Our guest Palo supports chronic survivors at Chronic Survivors Childless Warriors and myasthenia group Diet and Myasthenia Gravis UK You can also find on the admin teams for Childless Not By Choice-Non-Religious and Childless by Circumstance, Not by Choice
Palo has a private group for Asian childless women and (optionally) chronic condition sufferers. This is a secret/private group by invitation, please contact The Full Stop and we’ll connect you with Palo.
Steph Penny is the author of Surviving Childlessness: Faith and Furbabies, and composer of Angel At My Keyboard. You can find all of Steph’s work on her website.
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When we met up with Jessica Hepburn for episode 43, two things came to mind. The first is how we met her, which you’ll discover in the recording which was had a time of new starts for all of us and the importance of 43 which Jessica explains to us, and oddly how this is indeed, episode 43!
It’s fair to say that her pursuit of motherhood is just one of many parts of this pond to peak adventurer’s story! Jessica has been on many journeys herself and inspired others; maybe she’ll do that for you as you find out more about struggling well.
How to follow and connect with JessicaJessica’s website, and you can follow her on Facebook, and Instagram.
Buy Jessica’s books:
In Pursuit of Motherhood or shop B-Corp at World of Books.
21 Miles
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