Libsyn Directory

173. Why Motherhood Feels So Triggering and What Your Inner Child Has to Do With It with Lavinia Brown

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

Release Date: 01/15/2026

[REPLAY] The Mental Side of Women’s Sexual Challenges—And How Mindfulness Can Help with Dr. Lori Brotto

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

Have you ever felt like intimacy takes a backseat in your busy life? Between endless to-do lists, financial stress, and the mental load of daily responsibilities, it’s no surprise that desire often fades into the background. But what if mindfulness could help rekindle connection and deepen intimacy? In this episode, Whitney sits down with Dr. Lori Brotto, a leading researcher in sexual health and mindfulness and author of Better Sex Through Mindfulness. Dr. Brotto shares fascinating insights into the powerful connection between the mind and sexual well-being, shedding light on...

176. Why Motherhood Creates Distance in Marriages and How to Reconnect with Michelle Purta

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

Have you ever looked at your partner and thought, “How did we get here?” Somewhere between kids, schedules, groceries, and keeping the household running, many moms begin to feel more like roommates or co-managers than romantic partners. In this episode, Whitney sits down with marriage coach Michelle Purta to explore why this shift is so common in motherhood, and why it is not a sign that a marriage is broken, but a signal that mental and emotional load has quietly taken over. They talk honestly about how resentment builds when needs go unspoken, why hard conversations often...

175. The Mental Load in Motherhood: Why It Feels So Overwhelming with Leah Ruppanner

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

Many moms already wake up feeling tired, and it’s not because they’re doing too much, but because they’re carrying too much. In this episode of Electric Ideas, Whitney sits down with Leah Ruppanner, professor of sociology, to talk about the mental load of motherhood and why it’s so often invisible, brushed off, or just accepted as “part of being a mom.” They talk about the constant background thinking moms do all day long, including keeping track of schedules, anticipating needs, managing emotions, making decisions, and holding everything together in ways no one really sees....

174. Mindfulness Practices Overwhelmed Moms Can Use in Minutes

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

Have you ever looked up from your day and realized you’ve been moving on autopilot, rushing from one demand to the next without fully landing anywhere? In this mini jolt episode of Electric Ideas, Whitney offers a grounded, thoughtful conversation for mothers who want to feel more present and more connected in the middle of real life. Whitney explores why modern motherhood can feel so fragmented, from constant digital interruption to the unrelenting mental and emotional load many women carry. She reflects on how chronic overstimulation pulls us into urgency and reactivity, even...

173. Why Motherhood Feels So Triggering and What Your Inner Child Has to Do With It with Lavinia Brown

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

** - January 19th-26th** Some of the hardest moments in motherhood aren’t about our children at all. They’re about parts of us that never felt fully safe, seen, or supported, and get awakened by the intensity of caregiving. In this episode of Electric Ideas, Whitney sits down with inner child healing expert Lavinia Brown to explore why motherhood can stir up so much guilt, overwhelm, and reactivity, and why those responses often have roots far deeper than the present moment. What looks like irritation over a spilled drink or a standoff about screen time may actually reflect an old...

172. Work-Life Balance for Working Moms Seeking More Ease with Rebecca Olson

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

- January 19th-26th Returning to work after having kids is a huge transition, one that can be much harder than one may think. In this episode, Whitney connects with Rebecca Olson, a coach for working moms, to talk about the emotional toll so many women experience when returning to work after motherhood. What once felt meaningful can suddenly feel misaligned, and that identity shift can leave even the most driven women questioning themselves. Rebecca shares her own experience navigating this season and what she’s learned from supporting countless working moms through the same...

[REPLAY] The Connection Between Stress, Hormones, and Weight Gain Explained with Danielle Pashko

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

Are you longing to feel physically lighter while staying true to a wellness journey that's about more than just weight loss? In this episode, functional nutritionist and chronic illness coach Danielle Pashko reveals the impact of stress on women’s health and weight gain. During the conversation, Danielle explores how intense workouts and elevated stress levels can negatively affect hormonal balance and women’s ability to release weight. She emphasizes the importance of nourishing habits like a proper diet, sleep, hydration and stress management. Danielle shares how embracing...

[REPLAY] Managing the Mental Load of Motherhood with Amelia Pleasant Kennedy

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

Feeling overwhelmed by the juggling act of keeping all the trains running as a mom? You're not alone. But guess what? There's a way to lighten that mental load. Today on the podcast, Whitney connects with Amelia Pleasant Kennedy, a certified life coach, Fair Play facilitator, professional organizer, and the brains behind A Pleasant Solution. She's all about helping busy women reclaim control over their chaotic lives. During their conversation, Whitney and Amelia discuss the mental load women often bear in managing their families and households, and the transformative power of...

[REPLAY] Strengthening the Connection to Your Intuition for a More Fulfilling Life

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

Our intuition is that inner knowing of what is true. In fact, it can almost be seen as a personal GPS that guides us and speaks our truth from the inside out. When we regularly practice connecting with and trusting this inner guidance system, it becomes much easier to make choices that support our highest good. And while our inner impulses and natural instincts are always there, there can be challenges that can obscure our intuition. ‌ During this episode, Whitney offers practical strategies to forge a deeper connection with our inner guidance system through practice and intention. She...

171. End the Year Soft Instead of Strong: What Moms Actually Need Right Now

Electric Ideas with Whitney Baker: Motherhood, Self-Connection, Joyful Living & Self-Care

Are you feeling the weight of December in your bones, like you're supposed to make everything magical while barely keeping up yourself? This time of year can feel overwhelming, and many of us slip into the belief that we have to end the year strong. But what if you shifted the narrative and chose to end the year soft instead? In this mini jolt, Whitney opens up about a pattern she’s noticed in herself: how stress tends to amplify old, self-sabotaging tendencies. She shares a practical way to interrupt those patterns and bring awareness to the moments when overwhelm starts to spiral....

More Episodes

Register today for The FREE Busy Working Mom's Blueprint Summit** - January 19th-26th**

Some of the hardest moments in motherhood aren’t about our children at all. They’re about parts of us that never felt fully safe, seen, or supported, and get awakened by the intensity of caregiving.

In this episode of Electric Ideas, Whitney sits down with inner child healing expert Lavinia Brown to explore why motherhood can stir up so much guilt, overwhelm, and reactivity, and why those responses often have roots far deeper than the present moment. What looks like irritation over a spilled drink or a standoff about screen time may actually reflect an old emotional pattern surfacing in a nervous system that’s already stretched thin.

Together, Whitney and Lavinia examine how unhealed parts of ourselves can quietly shape our parenting, why adding more strategies without tending to our inner world often keeps us stuck in the same cycles, and what it means to meet ourselves with compassion instead of defaulting to self-criticism. They unpack how many of the behaviors that drain mothers today were once effective survival strategies in childhood, and how becoming a parent can reactivate them if we’re not aware.

Lavinia explains why you don’t need a single, obvious trauma for inner child work to matter, how triggers often signal unmet needs or unprocessed experiences, and why moments of rupture with our children don’t define us. What matters most is repair: honest, regulated repair that teaches children big feelings don’t break relationships and that connection can be restored.

The conversation also names the double standard many mothers carry around anger and emotional expression, explores why pushback from children isn’t inherently a problem to fix, and offers grounded guidance for caring for yourself after a moment you wish had gone differently. It’s a conversation about breaking cycles, nervous system awareness, and reclaiming motherhood as a space for growth rather than constant self-judgment.

Press play if you’re ready to stop blaming yourself for the hard moments and start understanding what they’re really pointing to.

In this episode, we explore:

How inner child work shapes the way we show up as mothers
Why you don’t need a capital T trauma for this work to be meaningful
Seeing our reactions as information rather than personal failure
What to do after you react in a way you regret
How to have a repair conversation that builds trust instead of shame
The double standard around anger for moms versus dads
Why pushback and defiance from kids can actually be healthy

Reflection question to ponder: How old is the part of me that’s feeling this way?

Learn more about 1:1 coaching with Whitney - book a 15-minute Spark Session

Connect with Whitney: Instagram l Website l 5 Days to Less Stress, More Satisfaction l Tend to Your Soul Toolkit l 10 Soulful Journaling Prompts | Electric Ideas Podcast

Connect with Lavinia: Instagram | Website | Facebook | Podcast: Becoming Untriggered

In this episode, we explore:

TOPICS