Claim OwnershipParenting and Personalities
Subscribed: 16Played: 201
Subscribe
© 2026 Parenting and Personalities
Description
One thing about being a parent – there’s no shortage of personalities to be surrounded by. Our kids, our partners, our family, our friends. They keep us laughing, growing, loving, and crying. If only they understood us. Like the musician Van Morrison once sang “When people understand what I mean, mama said there will be days like this.” Adelaide Australia’s Kate Mason is an author, wife, and mother who has spent her career studying personality and relationships. In this podcast she looks at why relationships work, and why some don't. She also looks at how our personalities impact our relationships and examines what compels our children, husbands, wives and others to behave the way they do. This podcast is designed to help you understand those you love. A half hour listening on your own, will connect you with the ones you care about the most.
160 Episodes
Reverse
Are you raising resilient children? In this episode, Kate Mason and Tania Johnson dive into the importance of building resilience and emotional strength in both parents and children. From the benefits of play to the power of independent problem-solving, they explore how cultural differences impact our approach to parenting. Discover practical strategies for fostering resilience and learn why it's crucial to let kids experience failure and take risks. Listen For: 05:03 - T...
Have you ever wondered what builds resilience in us and our children? In this episode, Kate chats with Tania Johnson, co-founder of the Institute of Child Psychology. Tania shares her journey, from fostering four First Nations children to her academic accomplishments and her profound insights into attachment theory and resilience. Together, they explore the power of purposeful parenting, the importance of allowing children to fail and learn, and practical strategies to foster resilience in...
Ever wondered how to keep the peace while traveling with a diverse group of personalities? In this episode, Kate shares her experiences and insights from a recent family trip to the USA and Canada. She discusses the importance of understanding and respecting different personality types to ensure a harmonious travel experience. From pre-trip planning and balancing activities to maintaining open communication and embracing individual differences, Kate provides practical tips for making group...
In this episode we explore effective strategies to help children understand and manage pain. How to comfort your child. The role empathy plays. And practical tips for you as a parent to make these difficult moments more manageable. Listen For: 3:50 The Impact of Media on Children’s Empathy and Pain Perception 19:26 The Role of Parental Reactions in Children’s Pain Management 30:27 Encouraging Empathy Through Shared Reading 21:43 Practical Tips for Managing Pain in Children ...
What if the words you use every day…without even realising it…are quietly shaping who your children believe they can become? Kate Mason sits down with communications expert, author, and mother of two boys, Kate Mason, to explore the hidden power of gendered language in parenting. From "be careful" on the playground to "give grandma a kiss," the two Kates unpack the subtle, everyday phrases that send very different messages to our sons and daughters…often without us even noticing.&...
Parenting isn’t a performance, it’s a relationship, and the messiest moments might be your best clues. Kate talks with family therapist and educator Lisa Taylor about her new book The Perfect Parent Trap and why “losing it” doesn’t mean you’re failing. It may mean an old, tender part of you is getting “ignited.” They explore Lisa’s “heartprint” framework (the deep beliefs we carry, like “I’m not enough”), how kids “borrow our nervous system,” and why the real shift often starts wi...
What if the anger you feel as a mother isn't a character flaw…but a signal worth listening to? Kate Mason sits down with Lauren Novak, award-winning journalist, mother of two, and author of the groundbreaking new book Meltdown: Why Motherhood Makes Us Angry and What to Do About It. Lauren brings her two decades of investigative journalism to bear on one of motherhood's most taboo subjects: mum rage. Drawing on a survey of over 200 mothers and cutting-edge neuroscience, Laure...
What if the mood swings, the sleepless nights, the sudden irritation, and the loss of joy aren't signs that something is wrong with you…but signals that your biology is quietly staging a dramatic takeover? Kate Mason sits down with Dr. Joanna Bruce, GP of over 25 years, clinical director of Myma Health, and passionate advocate for women's hormonal wellbeing, to talk openly about perimenopause and menopause. Together they unpack why this decade-long hormonal shift is so often misse...
What if an autism diagnosis could actually open doors instead of closing them? Kate Mason speaks with Dr. Theresa Lyons—a Yale-trained chemist and autism expert—about how her daughter’s diagnosis completely transformed her personal and professional life. Drawing on her background in pharmaceutical research and medical strategy, Theresa refused to accept outdated assumptions and instead turned to the latest science for answers. She shares the earliest signs she noticed in her...
What if the key to being heard isn’t changing who you are but learning how to be powerfully likeable without apology? Kate Mason sits down with another Kate Mason—executive communications coach, world champion debater, and author of Powerfully Likeable, to unpack the invisible dynamics of communication, particularly for women navigating work, parenting, and presence. Together, they explore why women often feel the need to adjust their tone, word choice, and emotions in ways their male p...
What happens when a baby changes everything... except one partner's life? Kate Mason welcomes Amy Taylor-Kabbaz, author of Mama Rising, for a raw, insightful dive into the invisible shifts parenthood brings to relationships. Amy unpacks the silent resentment many new mothers feel when their worlds are upended while their partners’ routines stay largely intact. Together, they explore the mental load, the myth of maternal instinct, and the power dynamics of masculine and feminine energies...
Burnout does not arrive with a bang. It whispers until your body screams. Kate sits down with Sinja Hallam to explore what it really means to move from surviving to thriving. Sinja shares her remarkable journey from Germany to South Africa to Australia, her rise through high pressure global leadership roles, and the moment her body forced her to stop. Through stories of career success, motherhood, burnout and recovery, this conversation re-frames overwhelm as a signal rather...
What if the problem is not your personality, but what happens when it takes the wheel without supervision? Kate Mason walks listeners through the four classic temperament styles and reframes New Year growth as awareness rather than self-correction. She explores how the sanguine thrives with intentional connection instead of overcommitment, how the choleric’s drive can turn into pressure without awareness, how the melancholic’s care can slide into perfectionism and delay, and how t...
Is your child's “healthy” snack actually hurting their health? Kate Mason welcomes back Mandy Sacher to expose the shocking truth behind food labels, Australia's Health Star Rating system, and the hidden dangers of ultra-processed foods. With over two decades of experience in children’s nutrition and a background in investigative journalism, Mandy breaks down how misleading marketing tactics are manipulating parents—and how it’s impacting kids' health. From advocating govern...
What if becoming a mother wasn’t just a role, but a complete identity shift? Kate Mason sits down with journalist-turned-coach Amy Taylor-Kabbaz to dive deep into the transformation that women experience when they enter motherhood, a transformation called matrescence. Amy shares her personal story of burnout, identity loss, and the emotional upheaval that came with trying to be the woman she was before children. From postpartum struggles to the silent pressure of “having it all,” ...
Christmas can bring up deep emotions, powerful memories, and the challenge of balancing tradition with change. Kate Mason opens up a thoughtful and moving conversation about what the festive season really means to different people. Through a series of deeply personal stories from guests around the world, this episode explores how families celebrate, mourn, adapt, and create meaningful holiday moments. From honoring loved ones who are no longer here, to letting go of pressure and finding...
What if your Christmas chaos was actually a personality clash in disguise? Kate Mason unwraps the four classic temperaments, choleric, sanguine, melancholic, and phlegmatic, and how they dramatically show up around the Christmas table. With warmth, humour, and heartfelt wisdom, she explores how each personality type contributes to both the magic and mayhem of the holidays. From the bossy boots with a stopwatch to the sparkle-loving storyteller, and the detail-obsessed decora...
Is your child's "sex education" secretly coming from free, violent online pornography? Kate Mason and podcast producer Liz Keen, creator of The Reality Of podcast, joins us to uncover the shocking truth that children as young as eight, nine, and ten are accidentally, or intentionally, stumbling upon highly explicit content, citing the average age of first exposure in Australia as 13. Liz reveals the most dangerous piece of content young people are consuming: the widespread depicti...
Content Warning: This episode discusses suicide, self-harm, and mental health. Please listen with care. What if your teen’s big emotions weren’t the problem, but your response was? Kate Mason sits down with licensed therapist and author Katie K. May, a leading expert in teen self-harm, DBT, and emotional regulation. Together, they explore the often-quiet struggles parents face when their teenager is overwhelmed by big, burning feelings, what Katie calls being “on fire.”&nbs...
Is your baby really hungry—or just hooked on ultra-processed foods? Kate Mason sits down with children’s nutritionist and author Mandy Sacher to unravel the tangled world of feeding babies and toddlers. From decoding misleading food labels to tackling fussy eating head-on, Mandy shares her powerful journey, from developing childhood obesity programs with UK hospitals to launching Australia's first real food rating system. She opens up about how her own child’s love of brocco...
Comments
Download from Google Play
Download from App Store
United States