1. First thing in the morning when you wake up, do you look at your phone? If so, what do you search?
I have to admit I do! I am really going to try and move my phone out of the bedroom this year! But I like to check the news websites, I look at ABC and the Guardian. I also do a run though of FaceBook and Instagram just to catch up! And of course I check my emails as I do get quite a few in overnight from mums who have been up with their babies and are reaching out.
2. Are you a coffee or tea drinker and what kind?
I drink tea first thing in the morning. I like Madura low caffeine and I like it made with tea leaves, not a bag. Then I will move onto coffee. I like a flat white with full cream milk.
3. You always imagined growing up you’d be?
I really wanted to be a ballerina. I did ballet as a child and a teenager and I just loved it. I really saw myself making a career out of it. Then around the age of 15 I discovered boys, and my interest wained! I also liked the idea of being a paediatrician. I just didn’t work hard enough at school to make that happen but I always like babies and children, and luckily for me, they liked me too.
4. BabyBliss came about from…
It was around the time my friends and family were having their first babies. I was a paediatric nurse and so I was often asked questions about their babies and what to expect etc. I realised there was a huge lack of support for new mums, particularly in the home visiting sector. I decided I needed to do more study, so I started a Masters of Public Health. While I was studying I just started seeing friends in a more formalised way. My cousin helped me build a website and it went from there.
5. When women are negative it makes you…
Sad. Woman are so amazing and supportive and can achieve so much. I don’t think we realise how capable we are a lot of the time because we just “get on with it”. So much of the female identity is tied up in appearance that we get distracted by that rather than focusing on all the amazing things we achieve every day.
6. When women support one another you…
Are relieved…women need women. We are the village and so I find it really unsettling when women are so judgemental on other women, particularly around parenting. Rather than judge we need to support each other. Women supporting women is incredibly powerful. We can change things. We just need to see that and make the difference.
7: One thing you keep close to your chest (until now is)…
The loss of my son. I tried very hard to have a baby on my own – in my early 40’s. I succeeded in getting pregnant but went into premature labour at 22 weeks and my son Henry was born. He lived for 30 minutes. It was the hardest, most heartbreaking thing I have ever experienced. I don’t talk about him much anymore, but he is on my mind, and in my heart, all the time.
8. To all those women who are negative on social media you’d say…
Focus your energy on the positive. Being negative comes from feeling bad about yourself and your world. Don’t judge. Try to make your own little world happier and more positive. That’s much more important.
9. If you could express one piece of QueenHood advice to working women you would say…
There is no such thing as a superwoman. You can’t be all things to all people but when you work, give it everything you have got. It’s totally okay to not feel great some days but know that you can be anything you want to be.
10. The never ending quest for balance between work life and family life you take on by…
I don’t have any kids of my own but I see working mothers everyday and I know how hard it is to try and have everything perfect. It’s not going to happen. Something has to give, and if that means the house looks like a sty or you have to cancel that dinner so you can be with your loved ones, do it. I try to have boundaries around emails and messaging clients so I can be engaged with my partner in the evening and weekends. It’s hard though!
11. The biggest misconception about toddlers is…
They are just little adults. They aren’t. They are children who have a limited ability for understanding their feelings and emotions, they have no capacity to see anyone’s point of view, other than their own, and are experiencing a huge new world, which can be frightening and overwhelming. We need to take all this into consideration when dealing with toddlers and allow them to be the age they are. Sometimes I think we expect too much from them.
12. When you’re in the home of a newborn with first time parents you try to…
Be as gentle as I can. I understand how overwhelming being a first time parent can be so I always check in with the parents as to how they are feeling, and how they feel about the advice I am offering. I also always try and send them to bed if I think they need a rest.
13. The legacy you hope to leave every parent with is…
I try to instil confidence in parents to trust their instinct. I believe we all have an instinct about our children, about what is right for them. But that instinct can get lost under all the noise out there, all the advice. I offer them some tips on how babies work, and then they can use that to reinforce their instincts about their baby. There is so much information out there these days, and parents start to second guess themselves. If I can leave them with anything, it’s that, and the enjoyment they will then get from their little family when they can all relax.
BabyBliss: www.babybliss.com.au
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Jo Ryan
Jo Ryan
Director
BabyBliss Pty Limited
P: 1300 166 940
M: 0417 487 439
