Bits of Me
Activity Overview
Episode publication activity over the past year
Episodes
Ep. 45: Ruth Brennan on POI (premature ovarian insufficiency)
20 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this bonus episode, I talk to Ruth Brennan, whose periods started to change when she was 36 years old, and who eventually went on to be diagnosed w...
Ep. 44: Jenny Cooper on losing a baby at full term
08 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Jenny Cooper has experienced more loss and grief than most, and in this episode of Bits of Me she shares her story of having four consecutive miscarri...
Ep. 43: Margaret O'Connor on choosing to be childfree
01 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I talk to Margaret O'Connor, a counsellor and psychotherapist who is childfree by choice. A few years ago, she decided to set up a de...
Ep. 42: Laetitia Gordon-Furse on the pain and politics of breastfeeding
24 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Is breast always best? Can mastitis always be treated with cold cabbage leaves? And if we talk about the uptake of breastfeeding being too low, what d...
Ep. 41: Anita Elawure on POI (premature ovarian insufficiency) and premature menopause
17 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I talk to Anita Elawure, who was diagnosed with premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) at just 19, meaning that she entered premature ...
Ep. 40: Jen Hall on forceps births and birth injuries
10 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Jen Hall is the social media and website coordinator at The MASIC Foundation, which supports women who have suffered serious injuries during childbirt...
Ep. 39: Claire Hunt on period poverty, stigma and equity
03 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
What happens if you have to choose between period pads and crucial food items for your weekly shop? What should period education look like, and why is...
Ep. 38: Linda Kelly and Emma Carroll on Ireland's pandemic maternity care restrictions
27 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Linda Kelly is a Trade Union Official by day and a long-time women’s rights campaigner, now also the founder of Women Ascend and member of the Bette...
Ep. 37: Dee Naughton on papillomas and mastectomy
20 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to mother-of-two Dee Naughton about her experiences of papillomas, lobectomies and a mastectomy. She was pregnan...
Ep. 36: Elaine Barry and Anna Keogh on sex after childbirth
13 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
How do you know when you're ready? What does that even mean? Will it hurt? Where did your libido go? What about episiotomy and C-section scars and all...
Ep. 35: Hannah Seignior on cervical smear tests & HPV
06 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I talk to clinical negligence lawyer Hannah Seignior about her experience of having numerous smear tests come back with abnormal test...
Ep. 34: Melissa Plunkett on informed consent and maternity care
29 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In episode 34, I talk to Melissa Plunkett, a midwifery student and mother of two. She shares her experience of being induced at almost 42 weeks, and t...
Ep. 33: Helen Ledwick on pelvic organ prolapse
22 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This episode of Bits of Me feels quite special, because Helen Ledwick is a mum of two who decided to start a podcast about women's health after learni...
Ep. 32: Sadhbh Devlin on ectopic pregnancy
15 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I talk to Irish-language children's author, TV production assistant and researcher, and all-round maker and creative, Sadhbh Devlin, ...
Ep. 31: Anna Fitzgerald on premature births and perinatal mental health
08 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Anna Fitzgerald is a mother of three, but her journey to motherhood was far from straight-forward. She suffered two miscarriages along the way, and al...
Ep. 30: Aoife Frances and Fiona Dunkin on miscarriage, early motherhood, and making a zine
01 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
For episode 30, the first episode of Bits of Me with two guests, I spoke to Fiona Dunkin and Aoife Frances, two friends who created a zine about ferti...
Ep. 29: Catherine O'Keeffe on early and peri-menopause
25 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
For this week's episode, I spoke to Ireland's first menopause speaker, Catherine O'Keeffe, about what to expect when the peri-menopause hits and what ...
Ep. 28: Orla Kerbey on endometriosis, IVF, and miscarriage
18 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Orla Kerbey is a fundraising professional, runner, yoga teacher, dog fanatic, and lover of sea swimming. We recorded this episode in October 2020, whe...
Ep. 27: Anna Jacob on acne, depression and Dianette (the contraceptive pill)
11 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Are we putting female beauty above female mental health? Bits of Me is back with season two! In this episode, I talk to Anna Jacob, who's had acne thr...
Ep. 26: Best bits – season one
23 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
It's the end of the first season of Bits of Me, and we look back at the 25 episodes I've published so far, talking about everything from urinary incon...
Ep. 25: Monica Heck on post-partum Graves' disease
16 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to Monica Heck, a mother of two who was diagnosed with Graves' disease after having her first child. She started...
Ep. 24: Elizabeth Sankey on severe post-natal anxiety
09 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Elizabeth Sankey is a film maker, mother, and one half of the band Summer Camp. After giving birth to her first child back in August, she started suff...
Ep. 23: Angela Coraccio on infertility
02 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Angela Coraccio is a writer and editor who was involved in starting up the Abortion Rights Campaign in Ireland. In this episode of Bits of Me, she sha...
Ep. 22: Michelle Mayefske on home water birth and birth advocacy for plus-size women
25 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I talk to Michelle Mayefske, a mother of five and birth and post-partum doula with a passion for advocating for pregnant women in big...
Ep. 21: Simone about pelvic organ prolapse at a young age (and before pregnancy and birth)
18 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to Simone, a 21-year-old university student with a stage-three uterine prolapse. Simone found a bulge in her vag...
Ep. 20: Sandy Connolly on miscarriage and secondary infertility
11 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Sandy Connolly is a mother and independent post-partum doula supporting people on their reproductive journeys and post-partum experiences. She was tol...
Ep. 19: Jac Sinnott on PMDD
04 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to activist, creative and mother-of-two Jac Sinnott, who started experiencing feelings of uncontrollable rage an...
Ep. 18: Luce Brett on incontinence
28 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Around the world, there are more people suffering from incontinence than hayfever, yet both urinary and fecal incontinence are still shrouded in stigm...
Ep. 17: Emer O'Neill on giving birth and breastfeeding during a pandemic
21 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Emer O'Neill, a teacher, model and now mother of two, was heavily pregnant when the first lockdown hit. In this episode of Bits of Me, she shares her ...
Ep. 16: Grace Alice O'Shea on vaginismus
14 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Around one in ten women will at some point suffer from vaginismus, a condition that can make sexual intercourse and tampon use very painful or even im...
Ep. 15: Kath Sansom on the vaginal mesh scandal
07 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to Kath Sansom, whose life was changed overnight when she had a TVT mesh implant to help with minor incontinence...
Ep. 14: Carly Bailey on PCOS, infertility, IVF, miscarriage, and post-natal depression
30 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to Carly Bailey, a mother of two smallies and activist on social, economic and feminist issues including housing...
Ep. 13: Gillian Roddie on disordered eating, post-birth body image, ageing and Botox
23 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to Gillian Roddie, an Innovation Program Manager, Learning Specialist and mother of two. She is also the brain b...
Ep. 12: Kim Hanly on cervical cancer
16 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to Kim Hanly, a computing student and mother of two. A cervical cancer survivor and the founder of Cervical Canc...
Ep. 11: Loretta Dignam on the menopause
09 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
From hot flushes and vaginal dryness to anxiety and a distinct lack of joie de vivre, the menopause can bring about all sorts of struggles for women f...
Ep. 10: Mary Coogan on circumstantial childlessness and being a single woman at 40
02 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What's it like to be a single woman at 40, and to think you want kids but know that you don't want to go it alone? What are the obstacles to motherhoo...
Ep. 9: Tracey Bourke on pelvic organ prolapse and urge incontinence
26 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to pastry chef and mother of two Tracey Bourke, who has suffered from urge incontinence for most of her life but...
Ep. 8: Sarah Rose McCann on endometriosis and interstitial cystitis
19 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to Sarah Rose McCann, a freelance writer from Belfast who has been struggling with bladder pain for almost as lo...
Ep. 7: Catherine Stocker on PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder), or severe PMS
12 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to Social Democrats councillor and soon-to-be mother of three, Catherine Stocker. Catherine struggled with depre...
Ep. 6: Denise McAlister on herpes and STI stigma
05 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to teacher and sexual health advocate Denise McAlister, who is using her own experience of living with a long-te...
Ep. 5: Rebecca Flynn on missed miscarriage
29 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to mammy and feminist Rebecca Flynn about her experience of losing a baby to a missed miscarriage a few years ag...
Ep. 4: Elisha Clarke on birth, a 3C tear, and post-natal depression
22 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to Elisha Clarke, a professional photographer and new mother, whose birth didn't go quite as she had expected. W...
Ep. 3: Lynn Enright on pain, periods and awkward hymens
15 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In her book, Vagina: A Re-Education, Irish-born author and journalist Lynn Enright busts a range of myths surrounding the vagina and vulva in an aim t...
Ep. 2: Kate Brayden on endometriosis, fibromyalgia and healthcare abroad
08 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
This episode of Bits of Me comes with a trigger warning for sexual coercion and abuse, as Kate Brayden shares her journey of living with pelvic pain, ...
Ep. 1: Sarah Sproule on incontinence, UTIs, shame and intimacy
01 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Bits of Me, I’m talking to sex educator and mother of three, Sarah Sproule. Sarah experienced urinary incontinence and recurring ...
Bits of me: Trailer
17 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Trailer for Bits of Me - the podcast about women's bodies, all the things we should know about them, and all the stories behind them. Host: Linn...