Best Dana Obleman Podcasts (2024)

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Episode 125 - Overcoming Chronic Overwhelm 36:21

4y ago36:21

36:21

I've been a mother for a little over 18 years now, and although I wouldn't trade those years for anything, there's no question that raising kids has been a challenge. In fact, in those 18 years, I've never spoken to a single mother who hasn't felt completely overwhelmed at one point or another. My guest today has a unique perspective on chronic ove…

1
Episode 124 - Mom Life and Mental Health 39:47

4y ago39:47

39:47

It's no secret that new mothers can go through some pretty brutal emotional ups and downs after giving birth. But that doesn't necessarily make it easier to talk about, or get rid of the stigma that some of us feel when we experience postpartum depression. My guest today, Courtney Allison, is a wife, mother to two little girls, and a Licensed Menta…

1
Episode 123 - Parents Who Lead 41:45

4+ y ago41:45

41:45

These last couple of months have been trying ones for most people I know, but nobody more so than parents. The sudden demand for us to step into every role for our children, from parent to teacher to playmate and beyond, has proven to be a tall order, to say the least! That's a big reason why I'm so happy to bring you this week's episode, featuring…

1
Episode 122 - Meeting of the Mompreneurs 34:05

4+ y ago34:05

34:05

I've always been a very family-oriented woman. I know I'm hardly alone in this position, but my husband and kids are the center of my universe. And since I started my business 16 years ago, I've also been captivated with the experience of building something from the ground up and seeing the results that it brings, not just to me, but the families t…

1
Episode 121 - Quarantine Survival Guide 19:15

4+ y ago19:15

19:15

The last month or two have seen some unprecedented changes in our daily lives, due in large part to the stay-at-home directive imposed on a huge percentage of the world's population. And while we all wish we had more time to spend with our kids, spending all day, every day with them stuck in the house presents a lot of new challenges that can leave…

1
Episode 120 - Necessity is the Mother of Invention 39:13

4+ y ago39:13

39:13

When I originally created the Sleep Sense Program 14 years ago, I didn't intend to make a business out of it. It was just my personal solution to the problem of my first-born not sleeping. Many entrepreneurs start out this way. They're not looking to start a business, they're just people who've come up with a better way of doing things. That's why,…

1
Episode 119 - Postpartum Depression 51:23

4+ y ago51:23

51:23

All of the sharing we do on social media has made this a bit of a strange time to be a new mother. On the one hand, we're undoubtedly seeing more understanding and acceptance around the idea of postpartum depression. Mothers who are experiencing it have a number of forums and communities to discuss their feelings with others who have experienced th…

1
Episode 118 - Childhood Sleep Challenges 40:27

4+ y ago40:27

40:27

After all my years as a pediatric sleep expert, you might think I'd get a little fatigued talking about the subject, but the truth is, there's never been a more exciting time to be in this line of work. There's a prominent new focus on the value and health benefits of sleep, and with it comes a lot of research and findings, which brings a lot of ex…

1
Episode 117 - Dealing with Burnout 37:21

5y ago37:21

37:21

Stress is a part of life, there's no getting around it. No matter our age, gender, or responsibilities, we all feel the pressures of day to day life, and we all deal with it the best we can. But as parents, how we react when we're feeling overwhelmed can have a trickle-down effect on the rest of our family. Overreactions due to stress can leave our…

1
Episode 116 - Breastfeeding and Sleep Training 39:40

5+ y ago39:40

39:40

There's a common misconception among mothers, both old and new, that breastfeeding and sleeping well are mutually exclusive. You can sleep well or you can nurse on demand, but you can't do both. I've worked hard to dispel that myth, but to be perfectly honest, I had a very hard time nursing my babies, and don't consider myself to be the foremost au…

1
Episode 115 - How to Raise a Boy 1:06:42

5+ y ago1:06:42

1:06:42

As the mother of two teenage boys, I have to admit that, on occasion, I find it hard to connect with them. I find myself walking a fine line between wanting to show interest in their lives and respecting their privacy. Between showing them love and smothering them with it. Between letting them be themselves and raising them to be good men. Which is…

1
Episode 114 - Not The Mama! 15:45

5+ y ago15:45

15:45

How many two-parent families out there can relate to this scenario? Your little one, who both of you spend plenty of time with and love unconditionally, has grown to a point where they can communicate some basic preferences. They like carrots, but not as much as they like applesauce. They like the dog, but not as much as they like their stuffed gir…

1
Episode 113 - The Importance of Choices 17:51

6y ago17:51

17:51

I'm certainly not a "free-range" parent. I'm just too much of a worrier to let my kids run around unsupervised. But on the other hand, I do think that kids need some amount of authority over their own lives. Providing your little ones with choices is beneficial on a couple of levels. It allows them to feel like they have some measure of control ove…

1
Episode 112 - How to Deal With Lying 19:07

6y ago19:07

19:07

Let's be honest here. (Ha!) Unless you're an exceptionally lucky parent, your child is going to tell the occasional fib. As a parent, you'll have to decide how when and how to call them out on it, and what the consequences are when they tell a lie. In today's episode, I've got a few tips for you to help decide on a strategy you can be comfortable w…

1
Episode 111 - What's the Cure for Whining? 20:04

6y ago20:04

20:04

I recently asked my Facebook friends what parenting challenges they needed some help with, and when it came to the parents of toddlers, the overwhelming response was one you can probably identify with; Whining. It's pretty much guaranteed that shortly after your little one learns to communicate, they'll discover whining as a tactic for getting what…

1
Episode 110 - How Lack of Sleep Affects Your Marriage 22:14

6y ago22:14

22:14

People tend to make light of the sleepless nights that new parents experience when they have a new baby. We all go through it, and so we tend to laugh it off once our little ones grow up and start sleeping through the night. But sleep deprivation is no laughing matter, and it can have serious effects on your mental health and, subsequently, on your…

1
Episode 109 - Six Reasons Your Kids Need Sleep 22:15

6y ago22:15

22:15

It's not like we don't know that our kids need a lot of sleep. Every parent in the world realizes that babies sleep a lot more than adults, but when's the last time you actually thought about why? The obvious answer, "They get cranky if they don't sleep," is true of course, but there's a lot of fascinating science behind that fact, and sleep does s…

1
Episode 108 - How Much Awake Time Can Baby Handle 21:13

6y ago21:13

21:13

Most of the parents I've worked with over the years fall into a very common trap when it comes to their baby's sleep, and it's because it's such a reasonable belief. "The more tired you are, the better you'll sleep." Seems like a no-brainer, right? Like food or water, the more your body needs, the more it will accommodate. The fact is, this notion …

1
Episode 107 - How to Take a Nap as an Adult 13:14

6y ago13:14

13:14

Taking daytime naps is something we usually associate with babies and toddlers, and for good reason. Young kids need a lot of sleep and tend to get a big chunk of it during the day. But as more people are realizing, daytime naps are rewarding for adults too. They can be a great tool to regulate your nighttime sleep and stay on top of your game thro…

1
Episode 106 - Surviving a Hotel Stay With Your Baby 19:06

6y ago19:06

19:06

I know a lot of parents who avoid this problem by simply not traveling, but that's not always an option, and it's certainly not a good solution for those of us who love to travel. Staying in a hotel room with a young baby presents a whole pile of concerns for parents. Where should she sleep, how do we keep her on a schedule, and of course, what if …

1
Episode 105 - How to Fight in Front of Your Kids 18:07

6y ago18:07

18:07

If you're raising kids with a partner, it's a pretty safe bet that there's going to be the occasional argument between the two of you, and sometimes, like it or not, they happen in front of the kids. We tend to beat ourselves up when we argue in front of our kids, but the truth is they can learn some important lessons from seeing their parents argu…

1
Episode 104 - Get Your Kids to Eat Their Veggies 13:59

6y ago13:59

13:59

It's a very rare child who's willing to eat anything you put in front of them. Most kids crave sweets and white carbs, and occasionally protein in the form of chicken nuggets or fish sticks. Not exactly foods your pediatrician would call, "healthy." Getting young children to eat their vegetables can result in some frustrating battles, but you can't…

1
Episode 103 - Stretched Too Thin 31:27

6y ago31:27

31:27

Every mother knows that raising kids is a full time job. Not "full time" in the business sense of 9-5, Monday to Friday, but full time in the literal sense. You never clock out, you never get a vacation, and you never retire. Which is a big part of the reason those of us who choose to pursue a career on top of being moms can often find ourselves fe…

1
Episode 102 - The Importance of Bedtime Routines 21:24

6y ago21:24

21:24

As many of you will probably know if you've listened to my podcast before, my first child started off as a terrible sleeper. And like any parent in my position, I did a ton of research to try and figure out what the problem was. For some reason, no matter how many people I heard talking about the importance of bedtime routines, I always dismissed t…

1
Episode 101 - How to be a Happier Parent 42:46

6y ago42:46

42:46

Audrey Hepburn once said, “The most important thing is to enjoy your life—to be happy—it's all that matters.” That's great advice, but it's a little sparse on the "how-to" side. We would all love to be happy, but it's not always easy, especially when you're shouldering the responsibilities of a parent. Which is why I'm so excited to be speaking wit…

1
Episode 100 - Back to School Tips 16:19

6y ago16:19

16:19

As much as kids look forward to summer vacation, I have a feeling that parents look forward to school starting again even more. (Even though we may not be allowed to show it quite so openly.) But back-to-school can bring along one substantial challenge for both parents and their kids. During those two months of vacation, we tend to get pretty lenie…

1
Episode 099 - Separation Anxiety in Older Kids 16:17

6y ago16:17

16:17

As parents, the idea that our kids don't like to be apart from us is not just understandable, the feeling is full-on mutual. The bond between us and our children cannot be overstated. As they get older, some kids naturally start to explore their emerging independence with enthusiasm. Others, not so much. So when it comes time for the first day of p…

1
Episode 098 - How Do I Know if Baby's Hungry? 14:29

6y ago14:29

14:29

When your baby cries in the night, it usually means they want something in order to help them get back to sleep. Whether it's because they're too hot, too cold, have a wet diaper, or for some other reason can be difficult to tell. For most parents, the first thing they try is a feed. Babies love to eat and it's the most common reason for newborns a…

1
Episode 097 - Switching From a Crib to a Bed 27:59

6y ago27:59

27:59

Sooner or later, your toddler is going to outgrow their crib, and while the switch to a big-kid bed is an exciting milestone, it usually brings on some challenges. Toddlers tend to test their boundaries when they experience the newfound freedom of a regular bed, and you can typically expect a few late-night visits, sleep regressions, and early morn…

1
Episode 096 - When and How to Start Solid Foods 26:31

6+ y ago26:31

26:31

Starting your baby on solid foods is a fun and exciting milestone, and one you should definitely have your camera ready for! But like everything in parenting, there is a lot of uncertainty about when and how to get started. In today's episode, I'll be talking a little bit about how to recognize when your baby is ready to start eating solid food, an…

1
Episode 095 - 8 Tips for Separation Anxiety 17:14

6+ y ago17:14

17:14

I think we can all agree that no sound on this earth is more distressing to a parent than that of their crying baby. And in their early years, nothing prompts a meltdown from your little one quite like the sight of you leaving the room. Separation anxiety is so common among babies that you would probably be more likely to worry if your little one d…

1
Episode 094 - Unhelpful Parenting Behaviors 17:40

6+ y ago17:40

17:40

As parents, we all strive to do the best we can when it comes to raising our kids. But actions taken with the best intentions can have negative effects, and we may not realize the impact they have until the damage is already done. Today, I'm going to talk a bit about some of the more unhelpful behaviors I've observed in my time as a sleep consultan…

1
Episode 093 - When Should I Start the Sleep Sense Program? 15:16

6+ y ago15:16

15:16

I can't tell you how many times I've spoken with parents who were desperate to get their child sleeping through the night, but when it came to actually getting started, they felt like it "just wasn't the right time." Don't get me wrong, they had good reasons for saying so. Baby was teething, baby was just getting over an illness, baby was about to …

1
Episode 092 - Sleep Training and Attachment Parenting 26:26

6+ y ago26:26

26:26

There's a commonly held belief among the devotees of attachment parenting that sleep training isn't compatible with their parenting style. That's not surprising, since one of the founders of the attachment parenting movement, Dr. Bill Sears, amended the core principles of his system to include "Beware of baby trainers." But having worked with paren…

1
Episode 091 - What if Baby Looks Uncomfortable? 11:54

6+ y ago11:54

11:54

Tell me if this sounds familiar... You've put baby to bed, they seem to be sleeping peacefully, but when you open the door a crack to check on them, they've pushed themselves into a corner of their crib into what appears to be the most uncomfortable sleeping position imaginable. If your baby doesn't sleep well, or has trouble getting back to sleep …

1
Episode 090 - 5 Common Sleep Myths 24:16

6+ y ago24:16

24:16

Ben Franklin once said that the only guarantees in life were death and taxes. I think that must have been before he had kids, because he forgot to mention parenting advice. Information comes at you fast and plentifully after your first baby arrives, and although it's always given with the best intentions, some of it is, to be blunt, incorrect. In t…

1
Episode 089 - Breastfeeding and Sleep Training 17:21

6+ y ago17:21

17:21

A lot of people new mothers (and old mothers alike) think that breastfeeding and sleeping through the night are mutually exclusive. For all of you breastfeeding mothers out there, I'm happy to report that this is simply not the case. While it's true that breast milk is digested faster than formula, breastfed babies are still capable of sleeping for…

1
Episode 088 - 4 Tips for Longer Naps 17:06

6+ y ago17:06

17:06

Don't you just love that blissful moment in the late morning or early afternoon when you put your baby down for their nap? Watching them drift into a restful, rejuvenating daytime sleep is one of the most maternal sensations I know. Which makes it so much more aggravating when they wake up 20 minutes later and refuse to go back to sleep. Then they'…

1
Episode 087 - My Favorite Toddler Behavior Trick 10:56

6+ y ago10:56

10:56

Toddlers are very curious creatures, as I'm sure anyone who has one already knows, and they are constantly testing to see where the boundaries lie regarding their behavior. Although it may not seem like it, toddlers absolutely crave structure and rules. They test the limits all the time, but they don't actually want to see anything change. But thos…

1
Episode 086 - The Skin / Sleep Connection 35:31

6+ y ago35:31

35:31

I'm super excited today to have Dr. Keira Barr on the show to tell us all about the role sleep plays in the health and well-being of our skin. As you probably already know, our skin is our largest organ, but you may be surprised at the information it provides into our overall health. You may also be interested (I know I was!) to learn how sleep and…

1
Episode 085 - What Does "Cry-It-Out" Really Mean? 18:43

6+ y ago18:43

18:43

I just want to start off here by saying that The Sleep Sense Program is not what is considered a "cry-it-out" approach. But having said that, I think it's time that we took a look at the term and what it really means. Given all of the negativity and false information that has been thrown around about allowing babies to cry, I think new parents are …

1
Episode 084 - 3 Things You Can Do Tonight for Better Sleep 17:41

6+ y ago17:41

17:41

Today, I'm going to try something a little different. I'm going to leave the kids out of the show altogether and focus specifically on you. Because even though we may forget it from time to time, your sleep is every bit as important as your little one's, and grown ups tend to have issues getting to sleep and staying asleep just as often as their ba…

1
Episode 083 - 5 Tips for the Early Riser 16:16

6+ y ago16:16

16:16

After conquering their baby's persistent night wakings, many parents take a "Hey, that's good enough" approach if their little one insists on getting up at 5 in the morning. And if it really is good enough for you, if baby's gotten enough sleep through the night, and you're ready to start your day at 5 AM, power to you. But for those of you who are…

1
Episode 082 - Sleep Training With Twins 21:53

6+ y ago21:53

21:53

"There are two things life doesn't prepare you for. Twins." There's no question that twins present a unique challenge to sleep training. Do you keep them on the same schedule, even if they don't seem to want to sleep at the same time? Should you keep them in the same room if one tends to wake the other up? Today, I have (hopefully) all the answers …

1
Episode 081 - Keep Your Toddler From Leaving Their Room 19:42

6+ y ago19:42

19:42

How many times have you finished up your little one's bedtime routine, kissed them goodnight, tucked them in, turned out the light, only to see their adorable little face appear in the hallway five minutes later? And then five minutes after that? And again, and again, until bedtime ends in a series of tears and ultimatums. Keeping kids in their roo…

1
Episode 080 - The Highs and Lows of the Mompreneur 20:45

6+ y ago20:45

20:45

"The biggest adventure you can ever take is to live the life of your dreams." So said Oprah Winfrey, one of my biggest inspirations when I decided to start my own business, and she was absolutely right. And although I have realized my dream of being a mother and and entrepreneur, there are still moments that I wouldn't describe as especially dreamy…

1
Episode 079 - "Scary Mommy" creator Jill Smokler 40:44

6+ y ago40:44

40:44

If you have kids and a sense of humor, chances are you're already a big fan of my guest today. Jill Smokler is the creator of the "Scary Mommy" blog, and the author of the New York Times bestsellers, Confessions of A Scary Mommy and Motherhood Comes Naturally (And Other Vicious Lies). Jill's honest, unfiltered, and hilarious take on parenthood has …

1
Episode 078 - The Pros and Cons of Pacifiers 21:59

6+ y ago21:59

21:59

Every parent I know has relied on the magic soothing abilities of a pacifier at one time or another, and for good reason. There's no arguing their effectiveness. Nothing quiets a crying baby faster with as little effort as popping a soother in their mouth. Now, I'm not anti-pacifier, but I do think they should be used in certain circumstances, and …

1
Episode 077 - Diagnosing the Wrong Deficit 36:23

6+ y ago36:23

36:23

According to a 2013 analysis by the NHIS, nearly 10% of children aged 4-17 will be diagnosed with ADHD at some point in their lives. The trademark symptoms, hyperactivity, lack of focus, and forgetfulness, are easily attributed to the disorder, but my guest today has shown compelling evidence that many kids who display them are actually not sufferi…

1
Epsiode 076 - Getting Your Baby Out of Your Bed 19:55

6+ y ago19:55

19:55

Some parents love the experience of sleeping next to their baby, whereas others end up doing it out of necessity, enduring the inevitable fingers in the nose and late-night kicks to the belly in exchange for an otherwise peaceful night. But at some point, the time comes when your little one has to move into their own room and stay there, which, as …

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Dana Obleman Podcasts

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