The Happiest Countries Do Motherhood Completely Differently

2026-02-05

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What if motherhood wasn’t meant to be this hard – or this lonely? In this episode of Motherkind, Zoe is joined by journalist and bestselling author Helen Russell to explore how culture shapes the way we experience motherhood. After becoming a mother in Denmark, Helen shares how living in a Nordic system gave her “permission to live differently” – with more rest, trust, parental support and far less guilt. Together, Zoe and Helen unpack why so many mothers in the UK feel under pressure to cope alone, and how much of that is cultural rather than personal....

What if motherhood wasn’t meant to be this hard – or this lonely?

In this episode of Motherkind, Zoe is joined by journalist and bestselling author Helen Russell to explore how culture shapes the way we experience motherhood.

After becoming a mother in Denmark, Helen shares how living in a Nordic system gave her “permission to live differently” – with more rest, trust, parental support and far less guilt. Together, Zoe and Helen unpack why so many mothers in the UK feel under pressure to cope alone, and how much of that is cultural rather than personal.

In this conversation, we explore:

Why vulnerability in motherhood is normal – not a failure
How parental leave, childcare and systems reduce guilt and burnout
What Denmark gets right about raising children and supporting mothers
Why happiness doesn’t mean feeling good all the time
The power of community during big life transitions

This episode is a gentle but powerful reminder that if motherhood feels overwhelming, it’s not because you’re doing it wrong – it’s because you were never meant to do it alone.

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If you liked this episode, listen to this next: Motherhood transformed me into who I was meant to be all along | Megan Rose Lane

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This Motherkind episode is sponsored by:

Headline sponsor Wild Nutrition, the brand raising the bar for women’s supplements. Want to feel the Food-Grown difference yourself? Get 50% off for three months at wildnutrition.com/motherkind. Ts and Cs apply.
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Sonic Rooms from Pop That Mumma is a guided audio album designed to help mums find moments of calm in everyday life – use code MOTHERKIND for 30% off.

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