Understanding & Reimagining Motherhood

Small Groups @ Juno Specialists, Richmond

Gathering.

Honouring experiences. Cultivating a shared space with those navigating similar terrain. Feeling seen in the other. Offering and receiving compassionate listening. Leaning into the curiosity of our possibilities. Unlearning, learning and exploring. Together.

Small Groups

  • To feel like it’s your fault if you find it challenging or lonely or boring or hard. It can be confusing and overwhelming - and on some level you might believe those things are your fault.

    This is when many of us begin to put on a happy face. To perform externally, while performing double-time and feeling turbulent inside.

    None of these hard things are your fault.

    Difficult experiences in these transitions are common.

    You deserve better. (You always have). You deserve to be seen and held and supported.

  • Claiming space for you

    The power of owning your experiences

    Feeling seen, heard and held

    Acknowledging and then dissolving loneliness, confusion, overwhelm, shame, guilt, stress

    Understanding the layers of your experience

    Building trust and connection with the same group of women navigating similar

    Seeing important things reflected back to you by others walking similar paths

    The revolutionary act of honouring and reclaiming the messy middle

    Creating new stories and new possibilities from a place of curiosity

    Reaching for a more supported experience

I believe in the power and joy of small group spaces.

I’m a motherhood studies practitioner, acupuncturist, Chinese herbalist, doula, educator, facilitator and lived experience peer support - all rolled into one.

I bring compassion, awareness and layered knowledge to small group spaces.

  • Sessions are 50 mins and conducted at Juno Specialists, Richmond + walk along the river afterwards for those keen to decompress and share further (this part is weather permitting)

    6 Sessions, spaced fortnightly

    Small group sizes of 6-8 people

    Same group of people - allowing you to genuinely get to know others navigating similar circumstances

    Babes in arms (up to 6 months) welcome. Where possible claim this space as your own.

    Cost: $270 for 6 sessions ($45 per session) paid prior to first session

    Dates: TBA. Email me if you want to know when the dates and booking links go live, and I'll email them to you.

  • honest, real conversations

    gentle self reflection

    grounding rituals

    a deeper sense of belonging and acceptance

    connection that dissolves the feeling that ‘this is mine to carry alone’

    genuine explorations of what you’re carrying

    self-compassion - witnessing others and yourself as human

    fostering your inner knowing / awareness

    expansive, targeted learning to meet and melt confusion and overwhelm

    unlearning the old to create something new

    curiosity as a way to open up possibilities

    exploring skills, tools and resources

    space to lean back into the joy of what is and what is being created

    reclaiming your power - seeing / claiming your own story as a reverence story

  • listen to others without offering advice, fixing or rescuing

    share what you’re comfortable to share around the themes of the session

    foster safe space, avoid judging the experiences of others

  • sit in circle to share, listen and learn

    explore different themes each session

    afterwards (if Melbourne weather allows) we'll go for a walk along the river

  • Honour your needs and come as you are.

    Wear what’s comfy and convenient. Come in your work clothes or activewear. There's no need to present yourself in any particular way. Imperfection is welcomed

  • It's okay if you're nervous because you won't know anyone. I still feel like this sometimes. My thoughts - don't let nerves discourage you from reaching for the connection and support you deserve.

    The space at Juno is beautifully inviting and I promise to create an easy, open atmosphere for you to be a part of.

    You're so welcome.

Opening up the truthful, full expression of our stories can allow our experiences to sit fully in existence.

Curiosity and openness create flexibility where there was rigidity. Previously immovable obstructions loosen a little.

In the beauty of our full stories we find the places we can get in and expand our possibilities.

Small Group: Neurodivergent Motherhood

  • 6 x 1hr Small Group Sessions (6-8 people) + walk along the river afterwards if weather allows

    spaced fortnightly

    alongside the same group of women

    at Juno Specialists, Richmond

    Cost: $270 for 6 sessions ($45 per session) paid prior to first session

  • Late diagnosed ND mothers. Being on the pathway to diagnosis and self identification welcome.

    For those experiencing the destabilisation that can occur within motherhood and ND.

    Those looking to carve space to honour the complexity of their experience.

    Those wanting to expand possibilities and ground into their own particular expression of mothering and motherhood.

  • What ND mean to you / how it impacts you

    Space to share how you feel about your diagnosis (hard parts welcome)

    Opportunity to feel seen and held in your experience

    Flipping the script on our 'failings' by considering: Who is The Perfect Mother? (known as the social construction of motherhood)

    Exploring who we’re set up to aspire to be in motherhood and the real limitations we have in reaching that ideal. How this exact friction can be a huge asset to ND mothers

    Self compassion, humanising yourself (and all mothers), tending to ourselves and our identity

    Parenting as an ND person / reimagining motherhood on your own terms

    Practical accommodations, reciprocal accommodations between mother and child

    Sensory health and sensory overload

    Burnout - ND specific care in motherhood. Prevention, awareness building, ways to soothe

    Scaffolding support

    Opportunity to connect meaningfully with other ND mothers in Melbourne

  • I was diagnosed ND - AuDHD - many years into motherhood. Like most late diagnosed women, this came as a result of long nights researching and trying to fit pieces together. I'd collated hundreds of pages of notes before first diagnostic appointment. (Which, in itself, is quite the sign...)

    Prior to up-levelling my genuine understanding of ND I spent 10 years studying and 15 years working in women's and perinatal health.

    With my own ND exploration and diagnosis I've gone back through everything I know to be true about women's, perinatal and maternal health to overlay a ND health lens.

    This creates a more complete (and kind) approach optimising health experiences and outcomes in motherhood.

  • Juno Specialists is a sensory safe environment. Know that lights will be dim and the space will be cosy.

    Bring what helps you feel more safe and cosy

    You don’t have to talk about anything you don't feel comfortable to

    All questions welcome - send me an email

Small Group: The Path Into Motherhood (fertility, conception, IVF)

  • 6 x 1hr Small Group Sessions (6-8 people) + walk along the river afterwards if weather allows

    spaced fortnightly

    alongside the same group of women

    at Juno Specialists, Richmond

    Cost: $270 for 6 sessions ($45 per session) paid prior to first session

  • Those currently trying to conceive.

    You may be trying 'naturally', undergoing fertility investigations and pathways, have experienced previous early loss, undergoing IVF and similar.

    For those that feel overwhelmed, isolated or unseen - like they're holding too much all on their own.

    Those wanting to feel more supported, connected, held and steady.

    'Motherhood’ begins with a desire to have a child. This is the motherhood group where you belong.

  • Space to honour complex stories

    Space to be seen and heard. Not having to hide your story or mask your feelings - this is space to allow your story to be

    Collective honesty around riding the waves to become / maintain a pregnancy

    What does navigating conception mean to you? How does it impact you?

    Unpack shame, silencing and minimising your experience

    A huge missing piece: What The Perfect Mother - the social construction of motherhood - has to do with it

    All the things you ‘should’ be doing - what’s coming from your values, what’s coming from society, and why the difference matters

    What ‘reducing your stress’ looks like (and why it might make you rage when people make this suggestion)

    Self compassion, humanising ourselves, tending to ourselves and tending to our identity

    Reframing the end goal

    Support for the different phases of the menstrual / treatment cycle

    Scaffolding support / outsourcing / prioritising

    Exploring the tricky parts of pregnancy, birth and mothering after experiencing conception difficulties

    An opportunity to meaningfully connect with others in Melbourne traversing similar

  • I've held space for thousands of women navigating the stress, hope, fear, disappointment and cautious joy that can flow through any given menstrual / treatment cycle when trying to conceive.

    For those in the 'two week wait' and those in the precarious period of very early pregnancy on the background of previous loss. Those that are bleeding. Those setting alarms for trigger shots and meeting with specialists. Those picking up pieces and those steeling themselves to try again.

    This is described as a rollercoaster for good reason.

    The majority of the physical, mental and emotional load - the feelings of self-blame, shame and not enough-ness falls on the woman. It's a breaking load to carry. All of this going unseen and entirely under-supported by our society.

    I've walking away from days in clinic after supporting women juggling trying to conceive with appointments and work... Thinking: these aren't tiny cracks a few women are falling through, they are giant chasms.

    We're not appropriately meeting women's needs in this transition.

    Over the years in practice I started putting pieces together about the cost of fertility struggles on experiences that unfold much further down the track too.

    Undertaking Motherhood Studies training has helped me form language and social framing about what I was seeing happen for these women. And it's so important.

    This lens creates opportunity to set you up for a more supported, grounded and aware experience of trying to conceive. One that will benefit you right through to the early years of mothering.

Small Group: Reclaiming Motherhood

  • 6 x 1hr Small Group Sessions (6-8 people) + walk along the river afterwards if weather allows

    spaced fortnightly

    alongside the same group of women

    at Juno Specialists, Richmond

    Cost: $270 for 6 sessions ($45 per session) paid prior to first session

  • Mothers and Mother focused care

    Those experiencing the destabilisation that occurs in motherhood

    Those seeking a reflective space to be seen and heard in the reality of their experience

    Those curious to explore possibilities to ground into and work with mothering and motherhood

    Those feeling overwhelmed, spread too thin, burnout and looking for new ways

    Those wondering what on earth happened in these early mothering years / wanting to explore their identity within motherhood

    .

    The early years of mothering can be pivotal for our health, relationships, work and identity. They often require meaning making, fresh perspectives, greater tools and genuine care.

    This is space and guidance for you to create your own internally led mother story. To step into counter-cultural maternal thriving.

  • Space to share how you feel about mothering and motherhood - hard parts welcome

    An opportunity to feel seen and held in your experience

    Flipping the script on our 'failings' by considering: Who is The Perfect Mother? (known as the social construction of motherhood)

    Exploring who we’re set up to aspire to be in motherhood 

    Naming invisible mental loads

    Self compassion, humanising yourself (and all mothers), tending to ourselves and our identity

    Maternal burnout and postpartum depletion: prevention, awareness building, tools

    Reimagining motherhood on your own terms / counter-cultural maternal thriving

    Tools to soothe the maternal nervous system

    What is a supported motherhood: scaffolding support, outsourcing

    Prioritisation and deprioritisation

    An opportunity to connect meaningfully with other mums in Melbourne

  • I was well versed in women's health and perinatal health before becoming a mother. I had all the tools and skills ready.

    And yet. There were so many things I learned the long and hard way round.

    I hadn't factored in the weight of the social construction of motherhood - the context of which we mother in.

    These things directly influence maternal health outcomes. They create conditions for burnout and depletion. They add strain to physical, mental and emotional loads.

    As a society we ask mothers to mask their hard things with glorious platitudes - 'Gosh, I don't know how you do it' . We police with reminders to be grateful and throwing around words like 'superhuman' and 'so resilient'.

    Mothers are real humans, with real human needs and real human limits.

    Mothers require and deserve support and scaffolding. To be heard and held. To feel validated amongst the contortion of motherhood. And to find the sites at which they can resist and create change that benefits their health.

    And I can't wait to open up small groups just for this.

Why do we gather?


‘We gather to solve problems we can’t solve on our own. We gather to celebrate, to mourn, and to mark transitions. We gather to make decisions. We gather because we need one another. We gather to show strength. We gather to honour and acknowledge. We gather to build companies and schools and neighbourhoods. We gather to welcome, and we gather to say goodbye.’

— Priya Parker, The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters

Small groups are restorative

Stress impacts our experiences, moods, sleep, digestion, energy and health outcomes. It narrows the aperture of what’s possible.

By coming together we can disrupt its influence -restoring ease in stressful times.

In Motherhood Small Groups we actively cultivate all 7 types of rest - coined by Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith

  • nourishing, supportive social interactions, face-to-face relationships

  • space to freely express your feelings, share hard things, lean into the truth of what is

  • space to drop into your body, to calm the mind

  • cocooned rest, intentionally quiet, gently lit space, tactile sensory comfort

  • longing and belonging, connecting into something greater than the self

  • sitting amongst art that honours truthful motherhood, witnessing the awe and wonder of others

  • space to be still, to centre yourself with a cup of tea and no have responsibilities / competing needs to get up and tend to

Other Motherhood Small Groups are possible. Express interest via email for Small Groups focused around:

Single Motherhood, Birth Preparation, Preparing for Motherhood in Pregnancy

My wish is that once we cross paths, you remember what that feels like. That you count me as a member of your support team. So that if you ever find yourself struggling with the mother-load - months or even years down the track, you remember the safety and nourishment from our time together, and feel confident and comfortable to draw that support back towards you.

I’m Amy O’Brien

Through my work I’ve had the opportunity to actively listen to and walk alongside those navigating these transitions and hard things.

In over 15 years in clinical practice I’ve become attuned to the layers of complexity that through-line these transitional years into/of motherhood.

In my own mothering/motherhood: There was so much I didn’t know, so much I didn’t receive adequate support for and so much I’ve learned the hard way.

In response, I’ve diversified and extended my own knowledge and skills to meet these challenges in more multifaceted ways. For all the mothers to come.

I am here to provide space where mothers are seen, supported and able to create their own story.

I facilitate and hold space as as a practitioner that owns a rich history of holding space for peoples stories, and also as a peer with lived experience of these transitions.

  • This means I’ve learned to understand, unpack, name and speak to the societal dimensions of Motherhood.

    From conception onwards there are very real ways that the expectations of being 'a good mother’ influences our experiences and outcomes.

    We receive strong messaging to present our experience of conception, pregnancy and motherhood through a single, neat-and-tidy lens of gratitude. Which can act to quieten, minimise and bury internally the more complex reality of our experiences.

    Embedded messaging around sacrificing ourselves for our mothering role creates conditions for maternal depletion and burnout.

  • I’ve provided holistic, collaborative care and support for conception, pregnancy, postpartum and motherhood for over 15 years.

    I bring a Chinese Medicine lens and all I've learnt from my clinical experience into our work together.

  • I weave in the support and holding aspects of being a doula. Doulas provide a sense of nurturing often described as ‘mothering the mother'.

  • There is no need to mask, smile over or pretend. This space is being facilitated by me - a person with lived experience of the themes and moments you're navigating.

    Being further down the track now, I have the benefit of hindsight. I can see the ramifications and damaging ripple effects caused by the choices I made (that were informed by societal norms I wasn't aware of at the time).

    I'm here to make visible for you the invisible concepts and stories we navigate through these years. So you have greater perspective and a solid foundation to take back your health and claim your experiences as your own.

I am here to rewrite the mother story.

To shed light on it all. To stand alongside you in strength. To offer what I’ve learned and cultivated from both my lived and professional clinical experiences.

I’ll hold space, educate and help you prioritise and plan so your experience is as cocooned and supported as possible. So you feel held, resourced and strong through conception, pregnancy, birth preparation, postpartum, the huge transition into motherhood.

Important Note: I am not a GP, a Psychologist or counsellor.

I cannot provide medical care or comprehensive psychological support.

I will always be clear around my scope of practice and refer to appropriate services for whole person care.

Every person I work with will receive information about helplines and community organisations working in the areas you’re traversing.