A dark gnawing secret replayed on Anne-Maree Brown's mind until motherhood made her call ‘scene’ on her past. For most of my young adult life, I kept a secret. A dark, gnawing secret that loomed large as the adult world approached. I was raped – a...
Unlike other tissue donations, if a woman in Australia needs an egg, or wants to donate one, she is largely left to work it out herself through advertising or searching for an ethnically compatible donor through other means. Accessing an egg donor, or becoming one,...
Kylie Ladd explores the issues that arise for children living with a mentally ill parent. … mental illness does not necessarily reduce one’s capacity to parent well… This morning, my mother didn’t get out of bed. So begins Melina Marchetta’s powerful novel Saving Francesca, in which a 16-year-old...
Margaret Langdon explores stories of families with children conceived through assisted reproductive technologies and the donations of others. About one in six Australians are affected by fertility problems. The techniques available to help these people seeking parenthood are known as assisted reproductive technologies (ART). These technologies involve...
Cathy Watson enters the uncertain world of premature babies and their parents. Barbara A* and her partner left the champagne unopened when their daughter Freya was born at 27 weeks’ gestation. Just as their daughter entered a new world, so too did they – as parents...
Today’s dads are eager to have a connection with their babies, and Richard Fletcher looks at how the bonding process works. Parents are often unaware how much babies want and actively seek a close connection with their fathers as well as their mothers. When talking to fathers-to-be...
If you could tell your dad anything, what would it be? A new book of letters collected by Samuel Johnson has just been published to raise money for cancer research. Dear Dad edited by Samuel Johnson OAM (published by Hachette Australia, RRP $22.99) Available in-store and online...
Jenny Wilbow finds that as her son is getting older, managing aspects of Asperger’s syndrome is getting easier. The sign said quite simply, “Dirty Plates and Trays Here”. We were at one of those dreary self-service cafeterias en route home after a long day-trip. With the...
Sarah Cummings finds that her explanation to her son of her friend’s death prompts a serious bout of separation anxiety. Late last year, my best friend Katie died of breast cancer. She left behind a one-year-old son and a loving husband. Obviously, I knew that her...
Lavinia Day reports personal space seemed to be missing with some of the younger kids in her child's class and her daughter's friends come just a bit too close too often! As adults, we feel uncomfortable when someone we are talking to stands too close. I...
