Parenting Collective

How do we stay connected to our teenagers as they grow up, become more independent, and start pulling away?
Parenting teens can feel challenging, but what if strengthening your relationship isn't about trying harder to control their behaviour, but about creating more space for connection?
In this episode of the Parenting Collective Podcast, host Donna Moala sits down with Daniela Cooper, founder of The Gather Project, to explore how we can build stronger mother-child relationships, reconnect with our teenagers, and create the sense of community so many families are missing.
As a mum of four, Daniela understands the realities of raising children while navigating the demands of modern life. Through The Gather Project, she creates retreats that bring mothers and children together through nature, meaningful conversations, shared experiences, and time away from everyday distractions.
In this episode, we explore: 
How to strengthen your bond with your teenager
Why teens may seem to pull away from their parents
How to build deeper mother-child connections through adolescence
Why every mum needs a village and a supportive community
The importance of slowing down and being present with our children
How nature, shared experiences, and time away from screens can create space for connection
Why teenagers need opportunities to explore their identity, independence, and purpose
How mothers can reconnect with themselves while nurturing their relationships with their children
Daniela also shares her personal journey of moving away from a life that looked successful on the outside to discovering what truly mattered: authenticity, meaningful relationships, and a stronger sense of connection.
Because sometimes, our children don't need us to have all the answers. They need us to make space for them to be heard, understood, and accepted for who they are.
If you're navigating the teenage years, looking for ways to reconnect with your child, or feeling like you're carrying the weight of motherhood alone, this conversation is a beautiful reminder that connection matters more than perfection, and no parent should have to do it all alone.
💬 What's one thing that helps you feel connected to your child? Share your thoughts in the comments. We'd love to hear from you!
Follow The Gather Project:
Website: https://thegatherproject.com.au/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegatherproject.au
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thegatherproject.au/
I would appreciate it greatly if you could please LIKE and FOLLOW this podcast and if you are not following me over on instagram, head over there for all of my top tips and advice around sleep and parenting @parentingcollective.au.  I also offer a free 15 minute phone chat to run through all your questions CLICK here to book your FREE 15 minute chat
Much Love 💞
Donna Moala 
Parenting Collective              
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How do we raise financially confident children in a world where the cost of living keeps rising and owning a home feels increasingly out of reach?
In this episode of The Parenting Collective Podcast, host Donna Moala sits down with Brooke Roberts, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Sharesies, to explore how parents can teach kids about money, build healthy financial habits, and create opportunities for their family's future.
In this conversation, we explore:
How to teach children about money, saving, spending and investing from an early age.
Why raising financially confident kids starts with everyday family conversations.
How pocket money, chores and part-time jobs can help children understand the value of money.
Simple ways to start investing and build wealth over time, even with small amounts.
The power of compound growth and why starting early matters.
How to talk about money without passing on fear, guilt or financial stress.
How parents can raise financially independent children while teaching resilience, responsibility and a healthy relationship with money.
Brooke shares her journey with Sharesies, whose vision is to create financial empowerment for people and companies through its wealth app and technology. We discuss how accessible investing can help families take small steps towards their financial goals and consider new ways to build wealth for themselves and their children.
Because teaching kids about money isn't just about dollars and cents. It's about helping them develop confidence, independence and the skills to navigate their financial future.
Follow Brooke Roberts:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brooketanderson/
Follow Sharesies
Website: https://sharesies.com.au/
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/SharesiesAU
Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/sharesiesau
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sharesiesau
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sharesiesau
💛 New to Sharesies? Sign up as a new customer, deposit $10 into your Wallet, and get an extra $10 from Sharesies! Available for both adult and kids’ accounts.
Promo code: PARENT2026
Disclaimer:
Use the promo code PARENT2026 when you open a new Sharesies Account, complete sign up by 11:59 pm AEDT (Sydney time) 30 November 2026, and deposit at least $10 into your Wallet by that time to get $10 top up into your Wallet. Open a Kids account with the same code and deposit at least $10 into that Kids account’s Wallet by the same time, and that Kids account gets a $10 top-up too. Only available to people new to Sharesies. Terms and conditions apply. For more information visit https://sharesies.com.au/disclosures/parent2026.  Investing involves risk. Consider the Sharesies IDPS Guide and Target Market Determination at sharesies.com.au.
I would appreciate it greatly if you could please LIKE and FOLLOW this podcast and if you are not following me over on instagram, head over there for all of my top tips and advice around sleep and parenting @parentingcollective.au.  I also offer a free 15 minute phone chat to run through all your questions CLICK here to book your FREE 15 minute chat
Much Love 💞
Donna Moala 
Parenting Collective              
                                 SLEEP & PARENTING ESSENTIALS
🩷  For your daily walks, coffee's & travel
     CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE COZIGO  
🩷  Favourite room darkening product
     CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE SLEEPY SUNDAYS
🩷 Favourite Goat's Milk Formula
    CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE LITTLE OAK FORMULA.
🩷 Favourite Rice Milk Formula
    CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE ...

How does childhood trauma shape the way we parent? And how can we break generational cycles to build stronger, healthier connections with our children?
In this episode of the Parenting Collective Podcast, host Donna Moala, conscious parenting coach and secure sleep specialist, sits down with Dr. Kalyani Gopal, Founder and President of the SAFE Coalition for Human Rights and President of the Psychology Coalition at the United Nations.
An award-winning speaker and international trainer, Dr. Gopal specialises in trauma, foster care and adoption, child protection, and neurodevelopmental disorders.
Together, Donna and Dr. Gopal explores how childhood trauma (wounds), adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and generational patterns can influence our parenting, emotional triggers, and relationships with our children.
In this conversation, we explore:
- How childhood experiences can affect the way we parent
- Why our children can trigger unresolved childhood wounds
- Understanding adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and generational trauma
- How to break unhealthy family patterns and begin healing
- The importance of connection, emotional safety, and conscious parenting
- Why children need healthy boundaries and positive discipline
- How parents can repair relationships after losing their temper
Parenting isn't about being perfect. It's about understanding ourselves, taking responsibility for our reactions, and creating a safe space where our children feel loved, heard, and connected.
Because sometimes, changing the way we parent begins with healing the parts of ourselves that still need care.
Follow Kalyani Gopal, PhD, HSPP:
Website: https://drkgopal.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-kalyani-gopal-664a9716/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KGopalPhD
Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/kalyani4apa
Twitter/X: https://x.com/drgopal
Follow SAFE Coalition for Human Rights: 
Website: https://safechr.org/
Buy the book, Strong Roots, Safe Wings: An Illustrated Evidence-Based ACEs Informed, Trauma Reparenting Program for Parents, Caregivers and Helping Professionals: https://a.co/d/014Z9et5
I would appreciate it greatly if you could please LIKE and FOLLOW this podcast and if you are not following me over on instagram, head over there for all of my top tips and advice around sleep and parenting @parentingcollective.au.  I also offer a free 15 minute phone chat to run through all your questions CLICK here to book your FREE 15 minute chat
Much Love 💞
Donna Moala 
Parenting Collective              
                                 SLEEP & PARENTING ESSENTIALS
🩷  For your daily walks, coffee's & travel
     CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE COZIGO  
🩷  Favourite room darkening product
     CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE SLEEPY SUNDAYS
🩷 Favourite Goat's Milk Formula
    CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE LITTLE OAK FORMULA.
🩷 Favourite Rice Milk Formula
    CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE ...

Are you worried about your baby’s milestones? Googling every little thing and wondering, “Is my baby on track?”
In this episode of the Parenting Collective Podcast, host Donna Moala chats with Alaskah Hindry, a paediatric Occupational Therapist, mother and founder of Evergrow App, about baby development, developmental milestones and the overwhelm so many parents experience.
Alaskah shares why baby milestones have such a wide range, when parents should seek professional support, and why comparing your baby to other children can create unnecessary anxiety.
They also talk about the reality of parenting in the age of information overload, from endless Googling and social media comparisons to feeling like you need the perfect toys and activities to support your child’s development.
Alaskah created Evergrow, a parenting app designed to give parents simple, evidence-based information, realistic play ideas, developmental support and practical wellbeing tools, without adding to the overwhelm.
In this episode, we talk about:
✨ Understanding baby developmental milestones  
✨ What’s normal when it comes to tummy time, rolling, sitting and walking  
✨ When to worry about your baby’s development  
✨ Why comparing your baby to other babies can create anxiety  
✨ How social media contributes to parenting overwhelm  
✨ Simple, realistic play ideas that support child development  
✨ Why you don’t need expensive toys for meaningful play  
✨ Supporting parent wellbeing and nervous system regulation  
✨ How Evergrow helps parents navigate baby development with more confidence 
✨ Trusting your parental instincts and knowing when to seek help  
If you are a new parent feeling overwhelmed by developmental milestones, parenting advice or the constant pressure to “get it right,” this conversation is for you.
Follow Alaskah Hindry:
Website: https://alaskahhindry.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alaskah-hindry-ot/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AlaskahOT/
Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/alaskahhindry/
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@alaskahhindry
Follow Evergrow App: https://www.instagram.com/evergrowapp_/
Download Evergrow App: https://apps.apple.com/au/app/evergrow-for-baby-you/id6774455485
I would appreciate it greatly if you could please LIKE and FOLLOW this podcast and if you are not following me over on instagram, head over there for all of my top tips and advice around sleep and parenting @parentingcollective.au.  I also offer a free 15 minute phone chat to run through all your questions CLICK here to book your FREE 15 minute chat
Much Love 💞
Donna Moala 
Parenting Collective              
                                 SLEEP & PARENTING ESSENTIALS
🩷  For your daily walks, coffee's & travel
     CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE COZIGO  
🩷  Favourite room darkening product
     CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE SLEEPY SUNDAYS
🩷 Favourite Goat's Milk Formula
    CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE LITTLE OAK FORMULA.
🩷 Favourite Rice Milk Formula
    CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE ...

What happens when a parent loses their child? How do you keep going, navigate grief, and find a way to carry your child’s memory forward?
In this deeply moving episode of the Parenting Collective Podcast, host Donna Moala sits down with Jess Yugovich, Founder and CEO of The Aliyah Mae Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation established following the tragic and unexpected loss of her daughter, Aliyah Mae, in 2024 at just three years old.
Jess shares her deeply personal journey through child loss, grief and healing, including the story of Aliyah, the special meaning behind Bunny, and how she continues to honour her daughter while supporting other families experiencing unimaginable loss.
The Aliyah Mae Foundation was created to support families navigating the paediatric healthcare system and families experiencing child loss, helping provide connection, advocacy and support during some of the most difficult moments a parent can face.
In this conversation, Donna and Jess talk about:
• The unimaginable grief of losing a child
• Parenting and living through profound grief
• Keeping a child’s memory and spirit alive
• The importance of support after child loss
• Navigating the paediatric healthcare system
• Turning personal grief into purpose and advocacy
• How Jess transformed her experience into support for other families
This is a powerful conversation about motherhood, grief, love, loss, resilience and hope — and a beautiful reminder that a child’s impact can continue long after they are gone.
Follow The Aliyah Mae Foundation:
Website: https://thealiyahmaefoundation.com.au/
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/thealiyahmaefoundation
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thealiyahmaefoundation/
Follow Jess Yugovich:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jess-yugovich/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessyugovich
I would appreciate it greatly if you could please LIKE and FOLLOW this podcast and if you are not following me over on instagram, head over there for all of my top tips and advice around sleep and parenting @parentingcollective.au.  I also offer a free 15 minute phone chat to run through all your questions CLICK here to book your FREE 15 minute chat
Much Love 💞
Donna Moala 
Parenting Collective              
                                 SLEEP & PARENTING ESSENTIALS
🩷  For your daily walks, coffee's & travel
     CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE COZIGO  
🩷  Favourite room darkening product
     CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE SLEEPY SUNDAYS
🩷 Favourite Goat's Milk Formula
    CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE LITTLE OAK FORMULA.
🩷 Favourite Rice Milk Formula
    CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE ...