On the Couch with Carly

About On the Couch with Carly

Join me On the Couch with Carly, where psychology meets real life. Think of it as sitting down with a friend who happens to be a psychologist - but I'm not your pipe-smoking, tweed-wearing stereotype. This is a safe space to talk about the things that matter: relationships, parenting pressures, setting boundaries, and why we don't have to figure it all out alone. No judgment, just honest conversations about what it means to be human in this complicated, beautiful world.

Publisher

Carly's Couch

Category

education · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

3 Feb 2020

Latest episode

17 Apr 2026

Latest episodes

83 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   17 Apr 2026

   O Baby WTF: Preparing for matrescence and the transformation of becoming a parent

   I'm recording this while driving to work—multitasking at its finest! I want to talk about my online course O Baby WTF because I created it to bridge a gap I felt when I became a parent. We get lots of information about birth and infant care when we're pregnant, but almost nothing about preparing for the experience of becoming a new parent. Since Lucy Jones wrote Matrescence and the term is finally getting recognition, it's more important than ever to prepare for this transformation. O Baby WTF helps you prepare yourself—your own story, background, thoughts, feelings, dreams, and expectations. It gives you a sense of what the experience might be like and how it might differ from what you're anticipating. The course centers on matrescence, the process of becoming a mother that impacts all areas of your life. I thought it would be me plus baby, a simple equation. But it's not. When you become a mother, you become a whole new version of yourself. Lucy Jones describes matrescence as a metamorphosis. When a caterpillar goes into a cocoon, there's a process of annihilation. If you dissected the cocoon midway, you'd find neither caterpillar nor butterfly—just a goo-like structure. During matrescence, there's a time of not being something solid, of being between forms. The version of yourself you've been all your life is no longer, but you're also not yet fully into this new mother version. You won't automatically feel solid in that role. That's completely normal. Matrescence has the same suffix as adolescence because it's marked by similar conditions—extreme hormonal fluctuations, body changes, internal and external shifts. Your brain chemistry adapts, hormonal levels fluctuate hugely. If you think back to adolescence and how awkward and conspicuous you felt, that's what matrescence can feel like too. Partners need to understand this. If your partner is currently a goo-like structure, your role is to be the cocoon—the strong, solid, protective layer that keeps her safe. The course covers four spheres affected by having a baby: you and your identity, you and your partner (when two becomes three), you and your community (friends and family), and you and work. For couples, I talk about dads spending as much time "on the pitch" as possible. Because mom breastfeeds, she ends up doing 90% of the effort and learns faster. There's no maternal instinct—just a steep learning curve. Anyone on duty more will be better at the tasks. We want dads involved from the start so they feel equipped and competent. The course also includes a five-part mental health toolkit—psychological tools you can use at any moment for those WTF moments. It's set up like a workshop where you take breaks, talk with your partner, answer questions, and reflect according to your own life. Once you have access on my website, you have it for life. Follow Carly on: Website: https://onthecouchwithcarly.com/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfBi56xQookfRGL3zvWVzCg Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/onthecouchwithcarly/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/onthecouchwithcarly/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@onthecouchwithcarly Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/on-the-couch-with-carly/id1497585376 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3t7A2FMnISQ2fz9D5p0Xuw

2. 

   30 Mar 2026

   Scaffolding neurodivergent families: A systems approach to coaching with Suna Hall

   Suna Hall is an ADHD and neurodiversity coach who works with neurodivergent teens, adults, and parents. Today she's breaking down what neurodivergence actually means—ADHD, autism, dyslexia, and more—and how coaching differs from therapy. Coaching is future-focused and finite: where you are now, where you want to be, what's getting in the way, and building skills to close that gap. Executive function is the logistics part of your brain—task initiation, completion, planning, working memory. For neurodivergent people, these struggles aren't just annoying, they're exhausting. You're expending huge energy to hold information that neurotypical brains process easily. To meet diagnostic criteria, you're struggling to the point where life becomes extremely hard, not just inconvenient. Kids notice they're different from peers. Late-diagnosed adults always knew something was off but didn't know what. The late-diagnosed women demographic is massive right now. Girls were missed because boys manifested ADHD physically while girls internalized it. Hormonal shifts—motherhood especially—ramp up symptoms. New mothers are getting diagnosed because their sensory world shifts, the mental load explodes, and they can't white-knuckle it anymore. They've been told they're dramatic their whole lives, but actually they were coping until they weren't. One mom screams into the freezer during hot flashes. Another realizes heat is her sensory breaking point. The advice: track when explosions happen, take yourself away before it escalates, shore up your capacity, and talk to your peers. Say "I wanted to throttle my child today" and hear "me too." Connect with Suna Hall: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nd.coach.suna/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/suna.hall/ Linkedin: https://za.linkedin.com/in/neurodiversity-coach-suna Coaching circles starting 2026 Follow Carly on: Website: https://onthecouchwithcarly.com/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfBi56xQookfRGL3zvWVzCg Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/onthecouchwithcarly/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/onthecouchwithcarly/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@onthecouchwithcarly Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/on-the-couch-with-carly/id1497585376 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3t7A2FMnISQ2fz9D5p0Xuw

3. 

   6 Mar 2026

   Fatherhood, creativity, and community building: Parenting as a creative act with Dillion Phiri

   Dillion Phiri is a Zimbabwean-Malawian father, entrepreneur, filmmaker, and social sculptor based in Johannesburg. As founder of Creative Nestlings, he's built a Pan-African network of 100,000+ creatives. But today we're talking about how fatherhood is the foundation of everything he does. He has five kids—two biological, three inherited through his blended family—and he centers every decision around being a good parent, friend, and example to them. Dillion became a father at 22 and it changed everything. He quit his first good job because he realized if he stayed, he wouldn't be living his dreams and therefore wouldn't be a good example for his son. He didn't have a present father growing up, so he made a promise to himself to always be a good dad. What surprised him most was how his kids taught him not to take things for granted—time, joy, simple experiences. They make all five kids draw every day as a discipline practice, even though he can't draw himself. They run for 30 minutes daily, watch basketball highlights together, and learn Japanese. It's about pattern-making, doing hard things, building skills. The tension between creativity for joy versus creativity for money is real. He shows his kids the invoice from an illustrator who made a billboard so they understand the monetary value of creative work. His partner is a painter, so they see her process too—the struggle to sell, to let go, to make a living from art. He's teaching them that creativity is work like any other, but it can be sustainable and joyful. As a provider, he wishes he could be a house dad making films at home, but he's privileged that his career allows him to be present while working. He's been away for three weeks, and the kids are fine, which is both reassuring and humbling. What stands out most is how Dillion talks about emotional regulation, accountability, and vulnerability. He went to therapy and works with life coaches because he realized triggers don't have to mean reactions—you just find ways through them. He apologizes to his kids when he's wrong. He makes them call him four times a day, not because they need it, but because time is finite and he wants them to remember he was the annoying dad who was always there. He's teaching them that just because you're angry doesn't mean the world is ending. Just because you didn't get what you wanted doesn't mean you're poor. It's all about regulation and dealing with things as they come. This generation of fathers is earning respect by being genuine, authentic, and admitting mistakes. It's revolutionary compared to the authority figures who demanded respect without question. Connect with Dillion: Creative Nestlings Website: https://www.creativenestlings.com/ Facebook: https://facebook.com/creativenestlings Instagram: https://instagram.com/creativenestlings X.com: https://twitter.com/creativenestlin Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/creativenestlings Follow Carly on: Website: https://onthecouchwithcarly.com/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfBi56xQookfRGL3zvWVzCg Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/onthecouchwithcarly/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/onthecouchwithcarly/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@onthecouchwithcarly Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/on-the-couch-with-carly/id1497585376 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3t7A2FMnISQ2fz9D5p0Xuw

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

4,863

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.8 / 5

4 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 64 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

73

Social presence

0

YouTube

68

Engagement

68

Contact On the Couch with Carly

Guest appearances

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