In this episode of The Wand(HER)wild Podcast, Monica sits down with Matrescence guide and writer Kate Seaton to explore the transformative journey of motherhood. Together, they unpack the meaning of Matrescence, the power of telling your motherhood story, and why honoring this rite of passage is essential for healing, connection, and self-understanding.
Key Takeaways From the Episode:
The word Matrescence (the transformation a woman undergoes as she becomes a mother) validates the complex shifts that occur during motherhood.
Kate’s professional pivot from brand strategist to mother story guide was inspired by her own Matrescence journey and the emotional impact of capturing mothers’ experiences.
Matrescence affects identity, career, relationships, spiritual beliefs, and more—every mother experiences it differently.
Simply learning about Matrescence can help prevent postpartum depression by contextualizing emotional shifts.
Vulnerability is a strength and gateway to deeper wisdom and community.
Storytelling and communal reflection help mothers process and integrate their journeys more meaningfully.
Motherhood documentation (like Kate’s The Motherlines) offers legacy and depth to family stories, showing mothers as whole, evolving humans.
Reclaiming feminine wisdom through motherhood challenges patriarchal narratives and offers collective healing.
Read or listen to the full story on our website or wherever you get your podcasts.
Time Stamps
[01:00] Meet Kate Seaton: Monica introduces Kate, a Matrescence guide, birth story listener, and founder of The Motherlines.
[03:20] Discovering Matrescence: Kate explains how learning the word Matrescence during a copywriting project reshaped her purpose.
[06:40] Career Realignment through Motherhood: Kate describes how becoming a mother pulled her away from misaligned work and toward story work.
[09:05] The Power of Naming Matrescence: Giving language to the maternal identity shift can help prevent postpartum depression and offer healing.
[11:30] Feminism and Motherhood Can Coexist: Kate unpacks the internal tension many mothers feel in reconciling motherhood with feminist identity.
[14:00] Unique but Universal Transformation: Every woman experiences Matrescence differently; grief and joy often coexist.
[16:20] Starting Your Matrescence Journey: Kate recommends learning the term, seeking community, and exploring reflective practices like birth story work.
[19:30] Community as Healing: Monica and Kate discuss how witnessing each other’s stories is deeply healing and empowering.
[22:10] The Motherlines: Capturing Motherhood: Kate explains how her business helps mothers preserve their stories and the humanity behind mothers for future generations.
[26:00] Honoring the Hard and the Beautiful: Motherhood is a source of tremendous growth—but that doesn’t mean it feels good while you’re in it.
[28:45] Rapid Fire: Favorites and Lessons: Kate shares her go-to family activity, drink of choice, astrological signs, and her biggest motherhood lesson.
[30:45] Where to Find Kate & Special Offer: Listeners can connect with Kate at themotherlines.com and use code WILD for $50 off her offerings.
Kate Seaton is a matrescence guide, mother of two, and professional writer. Her work centers on matrescence — the self-transformational journey women experience as they become mothers — and offers ways to process, celebrate and feel supported through motherhood. Kate is a certified Birth Story Listener by the School of Birth Story Medicine, a facilitator of mother’s circles, and a passionate advocate of anti-patriarchal motherhood and womanhood.
Website: http://themotherlines.com
Instagram: @the__motherlines
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