The Juggling Mother:

A chat with Amanda Watson

In today’s episode I am chatting with author and lecturer Amanda Watson. I seriously loved this conversation. Her book The Juggling Mother: Coming Undone in the Age of Anxiety was recently released, and it is all about the social expectation that women, particularly as they have children, must juggle an unfair share of paid and unpaid work. In Amanda’s words, “I had been researching how working moms are represented in media when I became pregnant and hit the job market. That’s when the subject matter hit me on another level. I had to admit that as I wrote critically about how motherhood and work are represented across media, I felt myself secretly want to be her: the beautiful, fit, wealthy, working mom who juggles to perfection. That tension is where this book begins.”

Amanda shares her research on the representation of motherhood, specifically in the context that it relates to her personal experience. We chat about the importance of our kids seeing us take space for ourselves, to pursue our passions and do things that are about us, not just them. We talk about the “shoulds” and where the pressure comes from that mothers feel on a daily basis. Amanda’s research and ongoing curiosity made for an awesome conversation with so many ah-ha moments.

This is an important conversation for ALL mothers.

Amanda’s Bio:

Amanda D. Watson is a lecturer in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Simon Fraser University. Her work has been published in the International Feminist Journal of Politics, Studies in Social Justice, and Politique de l’image. For her most recent book ‘The Juggling Mother: Coming Undone in the Age of Anxiety,’ Amanda did extensive research examining how mothers are represented in popular media as skillfully juggling paid and unpaid labour while smiling through obvious chaos – brought on by nuclear-family arrangements, social pressures to pursue best practices in parenting, and unsustainable economic and environmental futures. She teaches courses on the culture of capitalism, power and conflict in Canadian society, and the politics of family. Amanda lives in East Vancouver with her partner, kids and dogs.

Connect with Amanda:

https://www.amandadwatson.com/

Get Amanda’s book here, or call your local bookstore and ask them to order The Juggling Mother: Coming Undone in the Age of Anxiety

https://www.instagram.com/spindrwatson/

Hey mama! If you’re enjoying the Mom Camp: Around the Campfire podcast, please subscribe, review and share!