Parenting and Personalities

This is an episode originally published in November 2024. It is one of my most popular. 

Are you tired of living with your adult kids? The phenomenon of adult children living at home with their parents has become increasingly common, leaving many to wonder: is this the new normal?

Kate looks at the realities of adults living with their parents, whether due to economic challenges or shifting cultural norms. 

Joined by life coach Jeanin...

Is Christmas your calm or your chaos? 

Kate Mason welcomes returning couple therapists Helen and Shahn to unpack why the festive season so often becomes a pressure cooker and how couples can reclaim it with clarity and compassion. 

They share their own blended-family reset, choosing Christmas morning at home to create sleep, sanity, and new traditions.

From end-of-year exhaustion to old family roles that snap back under one roof, they...

Is your partner your teammate… or just your roommate? 

Kate Mason dives deep into why so many loving couples start to feel emotionally disconnected—not because of conflict, but because of neglect. 

With warmth and insight, Kate introduces the "Five-Minute Personality Check-In," a powerful weekly ritual that helps couples realign, reconnect, and stay curious about each other, even when life gets chaotic. 

She explores how our...

What if your health isn’t something you do, but something you are? 
 

Kate Mason sits down with wellness journalist and author Casey Beros to trace her path from a Perth uni student obsessed with health reporting to on-air roles with ABC’s evidence-based program Tonic and a dream daily TV gig that was axed 35 episodes in—followed by a grief-soaked reset that clarified her true mission. 

Casey shares how building Paper Tiger healt...

Are we expressing more than we’re actually coping? 

Kate Mason poses three big, bold questions to five insightful guests—Cat, Cassie, Jack, Maryann, and Tracy. 

Together, they explore what today’s kids are most missing: is it freedom, discipline, or connection? 

They unpack whether our personality or our experiences shape us more deeply, and whether the current culture of emotional openness is fostering resilience or just performance....

Ever wondered if siblings raised by the same parents actually grow up in completely different families?

Kate Mason sits down with author, veteran, and filmmaker Pamela Vines to explore how sibling dynamics, birth order, and evolving parenting styles shape who we become. 

Through heartfelt storytelling and humorous reflection, Pam shares how she and her two sisters (each born in a different decade) experienced three radically differen...

What if love, loss, and legacy could all live between the pages of a book? 

Kate Mason sits down with journalist and author Casey Beros to explore the raw, real, and deeply human story behind her book The Next of Kin. 

Casey shares how she left a thriving life and career in Sydney to return home to Perth and care for her terminally ill father during the height of COVID-19. 

Together, they discuss the power of advocacy, the complexitie...

Ever tried renovating a house with someone whose decision-making style feels like it’s from another planet? 

In this hilariously honest episode of Parenting and Personalities, Kate Mason dives into the chaos, comedy, and clashing temperaments that come with navigating a home renovation and retirement… at the same time. 

With her husband Paul newly retired and suddenly hyper-involved in what was supposed to be her renovation project, ...

What happens when a seasoned parent meets their grandchild for the first time—and realizes that parenting doesn’t come with a manual, even the second time around?

Kate Mason shares a raw, heartfelt, and often humorous reflection on her first four weeks as a brand-new grandparent. 

From revisiting the sleep-deprived fog of early parenthood to navigating the emotional nuances of supporting her daughter without overstepping, Kate offers...

Ever feel like you're speaking a different language from your coworkers—and no one's brought a translator?

Kate Mason sits down once again with emotional intelligence expert Amy Jacobson to unpack the real reason workplace tension exists: we expect others to be just like us. 

Amy brings powerful insights into how emotional intelligence (EQ) transforms not only team dynamics but leadership, conflict resolution, and job satis...

What if the biggest parenting hack isn’t about your kids at all, but about you?

Kate Mason sits down with emotional intelligence expert Amy Jacobson to unravel the real power behind EQ in parenting, partnerships, and daily interactions. 

Amy shares how understanding and managing our own emotions not only changes the way we parent, but quietly teaches those around us, especially our children, how to do the same. 

From navigating emotio...

What if anxiety isn't a problem, but a portal? 

Kate Mason is joined once again by clinical hypnotherapist Jake Yanitz Rubin to explore the transformational power of anxiety, trauma, and awakening. 

With profound clarity and heart, Jake unpacks how generational trauma shapes our parenting, why anxiety is just energy, not a disorder, and how intentional awareness can break deep cycles. 

Together, they explore everything from the p...

Is AI making us smarter—or just lazy? 

Kate Mason is joined by tech powerhouse Tracy Sheen to unravel the truth behind our AI anxiety. 

From soldering wires as a kid in the '70s to launching the iPhone in Australia, Tracy shares her compelling journey and why she believes AI could be the greatest tool for creativity, learning, and even neurodiverse empowerment—if we use it right. 

With humor, clarity, and real-world advice, they ...

Is your teen driving you up the wall—or just growing up? 

Kate Mason sits down with Dr. Jari Evertsz, a clinical psychologist with over 20 years’ experience, to tackle the rollercoaster of raising teenagers. 

From the impact of peer pressure and social media to why your formerly snuggly preteen now grunts from behind a closed bedroom door, this episode is a lifeline for parents navigating the teen years. 

Dr Evertsz offers calm, groun...

This episode was first published in May 2023.

More than 40 counties and territories around the world have banned the physical punishment of children. New Zealand is on the list, but not Australia. Less than 10% of children under the age of five are living in countries where corporal punishment at home is fully prohibited.

For years, different studies have indicated smacking or spanking is linked with an increased risk of negative out...

Is protecting our kids from failure actually making them weaker? 

Kate Mason welcomes resilience expert and former SAS officer Tim Curtis to explore the roots of rising anxiety in children and young adults. 

They dive into how societal changes, overprotective parenting, and lack of free play are quietly eroding resilience—and what we can do about it. 

Tim and Kate unpack how modeling emotional regulation, allowing safe failure, and en...

Ever feel like motherhood is breaking you instead of building you? 

Kate Mason sits down with Irin Rubin, the inspiring creator of the MamaZen app and author of The MamaZen Parenting Method, for a powerful conversation on the emotional and mental toll of early motherhood. 

Irin shares her deeply personal journey through the fog of postpartum struggles—not depression or anxiety, but a gnawing sense of not being herself anymore. 

Irin e...

Are you really arguing over the dishes — or is it something deeper? 

Kate Mason dives into the hidden personality clashes that sabotage relationships, from the introvert-extrovert tug-of-war to the planner-vs-spontaneous showdown. 

Using real-life examples (including her own 34-year marriage), Kate unpacks how the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) reveals why we misunderstand, frustrate, and sometimes hilariously annoy our partners ...

What’s the metaphorical hill you’d die on — and is it helping or hurting your relationships? 

Kate Mason reunites with Enneagram expert Jackie Contessa to unpack the “nine Enneagram hills” we fiercely defend in life, love, and parenting. 

They explore how understanding these deep-seated motivations can help us break patterns, improve communication, and parent more consciously. 

Whether you’re a perfectionist, a helper, a challenger, o...