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Leah McLaren
Latest from Leah McLaren
Parenting
I shouldn’t compare my kid to others but his BFF is a freakin’ genius
This kid reads Harry Potter novels every night. Mine snacks on crayons and can't repeat a simple pattern in a game of Simon.
4 minutes
Postpartum care
We shouldn’t have to live with 'broken vaginas'
Many women choose to live with the discomfort of birth injury because they’re embarrassed to seek help or their concerns are brushed off. That isn't right.
4 minutes
Family life
What happened when my older kid asked me if I love him or his brother more
As a kid, Leah McLaren believed she was the favourite child—and says she's better off for it. But now that she's a parent, things look slightly different.
5 minutes
Family
Does parenting even matter?
We put so much energy into moulding our kids into happy, successful adults. But what makes more of a difference—nature or nurture?
12 minutes
Parenting
Is this the secret to finally being a happier parent?
Skeptical but open-minded, writer Leah McLaren signed up for help with the hardest job she's ever done: parenting. The results surprised her.
5 minutes
Postpartum care
Postpartum sex: Why you don't want it—and why that's OK
A baby changes everything—including, oftentimes, your interest in sex. Still, the goal isn't to get the "old you" back. It's to figure out who you are now.
10 minutes
Parenting
I ditched the baby gate and let my kid eat dirt—and I was a better mom for it
There’s a reason why experienced parents seem more relaxed: They’ve learned what you really need to worry about and what you don't.
5 minutes
Opinion
All I want for Christmas is to not be in charge of Christmas
I’ve had enough of doing all the shopping, wrapping, decorating and prepping. This year, all I want for Christmas is to be a guest at my own celebration.
4 minutes
Opinion
The latest parenting hack is to outsource the hardest parts
If you’ve got the cash, almost every brain-breaking parental quagmire can be solved by outsourcing to an expert. And to that I say: Why not?
5 minutes
Opinion
Why are new parents still so obsessed with gender?
From throwing gender-reveal parties to buying gendered clothes and toys, new parents are way too attached to the gender binary, says Leah McLaren.
6 minutes
Opinion
My kids are never allowed alone in a room with a man
I'm aware that my rule isn't fair to the vast majority of men. But my duty to protect my kids trumps my duty as a feminist to treat men and women equally.
6 minutes
Parenting
The worst age to have kids in terms of your career
When women have kids during these years, they are most affected by the wage gap. So here it is, the worst age to have kids.
5 minutes
Parenting
The joke about overprotective dads isn't funny
Dads who love and respect their daughters need to stop making jokes like this.
3 minutes
Postpartum care
The excruciating loneliness of being a new mother
After I had my first son, I didn’t just feel different; it was like a grenade had been detonated, deep in the command central of my life.
5 minutes
Family life
If we want to see gender equality, then we need more dads like Tim
We can talk about the need for gender equality until we’re blue in the face. To see real change, we might need an economic incentive.
4 minutes
Kids health
The Difficult Decision to Medicate ADHD or Not
As big decisions go, how to treat a child diagnosed with ADHD is an exceptionally hard one. And many parents agonize over whether to medicate or not.
5 minutes
Family life
The Perfect Nanny is every working mother’s nightmare
This bestselling novel slices into our worst fears and exploits the guilt of working mothers. It’s painful to read—and yet I couldn’t put it down.
4 minutes
Kids health
When my five-year-old son started to cry, I wanted to jump for joy
As parents, we often encourage our boys to “toughen up” without even knowing we are doing so. But recent research says “emodiversity” is important.
6 minutes
Giving birth
The worst place on earth to give birth
Only five Canadian babies out of a thousand will die before their first birthday—in Tanzania, the same number is 51.
8 minutes
Opinion
The creepiest thing about Stranger Things
It’s not the bizarre disappearances or paranormal activity; it’s the way child actors are being treated as sex objects.
4 minutes
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