From dispelling myths about motherhood and revealing the postnatal stress on mother and father, to sharing the sanctity of self-care, bestselling creator, podcaster, and actress Giovanna Fletcher has been a comforting voice of assist for years. And now she’s embarking on a brand new problem, following her passions and discovering herself centre stage…
Since Giovanna Fletcher launched her hit podcast, ‘Happy Mum, Happy Baby’, a wealth of movie star company, from the Princess of Wales to Fearne Cotton, have joined her for openhearted and fearlessly frank conversations about parenthood.
Based on her bestselling e-book of the identical title, the podcast, which boasts greater than 20 million downloads, goals, says Giovanna, to assist new mums “feel better about themselves” – one thing made potential by her personal pure heat and openness about her expertise of elevating her sons Buzz, 8, Buddy, 6, and Max, 4.
And Giovanna has no plans to take a breather from podcasting, as a result of she understands that for some girls, her assist may imply the distinction between life and demise.
“The leading cause of death in new mums within the first postnatal year is suicide,” says Giovanna. “Well, let’s have these chats, let’s get individuals speaking so that they know they’re not on their very own, let’s be that hand in the dead of night for individuals once they really feel like they aren’t valued and never sufficient, as a result of they completely are sufficient.
“The more that we can dispel the myth that there’s a right way to do motherhood and that you can fail in it, the better.”
Speaking from her new house in Hertfordshire, in opposition to a backdrop of framed footage together with one, which reads ‘Yo Mama You’ve Got This’, Giovanna makes no secret of the truth that, at instances, juggling a busy, evolving profession and elevating her boys along with her McFly musician associate, Tom Fletcher, can really feel overwhelming, however she says organisation is her key to “self-care” as a result of it avoids her “flapping” round within the morning. Vitally, she accepts that occasional errors are par for the course.
“Angela Scanlon once told me that we’ve all got balls flying in the air. Some are glass, and some are plastic. We have to keep the glass balls in the air because they’re precious – that’s family – but we have to allow the plastic balls to drop every now and then,” says Giovanna.
“I’ll let the class WhatsApp slide for a week and then have an ‘Oh my gosh, what’s going on? What have I forgotten? Sorry kids!’ moment.”
Numerous research present that in heterosexual relationships, girls are chargeable for the lion’s share of childcare and housekeeping, and carry out much more cognitive and emotional labour than males. Research from Arizona State University additionally reveals that nearly 90% of moms in dedicated partnerships say this accountability leaves them feeling overwhelmed, exhausted, and unable to create space for self-care.
“Hand over some of that responsibility, and know it’s OK if [your partner] does it in a different way to you,” advises Giovanna. “If we can not be so precious about getting it all done, it alleviates that weight on us. A problem is only your problem if you don’t share it. Being a mum and running the house, you have to vocalise what you need, otherwise you’re just stomping around and resenting everything. You don’t have to live like that.”
With Max now in class, and all the youngsters operating busy schedules – “They’re out at 8am, they come back at 4pm or 5pm, depending if they’ve got an after-school club” – Giovanna has acquired extra stability, and now works extra concentrated daytime hours, quite than logging on after the youngsters’ bedtime.
“I am really keen on boundaries now,” she says, explaining how a lockdown-born Lego passion (“I’m currently building a Disney castle”) is now her most well-liked solution to spend a night.
“Lockdown showed us that we have to make time for things that help our minds, and when I’m doing Lego, I can’t really take in anything else. There’s something about building something, seeing how it fits together and works, and you don’t have to think because a manual tells you exactly what to do.”
Reward in equal measure comes from utilising the performing abilities she honed at London’s Sylvia Young Theatre School, the place she met Tom on the age of 13 (and the place he proposed amidst a carpet of candles in 2011), then south London’s Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance.
Giovanna, who grew up in Ingatestone, Essex, appeared alongside Marcus Brigstocke in 2001 TV drama The Savages, and was forged within the 2009 movie The Boat That Rocked. Then, final January, after 5 years off stage, she was the lead in 2:22, a supernatural thriller play within the West End. From this month till mid April, Giovanna is on the earth premiere stage adaptation of Wish You Were Dead, primarily based on the novel by bestselling British crime author Peter James.
“It’s lovely to be using those skills in the way that I originally planned. I love the live aspect of theatre. Anything can happen, no two nights are the same,” she says.
And showing up shut and private earlier than a dwell viewers conjures up a way of vulnerability.
“I feel sick every night before I go on stage, but I think that’s good. It’s healthy. It would be more worrying if that wasn’t there. I feel nervous before every podcast recording, before everything I do, because I just want everything to go well.”
As effectively as taking inventory of the recommendation she offers her boys every time one feels anxious – “See nerves as excitement, try to channel it and rebrand it” – Giovanna makes use of varied peace-enhancing rituals to calm her throughout instances of emotional unease, together with utilizing “a little bit of Rescue Remedy”, doing vocal heat ups, and listening to music by rock band The xx.
Just like 2:22, the grownup nature of Wish You Were Dead means it’s, explains Giovanna, “another thing the boys won’t be able to come and see mummy do”, and through her 10-week leg of the present’s five-month UK tour she additionally gained’t be doing college drop-off and pick-up on daily basis, as a result of “that’s the reality of theatre”.
Still, she will get consolation from understanding her youngsters perceive she is “off doing the things that I love”, which additionally applies to visiting far-flung locations to embark on gruelling challenges as patron for breast most cancers consciousness charity CoppaFeel!
In November, Giovanna returned from a 100km trek throughout the Sahara Desert alongside 100 CoppaFeel! supporters and celebrities, together with her pal Kelsey Parker, whose husband, The Wanted star Tom, died 10 months in the past following an 18-month battle with mind most cancers.
“When you’re doing an activity and talking, barriers come down,” says Giovanna. “Whether you’re strolling with individuals who have had a breast most cancers analysis, who’re mid-treatment, or haven’t any connection to breast most cancers in any respect. I really feel so privileged to get every week to stroll and discuss. It’s an amazing type of remedy.
“Grief is still a taboo in this country, and one thing Kelsey really loved about the treks was being able to have those conversations with people within the cancer community, and not feel people are treading on eggshells.”
This yr, Giovanna is embarking on two extra challenges, releasing one other e-book, throwing her all into her new stage function, and dealing onerous at her largest job of all – being mum. Might there be room for yet one more at Fletcher HQ?
Giovanna smiles. “I feel so grateful to have our three children, and my heart is full. But I think the shop is shut!”
‘Wish You Were Dead’ is touring throughout the UK from 16 February till 29 July. For tickets and venues go to peterjames.com
Photography | Rachell Smith