The Great Equalizer

Being around award-winning author Refiloe Moahloli is an immersive experience — one rooted in curiosity, childlike wonder, and deep respect for young people as whole and autonomous humans. In this episode of The Great Equalizer, we welcome back one of South Africa’s most beloved children’s book authors to chat about what it means to write from the inside out.

Refiloe reflects on a transformative season of personal healing, creative renewal and gratitude. This is the season that shaped her latest book, How Many Ways Can You Say Thank You?, which is the third instalment in her celebrated trilogy (including How Many Ways Can You Say Hello? and How Many Ways Can You Say Goodbye?) which explores language, culture, connection and ubuntu. 

Refiloe chats with Sam and Charlene about: 

🖤 Honouring the inner child,
💛 Storytelling rooted in lived experience,
🖤 Raising grateful kids in an increasingly noisy world,
💛 Knowing yourself as the most radical form of validation.

We also get some insight into some other books that Refiloe's been working on, like Dance to Your Own Beat and All That I Am (a collection of South African poems and nursery rhymes). She also chats about her upcoming early readers and gives us a sneak peek into the South African YA romance she's working on.

🎧 Whether you’re a parent, writer, educator, or simply someone navigating their own healing journey, this episode will inspire you in all the ways that only Refiloe Moahloli can.

To this special guest: Thank you, dankie, ngiyabonga — and welcome back, you little firecracker 🧨

🎙️ Subscribe to TGE’s Current Read for more conversations with today’s most exciting authors: https://youtu.be/_X4-Lm7qGKg?si=9lQ5Y_YqbQWPlgox
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On this episode of The Great Equalizer, hosts Sam and Charlene sit down with bestselling author Katherine Faulkner: journalist-turned-novelist and the mind behind Greenwich Park, The Other Mothers, and her latest psychological thriller, The Break In.

After a decade as an investigative journalist and editor, Katherine has become one of the sharpest voices in modern domestic suspense – a master at throwing “ordinary women into extraordinary, what-would-you-do situations” (as deftly put by author Abigail Dean).

In this episode, we chat about:

🖤 Katherine’s transition from newsroom to novelist life
🤍 The short story inspiration behind The Break In  
🖤 The intersection of motherhood, domesticity and danger evident in Katherine’s work
🤍 The psychology of safety, secrecy and suspense within the home
🖤 How Katherine manages to write while raising two kids (spoiler alert: with difficulty!)

About the book:
The Break In follows a London mother who kills an intruder in self-defence, only to find that nothing about the man, or her own life, is as it seems. A chilling, twist-filled exploration of guilt, privilege, and how well we really know the people closest to us.

🎙️ Subscribe to TGE’s Current Read for more conversations with today’s most exciting authors:
https://open.spotify.com/show/0t7nFSaRvJlpot09GwQtkd?si=8b5298e3c474465c
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In a world with heightened expectations on parents to perform, is “good enough” mothering really a good thing? 
 
On this episode of The Great Equalizer, we welcome Joburg-based psychoanalyst and mom of two Andy Cohen.
 
Andy talks us through parenting in the world’s current pressure cooker, giving us some insight into why people are suddenly so psychologically triggered when they become parents.
 
We chat about Andy’s new book, Parenting Psychoanalysed: Letters to a Parent, which includes letters from 39 analysts across the world, as well as a letter from Andy herself.
 
Leaning into the intersectionality of parenting and psychology, Andy tells us why she thinks parents were the world’s first psychoanalysts, also expanding on renowned paediatrician and psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott’s theory of “good enough mothering”.
 
Watered down over the years through the filters of social media, this is a concept that seems to have been misconstrued. Winnicott’s theory, however, is a golden thread that weaves its way throughout Andy’s book.
 
And so, in this insightful episode of The Great Equalizer, we unpack why it’s so crucial for mothers and fathers not to strive for perfection in parenting.
 
Join the conversation and, as always, please let us know what you think of the episode 🫶🏼
 
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Did you enjoy this episode? Then don’t miss a previous TGE interview with marriage and family therapist Bryana Kappadakunnel, founder of the Conscious Mommy community and author of Parent Yourself First (a book about raising confident, compassionate kids by becoming the parent you wish you’d had): https://youtu.be/0d176c86HSc?si=wYDVffQWiTuCppbQ

On this very special episode of The Great Equalizer, Sam and Charlene are joined LIVE by world-leading dietitian and performance nutritionist Dr Linia Patel.

With a BSc in Biochemistry and Physiology from the University of Cape Town, Dr Linia found her groove in Nutrition and Dietetics, adding to her already impressive resume a Master’s degree in Sports Nutrition and a PhD in Public Health and Epidemiology.

Born and bred in Zambia, with a home in Italy and an office in London, it was such a privilege to catch Dr Linia in Johannesburg for an intimate sit-in conversation, together with our very first live audience.

A variety of women aged 20 to 60 gathered for a great discussion, and one thing we all had in common was TIME (or a lack thereof). As a busy woman herself, Dr Linia understood the assignment, collating all her wisdom and insight on eating for wellness in womanhood. All this advice has now been published in a new book called Food for Menopause – a guide to feeding our body with the best nutrition on a time-poor budget.

Tune in to this episode to hear more about Dr Linia's dual passions for food and women’s health. Learn more about how food supports your wellbeing as a woman (especially as you age). Listen to what this expert nutritionist  has to say about protein, weight gain, calorie-restrictive diets, poor body image, and a ‘strong vs skinny’ mindset as we dive into a thriving mid-life.
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Joining hosts Sam and Charlene on this bonus episode of The Great Equalizer (originally broadcast on TGE's Current Read) is licensed marriage and family therapist – and founder of the popular Conscious Mommy community – Bryana Kappadakunnel.Bryana’s book, Parent Yourself First, gives readers a look into how your upbringing is probably impacting your parenting style in ways you don't even fully recognise: from how you manage your own emotions to how you connect with your kids in their vulnerable moments. According to Bryana, the secret to successful parenting is to unlearn the wounded patterns you grew up with and create new ways to connect with your child. As the book acknowledges, many of us did not have a perfect childhood. BUT, through intentionality and mindfulness, this powerhouse therapist and conscious parenting expert has helped many caregivers transform into the parent they were always meant to be.Bryana has condensed more than a decade's worth of knowledge into a reference book jam-packed with personal parenting stories, relatable anecdotes, and a user-friendly toolkit to mindful parenting.Join us on a wild ride of self discovery and inner child healing, which was much more emotional (in a good way!) than we anticipated.__🖤 LISTEN 💛 LIKE 🖤 SHARE 💛 SUBSCRIBEAnd tell us what you think of the episode 🫶🏽__#consciousparenting #consciousparent #parentingpodcast #innerchild #innerchildhealing #innerchildwounds #shadowwork #motherhood #parentingpodcast #booktube #parentingbooks #motherwound #consciousmommy