I’m talking to Andrew and it’s 10pm for me in Osaka and 9am for him in the US…



We begin talking about the two words which he uses to describe his personal journey - ‘filling’ and ‘grateful’.



Andrew has a unique and lovely way with words which I could never do, we talk about his life as dad which is so special.



For the last 7 years as caretaker for his youngest, Hadley, it is hard to imagine sometimes how bloody hard it must be, but like most dads, he steps up to the plate, like I did and like most dads do when we have a child with extra needs.



Does that come at a mental and physical cost? Maybe it does, for me it has.



That’s when Andrew shares that in the last week he cried in the car on his own,, while listening to music LOUD, and while it was not planned (never is) it is most needed and allowed him to give himself some self love and self compassion, resulting in him to be able to do what he does all over again., hoping that the sun will always come up the next day.





THIS IS A REAL UNFILTERED DAD JOURNEY.

If you would like to share yours, please get in touch on realufdjpodcast@gmail.com



S4E4- Andrew with 3 very uniquely different kids , 1 who needs total care.

I have known Steve for over 16 years and in this episode he shares some really personal experiences. We discuss a very wide range of issues related to being dad which encompasses how he exposes his kids to as much as he can…. One word - bees! We both discuss how to broach the topic of sex education with our kids and how to engage with them about the changes they experience, after all we both never had that talk from our dads. We both get emotional after talking about if we do get emotional enough and he shares the darkest point in his life- losing his wife while fighting cancer. This is a real and honest conversation and I am so honored as I always am to be able to share his story. Thank you Steve and you are more than enough in my eyes.

2. Steve Coyle- a road less traveled by many. 

This episode I go down-under and talk Rod, who is originally from Brazil, but now lives happily in Australia with his family of 3 including his wife. We have known each other for over 20 years and we reconnected recently, he was keen to share his dad journey. Throughout this episode Rod talks openly regarding his dad journey through the good, the bad and the ugly. As with all these conservations I have over 10 questions which I randomly pull out, and each dad has a go at being as honest and real as he can be answering them. Rod doesn’t shy away from this and so I hope you will get comfortable because this is Rod on Real Unfiltered Dad Journeys.

1. Rod- Providing what is needed, not what is wanted while sacrificing for the greater good. 

It’s been a few months since I put out an episode because I have not been in a headspace which I think warrants one. Tonight I decided to have a bash and see what came out… it’s just me

Being real… it starts with myself. 

Stuart is a father to 3 kids, 2 are identical twins and the 3rd is the eldest, all are girls. I have know Stuart for about 20 years and what he shares here is just amazing. He talks about his journey of becoming dad and how his own dad modeled so much for him. He lost his dad before he became one himself but he has, and still is doing his best. He is also a great storyteller and a book of knowledge which I was always envious of. Join me dive into Stuarts unfiltered dad journey which began in his mid 30’s and sit back and relax. If you would like to share your journey please do get in touch @ realufdjpodcast@gmail.com

Stuart Mundy -unfiltered 

This is Travis Dales and he shares his dad journey for the first time on a podcast, my podcast! He became a stepdad in 2009 to his wife’s son and found slipping into those stepdad shoes easier than some by becoming his friend first. He and Damen are like best friends and tells me how special it is and how that looks. Three years ago things got really interesting. Jennifer (his amazing wife) had their first biological child together named Riley. It was a surprise, however it was a blessed one. Riley was born with downsyndrome (trisomy 21) and that brought a few medical complications. Those were a challenge for Travis mentally and he opens up sharing his real unfiltered experiences about how he realized he needed help. This is a beautiful and real chat and I hope you enjoy listening as much as I did. Thank you to Travis for your time and let’s keep the conversations going.

Travis Dales - unfiltered 

It’s been a journey for me AGAIN since august and here is the goss. I can do this, and I’m feeling like things are different.

NEW NAME…NEW FORMAT… updated dad! 

Jill Rabin and I have been in contact since January 2023, when Chris a big supporter of Jill was on the show in January, and then Edwin another dad who also spoke highly of Jill. Without these dads, I would have not been able to have this beautiful and real chat with Jill who harbors over 35 years of experience with kids and has seen so much from the other side of the table. She has seen massive shifts in how dads are now much more involved compared to even just 5 years ago and recently COVID played a role in how dads got more involved because of the working from home situation. We discus early intervention and how she views the importance of it and what it really means for the downsyndrome child in it. Jill and I discuss how it also benefits dads and mums alike creating space for parents to meet other who are in a similar world, a space for dads to see and meet other dads which we need, but struggle to capitalize on for various reasons. Jill is amazing and she managed to co-write a book with Gill Rapley which is a must read, it is all about how your baby can self feed and how to make it happen- you can check out the book here- https://theexperimentpublishing.com/catalogs/fall-2022/your-baby-can-self-feed-too/ *****No matter what challenges they face, your baby can self-feed, too!***** “One in four children has feeding challenges and difficulty eating. If your child is one of them, mealtimes may be a struggle. Whether the reason is neurodiversity (such as Down syndrome), feeding aversion, or a medical condition, feeding therapist Jill Rabin and baby-led weaning pioneer Gill Rapley are here to help with a groundbreaking new approach for parents, caregivers, and health professionals alike: adapted baby-led weaning (ABLW).” This was my first time to have a professional on the show and it was a really new experience for me and I know that what we talk about will resonate with dads and mums out there. If you are in the Chicago areas and are looking to get some real support with your downsyndrome baby from 0-3 years old then you should definitely get in touch with her. https://jillrabin.com/ Instagram https://instagram.com/jillrabinablw?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Here are the two episodes mentioned above - Chris’s https://open.spotify.com/episode/1Eu0mGWp5vWhaSX4KRf6Xh?si=hPJFQdQCTqSOe87ZjrLdtg Edwin’s https://open.spotify.com/episode/0utakf80EVIGokNi28YXKg?si=L8HtU-QSTDOgyLJK0w05XQ

Jill Rabin- Pediatric Speech & Language Pathologist & Certified Lactation Consultant

This week so talk to Mike who is a dad of 3 lovely kids, however it was a real journey to get to having their first child Mathew due to sad losses of miscarriages. So when Matthew came along is really was a blessing like no other. At his 12 month screening it’s here where things started to look possibly different with the advice to go and see ‘early intervention’ which Mike and his wife took onboard. Mike shares real challenges that the has faced but that has not stopped him. With his miniature pancreas in his pocket due to his type 1 diabetes, he is a total fighter. As you listen you will hear how much adversity has come Mike’s way but he has made a considerable and conscious effort to be there for his family. Back in 2019 he had a heart attack on NY’s eve and that meant he had a few options, be healthier or… not. He chose the better one and as a self confessed gym rat he sacrifices sleep in the name of fitness. He wants to be around for as long as he can be and smash the google search ‘life expectancy after a heart attack’, which shocked him. Mike is a man on faith playing a real role for him in so many ways, it’s lovely to hear and that comes through with the phrase ‘life is journey not necessarily to a destination, but to a transformation’ that gave me the warm fuzzies. When asked if he would be able to share the theme song for his journey as dad, he comes up with Pearl Jam ‘black’ and ‘alive’ which are stunning tracks. They are both here on the dads playlist. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7aJWmiz39MKFXhfBHc7HW8?si=92D2cZZnSm6bUNxNimqlNg

Mike’s journey as dad, 8 years in with Autism and Apraxia 

Where do I begin to write about what this episode is about because there is so much awesomeness in this episode with Brady. At 29 he became a dad to Nash. He shares vivid memories about how he cried while telling his rockstar wife that Nash had downsyndrome while at her bedside. He is so open about how he can see it was a traumatic experience but he is determined to not let that stop Nash or any of the other 6 kids from singing their song. Yep, that’s right he’s a dad to 7 kids, 4 biological and 3 adopted. One of those 3 is Cooper, who was abandoned on a street corner in China because he had downsyndrome, when he was about 4 months old. Brady and his wife set up a NPO called Rods HEROES (Racing for orphans with Downsyndrome) and adopted Cooper. Brady shares so much beautiful advice and wisdom and I’m left almost speechless with how deep and real he gets. As a dad he knows it’s hard after receiving a diagnosis because it changes what you thought was going to happen. He shares mind blowing wisdom, that we need ‘to learn to serve the pain that we know best’. He describes how he does that while trying to ‘keep the bus out of the ditch’ and applying ‘Rule No6’ don’t take life too seriously! Giving ourselves grace and laughing will help us allow our kids to sing the songs they are meant to sing unleashing their potential. He shares how he caught himself unintentionally, holding Nash back because he was trying to protect himself and Nash by being an overprotective parent. When asked what his theme song would be if a movie was made about his journey as a special needs dad, he has no hesitation- ‘Don’t stop believin’ by Journey which is in the playlist. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7aJWmiz39MKFXhfBHc7HW8?si=89klhJFhRLi1UVhGIAOE1Q If that is not enough then try this, he and his wife are adopting 4 more children from Columbia later this year so he will be a dad of 11! If you are inspired to adopt please so check out… https://rods.org https://instagram.com/bradymurray21?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

 Brady’s journey as dad 16 years and 11 years in with downsyndrome. 

Dads who are the caregiver of their kids which have special needs or disabilities have a unique perspective of how we face the challenges. This is a safe space to hear those journeys. Send me a message! https://anchor.fm/lifewithjamieandmoreinjapan/message All podcast are on YouTube https://youtube.com/channel/UCgsUEiVd5iK78plbu0kQs9g

Life with Jamie and more.