Not Losing Yourself in Motherhood: Dylan Dreyer & Amanda Hirsch | The Parent Chat

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0 April 23, 2026 07:00

Dylan Dreyer sits down with Amanda Hirsch — host of the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast and mom of two boys — for a conversation about the fear nobody warned you about before becoming a mom. Not the diaper fear, the "what if I lose myself entirely and only care about snack schedules forever" fear. Amanda gets honest about how she nearly talked herself out of motherhood, the checklist she made before taking the leap, and what actually happened to her career once she had kids. Plus: parenting confessions, spicy takes, and a deeply spiritual conversation about why kids need water the second you try to leave their room.

You know her as TODAY’s candid third hour host. But Dylan Dreyer is also a mom of 3 boys, trying to figure out the big stuff: how to raise kind, confident, resilient kids and keep her sanity along the way. And like every parent, sometimes she needs…HELP! On The Parent Chat, Dylan calls in reinforcements — from parenting experts with big advice to fellow working moms that can help all parents feel less alone. Because parenting doesn’t come with a manual, but it can come with a group chat.

0:00 Introduction: The Fear of Becoming a Mom
1:23 Meet Amanda Hirsch
2:01 Surviving a Rough Night with a Toddler
3:00 Co-sleeping: Why Amanda’s Not Stressed About It
4:16 Would You Have a Third? The Suburb Debate
8:16 "I Never Really Liked Other People’s Kids"
9:23 The Checklist Amanda Made Before Having a Baby
10:36 Where Amanda Was in Her Career When She Got Pregnant
12:00 How Having a Baby Actually Launched Her Business
13:24 "You Can Be a Mom and Still Be You"
15:15 Living a Double Life: Work Mode vs. Mom Mode
16:38 Watching Wild Reality TV While the Kids Are Asleep 😂
18:16 What Amanda Wished She’d Known Before Becoming a Mom
19:00 Traveling with Kids: The Vacation She Regretted
22:00 "You Make Me Not Scared to Be a Mom"
23:50 The School Anxiety Trap (And How to Avoid It)
26:43 Parenting Confessions: Hiding in the Bathroom
27:33 Controversial Parenting Takes
29:24 What Makes Amanda Feel Like She’s Crushing It as a Mom
30:30 Takeaways + Call to Action