The 7 Best Parenting Podcasts for the First Year

Last updated on November 6th, 2023

What’s the most terrified you’ve ever been? 

If you’re anything like me, it was the day you became a new parent for the first time. After 92 hours of what could be generously described as an adventurous labor, our new bundle of joy came crashing into the world. Joy abounded, the heavens opened, and tears were shed. It was then I knew the best parenting podcasts I’d been binging were going to pay off.

And then my wife was immediately rushed off into an emergency procedure.

What had been a bustling hive of activity with more than 10 health care practitioners mere seconds before was suddenly empty. Just me and a brand new infant in a cavernous room so quiet a pin drop would deafen his new little ears. It was in that moment I realized I was completely unprepared. As I stood in that empty sterile room looking at this little person, I promised him I would never feel that unprepared again.

And so my year long journey into the world of parenting podcasts began in earnest. After all, earbuds and podcasts go hand in hand with the requisite silence of a sleeping newborn. So, dear reader, join me in looking at 5 of the best parenting podcasts every new parent should be listening to in their first year.

Lets Dive Into the Best Parenting Podcasts

This Post Brought to You By: What Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face of Motherhood

Amy and Margaret are both hilarious and both moms of three, but that’s where their similarities end. Each week “What Fresh Hell” addresses a parenting issue from their usually-opposite perspectives.

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7. Authentic Parenting

On of, if not the most, overlooked aspects of parenting is that almost no one is ready. The motto of Authentic Parenting is “Raising our Children, Growing Ourselves.” This idea that we’re perfect parents out of the gate is just silly, and can cause a lot of generational trauma. That’s why Authentic Parenting finds its way onto the list of best parenting podcasts.

Healing your own trauma and anxieties will make you a better parent. With more than 300 psychology focused episodes, this one really is a lifesaver for new parents and one of the best podcasts on parenting for good reason.

Listen on Apple Podcasts

6. The Wonder of Parenting

The best parenting podcasts or best podcasts on parenting, whichever, involve first-hand experience, sure, but they also can involve a healthy dose of science. That’s the type of podcast The Wonder of Parenting is. As its subtitle suggests, it uses brain science approaches from the wide world of brain science to give parents something of an owner’s manual on their children.

It’s a weekly podcast that is now more than 275 episodes deep. Children’s brains are constantly in a state of flux during development, so what makes this one of the best parenting podcasts you should be listening to is the sheer amount of content.

Listen on Apple Podcasts

5. Josie & Jonny Are Having A Baby (With You)

One of the scariest aspects of my wife being pregnant was just how seriously she was taking it. And how seriously everyone else was taking it. And how deadly serious all of the books seemed to be and how everyone seemed to have a pre-baby opinion. By the time the baby actually got here, I felt like I had PTSD. Try cracking a joke in birth class and see how far you get. 

Thank everything good and holy then for Josie and Jonny Are Having a Baby. With everything so heavy their irreverent take on the process (both are stand-up comics) was both refreshing and authentic. My only complaint is it was a short project, running just 10 episodes, but brevity is the soul of wit right? Listening to them stumble through many of the same issues all parents run into their first year was an enormous part of keeping my sanity.

Listen: Apple Podcast | Stitcher | Spotify

4. The Longest Shortest Time

I actually stumbled across this podcast because of a mug my mother bought for me. It was emblazoned with the slogan “The days may be long, but the years are short.” It’s something I try to remember everyday I’m spending time with my son. After listening to the podcast for a year I get the sense that host Hillary Frank feels much the same way.

This is another podcast that has wrapped up its run, but since it ran for a decade, there’s plenty of content to get new parents through that first year. Does Frank touch on every topic? No, but just about. And throughout there are stories and guests that bring unique perspectives, while at the same time, making the listener feel connected and less alone. Definitely a great late night listen.

Listen: Apple Podcast | Stitcher | Spotify

3. Zen Parenting Radio

I hate the term “guru.” It conjures up some retreat leading, motivational speaker who is more flash than substance. That’s not to say there aren’t some great motivational podcasts out there though. So when I was looking for a podcast that would help me be a more mindful parent, patient, accepting and, hopefully, understanding, I didn’t think I’d like Zen Parenting. And, I don’t know if it’s the cognitive decline that comes along with a year of sleep deprivation, but I find this podcast in my “subscribed” list.

Husband and wife hosts Cathy and Todd bring the right amount of transparency and authenticity to a mindfulness practice that can often feel either too clinical or too “new agey.” Somehow they’re able to thread the needle and make the exercises engaging. The end result is a more grounded, self-aware flavor of parenting that makes this one of the best parenting podcasts. 

Listen: Apple Podcast | Stitcher | Spotify

2. Listen… Money Matters

Money can’t buy love or happiness. Granted. But that doesn’t mean we don’t need it. One major failing on my part in the preparation department was woefully underestimating how much our little bundle of joy was going to disrupt our financial lives. Having worked in finance for a decade, I naturally assumed my planning was sufficient. I was wrong.

Not only is there another mouth to feed, clothe and house, those were debits to be expected. What I did not properly plan for was how much less time I’d have to work and earn. I didn’t expect to be losing on both sides of the ledger. 

While Listen… Money Matters isn’t, strictly speaking, a parenting podcast, it is a podcast that every parent should be listening to religiously during their first year of parenthood. If not before. They cover all topics personal finance, and often directly address money issues that bubble under the surface of a good deal of family arguments. The advice is practical and the mindset it engenders is invaluable.

Listen: Apple Podcast | Stitcher | Spotify

1. Mom and Dad Are Fighting

Slate is a media powerhouse and their parenting advice podcast “Mom and Dad are Fighting” is a superb entry to their rather robust podcast line. With ongoing weekly content MDAF is an excellent umbrella parenting entry that should cover just about any topic under the sun. And quite a few under the moon as well. Hosts Jerimiah, Rebecca, and Dan have a conversational tone that really draws you in when you’re sleep deprived and trying to be deadly silent. If it isn’t covered in one of the other podcasts I’ve touched on, chances are it will be here. Keep this one on your subscription list.

Listen: Apple Podcast | Stitcher | Spotify

The Best Podcasts on Parenting

And there we have it, the 7 best parenting podcasts for those taking the plunge in their first year. These podcasts helped keep me sane. What’s crazy is that before my first child was born, I didn’t even have a podcast app installed on my phone. I didn’t know the ocean of outstanding content I’d be dipping my toe into. These podcasts here are the five favorites that kept me sane last year, but they are by no means the only podcasts I listen to or even the only podcasts I glean parenting advice from. 

The well is deep, so check out some of our other reviews to see what you should be clicking subscribe on in the new year. And if you’ve got some favorite parenting podcasts I’m not yet listening to… please… help a brother out.