S5:E24 - Kaitlynn & Sully

Nine People, One Tiny Town, and the Boy Who Brought the House Back to Life

Kaitlynn was never much of a dater. In her early 20s, her mum — who, as mums do, knew her best — floated the idea of going it alone. It took another six or seven years of on-and-off conversation before Kaitlynn, now 29 and living in a four-generation household in remote Tasmania, finally sat down and started putting the pieces together.

When we first spoke to Kaitlynn, she was weeks out from her first fertility appointment — bloods done, paperwork filed, donor shortlisted, waiting on cycle day one. Her closest clinic was a four-hour drive from home; Hobart, where her specialist was based, was seven. She'd chosen her donor through Fertility Tasmania using the Seattle Sperm Bank, picking an ID release donor with a clean health history and an artistic, musical background she hoped her future child would inherit. She funded the whole process through an early release of her superannuation.

Two and a half years later, we caught up again. Kaitlynn fell pregnant on her first IUI. She developed gestational diabetes at 30 weeks, managed it through diet, and navigated a flare-up of pre-existing mental health struggles during pregnancy with her family close by. At her 20-week scan, doctors flagged a suspected clubfoot — confirmed at birth. Sully went into his first cast at three weeks old, had a small surgery to release his Achilles tendon at around three months, and has been in boots and a bar ever since, now down to overnight wear only. Kaitlynn talks openly about handing her newborn over to a surgeon, about the four-hour round trips for treatment from a town of 35 people, and about how becoming Sully's mum reshaped who she is — pulling her whole nine-person "village" closer in the process.

In this episode:

• Kaitlynn's mum first suggesting the solo mum path when Kaitlynn was in her early 20s, and what finally made her act on it

• Living in a four-generation household in remote Tasmania — nine people under one roof, and why "we'll just fit another one in" was the family's reaction

• The logistics of pursuing treatment four hours from the nearest clinic, seven from her specialist in Hobart

• Choosing an ID release donor through Fertility Tasmania and the Seattle Sperm Bank — health history, artistic background, and "donor roulette" with her best friend

• Falling pregnant on her first IUI, and the strange lack of surprise that comes with a fully planned conception

• Gestational diabetes at 30 weeks and a flare-up of pre-existing mental health struggles during pregnancy

• Sully's clubfoot diagnosis at the 20-week scan — weekly casts from three weeks old, a small surgery, and life in boots and a bar

• What it was like handing her newborn over to a surgeon for the first time

• Four-hour round trips to hospital from a town with a population of 35

• How becoming Sully's mum reshaped her sense of identity — and reconnected her with nieces, nephews and her nan

• Travelling internationally and to Bali with a toddler, and how she built community from hundreds of kilometres away

• Going back and forth on a second child, and what's stopping her from letting go of the last vial in storage

• What she wants to say to Sully when he's old enough to hear this episode

Key Takeaways

• Isolation doesn't rule out solo motherhood — it just means the logistics take more planning, and a good specialist will work around your geography rather than against it

• A quick, straightforward IUI is possible, even after years of thinking it all through

• Gestational diabetes and antenatal mental health flare-ups are common, not a reflection of anything you did wrong

• A medical diagnosis picked up on a routine scan doesn't have to define the story — Sully's clubfoot became "just part of what he's known," not a source of ongoing distress

• Having a wide support "village" doesn't dilute the mother-child bond — if anything, it gave Kaitlynn's whole extended family new life

• Indecision about a second child is normal, and there's no timeline you're required to resolve it on

• Distance from other solo mums doesn't mean isolation — online community and events like Bali can close that gapA brief note: this episode includes the death of Jessica's mum from cancer during Teddy's first year, and a hospital stay for Teddy shortly after. It's heavy in places — but told with real warmth, and it ends somewhere good.

This episode is brought to you by City Fertility

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