No Filter

When Michelle Burgess’ young son Leo became unwell while their family was on holiday in Tasmania, it initially seemed like a virus — something that would pass with rest and time. But within days, Leo lost the ability to move his body, was transferred between hospitals across two states, and was eventually placed into an induced coma while doctors tried to understand what was happening.
Leo was later diagnosed with GFAP astrocytopathy — an extremely rare autoimmune neurological condition that causes inflammation in the brain and spinal cord. What followed was months in hospital, intensive treatment, and the beginning of a recovery that is still ongoing.
In this deeply personal conversation, Michelle takes Kate Langbroek inside the terrifying early days of Leo’s illness — from the moment she realised something was wrong, to the long weeks spent sitting beside his hospital bed in intensive care, unsure whether he would survive. She shares what it means to advocate for your child when there are no clear answers, how she coped with fear and exhaustion, and the extraordinary resilience Leo showed as he slowly began to recover.
It’s an experience Kate understands in a profoundly personal way. When her eldest son was a child, he was diagnosed with leukaemia — an illness he survived — and she recognises the unique fear that comes when a parent is forced to watch their child fight for their life.
This episode is about motherhood, uncertainty, and the kind of love that refuses to give up — even when the future is impossible to imagine.
Michelle and Leo are sharing their story in support of the Starlight Super Swim which aims to raise $4.3 million to bring happiness to more than 110,000 sick kids in hospital. You can donate via superswim.au/NoFilter
If you find yourself needing to talk to someone after listening to this episode please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.
CREDITS:
Guest: Michelle Burgess
Host: Kate Langbroek
Group Executive Producer: Naima Brown
Executive Producer: Bree Player
Audio Producer: Jacob Round
Video Producer: Josh Green
Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What is life really like inside one of the most famous in American pop culture?
In this episode of No Filter, Kate Langbroek sits down with Faith Ward, an Australian–New Zealand dancer who went from thinking an unexpected message was a scam to becoming a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders.
Faith takes us behind the uniform to talk candidly about what it actually takes to make it — and stay — inside the world’s most recognisable cheer squad. From the brutal audition process and constant scrutiny, to discipline, image control, and the realities of pay, Faith shares what the public rarely sees.
We talk ponytails, pressure, pay rises, and perfection — the details that reveal how much is demanded of the women who wear the uniform, and what it costs to belong to such a powerful global brand.
This is a behind-the-curtain conversation about ambition, sacrifice, identity and what happens when the glamour meets the reality.
CREDITS:
Guest: Faith Ward
Host: Kate Langbroek
Group Executive Producer: Naima Brown
Executive Producer: Bree Player
Additional Production: Coco Lavigne

Audio Producer: Jacob Round
Video Producer: Josh Green
Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For more than a decade, Kate Seselja lived a double life.
Outwardly, she was a well-spoken suburban mum raising six children. Privately, she was trapped in a devastating poker machine addiction that would cost her more than $500,000, push her family into overwhelming debt, and bring her to the brink of suicide.
In this deeply confronting episode, Kate takes us back to the years when gambling consumed her life — the highs of winning, the crushing shame of losing, the secrecy, and the relentless hope that the next spin would fix everything. She reflects on how poker machines are designed to hijack the brain, why addiction thrives in silence, and how stigma keeps people trapped for far too long.
Kate also speaks candidly about her rock-bottom moment while pregnant with her sixth child, what stopped her from ending her life, and the long road to recovery that followed. Now an advocate and founder of The Hope Project, she dedicates her life to helping others understand gambling harm as a public health issue and not a personal failure.
This episode is a powerful reminder that gambling addiction doesn’t look the way we expect it to and that it can happen to anyone.
If this episode brings up anything for you, support is available. You can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.
Kate Seselja, along with at GHLEE (Gambling Harm Lived Experience Experts) are calling for each state and territory to enforce loss limits on poker machines of $100 per day, $500 per month, and $5000 per year. This simple act will literally save lives. You can find out more information and sign their petition here.
CREDITS:
Guest: Kate Seselja
Host: Kate Langbroek
Group Executive Producer: Naima Brown
Executive Producer: Bree Player
Audio Producer: Jacob Round
Video Producer: Josh Green
Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Angie Kent first joined No Filter back in 2019, she was fresh off The Bachelorette, newly in love, and stepping into a very public chapter of her life. A lot has changed since then.
In this episode, Angie returns with Kate Langbroek for an honest, deeply reflective conversation about what it means to choose a life that feels right, even when it doesn’t look the way you once imagined.
Angie opens up about her decision to become a solo mum by choice, sharing her IVF journey, the public reaction (both supportive and critical), and the internal certainty that led her here. She reflects on her search for love, the pressure women still face around partnership and timelines, and why companionship now matters more than financial stability, especially when so many women are finding men aren’t meeting them where they are.
This is a conversation about autonomy, motherhood, healing, and unlearning the scripts we’re handed. About trusting your instincts. About choosing yourself. And about what it really means to say, “I am the right person.”
THE END BITS:
Listen to more No Filter interviews here and follow us on Instagram here.
Discover more Mamamia podcasts here.
Feedback: [email protected]
Share your story, feedback, or dilemma! Send us a voice message, and one of our Podcast Producers will get back to you ASAP.
Rate or review us on Apple by clicking on the three dots in the top right-hand corner, click Go To Show then scroll down to the bottom of the page, click on the stars at the bottom and write a review.
CREDITS:
Guest: Angie Kent
Host: Kate Langbroek
Group Executive Producer: Naima Brown
Executive Producer: Bree Player
Audio Producer: Jacob Round
Video Producer: Josh Green
Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jonathan Van Ness is one of the most recognisable and beloved figures in pop culture today - but in this conversation, they open up about the chapters of their life few people truly understand.
Jonathan speaks candidly about addiction, relapse, sex addiction, and living with HIV, including the moment they realised contracting HIV ultimately saved their life by forcing them to confront a dangerous relationship with meth. With extraordinary honesty, Jonathan reflects on survival, recovery, shame, joy, and what it really means to heal.
We also talk about identity, coming out as non-binary, people-pleasing, impulse behaviour, and why healing isn’t a destination — it’s a lifelong practice. Alongside the heavy moments, Jonathan brings humour, warmth and deep compassion, sharing how movement, group fitness, love, and chosen family helped them rebuild a life they want to stay in.
This is a powerful, vulnerable and deeply human conversation about staying alive, finding joy after trauma, and learning how to come home to yourself.
For information about Jonathan's upcoming Hot and Healed Tour head here.
THE END BITS:
Listen to more No Filter interviews here and follow us on Instagram here.
Discover more Mamamia podcasts here.
Feedback: [email protected]
Share your story, feedback, or dilemma! Send us a voice message, and one of our Podcast Producers will get back to you ASAP.
Rate or review us on Apple by clicking on the three dots in the top right-hand corner, click Go To Show then scroll down to the bottom of the page, click on the stars at the bottom and write a review.
We’re giving away a Your Reformer Pilates bed (worth $3,400) Subscribe to enter.
CREDITS:
Guest: Jonathan Van Ness
Host: Naima Brown
Executive Producer: Bree Player
Audio Producer: Tina Matalov
Video Producer: Josh Green
Recorded with Session in Progress studios.
Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.