Carl Mullan opens up on dad 'guilt' as internet has 'huge role' to play

Extra.ie​

06-05-2025

Father-of-three and popular radio host Carl Mullan has taken a seat on the other side of the mic as he made a very open and honest appearance on the Baby Tribe Podcast discussing the realities and struggles of dad life.
Carl, who welcomed his third child in January with wife Aisling, delved into his own experiences with fatherhood and the challenges of balancing fame and family.
The 2FM host said there are very often unrealistic expectations placed on parents. Pic: Carl Mullan/Instagram
''I think it's really important to say out loud, because I think in general, with parenthood, there's an awful lot of expectation,' he said.
'And the internet has a huge role to play in this. There's a lot of expectation in terms of what you're told you should feel, how the experience should be, particularly for moms.'
Carl became a first-time dad during the COVID-19 pandemic when his wife Aisling gave birth to son Daibhí in August 2021. The couple then went on to welcome daughter Éala in 2023. Pic: Carl Mullan/Instagram
'If you don't feel how the internet tells you you should feel, which is this instant surge of love. A lot of guilt can come with that,' he said.
'And even as a dad, I felt that everyone had said, 'oh, it's the most incredible experience and you'll never understand love like it'.
'And I think as parents, sometimes we talk about how it feels to become a parent based on our experience now, whereas we don't kind of rewind back the clock and think, what was that like for me when it just began. It's pure shell shock. I didn't feel that instant surge of love. It was okay. Our job here is to just keep this baby alive. I'm blessed.' Pic: Carl Mullan/Instagram
Speaking on the podcast, Carl further expanded on the complexities of modern parenting roles, the evolving dynamics between partners, and the struggle to maintain personal identity while raising a family.
'A lot of my guilt would be, not even from the point of view of, say, not being home with the kids, because I am actually very lucky because I work early mornings and I finish early.
'So compared to someone who does a traditional nine to five, I probably get a lot more time with the kids than people who are commuting and in their cars for like 3 or 4 hours a day,' the 35-year-old said.
'A lot of my guilt would come from Ais (Mullan's wife) has to facilitate me a lot because of what I do,' he told The Baby Tribe.
'So, whether it's travelling or, you know, when I was doing Dancing With The Stars where she just had to pretty much drop everything she was doing outside of the hours of work to facilitate me. That's where I would feel a bit of guilt because of what I do, you get the kudos or you get the people going like, oh, I love your videos or whatever.'
Carl also offered his own parenting advice saying: 'As long as you're trying your best, that's all you can do. And the whole idea of having these false expectations of how you should be a parent, because of what you see online. We really need to try and get rid of that because it's so damaging and it can really take away from the joy of the early stages of parenthood.'