The Happy Menopause (Jackie Lynch - Nutritionist & Author)
Explore every episode of The Happy Menopause
| Pub. Date | Title | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 03 Mar 2022 | How to Manage Your Perimenopause with Ruth Devlin, Nurse, Health Coach & Author - S3. Ep11. | 00:40:22 | |
This episode is all about the perimenopause, because those years running up to the menopause can be full of hormonal havoc. In fact, although we use it as a catch-all term, the menopause technically only lasts for one day. It’s that day when it’s been 12 months since your last period. After that, you’re post menopausal. So the perimenopause is when all the fun and games really start and that can be a lot earlier than you might think. In fact, hormonal fluctuations can be going on in the background from your early 40s onwards and some of the initial symptoms can be surprising and disconcerting. Anxiety, brain fog, poor memory and loss of confidence are all fairly common issues, and they can cause a lot of concern, especially if your periods are still regular and you assume you’re too young. Why would you associate that with the menopause? But these early warning signs are very characteristic of the perimenopause and you don’t have to put up with them, because there are lots of options to help you deal with them. And this is where my latest guest comes in. I’m chatting to the brilliant Ruth Devlin, who’s a nurse, health coach and clinical educator specialising in the menopause. Dhe’s also the author of the excellent book Men! Let’s Talk Menopause, which is a snappy and useful guide to help the men in our life understand what’s going on. We discuss the different challenges faced by women during the perimenopause, from the emotional and cognitive symptoms to the physical issues such as hot flushes and vaginal dryness. Ruth explains some of the multiple options available to you to help manage the problems arising from the hormone ups and downs of the perimenopause and we discuss a range of potential solutions, including cognitive behavioural therapy, HRT, diet and lifestyle. This episode is a great place to start if you’ve just realised you’re perimenopausal and you’re wondering what to do about it. Tune in for her excellent advice, because Ruth is an absolute mine of useful information! I think the big takeaway here is to arm yourself with information and not rule anything out or make any assumptions about the best route for you, until you’ve considered all the options. I really hope this episode will help you feel empowered to do that, because this is your body and you have every right to make sure that you’re happy, comfortable and confident to manage your perimenopause in the way that is right for you. If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, please do leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple podcasts or whichever platform you listen on and make sure you tell all your friends – it makes a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast and really helps to spread the word. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Apr 2022 | 52 Ways to Walk Your Way to Health with Annabel Streets, Author & Researcher - S3. Ep 12. | 00:39:25 | |
Walking is something that’s accessible to almost all of us and it can be a much less daunting prospect to the harassed midlife woman than high impact work, running or intense training. What’s wonderful about the research we discuss in this episode is that walking isn’t a second-best option if you’re not up to other forms of exercise. It’s much, much more than that and we discuss the very many ways that different types of walking can benefit us – something I’d never really thought about before, even though I often recommend a daily walk to women in my nutrition clinic. But walking in different weathers, at different speeds, in different terrain and with a different mindset can all bring different health benefits. My guest in this episode is the wonderful Annabel Streets, who’s an award-winning writer of highly researched fiction and non-fiction. She’s an absolute genius at translating complex research into simple and manageable habits that we can include in our everyday life. We discuss her latest book 52 Ways to Walk – The Surprising Science of Walking for Wellness and Joy, One Week at a Time. Her books (sometimes written under the name Annabel Abbs) have been translated into over 30 languages. Her most recent books include 52 Ways to Walk (Bloomsbury), Windswept: Why Women Walk (Two Roads) and The Language of Food (Simon and Schuster). She is also co-founder of the Age-Well Project blog and co-author of The Age-Well Project: Easy Ways to a Longer, Healthier, Happier Life (Piatkus). There are multiple health benefits associated with long, short, slow and brisk walks. A range of positive effects are associated with the weather and the environments you walk in, and we discuss the impact of a cold walk, walking in the sunshine and strolling by water or through trees. Annabel explains the impact that tuning up our wayfinding skills could have on our risk of dementia and she also describes how to walk as you work. It's a truly fascinating discussion and I’ve been excited about recording this podcast since I received the book. I’m confident you’re going to enjoy hearing from Annabel, as much as I did, and I hope you enjoy discovering new and different ways to walk your way to health.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 May 2022 | The Science of Restorative Sleep with Lisa Cypers Kamen, Lifestyle Coach & Author - S3. Ep 13. | 00:37:04 | |
When was the last time you had a good night’s sleep? We all know that we’re better for it, but it can be extremely elusive, especially in midlife where a combination of the hormonal surges that often trigger night sweats and the stresses and strains of daily life can make it incredibly hard to get quality sleep. And quality more than quantity really does count when it comes to how we feel the next day. My guest in this episode is Lisa Cypers Kamen who’s the author of a new book called Rested: Solutions for Restorative Sleep and Wellbeing. Doesn’t that sound just what we all need? As the founder of the fabulous Harvesting Happiness lifestyle consultancy which specialises in positive psychology coaching, she’s made it her life’s work to help her clients improve their wellbeing and quality of life. Concerned by what she describes as a global sleep epidemic, she’s reviewed a mountain of research and distilled her findings into an incredibly helpful sleep guide. If you’re struggling with sleep, this episode could be a game-changer for you. We discuss the structure of our sleep cycles and why each stage is important. Lisa explains the different strategies we can apply to support a restorative night’s sleep and we cover everything from stress and sleep hygiene to nutrition and lifestyle. It’s a fascinating episode packed with practical tips to ease you into a delicious, restful slumber. If you enjoy this episode, please tell your friends and family, and leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Jun 2022 | Your Pelvic Floor - Why it's Important & How to Keep it in Shape, with Elaine Miller, Pelvic Health Physiotherapist & Award-Winning Comedian - S3. Ep 14. | 00:38:53 | |
Do you leak a little bit of urine when you laugh or sneeze or run? Let’s face it, it’s something that’s happened to most of us at some point and statistics show that more than 1 in 3 women struggle with this. It’s called urinary stress incontinence, usually due to a weak pelvic floor, and it’s one of those things we mostly don’t talk about because it’s embarrassing. This month’s guest is going to help us bust that taboo wide open, because I’m speaking to the fabulous Elaine Miller. She’s a pelvic health physiotherapist and has helped countless women reverse the problem with her clinical support. But she’s also a stand-up comic and has used her comedic talent to create the hilarious Gusset Grippers show, employing humour as a health promotion tool, and going on to win the Fringe World Comedy award in 2020. She’s frank, she’s funny and I’m thrilled that she’s joined us to share her wisdom. We learn all about the pelvic floor: what it is; where it is; why it’s important; and how to keep it in great shape. Elaine explains some of the factors that can weaken your pelvic floor and we discuss the best ways to manage that. We even try out the exercises, so you can squeeze along with us! Elaine’s mantra is “We won’t pee, with a 10 -10-3”, so tune in to find out what that’s all about and to enjoy a very entertaining conversation. We also discuss her upcoming show Viva Your Vulva at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August, where she’ll once again be busting open the taboo around out intimate health with the help of giant, sparkly vulva on stage. That’s definitely a date for your diary, if you’ll be in the area, so check out the show notes for more details! If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please do tell your friends and family about the podcast and leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple podcasts or whichever platform you listen on. It really helps to activate the algorithms and boost the rankings so that more women can find the show. Because every woman deserves a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Jul 2022 | How to Beat Bloating with Jackie Lynch, Nutritionist & Author - S.3 Ep.15. | 00:20:46 | |
Bloating can be a nasty niggling issue for a lot of women in midlife. It can affect different people in different ways. You might have a sense of overfullness after even quite a small meal. Or find that you can’t do up your trousers by the end of the day. I see a lot of women in my nutrition clinic who struggle with bloating, which is why I’ve decided to wrap up Season 3 of The Happy Menopause with a solo episode which focuses on this tricky subject. Tune in to hear 8 tried and trusted methods of tackling bloating that you can try for yourself at home. The mechanics of your digestion rely on a delicate balance, and what, when and how you eat can all potentially contribute to issues of bloating and trapped wind. I explore the stages of the digestive process and the role of digestive enzymes; common potential trigger foods to consider; the impact of different fluids on bloating; why fruit may not be your best friend if you’re bloated and why finishing first is a loser’s game when you’re eating with friends or family. If you want to get to beat the bloat, the simple, practical advice in this episode is a great place to start! If you’ve enjoyed this episode, why not dip back into the archive this summer? The podcast covers a whole range of different symptoms and issues and also includes episodes which feature some incredibly inspiring women, who are fantastic role models for midlife. Season 4 will kick off on 1st September, so keep a look out for that, as it launches with 3 brilliant episodes! She is also the author of Va Va Voom: The 10-Day Energy Dietand The Right Bite: Smart Food Choices for Eating on the Go. Jackie’s advice features in a range of national media and she regularly appears as a guest expert on radio and TV, including Channel 4’s Superfoods. Follow her on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook via @WellWellWe Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 01 Sep 2022 | The Art of Running for the Midlife Woman, with Sam Palmer, Award-Winning Women’s Health & Fitness Coach - S4. Ep 1. | 00:36:59 | |
Can’t run, won’t run? Listen to this episode before you write yourself off! It’s September and with the whole post-holiday vibe it’s often a good time be thinking about a new fitness regime. With that in mind, I’ve decided to kick off Season 4 with an episode on running. If it’s not something you’ve tried before or thought you’d never do in a million years (that was me until Hello Lockdown!) this is the podcast for you, because I’m speaking to a specialist women’s running coach who knows exactly how to help us get started and how to do it in a way that suits our midlife body. I’m delighted to welcome Sam Palmer to the podcast to share her expertise. This is a woman with a lot of get up and go, who’s reinvented herself multiple times and used the knowledge from each incarnation to help her develop the next one. She started out as a nurse in neonatal intensive care; retrained as a teacher after becoming a mother; set up her own first aid training business and then retrained again as a running coach, specialising in supporting women in their first steps at becoming a runner. All of this expertise combined when she launched her Midlife Makeover coaching programmes to support women with simple lifestyle changes to improve their health and wellbeing. We discuss all aspects of running – how to get started if you’re a newbie and how to pick up again if you’ve taken a break. We look at the tangible health benefits and the surprising fringe benefits you can experience. Sam advises on the practical aspects of kitting yourself out and is full of good advice on how to look after yourself and reduce the risk of injury. Sam is so positive and encouraging. I think the big takeaway from this episode is not to rule yourself out of anything. And never say never If you enjoy the podcast, please give it a 5 star rating and a review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, And please do tell your friends and family about it. I’d be so grateful because it really does make a difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Season 4 of The Happy Menopause is supported by innovative natural health company Better You. Tune in to the podcast for details of a 20% discount on their range of oral vitamin and mineral sprays and transdermal magnesium. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 01 Sep 2022 | Everything You Need to Know About Vitamin D, with Andrew Thomas, CEO & Founder of Better You - S4. Ep 2. | 00:36:06 | |
Vitamin D is a non-negotiable for our health and wellbeing at any age, but never more so than in mid and later life which is why I’ve decided to shine a light on it in this episode. I’ve invited Andrew Thomas, founder of one my favourite supplement companies Better You to chat to me about all things vitamin D. He’s just the man we need to help us understand the ins and outs of this hormone-like vitamin. Andrew has been on quite a journey, from a chance encounter at a rodeo, which led him to found Better You to winning the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in 2021. The level of research into Vitamin D has expanded considerably in recent years and we explore the broad role that it plays in supporting your health and wellbeing, such as bone health, mental health and immune function, including reducing the severity and longevity of Covid-19 symptoms. Andrew explains what Vitamin D is; why we need it; why we might be deficient and typical signs of that; how the body produces it and what sort of supplement dosage is appropriate. This is a really practical and helpful episode that should answer any questions about Vitamin D, especially as we slide into the autumn and winter when a supplement is more important than ever. If you enjoy the podcast, please give it a 5 star rating and a review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, And do tell your friends and family about it. I’d be so grateful because it really does make a difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 01 Sep 2022 | Caring For Your Skin Through Menopause & Beyond with Dr Emma Wedgeworth, Consultant Dermatologist - S4. Ep 3. | 00:35:55 | |
Skincare is a hot topic for many women and never more so than in midlife when the hormonal fluctuations of the perimenopause bring about a sea change in the condition of our skin. Acne, dry skin and loss of elasticity are all very common problems, and we often find that our tried and trusted skincare routine is no longer effective. And that can be a problem, because if we feel that we’re no longer presenting our best face to the world it can create a knock-on issue of loss of confidence at a time when we may already be feeling a bit less comfortable in our skin. But help is at hand with my latest guest, consultant dermatologist Dr Emma Wedgeworth. Emma is a highly experienced clinician who treats the full range of skin conditions, including acne, rosacea and ageing skin. She’s published numerous scientific articles and been involved in cutting-edge dermatological research, so we’re definitely in good hands! Get your pen ready, you’ll want to take notes for this one. Emma packs so much advice into such a short space of time. We discuss moisturisers, cleansers, acne, dry skin, wrinkles, those pesky facial hairs that pop up and all the things you can do about them. Emma very kindly shares advice on specific brands and products, which I’ve included in the show notes that you’ll find on the podcast page of my website. If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, please give it 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it to. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 06 Oct 2022 | How to Sing Your Way Through the Menopause with Dr Catherine Pestano, Community Musician & Social Worker - S4. Ep 4. | 00:35:34 | |
In this episode, we’re exploring the power of song, because there’s something very joyous about singing and it’s something we can all do and that we can all enjoy, even if you prefer to do it in the privacy of your shower! There are multiple benefits to singing and it can have a significant impact on your mental health and wellbeing, so we’ll be discovering how singing can make a difference to you and your menopause symptoms. My guest is Dr Catherine Pestano, she’s a community musician and mental health social worker with a passion for helping people to free their voices and share in the joy of singing and creative music making, at all levels. Catherine is also a lead adviser for the national Song Therapy training and a long-term member of the natural voice network. And as a menopause activist, she’s very conscious of the positive impact of song as a support for women in midlife and she’s kindly shared her expertise with us. We discuss all aspects of singing in this podcast and explore the various physical and mental health benefits, as well as the extraordinary support and friendship you can experience from being part of a group singing project. Catherine works with singers of all levels and is incredibly reassuring about the inhibitions we may feel about our own ability to carry a tune or sing as a group. It’s fascinating to hear about the singing therapy she’s involved in and the work she does with people going through midlife hormonal transitions – yes, hormonal changes can affect your voice and your confidence (as we all know!), but with Catherine’s help and encouragement, we can definitely still enjoy the joy of singing. After chatting to Catherine, I felt hugely motivated to get out there and start singing and I’m sure you will too! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, please give it 5 star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2022 | How to Have a Younger Brain with Dr Sabina Brennan, Neuroscientist & Psychologist - S4. Ep 5. | 00:35:50 | |
The theme of this year’s World Menopause Day is cognition, so I’ve invited the wonderful Dr Sabina Brennan back to chat to us, because there is no better woman to help us with the cognitive challenges of the menopause She’s a chartered health psychologist, neuroscientist, host of the Super Brain podcast and author of two fantastic books: 100 Days to A Younger Brain and Beating Brain Fog. There’s no one better to help us tackle the subject of brain health! Brain fog, poor memory and loss of concentration and focus can significantly affect women during the menopause but fear not, because, in this episode, Sabina is full of practical advice on how to keep your brain and your neurotransmitters firing on all cylinders. We discuss the ageing brain and how to keep it healthy and agile through novelty, variety, diet and lifestyle. It’s very encouraging to learn that our behaviours and our lifestyle choices can directly influence our brain health and smart choices can make a material difference to our cognitive function. Sabina is full of practical advice and simple everyday strategies that we can apply to keep our brain in great shape through menopause and beyond. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2022 | The Expectation Effect – The Impact of Mindset on Your Health with David Robson, Award-Winning Science Writer - S4. Ep 6. | 00:39:16 | |
This summer I discovered The Expectation Effect, the latest book by David Robson and what I learned was fascinating, so I was thrilled when he agreed to come on the podcast for this World Menopause Day special on cognition. Our mindset shapes every facet of our lives, and our expectations have a direct impact on every experience. Of course, we all know that looking on the bright side promotes positivity, but there’s an impressive body of research around the way that our expectations can significantly influence our health, wellbeing, fitness and even our weight and the way that we age! As we work our way through the challenges of midlife and the menopause, it’s really good to know that at least some of the power is in our hands and this episode is full of good advice about how to make the most of that. My guest is David Robson, an award-winning science writer specialising in the extremes of the human brain, body and behaviour. His second book, The Expectation Effect: How Your Mindset Can Transform Your Life is a journey through the cutting-edge science of how our beliefs can create self-fulfilling prophecies in every area of our lives. We discuss all the different ways that your expectations can influence your health, your wellbeing and your life. David shares some extraordinary research about this and explains how very small changes can make a world of difference to our experience of a situation, a challenge or a health problem. It’s incredibly empowering to discover just how much we can influence our own health and wellbeing, especially at this time of our lives when we can often feel as if control is slipping away from us. I promise you’ll find this a very helpful episode! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, please give it 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 03 Nov 2022 | Good Mood Food to Beat the Menopause Blues with Nutritionist & Author Jackie Lynch - S4 Ep 7. | 00:20:48 | |
In this episode I’m focusing on good mood foods, because there is no doubt that what we eat can have a huge impact on our brain and cognitive function. Mood swings, anxiety and brain fog are incredibly common issues for women in their early 40s onwards, which can come as an unwelcome surprise. And while there’s no doubt that your hormones are playing a big part in this, the right diet and lifestyle can play a huge part in helping correct the balance so that you get your brain back on an even keel. I’ve decided to go solo for this podcast so I can focus specifically on my own area of expertise, which is nutrition. I’m sharing 8 ways that your food choices can help to calm your nerves, regulate your mood and clear your brain, so that your neurotransmitters are fully fired up! Tune in to find out why it’s important to boost the B’s, maximise magnesium, power up the protein and be good to your gut and I’ll give you some practical tips on how to do all that. I set a fun foodie challenge for you as well – you’ll have to listen in to find out what that is, but I promise that you’ll enjoy it! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, please give it 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on. And do tell your friends and family about it too. I’d be so grateful, because it really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Thanks so much for listening, bye for now! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 01 Dec 2022 | The Super Helper Syndrome – A Survival Guide for Compassionate People with Jess Baker, Chartered Psychologist & Author - S4. Ep 8. | 00:37:38 | |
Are you a caregiver? The shoulder for everyone else? The fixer in your family? The workplace workhorse? Is there no time for self-care? Women are hardwired to nurture, and it can be very difficult to know where to draw the line if we think that other people need us. That’s why I’ve called in the big guns for this episode, with Jess Baker, psychologist and co-author of The Super Helper Syndrome, which is a survival guide for compassionate people. She’s a chartered psychologist and an award-winning coach, and her new book is a fabulously helpful guide to supporting people who want to adopt a healthy helper mindset so that they can meet their own needs, as well as supporting those around them. In this episode we explore where the urge to help comes from and how it can often lead back to childhood and the influences we encounter as we grow up. Jess talks us through the classic signs of someone who is a compulsive helper and explains the implications this can have on health and wellbeing. We discuss how to set boundaries in our professional and our personal lives so that we don’t overload ourselves and can take the time to look after ourselves too. She’s full of very practical advice on how to get the balance right in our lives, so that we become healthy helpers. As she so beautifully puts it: “When helping comes from a place of compassion and not from compulsion, that’s when caring gives us courage.” This episode is for all the women out there who are so busy helping everyone else that they often don’t give a thought to themselves, their health and their wellbeing. If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, please give it 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Jan 2023 | Small Changes for Big Benefits: How to Thrive During Menopause with Amanda Thebe, Women’s Health & Fitness Coach - S4. Ep 9. | 00:37:09 | |
It’s 2023 and New Year, New You, they say! But is there actually anything wrong with the old you? Probably not, but we’re often very self-critical! Rather than making a whole lot of radical resolutions that won’t last more than a week or two, in this episode I’m focusing on small, consistent changes that can reap big benefits as you transition through the menopause. And I’ve found just the woman to help us with this, because I’m chatting to the brilliant Amanda Thebe who’s just the most practical, pragmatic and relatable menopause champion and she’s made a material difference to thousands of women through her work. Amanda is a Women’s Health and Fitness Expert with nearly thirty years of experience in the fitness industry and the author of the best-selling book, Menopocalypse: How I Learned to Thrive During Menopause and How You Can Too, which is her story of how she was trapped in the perimenopause rabbit hole and how she got out of it. She’s a bundle of energy, positivity and wisdom, so tune in to hear what she’s got to say! We discuss the many different ways that you can take a proactive approach to managing your menopause and Amanda shares her five keystones of optimal health in midlife. She also busts some of the popular menopause myths out there around diet and lifestyle, shares her thoughts on supplements and speaks frankly about her views on some of the misleading (and expensive!) advice that is out there without the relevant evidence to back it up. Just chatting to Amanda has made me feel more energised and positive – imagine how it would feel to work with her! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, please give it 5 star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Feb 2023 | Can Yoga Help My Menopause Symptoms? With Libby Stevenson, Yoga Instructor & Wellbeing Practitioner - S4. Ep 10. | 00:36:00 | |
What do you think about yoga? Are you a regular devotee; is it something you do occasionally, or do you really think this is something for other people? If yoga is something you’ve discounted or let slide in your wellbeing journey so far, you might want to think again after you’ve heard what my latest guest has to say about the multiple benefits for women in midlife. There are a range of physical benefits too, from improving flexibility, stamina & balance and helping to build bone and muscle strength to reducing hot flushes and supporting sleep. Find out why yoga is for everyone, regardless of your shape, weight, flexibility and fitness. You won’t regret giving it a try, I promise! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Mar 2023 | Menopause Whilst Black, with Karen Arthur, Fashion Creative & Menopause Diversity Campaigner - S4. Ep. 11. | 00:37:28 | |
What does your menopause look like? The chances are it’s not much like a lot of the media portrayals of the menopause! Every woman goes through menopause – and it can happen at any age, some women experience premature menopause, others may have menopause triggered by medical treatment or a surgical intervention. And women of every ethnicity experience menopause and it’s really important to understand that the timing and some of the symptoms and risk factors can vary quite significantly if you’re black or Asian, for example. If that’s you or one of your loved ones, it’s essential to understand these key differences in order to take positive action and this month’s guest is just the woman to help us with this. Meet Karen Arthur! She’s a fashion creative, menopause diversity campaigner and host of the ground-breaking podcast Menopause Whilst Black. Karen is also the inspiration behind Wear Your Happy, because she believes passionately in the power of clothing and accessories to enhance your mood and lift your spirits. Karen is also completely inspirational on the subject of fashion and how what you wear should make you happy. She’s a complete bundle of energy and positivity – tune in to hear her words of wisdom! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 08 Mar 2023 | The Shocking Inequalities in Women’s Health & the Menopause with Elizabeth Carr-Ellis, Menopause Champion & Founder of Pausitivity - S4. Ep 12. | 00:33:30 | |
This year’s theme for International Women’s Day is Embrace Equity focusing on forging equality for women and raising awareness around discrimination. And this got me thinking about the inequalities around women’s health and the menopause, because there are a lot of them. It’s still very much a man’s world and it can be hard for women to ensure their voice is heard in the health arena. In this IWD special episode, I chat to a hugely inspiring woman, who’s been campaigning around the menopause for years and who’s made a material difference to the conversation around women’s health. Back in Season 1, I invited Elizabeth Carr-Ellis and her Pausitivity colleagues to share the work they’d been doing around raising awareness of the menopause amongst local communities. I’m thrilled that she’s back with me today for an update and to give us her insights on the ongoing challenges of managing inequality around the menopause. Since we last spoke, Liz has continued to campaign tirelessly, and she even took the menopause to the UK parliament, addressing MPs and peers at the All Party Parliamentary Group on menopause. She’s also been named a Big Issue Changemaker for her work taking the menopause into vulnerable communities. We discuss the postcode lottery of the menopause experience for women in the UK; the shocking truth around the majority of medical research which is based on the male experience; the heart-breaking challenges that women face as they grapple with their menopause symptoms; and the lack of support from government and some elements of the medical community around the HRT shortages. It’s enough to make you want to get out there and (wo)man the barricades! Tune in to find out what concrete steps you can take to ensure that you receive equity around your health and the menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 06 Apr 2023 | Done With Dieting? Managing a Healthy Weight in Menopause with Elizabeth Sherman, Life & Weight Loss Coach - S4. Ep. 13. | 00:37:21 | |
Are you fed up with dieting and not making any progress with weight loss? Managing a healthy weight in midlife can be a real minefield and it’s incredibly disheartening if despite your best efforts you’re not really getting anywhere. The female body is complicated and the cocktail of hormones around the menopause can make it a real uphill battle to keep in shape. We often find that the tried and trusted methods of the past don’t really work for us now, so what can we do about that? Surely there’s a better way? Well, there is! And I’ve got just the woman to help us with it in this month’s podcast. In this episode I chat to Elizabeth Sherman, a life and weight-loss coach who supports women through the hormonal shifts of the perimenopause and menopause and who’s made it her business to guide them through the challenges of managing a healthy weight in midlife. She’s also the host of the excellent Done With Dieting podcast which is for all of us who are looking to manage our health, wellbeing and weight in a way that’s successful and sustainable. We discuss the ups and downs of weight management in menopause; explore the issues around emotional eating with Elizabeth’s expert advice for managing this; and we look at the 8 healthy habits you need to get in place to support a healthy weight in midlife. Chatting to Elizabeth was a really helpful reminder of just how complex our body is and why we need to be giving it the best possible support through the menopause and beyond. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 04 May 2023 | Managing Your Menopause After a Cancer Diagnosis with Dr Carol Granger, Registered Nutrition Practitioner - S4. Ep 14. | 00:39:32 | |
Do you ever feel left out of the menopause conversation? If you’re dealing with the menopause post-cancer it can be very frustrating when all the messaging in the media seems to revolve around HRT as the solution to all your symptoms. So in this episode, I’m focusing on the very specific diet and lifestyle steps you can take to manage your menopause if you’ve recently had cancer treatment, or are taking hormone suppressant medication, which means that you can't take HRT, even if you wanted to.. Cancer nutrition is a highly specialised and complex area so I’ve brought in the big guns with my guest for this episode. I’m delighted to be joined by Dr Carol Granger. She’s a registered nutrition practitioner and microbiologist who works with people with a cancer diagnosis, before during and after treatment to complement their treatment and support resilience and recovery. She’s also an executive member of the British Society for Integrative Oncology and has published numerous research papers on nutrition and cancer. Carol is a mine of useful information and shares her practical and expert advice on the do’s and don’ts of diet and lifestyle after a cancer diagnosis. We discuss the importance of the Mediterranean diet; why you need to follow a smart-fat rather than a low-fat diet; and why it’s important to apply caution with certain supplements. This is an incredibly helpful episode for anyone looking to manage their health and wellbeing during and post-menopause after a cancer diagnosis. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 16 Jun 2019 | Introducing The Happy Menopause | 00:02:22 | |
Join Registered Nutritional Therapist Jackie Lynch as she takes you on a journey through midlife to learn how diet and lifestyle can help you take control of your menopause symptoms. Each month Jackie covers a range of topics, from managing hot flushes or dealing with anxiety to intimate health and strong bones. She'll introduce you to some fascinating guests who can offer real insight into managing midlife hormonal changes and challenges, so that you truly can have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 01 Jun 2023 | Fearless! A Celebration of Midlife & Adventure with Louise Minchin, Journalist, Author & Athlete - S4. Ep 15. | 00:38:45 | |
How daring do you feel these days? Sometimes it’s easy for us to write ourselves off in midlife and think the fun and adventure is all over. In this episode, we’re going to explore the extraordinary adventures of some inspiring women who have smashed through barriers, broken taboos and paved the way for the rest of us. I promise you that by the end of the episode, you’ll be just raring to go and start an adventure of your own! My guest will be well-known to many of you, because she was a much-loved presenter on BBC Breakfast for 20 years. She’s used her profile to champion women’s stories and to raise awareness of the menopause, mental health and women’s safety. She’s also a highly successful triathlete who represented Great Britain in her age-group. If you haven’t guessed already, I’m chatting to the brilliant Louise Minchin who’s here to discuss her latest book Fearless: Adventures with Extraordinary Women and to give us all an appetite for adventure. Louise introduces us to a whole host of inspiring women and talks us through the adventures she shared with them, including freediving under ice, cycling across Argentina, wild caving and a swim escape from Alcatraz. We discuss the importance of challenging yourself to build resilience and how vital it is to remain physically confident to ensure we keep fit and well through mid- and later life. Louise is an incredibly positive role model and full of great advice on how to empower yourself to take that first step into adventure so that you can make the most of this latest stage of your life. She was a delight to chat to and I promise you that you’ll enjoy listening to her as much as I enjoyed chatting to her! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, remember to subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode, and please give it 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on. And do tell your friends and family about it too. I’d be so grateful, because it really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 06 Jul 2023 | The Power Decade: How to Thrive After Menopause with Susan Saunders, Health Coach & Author - S4. Ep.16. | 00:38:49 | |
I’m wrapping up Season 4 by looking at that crucial decade after menopause, when a proactive approach to our health and wellbeing is more important than ever to define the way that we age. In this episode I chat to the brilliant health coach and author Susan Saunders about her latest book The Power Decade: How to Thrive After Menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Sep 2023 | Exploring the FAQs of the Perimenopause with Julie Robinson, Health & Fitness Coach - S5. Ep 1. | 00:39:14 | |
To kick off Season 5, we’re looking at the FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) of the perimenopause and menopause. Because let’s face it, we’ve all got questions and there are some subjects that you might not feel too comfortable asking about. But fear no more! I’m chatting to the brilliant Julie Robinson, founder of Meno Health and Move It, Or Lose It, who’s helped thousands of women over the years. Her new book has collated some of the most common (and some not so common!) questions and concerns and she’s worked with a number of experts to provide the answers. FAQs on Menopause: Your Questions Answered is a great little book and I’d urge you to add it to your bookshelf, because you won’t regret it. In this episode, I pulled out a selection of questions from the book which cover some of the burning issues familiar to so many of us as we go through perimenopause and menopause. We discuss anxiety, facial hair, HRT, joint pain and managing the menopause at work and Julie shares some really sound, practical advice on how to manage all of these. She’s kind, funny, engaging and has the unbeatable knack of making exercise fun! Julie has made it her life’s work to get women and girls of all ages moving more, to support our physical and mental health and wellbeing. She founded Menohealth after her own experience of early menopause, so this is a woman who knows all about the challenges of this phase of life. Julie is a real breath of fresh air and I absolutely loved chatting to her, so tune in to hear more about those key questions that so many of us struggle with.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Sep 2023 | Magnesium and the Menopause, with Andrew Thomas, Founder of Better You - S5. Ep. 2. | 00:37:12 | |
I’ve always thought that magnesium is every menopausal woman’s best friend. It’s a magnificent mineral and a mega multitasker. So it really does deserve a whole episode of The Happy Menopause! I’ve invited magnesium expert Andrew Thomas to talk us through everything you need to know about this marvellous mineral. Andrew is the founder of Better You, which is one of my favourite supplement companies. He founded the business in 2006, and it was the first company in the world to commercialise transdermal magnesium therapy and to develop the delivery of nutrients via an oral spray. We had a great chat about vitamin D in Season 4 (worth a listen if you haven’t found it already) and he’s back to share his wisdom about magnesium. This episode is a real magnesium masterclass, as Andrew explains the 300+ roles of magnesium on the body, why we might be low in it and how magnesium depletion could be the root cause of a number of symptoms. We also discuss the different forms of magnesium in supplements and Andrew explains the difference between oxides, malates, glycinates, sulphates and citrates and why certain forms may suit some people better than others. It’s truly fascinating! We discuss dosage, because supplements need to be treated with respect, especially if you’re on medication or have any medical conditions. And of course we discuss which foods you need to focus on to boost your magnesium levels, because ‘Food First’ is always going to be my mantra for any therapeutic nutritional approach! Tune in – this is an incredibly helpful episode! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Sep 2023 | Reflexology for Supporting Menopause with Sally Earlam, Reflexologist - S5. Ep. 3. | 00:36:11 | |
Have you ever tried reflexology? It’s way more than just a fancy foot massage! In fact, it’s been used for thousands of years as a therapeutic practice to support health and wellbeing. I’m a fairly recent convert to the wonders of reflexology and I know it makes a huge difference to me. So to find out more and to understand the research behind it, I’ve called on the help of expert reflexologist and teacher, Sally Earlam to share her wisdom with us. She has a background in nursing and has been a reflexologist for 24 years. She’s also a trained teacher and has previously taught the Reflexology Diploma, but now focuses on teaching advanced courses for qualified reflexologists in Menopause, Maternity and Mindful Reflexology. Sally explains the fascinating history of reflexology and the theory behind it. We discuss the emerging body of research around the health benefits of the practice and how it could make a real difference to hormone balance and your menopause symptoms, as well as more broadly addressing issues such as stress, insomnia and pain management. We also discuss what to expect from a reflexology session; why you shouldn’t worry if you’re ticklish (yes, really!); and how to find an accredited reflexology practitioner. After chatting to Sally, I booked a session straight away, as I realised that it’s been a while since I had one. I always feel amazing afterwards and have a brilliant night’s sleep. So how about it? Are you tempted? Why don’t you tune in to find out more? I promise you won’t regret it! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Oct 2023 | Healthy Cooking for the Menopause, with Fiona Staunton, Chef and Educator - S5. Ep 4. | 00:35:24 | |
We all know that cooking with fresh ingredients can make a huge difference to our health and wellbeing, but that can be easier said than done when you’re juggling the demands of a busy life. And if you’re not especially confident in the kitchen, it can seem very daunting to start cooking from scratch if you’re worn out after a busy day. But help is at hand in today’s episode, as I’m joined by the brilliant chef Fiona Staunton who’s made it her mission to make cooking good food uncomplicated, quick and easy. Fiona is a Ballymaloe-trained chef and the founder of Fiona’s Food For Life, which specialises in in-person and virtual cooking demonstrations to create healthy treats and to take the hassle out of home-cooked meals for the whole family. She’s full of fantastic practical tips to make our lives easier and our meals more delicious. We discuss the barriers to cooking healthy food and how to overcome them, especially if you lack confidence in the kitchen. We also explore the key foods that can play a part in managing menopause symptoms and Fiona shares some of her mouthwatering and menopause-friendly recipe ideas for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I promise you that you’ll feel inspired to get into the kitchen and start cooking straight away, once you’ve listened to what Fiona has to say! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, please give it 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2023 | Nutrition for a Healthy Heart with Jackie Lynch, Nutritionist & Author - S5. Ep. 5. | 00:20:10 | |
The theme for this year’s World Menopause Day is cardiovascular disease. You may wonder what that’s got to do with the menopause, so here’s the thing: once you come through the menopause, your body will adjust to the new hormonal version of you and for the most part your symptoms will settle down, just like they did after puberty. But there are one or two key areas that you need to continue to focus on in the long-term – bone health is one, as I’m sure you’re aware. Heart health is another, which is why we’re shining a spotlight on it this year. It may surprise you to know that cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death amongst women, so it’s much more common than you might think, and your heart definitely deserves your full attention. I come across cardiovascular conditions quite a lot in my menopause nutrition clinic, so I’ve decided to dedicate this episode to sharing a range of diet and lifestyle approaches to support a healthy heart. I explain blood pressure and cholesterol, so you know what role they play in the body and how they can impact your cardiovascular health, and I talk you through the different parameters, so that you can understand the basics of any test results. Tune in to find out which foods to focus on to maintain a healthy blood pressure and to regulate your cholesterol levels and what you need to avoid or limit to keep on track. I also talk you through the heart healthy diets with the most research, so you can start to tweak your shopping list and meal planning to keep yourself on track. This episode is full of all my best foodie tips to help you show your heart some love! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it 5 star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2023 | A Bloody History of Menopause with Dr Helen Foster, Oral Historian - S5. Ep. 6. | 00:36:46 | |
On World Menopause day it seems very fitting to look at the menopause from a historical angle and link it to women’s experience today. It hasn’t been an easy ride for middle-aged women over the centuries. We’ve proven to be quite a mystery to the medical community, which has led to some unusual, hilarious and often very distressing assumptions about what’s going on with the female body. To help us unravel all this, I’m joined by oral historian Dr Helen Foster of the East Midlands Oral History Archive at the University of Leicester. As well as being an expert around menopausal themes throughout history, she’s also developed the Silent Archive, working with a group of volunteers to record women’s stories of menopause through interviews, personal audio diaries and conversations. I first heard her give a talk about The Bloody History of Menopause last year at The Old Operating Theatre Museum in London, and I was fascinated so I just had to snap her up for the podcast! Helen takes us through the history of menopause, explaining the confusion and superstition about menstrual blood that built up over the centuries – did you know that we could turn milk sour and cause all manner of other domestic upheaval during our period? We talk about vilification of post-menopausal women who didn’t fit into the norm, which led to many of the witchcraft trials in the 16th century and women being shut up in asylums in later centuries. She also explains the utterly bizarre medical theory of the “wandering womb” which could apparently cause a whole host of mental and physical health issues! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it 5 star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Nov 2023 | Invisibility and the Menopause – How to Get Yourself Seen & Heard with Dr Vanessa Collingridge, Broadcaster, Writer & Impact Coach - S5. Ep. 7. | 00:37:33 | |
Do you ever feel invisible? Perhaps you struggle to get your voice heard. If so, you’re not alone, because this is something that most women have experienced at some point, especially as we move into midlife and menopause. But it’s not something we should put up with, because it’s not right and because, let’s face it, middle aged men don’t experience the same problem, do they? I’ve invited Dr Vanessa Collingridge to join me for this episode. I first met her at the Menopause Festival in Edinburgh, where were both speaking and I was intrigued by the title of her workshop - The Revenge of the Invisible Woman. She struck me as just the woman we need to help us deal with this eternal problem! Vanessa is a woman with a fascinating history and I really needed a lot longer to talk to her! She’s a broadcaster, author and impact coach, who has researched and presented award-winning history documentaries; is the author of several books and she’s a communications expert too. As an impact coach, she has a passion for developing female talent and helping women find their voice and shares loads of practical advice. We discuss the reasons why women feel invisible and why it can be so hard to get your voice heard at any age, but especially during midlife and menopause. Vanessa is full of practical advice about how to get yourself noticed and make your mark in work or social situations, and how to help your loved ones remember that you’re there, so that you’re not taken for granted. This episode is a mini masterclass in how to regain your confidence and get the recognition and appreciation you deserve! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it 5 star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Thanks so much for listening. Bye for now. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Dec 2023 | Blood Sugar Balance & the Menopause with Jackie Lynch, Menopause Nutritionist & Author - S5. Ep. 8. | 00:20:38 | |
Blood sugar balance seems to be very much in vogue at the moment, so I’ve decided to dedicate this episode to talking through it, because I think there’s quite a lot of confusion around it. As a nutritionist, I really believe it’s one of the key pillars to managing menopause symptoms and Nutrition 101 if you want to apply a dietary approach to your health and wellbeing during the menopause. In this episode I talk through: - the biochemistry of blood sugar, so you understand what’s going on in the body and the internal (and quite natural) reactions that occur when you eat (or don’t eat).
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 14 Dec 2023 | Christmas Nutrition Quiz & Festive Foodie Tips - S5. Ep9. | 00:19:13 | |
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas isn’t it? Of course, that’s not always a good thing if you’re the one organising it and feeling a bit overwhelmed at this point. But even if you absolutely love Christmas (and I have to confess that I do!), there can be a slight sense of dread about the impact it can have on your health and wellbeing, and especially your waistline, with all those extra goodies and social events going on. So I’ve decided to have a bit of fun with a Christmas special episode, because I’ve devised a festive nutrition quiz to test your knowledge and to give you some handy tips and tricks to help avoid some of the health traps that line the holiday season. Tune in to test your knowledge and to pick up some festive foodie tips along the way: discover the best hangover relieving breakfast; which Christmas classic treat contains the least sugar; which popular snack is highest in salt; which cheese is the lowest in saturated fat, plus lots more handy yuletide info. You’ll even find out the best snack to leave out for Santa, so he completes his rounds in good time. If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it 5 star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Thanks so much for listening
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 04 Jan 2024 | Simple Steps to Create a Beautiful Midlife with Tania Dalton, Midlife Women’s Health Coach - S5. Ep 10. | 00:37:20 | |
It’s that time of year when a fresh start seems very appealing so you’ve probably already started thinking about changes you might want to make to your life. I’m not a big fan of the radical detox, because it’s not sustainable and your body won’t really enjoy it or benefit from it in the longterm. On the other hand, simple and consistent changes can make a world of difference to your health and wellbeing and my guest for this episode is just the woman we need to help us create a beautiful midlife for ourselves. I’m delighted that Tania Dalton is joining me today, as she’s the most brilliantly positive person. She found herself ill-equipped to manage her own menopause transition and took action to educate herself in the different ways she could begin to thrive through midlife and beyond. She went on to found Beautiful Midlife, an expert health coaching business which empowers women to make small changes to transform their health, increase their confidence and thrive through this stage of life. She’s full of practical advice and wisdom, so let’s hear what she’s got to say. We discuss Tania’s MELT method – Move Beautiful, Eat Beautiful. Live Beautiful and Think Beautiful and she shares some fantastic advice on how to build these four pillars of her Beautiful Midlife approach. Chatting to Tania was a delight, as she’s just the breath of fresh air that we need to start the year feeling positive and inspired. Tune in for a real treat this January! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it 5 star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Jul 2019 | Breaking the Menopause Taboo with Jo McEwan from Positive Pause - S1. Ep. 1. | 00:28:55 | |
In the UK, 13 million women are going through a menopause, which can last anything up to 15 years. In the US, 6,000 women hit the menopause every single day! So it’s not exactly a niche subject, yet, it’s not something we easily talk about either. This means that many midlife women can feel isolated and worried by a range of symptoms they hadn’t expected which can disrupt their life. The good news is that the Positive Pause team have made it their business to bust the menopause taboo and provide practical and accessible advice to midlife women. In this episode, I’m joined by Jo McEwan, one of the founders of the Positive Pause website which is an incredibly helpful resource, full of information to help you navigate the menopause minefield. Feeling overwhelmed and frustrated by the lack of practical and user-friendly information available when they hit the perimenopause themselves, the Positive Pause team set to work to create a site that would inform, reassure and entertain women experiencing the perimenopause and the menopause. It’s really interesting to hear about Jo’s journey and the challenges she faced We have a frank discussion about all matters meno- and peri-menopausal, why it's important to lay the groundwork for a healthy menopause in your early forties and the vast range of different symptoms and what you can do about them. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 19 Jul 2019 | Building Strong Bones for the Menopause and Beyond with Christien Bird, Women’s Health Physiotherapist - S1. Ep 2. | 00:29:06 | |
“Your next position is your best position”. Variety is the spice of life when it comes to the ideal posture and exercise, according to Christien Bird, Women’s Health Physiotherapist. Regular exercise is crucial for women in midlife, not just to support bone density, but also to reduce the risk of heart attacks, which increases as oestrogen levels drop, post-menopause. Exercise is also a great stress-buster, and relieving those cortisol levels can make a big difference to your wellbeing during the menopause. In this episode of The Happy Menopause, I speak to Christien about how, when and how much to exercise to optimise our bone, heart and hormone health. As a Women’s Health Physio and founder of the excellent White Hart Clinic in Barnes, South West London, she’s ideally placed to bust all those myths about what menopausal women ‘should’ or ‘shouldn’t’ be doing on the exercise front. She’s a specialist in pelvic floor and incontinence and a passionate supporter of women’s health in midlife. We talk bone health, nutrition and the different ways that exercise can keep you strong, healthy and mobile through the menopause and beyond. Christien shares the shocking statistic that from the age of 5, girls are already less active than boys – less likely to cycle, join a sports club or walk to school - and this gap widens as children grow. The good news is that it’s never too late to start exercising and that women actually benefit more quickly and directly from exercise than men! She’s full of good advice about the different types of exercise you can try, how much you need to do and how to make sure you don’t get in a rut. Your muscles and bones adapt quickly to the same fitness regime, so it’s important to keep challenging yourself and to mix it up a bit, if you want to see results. Christien is a really interesting, inspiring and convincing speaker – I’ve already made some tweaks to my exercise regime, based on her advice in the podcast. Have a listen and see what she can do for you too! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 20 Jul 2019 | Dealing with Anxiety, Overwhelm & Brain Fog, with Becks Armstrong, Founder of the Clarity App - S1. Ep 3. | 00:34:49 | |
Forget hot flushes! Anxiety and loss of confidence are some of the most underestimated and upsetting symptoms of the menopause. Many women are taken by surprise in their mid to late forties to suddenly discover that they’re doubting themselves and their abilities; feeling overwhelmed by tasks or projects they previously handled with ease; or simply experiencing a residual sense of anxiety which is hard to shake off. If this sounds familiar, then Becks Armstrong is your woman. Becks is a women’s health specialist, acupuncturist, traditional Chinese herbalist and doula. She’s also very interested in technology and how it can support our health. One of the ways she’s applied that is by founding the Clarity mindfulness app which is specifically designed to help midlife women who are struggling with menopause symptoms. There is an increasing body of research about the benefits of mindfulness in dealing with stress and supporting mental health. In this episode of The Happy Menopause, Becks and I discuss the issue of anxiety and overwhelm which is so common to midlife women and yet relatively unrecognised as a mainstream menopause symptom. Becks explains a range of simple and practical techniques to show how mindfulness, gratitude and paced breathing can quickly help to reduce stress and anxiety. She’s incredibly clever at suggesting ways of introducing mindfulness into your daily life, which is especially helpful for people who are new to the concept or perhaps a bit hesitant about whether it’s right for them. We try out a simple mindfulness exercise that you can try out at home, while you’re listening. Becks is passionate about the importance of ‘me time’, the ultimate luxury for every menopausal woman! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 01 Feb 2024 | Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Sex & the Menopause with Samantha Evans, Sexual Health & Pleasure Expert - S5. Ep 11. | 00:37:21 | |
In this episode, we talk about vaginas, vulvas, sex and sex toys, because we can! As young people we all tend to assume that older people don’t have sex, but we midlife women know better, don’t we? It may be more complicated for us, for a variety of reasons, but women in mid and later life are still sexual beings and we have every right to enjoy our intimate life just as much as we did when we were younger. But we all know that there can be obstacles to this, such as dryness, pain, recurrent infections and loss of libido, so my guest today is here to help with all that, because there’s nothing she doesn’t know about how to manage all these pesky issues that get in the way of a happy and fulfilling sex life. My guest in this episode is the brilliant Samantha Evans. She has a background in nursing, so she knows all the nitty gritty about our intimate areas and she’s the founder of Jo Divine, an online sex toy company designed to support people to enjoy sexual intimacy and pleasure by using skin-safe products and irritant-free lubricants and moisturisers. We discuss everything from how to manage UTIs and thrush to why and how to use a sex toy to maximise your pleasure. What I love about Sam is that she completely normalises what is a sensitive subject for many of us, and she’s so practical and supportive with her advice. Nothing is off the table with her and it’s a wild ride of a conversation, so get your notebooks ready, buckle in and tune in to hear what she’s got to say! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, remember to subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it 5 star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 19 Feb 2024 | How to Build Strength in Your Bones & Muscles in Mid- and Later Life with Dr Catherine Walter - Best Bits #1 | 00:13:28 | |
This is the first of a series of Best Bits to celebrate the amazing milestone of 500,000 downloads. Huge thanks to all of you for making this possible by listening! Looking back over the past 5 seasons, there are so many great moments of advice, insight and inspiration from my brilliant guests that it’s hard to choose, but I’ve decided to start with some fascinating extracts from my interview with Dr Catherine Walter. Catherine is an Emeritus Fellow in Applied Linguistics at Oxford University, but she’s also a world-record-holding powerlifter, who took up the sport at the age of 65 and hasn’t looked back since. As you’ll see from these extracts, her story is incredibly inspiring and it’s a real example to any woman who wants to take control of her own health and wellbeing. Tune in to find out about the ins and outs of powerlifting:- what it actually is; how to get started; how it can help your bones; and why it can make such a difference to your health in ways that reach far beyond strength and stamina, helping you become a whole new woman. If you’re inspired by these Best Bits, you can find the full episode in Season 3, Episode 6 where you can hear Catherine’s fascinating story and her excellent advice on strength training. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 28 Feb 2024 | How to Improve Your Sleep with Professor Russell Foster, Circadian Neuroscientist - Best Bits #2 | 00:15:13 | |
Welcome to another of my Best Bits to celebrate the amazing milestone of 500,000 downloads for The Happy Menopause podcast. This time, I’m diving right back into the archive to Season 1 for this one, because my chat about sleep with Professor Russell Foster was absolutely fascinating, and even in this pared-down version, there is a wealth of excellent advice. Russell is the Founder and Director of The Sleep and Circadian Research Institute and Head of Oxford University’s Nuffield Laboratory of Ophthalmology. He’s carried out decades of research into the science of circadian rhythms and sleep cycles and won multiple awards for his work. There’s no doubt that he’s the man to speak to about anything to do with sleep! In this series of extracts, we discuss Russell’s 4-pillar approach to getting a good night’s sleep; learn why sleep apps are mostly a waste of time; understand the science behind our circadian rhythms and how exposure to morning light is the key to a good night’s sleep. Russell is full of fascinating insights and practical tips to make a material difference to the quality of your sleep! If you’re inspired by these Best Bits, you can find the full episode in Season 1, Episode 16 where you can hear everything that Russell has to say about this vital subject. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Mar 2024 | Pilates at Your Desk: How to Move More in Menopause, with Kerrie-Anne Bradley, Pilates Teacher & Author. S5. Ep. 12. | 00:36:56 | |
Are you a sloucher? Do you spend too much time pinned to your desk? Have you started to get a few niggles in your lower back, neck or shoulders? If it’s yes to all of the above, this episode is the one for you, because it’s all about posture, movement and alignment and it’s packed with practical advice to help with all those lurking issues you may have been ignoring or simply putting up with. My guest is Kerrie-Anne Bradley, former economist turned expert pilates teacher. It was her own experience of too much time at a desk and the subsequent problems with sciatica and other aches and pains that led her to take up pilates. It really was a pleasure to chat to Kerrie-Anne and I just know that I’m taller and straighter as a result! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 17 Mar 2024 | How to Have Great Hair with Dr Sharon Wong, Consultant Dermatologist & Hair Specialist - Best Bits #3 | 00:17:32 | |
Welcome to my latest Best Bit, part of my series to celebrate half a million downloads for The Happy Menopause podcast and to give you the chance to catch up on some of the brilliant episodes you may have missed. We’re looking back at the launch episode for Season 2 for this edition and we’re talking hair! My guest is consultant dermatologist and hair specialist Dr Sharon Wong, who is incredibly generous with her advice. Dr Sharon Wong specialises in treating hair and scalp disorders and she’s an absolute mine of information, as we find out what influences the growth and condition of our hair and how the menopause affects our hair. We discuss the different diet, lifestyle and biochemical factors that can affect our hair and Sharon. She explains the best approach to haircare; how often to wash our hair; what to look for in hair products; and how we can optimise the health and strength of our hair. There really is nothing like listening to an expert talk about their subject. I learned a lot from Sharon in our chat and I’m sure you will too. If you’d like to listen to the full episode, you can find it in Season 2, Episode 1, where there’s even more practical advice to help you take the right approach to your hair care! If you’re a fan of The Happy Menopause, please tell your friends and family, and do give it a 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on. It makes a huge difference to the algorithms which influence the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 01 Aug 2019 | A Herbal Approach to Menopause Symptoms with Herbalist, Ed Joy - S1. Ep 4. | 00:35:02 | |
For centuries, people have used herbs in a medicinal capacity, from ancient civilisations through to today, where many modern pharmaceutical drugs are originally derived from plant extracts. Drop into any health food store and you’ll find a whole range of herbal supplements; chat to your friends and they may swear by a miracle herb that banished their hot flushes but you might not find it so effective, so it’s obviously not a one-size-fits-all solution. In this episode, I’ve invited herbalist Ed Joy to join me, so that he can demystify herbs for us and give you some practical suggestions for an herbal approach to your symptoms. Ed has over 20 years’ experience and he weaves a combination of homeopathy, naturopathy and nutrition into his work, taking a truly holistic approach. Find out why you should be stocking up on sage; which herbs might help with hot flushes, and how to calm your nervous system and reduce anxiety with supportive plant compounds. Ed is a positive mine of information about herbs and the best way to approach them. He also shares some brilliant foodie tips about the benefit of cooking with herbs, so that it’s not just all about over-the-counter remedies. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 04 Apr 2024 | Emotional Eating, Body Image & the Menopause, with Dr. Romi Ran, Clinical Psychologist & Author. S5. Ep.13 | 00:34:45 | |
Our relationship with food can be complex and it’s very often determined by a whole host of different experiences. Some of us might describe ourselves as emotional eaters and find that this can get in the way of a healthy lifestyle, affecting our weight and our body image. The whole arena can be a bit of a minefield. In fact, it’s a specialist field in clinical work, so I’ve reached out to an expert in this area, Dr Romi Ran. There’s a lot of food for thought in this interview with Romi, as we discuss the challenges women can experience with their relationship with food. We talk about midlife weight loss; the impact of emotional eating; body image, and how to manage all these challenges. Romi shares her 5 principles to navigate these tricky areas and to achieve a more positive and accepting approach to manage our health and wellbeing through midlife and beyond. I really enjoyed chatting to Romi – there was a lot of food for thought there and I was very interested in what she had to say about the importance of self- acceptance. If you’re thinking of making some changes, tuning into this fascinating episode could be a great way to get started. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Apr 2024 | How to Manage Anxiety & Enhance Emotional Wellbeing with Rachel Weiss, Accredited Counsellor & Coach - Best Bits #4 | 00:19:49 | |
Welcome to my latest Best Bit, part of my series to celebrate half a million downloads for The Happy Menopause podcast and the chance for you to catch up on some of the brilliant episodes you may have missed. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 May 2024 | Travel, Adventure & the Midlife Woman, with Alice Morrison, Adventurer, Author & Broadcaster. S5. Ep. 14 | 00:35:03 | |
Are you ready for an adventure? Midlife is a time when we can get itchy feet and want to explore new horizons, but sometimes niggling doubts and a lack of confidence can get in the way of that. So in this episode, I’m chatting to adventurer Alice Morrison, who’s just the woman we need to give us the encouragement to take that first big step. Alice is an adventurer, TV presenter and author, who’s currently living in a little village in the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. I met her at The Travel Show earlier this year, where she was talking about her latest book Walking With Nomads and I knew straight away that I wanted to chat to her in more detail. After a successful career in journalism, Alice decided it was time for a change and she embarked on a series of adventures in midlife which have transformed her life – she’s cycled across Africa; run across deserts, and trekked across Morocco, for starters. Alice knows exactly what it’s like to travel solo as a woman, so she’s just the person to help us get started on our own midlife adventures! My conversation with Alice has definitely reawakened my travel bug, and I love how encouraging and matter of fact she is about it. She’s quite right – we just need to do it, and I hope you will! If you’re a fan of The Happy Menopause, please tell your friends and family about it, and do give it a 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on. It makes a huge difference to the algorithms which influence the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. Because, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 16 May 2024 | Dealing With Vaginal Dryness, with Kathy Abernethy, Menopause Specialist - Best Bits #5 | 00:15:06 | |
Welcome to my latest Best Bit, part of my series to celebrate half a million downloads for The Happy Menopause podcast, and the chance for you to catch up on some of the brilliant episodes you may have missed. This edition focuses on vaginal dryness, which is rather the Cinderella of the menopause. In recent years, we’ve become more confident about discussing our menopause – some women will mention their hot flushes without turning a hair, and the common mental health symptoms such as anxiety and mood swings have also started to come out of the closet, which is a great thing, but we’re still not quite ready to be open about the vaginal symptoms. So for this extract, I zoom back to Season 2 Episode 15 where we shine a light on this tricky issue, because it can be a huge problem for many women through the menopause and beyond. To help us, I’ve turned to one of the most clinically experienced menopause specialists in the UK. Kathy Abernethy, who’s been a leading light in the field of women’s health and the menopause for over 30 years. From her early years as a sister on a gynae ward, through her time as Chair of the British Menopause Society and now as the leader of a multidisciplinary NHS menopause clinic and director of menopause services at Peppy health, a digital health company, Kathy has consistently championed women’s health and transformed the lives of hundreds of women with her clinical advice and support. There really is no better person to give us the lowdown on how to manage vaginal dryness, so tune in to hear her expert advice on moisturisers, lubricants, vaginal oestrogen and how to manage UTIs. To hear the full episode, check out Season 2 Episode 15, where there’s even more practical advice for you. If you’re a fan of The Happy Menopause, please tell your friends and family, and do give it a 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on. It makes a huge difference to the algorithms which influence the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 06 Jun 2024 | Sleepless: How to Cope with Insomnia, with Annabel Abbs, Author & Researcher. S5. Ep 15 | 00:39:10 | |
Chronic insomnia can be very stressful – not only are you feeling tired and worried about how you’ll cope the next day, but you’re probably also worrying about all those stories you’ve heard about the potential long-term health impact of not sleeping. And that means that you’re even less likely to get to sleep! Women are generally much more prone to sleep disorders than men, and when we reach the perfect storm of midlife, things can get very tricky. In this episode we focus on the potential benefits of sleep loss. I chat to author and researcher Annabel Abbs about the findings from her latest book Sleepless: Discovering the Power of the Night Self. Following a series of bereavements, Annabel charts her experience of sleep loss and her research into the way women have dealt with it over the centuries. It’s a fascinating insight into wakefulness that turns the issue of insomnia on its head and looks at the benefits of sleep loss instead. Annabel explains how the female night self is a quite unique and extraordinary being, with increased creativity, freedom and boldness. If you’re feeling stressed about the quality of your sleep, this episode is for you, because you’ll start to see the issue in a whole new way and Annabel has some great tips about dealing with insomnia. If you’re a fan of The Happy Menopause, please tell your friends and family about it, and do give it a 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on. It makes a huge difference to the algorithms which influence the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 20 Jun 2024 | Beating Brain Fog with Dr Sabina Brenna, Neuroscientist & Psychologist - Best Bits #6 | 00:15:53 | |
Do you ever wonder what you came upstairs for, forget where you’ve parked the car or find yourself grappling for the right word that just won’t come? These are all common concerns for women in midlife because brain fog is one of the classic symptoms of perimenopause and menopause. In my latest Best Bit to celebrate half a million downloads for The Happy Menopause podcast, I’m focusing on brain fog because all that hormonal turmoil plays havoc with the oestrogen receptors in your brain. The resulting forgetfulness, poor concentration and focus, plus a general sense of your brain not firing on all cylinders can be incredibly disconcerting. I’ve come across many women in my nutrition clinic who were genuinely worried about early onset Alzheimer’s when it was actually all about the hormones. So I’m diving back to Season 2, where we get to the bottom of brain fog with the delightful Dr Sabina Brennan. She’s a chartered health psychologist, neuroscientist and host of the Super Brain podcast, so brains are very much her business! Her book Beating Brain Fog is a wonderful read, with lots of practical strategies to support and tune up your brain. Tune in to hear just some of what she’s got to say about this tricky subject and for the full episode scoot back to Season 2, Episode 16, where there’s a whole load more advice for you that I couldn’t squeeze into this taster. Enjoy! If you’re a fan of The Happy Menopause, please tell your friends and family, and do give it a 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on. It makes a huge difference to the algorithms which influence the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 04 Jul 2024 | PMS and the Perimenopause, with Jackie Lynch, Menopause Nutritionist & Author. S5. Ep 16. | 00:22:54 | |
You know when it’s coming don’t you? That time of the month, when people start to tiptoe around you and discretion is definitely the better part of valour amongst your loved ones. Woe betide the fool that dares to suggest you’re a little hormonal – especially if it’s a man! Yep, I’m talking about PMS, premenstrual syndrome, which is the focus of this month’s episode PMS can make life miserable, and it can affect different women in different ways, because the symptoms can include irritability, low mood, sheer rage, headaches, bloating, back pain, sore breasts, skin breakouts, anxiety, IBS and poor sleep. We women really lucked out, didn’t we? This episode explores: - What PMS is and why it happens - What’s going on with your cycle - The role of progesterone in PMS - PMS or PMDD? - Factors that influence hormone balance - The role of nutrition in managing PMS - Specific foods to focus on, and what to avoid It’s time to stop putting up and shutting up! This is your opportunity to make a material difference to something that might have been affecting you for years. If you enjoyed the podcast, don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it 5 star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Sep 2024 | Efficient Fitness for Busy Women with Cara Metz, Midlife Fitness Expert – S6. Ep 1. | 00:39:51 | |
September is a good time for new beginnings, so if you’re thinking about how to build up your strength and fitness if you’ve let things slide a bit this summer, this is the episode for you. In this episode I chat to the brilliant Cara Metz. She’s an absolute testament to the transformative power of healthy living. A dancer from a very early age, she went on to become the Latin American British Open champion and developed a career as an international dancer, coach and teacher. Following her retirement from professional dancing, she decided to channel her experience and energy into becoming a fitness expert, and has created her trademark approach of short blasts of exercise specifically designed to fit the schedule of the busy midlife woman. Think you don’t have time to exercise? Think again! Cara is such an inspiration. Her story is fascinating and I’m a big fan of her exercise snacking approach. She takes us through the thinking behind her fitness programmes and why it works so well for midlife women. We discuss the different types of exercise which are important and relevant to women in this stage of life and she shares a few moves for us to try. It’s a really energising episode! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it a 5 star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Sep 2024 | Moods & Menopause: Managing PMDD in Perimenopause with Dr Lynsay Matthews, Lecturer and PMDD Researcher – S6. Ep 2. | 00:36:57 | |
Premenstrual disorders can make life incredibly miserable. Any woman who’s struggled with PMS will know that, and I covered that specific issue in the closing episode to Season 5. This episode is a follow-on from that, as I drill down into PMDD – premenstrual dysphoric disorder. Although it occurs in the 2nd half of the cycle, this isn’t just a severe form of PMS. It’s a hormone-based mood disorder caused by a severe reaction to the natural fluctuations of oestrogen and progesterone which can lead to intense emotional reactions, depression, negativity, brain fog and fatigue, amongst other things. There are no prizes for guessing that PMDD can get a lot worse during the perimenopause which is why I’ve drafted in some expert advice on this. My guest is Dr Lynsay Mathews. She’s a lecturer in Public Health at the University of the West of Scotland and a leading researcher into PMDD, a condition she’s struggled with herself. Lynsay launched the UK’s first PMDD research agenda and works with a team of researchers on several studies covering a range of PMDD issues. She’s just the woman we need for such a complex subject. We discuss what PMMD is; why it might happen; how it can affect you and your loved ones; how you know you’ve got it and the challenges of diagnosis. Lynsay talks through her own personal story of PMDD and how it inspired her to initiate numerous research projects into the condition. We look at the stats around PMDD and the number of unsuspecting women who may be struggling with symptoms. She also explains the various treatment options that are available. It's an incredibly thought-provoking discussion and made me wonder just how many women out there might have PMDD and don’t realise it. If you suspect that it might be an issue for you and you’d like to find out more and perhaps sign up for one Lynsay’s studies, I’ve put all the relevant links in the show notes. This month, the Happy Menopause Club is covering best breakfasts, there’s a live Q&A on nutrition for bone health and you can discover 7 key things you need to know about the perimenopause. Sign up at thehappymenopause.com for just £6 a month for bonus episodes, nutrition Q&As, menopause masterclasses, special offers and more! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Sep 2024 | Healing Herbs for the Menopause with Hannah Charman, Medical Herbalist – S6. Ep 3. | 00:37:34 | |
Medicinal herbs have been used for centuries to support our health and wellbeing. In fact, some Chinese and Egyptian texts about the use of herbs date back to 3000BC. In this episode I explore the role of herbs in menopause, and how to introduce them into our self-care programme to manage those pesky symptoms. My expert guest is medical herbalist, Hannah Charman. She brings 25 years of clinical experience to the podcast and supports her patients with a combination of herbal medicine, coaching and advanced hypnotherapy. Her specialist area of interest is menopause, and there really isn’t much that she doesn’t know about herbs and how they can help us through the hormonal upheaval during this phase of our life. Hannah explains the therapeutic history of herbs and how it has developed over the centuries. She calls it the people’s medicine and she’s picked out her top 5 herbs for managing the menopause. She takes us through each one in detail, explaining what it is, how it impacts the body, how it can relieve symptoms, where it grows, how it can work with food, and how you could use to support yourself. She also shares some very helpful advice on the use of herbs generally and how to ensure that you use them safely and effectively. It’s a fascinating episode with a hugely helpful range of tips. In fact, it gave me a real urge to create my own herb garden! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it a 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Sep 2024 | NEWS! Introducing The Happy Menopause Club | 00:03:44 | |
Tune into this short message for some VERY exciting news. I’m going to introduce you to The Happy Menopause Club, which is where all the cool midlife women hang out! There’s loads of great content on there for you that I’ve prepared especially for you and I tell you all about it in this short clip. If you can’t wait to find out about it, visit thehappymenopause.com and sign up straight away. I can’t wait to see you there. This month in the club: Sign up at thehappymenopause.com! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 03 Oct 2024 | Aromatherapy to Support Menopause Symptoms with Amy Anthony, Certified Aromatherapist – S6 Ep. 4. | 00:36:34 | |
Aromatherapy is much more complex than just lighting a scented candle. The essential oils of flowers, plants, wood, nuts or seeds can have a powerful effect on the body. In this episode, we explore how aromatherapy might support us in midlife, menopause and beyond. My guest is Amy Anthony, a certified aromatherapist and aromatherapy educator who’s an expert in this intricate area. She practices as an aromatherapist in New York City and has taught at the former New York Institute for Aromatherapy and the Centre for Aromatic Studies. We talk about the multitude of ways that aromatherapy can support our health and wellbeing. Amy explains the different essential oils and how they can help us. She also shares some practical advice on how we can use them safely. We discuss the brilliance of bergamot, the restorative powers of rose, how rosemary can revitalise us and why we should love lavender. It’s an absolutely fascinating session – she even shares a couple of recipes that you can find in the show notes on my website. If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it a 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2024 | My Top 10 Menopause-Friendly Foods with Jackie Lynch, Menopause Nutritionist & Author. S6. Ep 6. | 00:22:20 | |
This is a special episode which shines a spotlight on nutrition to celebrate World Menopause Day, It’s actually a re-release of one of my most popular episodes, which I thought you might like to discover or rediscover, because it’s packed with useful information and foodie tips. I thought it was important to focus on foods to balance out my other special, which is on this year’s WMD theme of HRT. In that episode, BMS menopause specialist Kathy Abernethy debunks some of the myths and mysteries around HRT. But whether you take HRT or not, the right nutrition is incredibly important. The better you eat, the more effective your HRT will be. Because it’s basically just hormones. The body still needs to know what to do with those hormones, and this is where your diet comes in. Different nutrients are key catalysts in the chain reaction of our hormones that affect all the systems in our body. And if you’re not taking HRT, the right food is even more important to help you manage your symptoms. In this episode, I’ve picked out my 10 favourite foods to support a healthy menopause. There’s something for everyone in there, and there might be a couple of surprises too! Get your notebooks ready so you can plan your menopause-friendly shopping list! If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, please do leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple podcasts or whichever platform you listen on and make sure you tell all your friends – it makes a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast and really helps to spread the word. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2024 | HRT: Addressing 12 Key Questions & Myths with Kathy Abernethy, BMS Menopause Specialist. S6. Ep 5. | 00:35:22 | |
HRT (or MHT) isn’t natural territory for The Happy Menopause podcast, but as it’s the theme for this year’s World Menopause Day, I thought it would be remiss of me not to cover it. HRT has become a pretty contentious issue in recent years, with a lot of people being very entrenched in the strongly for or strongly against position. And amongst all that there are quite a lot of self-styled experts, who are anything but expert in the matter! I’ve been concerned to see the impact this has had on women in midlife, who’ve often become confused, fearful or distressed about the lack of clarity and some of the disturbing messages about the risks if you do take it or the risks if you don’t take it. As with all things, there is nuance here, so for this episode I’ve reached out to the excellent Kathy Abernethy whose menopause credentials are beyond question. She’s a trained nurse and BMS menopause specialist who’s been working as a clinician in the menopause arena since the 90s. Kathy is a hugely respected figure and has helped thousands of women over the years with her evidence-based advice and clinical support. She came on the show in Season 2 to talk about solutions for vaginal dryness, and I was delighted to welcome her back to shine a light on HRT, provide clarity and bust some of the many myths that are out there. We explore 12 key questions and myths about HRT. We look whether you can be too old or too young; how your medical history affects things; whether you’re just putting off the inevitable; what happens if you don’t take it; and more. Tune in for the inside track and a balanced, evidence-based view of this complex subject from someone who’s a genuine expert. If you’re interested in the diet and lifestyle side of menopause management, check out my other World Menopause Day special on 10 Foods to Focus on for the Menopause. And if you want ongoing support every month, you really should consider joining The Happy Menopause Club for bonus episodes, articles, Q&As and videos at thehappymenopause.com. If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode and please give it a 5-star rating and a short review on Apple podcasts, or whichever platform you listen on, I’d be so grateful. And do tell your friends and family about it too. It really does make a huge difference to the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Nov 2024 | Alcohol & the Menopause: Drink Less, Live Better! With Sarah Williamson, Coach & Author. S6. Ep 7 | 00:37:49 | |
For many of us, alcohol is woven into our lives, whether it’s a glass of wine at dinner or a night out with friends. It provides the backdrop to most big occasions, both happy and sad. But how does it affect us during menopause, when our bodies are changing in so many ways? And how does it influence our hormones and our health? The festive season is fast approaching, and with that can come a lot of pressure, because there’s always a lot to do, and our social schedule can fill up alarmingly. So, this episode is all about forward planning to help you get through this hectic time unscathed. I take a closer look at our relationship with alcohol, how it may be affecting our menopause experience, and how small shifts in our approach to drinking could make a big difference to our health. My guest is the brilliant Sarah Williamson, life coach and founder of Drink Less, Live Better, and author of an excellent book of the same name. But trust me! There’s no preaching here. In 2019 she decided to take a break from alcohol for one year... and hasn't gone back to it, there was no rock-bottom, no drama - just a feeling that perhaps alcohol wasn't providing all the benefits she thought it was. She’s found that the relationship with alcohol is often the final bit of the jigsaw for many midlife women in getting a handle on their wellbeing. Sarah talks a lot of sense, and I love her practical, compassionate and non-judgemental approach. You’ll find some very helpful advice in this episode on how to manage your relationship with alcohol. If you’re a fan of The Happy Menopause, please tell your friends and family about it, and make sure you click the follow or subscribe button on whichever platform you listen on to make sure you never miss an episode. It really does make a huge difference to the algorithms which influence the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Sep 2019 | Managing the Menopause at Work with Menopause Trainer, Julie Dennis - S1. Ep 5. | 00:32:47 | |
The menopause can be stressful enough for women without the challenges of dealing with it in front of your colleagues. 75% of women of menopausal age are in work and will be affected by a range of symptoms, from hot flushes which are uncomfortable and can embarrassing; flooding which can be a nightmare if access to a toilet is restricted; or anxiety and loss of confidence which might impact your performance. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Dec 2024 | The Overworked Woman's Guide to a Stress-Free Christmas with Jess Baker, Chartered Psychologist. S6. Ep. 8. | 00:36:41 | |
Christmas can be a lot of fun and create some wonderful memories. But let’s face it, all that festive joy doesn’t happen by accident. Behind the scenes, pulling all the strings and juggling all the plates, there’s usually a woman making the magic happen. We really do take on a lot at this time of year. So, if you’re already feeling overwhelmed by all the planning, shopping, wrapping, prepping, and cooking that lies ahead, don’t worry—help is at hand. In this episode, I’m chatting with Chartered Psychologist Jess Baker, the author of the excellent book The Super Helper Syndrome: A Survival Guide for Compassionate People. She’s here to help us establish some boundaries, banish guilt and avoid overloading ourselves - just what we need at this time of year. Jess has some brilliant advice to get you through the season while still having fun. Tune in we dive into some tricky festive scenarios—I’m pretty sure you’ll recognise them! —now you’ll learn how to handle them with confidence and ease. This is the first in a series of three podcasts designed to support you through the challenges of the festive season. If you’re a member of The Happy Menopause Club, you can listen to the whole series right away. For non-members, the next episode - 2-Minute Yoga Tips for a Calmer Christmas —will be available on 12th December, and the final one, Christmas Nutrition Tips: Your Guide to a Balanced Festive Season to help you navigate parties, dinners and all the food and drink challenges, will drop on 19th December. But if you’d like access to all the advice straight away, so you can sail through the season stress-free, head to The Happy Menopause.com and join for just £6 per month. If you’re a fan of The Happy Menopause, please tell your friends and family about it, and make sure you click the follow or subscribe button on whichever platform you listen on to make sure you never miss an episode. It really does make a huge difference to the algorithms which influence the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 12 Dec 2024 | Pause, Stretch, Breathe: 2-Minute Yoga Tips for a Calmer Christmas with Libby Stevenson, Menopause Yoga Specialist. S6. Ep. 9. | 00:32:47 | |
The build-up to Christmas can be hectic and stressful, and the thought of carving out a full hour for a yoga class (or any workout) when there’s so much to do can just add to the pressure. This is the 2nd in my 3-part series to help you cope with the challenges of the festive season. I’m releasing them on Thursdays through December or you can listen to all of them straight away, by signing up at www.TheHappyMenopause.com In this episode, I chat with menopause yoga expert Libby Stevenson, who’s full of tips to help us stay calm and balanced during this busy time of year. Libby shares simple, discreet yoga stretches and breathing techniques that you can do at your desk or even in the supermarket queue. No one will notice, and you’ll get the lift you need to manage looming deadlines or tackle festive tasks. We cover a series of 2-minute tips to target everything from back ache to insomnia, as well as how to manage overwhelm and find calm and balance. There are some brilliant quick wins here that suit everyone, whether you’re new to yoga or an old hand at the practice. This episode is full of practical advice. and I love how simple and discreet Libby’s suggestions are. I’m sure you’ll find them useful! This is the second in a series of three podcasts designed to support you through the challenges of the festive season. If you’re a member of The Happy Menopause Club, you can listen to the whole series right away. For non-members, the next episode, Christmas Nutrition Tips: Your Guide to a Balanced Festive Season to help you navigate parties, dinners, and all the food and drink challenges, will drop on 19th December. And go back and check out the first one: The Overworked Woman's Guide to a Stress-Free Christmas. If you can't wait until 19th December, you can get access to all the advice straight away, so that you sail through the season stress-free. Just head to The Happy Menopause.com and join for just £6 per month. If you’re a fan of The Happy Menopause, please tell your friends and family about it, and make sure you click the follow or subscribe button on whichever platform you listen on to make sure you never miss an episode. It really does make a huge difference to the algorithms which influence the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 19 Dec 2024 | Christmas Nutrition Tips : Your Guide to a Balanced Festive Season with Jackie Lynch, Nutritionist & Author. S6. Ep 10. | 00:17:19 | |
Feeling a little apprehensive about the festive season? It’s not just one day, is it? The celebrations seem to start in early December and go on... and on. Your calendar fills up fast – often with events you’re not even excited about! And let’s face it, most of these involve endless food and drink, which can take a toll on your waistline, sleep, and overall wellbeing in just a few weeks. But it doesn’t have to be that way. I’m sharing some of my best tips and tricks to help you keep on track, so that you sail through the festive season, without piling on the pounds, disrupting your sleep or triggering those pesky hot flushes. Tune in for all my best advice on navigating parties; smart buffet choices; surviving Christmas dinner; mindful indulgence, and hangover hacks. This episode really is a must to help you cope with the festive season! This is the third in a series of three podcasts designed to support you through the challenges of the festive season. Check out the other episodes Pause, Stretch, Breathe: 2-Minute Yoga Tips for a Calmer Christmas, and The Overworked Woman's Guide to a Stress-Free Christmas. That way you'll get the full package of support! If you’re a fan of The Happy Menopause, please tell your friends and family about it, and make sure you click the follow or subscribe button on whichever platform you listen on to make sure you never miss an episode. It really does make a huge difference to the algorithms which influence the visibility of the podcast, so that more women can find the show. After all, every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Jan 2025 | Metabolism & Menopause – How to Achieve Sustainable Weight Loss with Petronella Ravenshear, Nutritionist & Author. S6. Ep11 | 00:39:03 | |
Weight loss can feel like an uphill battle for us midlife women. What worked before no longer seems effective, and that’s often due to a slowing metabolism. Years of yoyo dieting may have played a role, but this shift is also a natural part of this life stage. If your body is stuck in fat-storage mode, no amount of eating less will bring the results you’re after. But there’s hope! In this episode, I’m joined by Petronella Ravenshear, nutritionist and author of The Human Being Diet. She shares her simple yet clever approach to resetting your metabolism and escaping the frustrating plateau. We cover:
Petronella’s advice is packed with insights and practical tips. It’s reassuring to know there’s a way forward - one that helps you achieve sustainable weight loss while embracing a new, healthier lifestyle through midlife and beyond. Trust me, the benefits will ripple through every aspect of your life! If you enjoy The Happy Menopause, please spread the word to your friends and family. Don’t forget to hit follow or subscribe on your favourite platform to ensure you never miss an episode. Your support helps the podcast reach more women, because every woman deserves a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 06 Feb 2025 | The Power of Strength – Staying Physically Strong in Menopause & Beyond with Women’s Health Physiotherapist, Christien Bird. S6. Ep 12. | 00:37:52 | |
In this episode, we’re talking about strength - not weight, not size, but pure, functional strength. Because let’s be honest, we can spend way too much time worrying about one and not nearly enough about the other! Strength is vital at any age, but as we hit midlife and beyond, it becomes essential. It boosts confidence, protects our bones, and keeps us active for longer. After all, what’s the point of making it to 90 if you’re too frail to enjoy it? To explore this, I’m joined by the brilliant Christien Bird, a familiar voice on The Happy Menopause podcast. A women’s health physiotherapist with a passion for strength, Christien is in her early 60s, represents Team GB in triathlon for her age group, and has just signed up for an Ironman challenge - because she loves pushing herself! If anyone can inspire us to embrace strength, it’s her. Together, we discuss: - The barriers holding women back from exercise – and when they start - Why strength is so important in midlife - How it plays a key role in avoiding frailty - Three different exercise personas - find out which one you are! - Practical tips for getting started, even if you’re feeling shy Tune in for an inspiring and empowering conversation that will change the way you think about strength! If you love The Happy Menopause, why not share it with your friends and family? And don’t forget to follow or subscribe on your favourite podcast platform so you never miss an episode! Your support helps more women discover the podcast - because every woman deserves a happy menopause. For even more expert advice and exclusive content, join The Happy Menopause Club! You'll get access to bonus episodes, a monthly live nutrition Q&A, articles, video masterclasses, and more. Visit www.thehappymenopause.com Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 06 Mar 2025 | The Courage to Change: A Midlife Vineyard Dream with Sally Evans, Winery Owner & Author. S12. Ep. 13. | 00:38:35 | |
Do you have a dream? I bet you do - most of us do! But do you dare to make it happen? It’s easy to feel stuck at this stage of life and wonder, Is this it? The truth is, it’s never too late to make a change, whether big or small. My latest podcast guest, Sally Evans, is living proof of that. An award-winning wine producer with a small vineyard near Bordeaux, France, Sally turned her life upside down at 52. When her youngest child left home, she sold her property, studied winemaking, and before she knew it, she’d bought a small estate with a few vines. The rest, as they say, is history! She’s written a brilliant book - Make the Midlife Move - packed with practical advice on identifying and pursuing your dream. It might be exactly what you need! In this episode, we dive into Sally’s fascinating journey and the lessons she’s learned along the way. If you’ve ever dreamed of shaking things up, this one’s for you. We discuss:
Come and join us—you won’t regret it! If you love The Happy Menopause, why not share it with your friends and family? And don’t forget to follow or subscribe on your favourite podcast platform so you never miss an episode! Your support helps more women discover the podcast - because every woman deserves a happy menopause. For even more expert advice and exclusive content, join The Happy Menopause Club! You'll get access to bonus episodes, a monthly live nutrition Q&A, articles, video masterclasses, and more. Visit www.thehappymenopause.com Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 03 Oct 2019 | Managing Stress Incontinence (Or How to Stop Leaking!) by Myra Robson, Pelvic Health Physiotherapist & Founder of the Squeezy App - S1. Ep 6. | 00:34:32 | |
Have you ever had a little wee when you sneeze, cough or exercise? Honestly? Because it wouldn’t be surprising. It’s called stress incontinence and it happens to 1 in 3 women, yet it’s the one thing we never speak about. 40% of women are too embarrassed to consult their doctor about it and just accept what the media has coyly termed “whoops” moments as an inevitable part of ageing. But it doesn’t have to be that way – for many women, the issue can be corrected in as little as 6 weeks with the right support. In this episode, I speak to women’s health physiotherapist Myra Robson, who specialises in pelvic health at Lewisham Hospital in London, supporting women with stress incontinence and prolapse. She’s absolutely passionate about getting the message out there and is part of the Pelvic Roar campaign team which raises awareness about pelvic health. She’s also the founder of the awarding-winning Squeezy app, to help us all keep on track with our pelvic floor exercises. “Common, not normal” is her view on leaking and she unravels the mysteries of the pelvic floor, so you understand exactly what’s going on when you leak and how you can stop it. There’s an awful lot of help out there, once you know where to look, and in many cases the solution can be very simple, so there’s no reason to assume you’ll have to pad up for the rest of your life. Myra explains how to do your pelvic floor exercises correctly, so join us for a ‘squeeze-along’ and find out what inspired her to create the brilliant Squeezy app, which I think every woman should have on her phone. It certainly helps me to keep on track with my exercises. Resolving your pelvic floor issues can be life-changing and make for a happier and healthier midlife and old age. Follow Myra’s advice and you’ll be able to laugh, sneeze and run to your heart’s content and never have another whoops moment. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2019 | World Menopause Day Special: Mid Life, the Play by Author Sheila Chapman - S1. Ep 8. | 00:38:28 | |
It’s World Menopause Day, so we are celebrating women in midlife and shouting about the menopause in all its glory. Over the past year, the taboo around discussing the menopause has been gradually chipped away, which is encouraging, but there’s very little portrayal of the menopause in the arts, so I’m excited to tell you all about new play called Mid Life which is coming to the Barbican in London in February 2020. We have 2 free tickets to give away, so tune in to find out how you could be the lucky winner. In this episode, I speak to award-winning author Sheila Chapman who has written a play called Mid Life which charts the experiences of three very different women and their journey through the menopause. Dr Isabel De Salis is also joining us remotely and her research project is an important part of the picture. The play aims to bust myths about midlife and the menopause, and Sheila drew on some of the key themes of Isabel’s interviews with menopausal women to develop the script and to give the characters a truly authentic voice. I’m pretty sure you’ll recognise several of the challenges they face, so that you’ll laugh and cry along with them if you go to see the play! Sheila has big ambitions to extend the show and the important messages it contains beyond the theatre to reach a wider audience. She’d like to put on shows for free in community centres, places of work and in libraries and host discussions which capture the diverse voices of all kinds of different women, which could be incorporated into future iterations of the show and also into a book that will be published next year. If you’d like to support this brilliant work and help Mid Life go on tour, you can make a donation via Sheila’s crowdfunder. For more information about this episode, details of the crowdfunder and how to win tickets to see the play at the Barbican, check out the show notes on my website. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2019 | World Menopause Day Special: Know Your Menopause: How to Spot the Symptoms with the Pausitivity team - S1, Ep 7. | 00:32:29 | |
It’s World Menopause Day today and we’re celebrating women in midlife with this special episode. There’s no better day to be busting the taboo about discussing the menopause and raising awareness of the different symptoms women experience and the range of solutions available to them, which is why I’m speaking to the brilliant team from Pausitivity. They’ve made it their business to get menopause information out there and have been having a lot of fun long the way. It’s a great story, so tune in and enjoy! In this episode, I speak to three very different women, who’d never met before and who still haven’t met in person. They came together through social media due to their frustration with the lack of menopause information available for women and their determination to do something about it. Karen Kenning, Elizabeth Carr-Ellis and Clare Shepherd are the founders of the Pausitivity poster campaign. They always say, if you want something done ask a busy woman, and the Pausitivity women have certainly got things done! They’ve taken Twitter by storm and are doing quite an amazing job of raising awareness about the menopause. Listen to their fascinating stories and learn about their journey to get their Know Your Menopause symptoms poster in every doctor’s surgery. Their #PosterSelfie campaign is causing a real stir, receiving support from GPs, MPs, health campaigners and celebrities. They’ve even managed to get several guys on board, including Tony Hadley and Jeremy Vine! It's a very inspiring story and a real testament to the power of positivity and friendship. For more information about this episode and to find helpful links in the show notes, visit my website. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Nov 2019 | Your Best Life: The Importance of Self Care for a Healthy, Happy Menopause with Dr Louise Wiseman, GP and author - S1. Ep 9. | 00:35:24 | |
Do you spend most of your time thinking about and looking after other people? It’s something women seem hardwired to do, but how good are you at looking after yourself and putting your health and happiness first? Our nurturing gene seems to have a blind spot when it comes to our own wellbeing, yet the menopause is the very time when self-care is incredibly important. “Your health in those 10 years before the menopause can actually affect how easy your transition is through it.” Wise words indeed from this month’s guest! In this episode I speak to Dr Louise Wiseman, a former GP, now health writer and motivator for women, whose first book “Your Best Life - A Doctor’s Secret Guide to Radiant Health Over 40” is due for release in Summer 2020. Louise has researched and written about all aspects of women’s health alongside the process of healthy ageing and has worked with specialists at the forefront of their fields. She’s interviewed 45 prolific women for the book to see how 'real women think' and what influences their attitudes to health and life over 40. The result is a fascinating snapshot of female life now, alongside evidence-based information to empower you to live your best life possible whatever your age! Louise and I discuss the importance of self-care and empowering women to put themselves and their health at the top of the list, because this is your time and both you and your loved ones will benefit if you’re feeling strong, happy and confident. For more information about Louise and the work that she does, as well as helpful resources related to this episode, check out the Show Notes on my website.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Dec 2019 | Food & Fashion to Fight Hot Flushes with Nancy Zeffman & Eileen Willett of Cucumber Clothing - S1. Ep 10. | 00:31:52 | |
Hot flushes can be a real nightmare for some women during the menopause. They're disruptive, embarrassing and uncomfortable, especially at work, in a social situation or at night. So what can we do about it? There are lots of ways that diet and lifestyle can pro-actively address hot flushes, and there are also some fabulous clothes out there that can help you keep your cool when you’re temperature is soaring. In this episode I take a look at some practical food and fashion solutions which will make a real difference to the way that you look and feel. Tune in for The Happy Menopause Top Ten countdown of diet and lifestyle tips to relieve your hot flushes and discover a fabulous fashion collection designed to keep you cool, no matter how bad your night sweats. Meet Nancy Zeffman and Eileen Willett, two inspiring women who set out to change the face of fashion for menopausal women when they founded their brand Cucumber Clothing just two years ago. Using clever tech fibres and drawing on Eileen’s fashion background, they’ve produced some truly gorgeous clothes. Their mission is to keep you looking and feeling cool, so that you’re happy and confident during the day and much more comfortable at night. Any woman who struggles with hot flushes and night sweats will definitely want to hear what they’ve got to say. Forget everything you thought you knew about natural fibres being the best and discover a whole new world of femtech clothing which are specially designed to make you look and feel good throughout the menopause. And it's not just about looking good! Cucumber Clothing has a strong sustainable ethos at every level, from the sourcing through to the packaging and labelling. It's a truly impressive story of what two determined women can achieve! Listen in to get your promotional code for 15% off the Cucumber Clothing range, so you can treat yourself this Christmas. Check the Show Notes for this episode on my website for more information and Terms & Conditions. If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a review on Apple iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show and join The Happy Menopause party. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Jan 2020 | Managing a Healthy Weight in Mid Life with Dr Zoe Harcombe, Researcher & Author - S1. Ep 11. | 00:35:37 | |
It’s that time of year when you might be looking to lose a few pounds which isn’t an easy task for women in midlife. As if the menopause wasn’t tough enough, with all the different symptoms you experience, the gradual increase in weight that comes with the menopause can often feel like the last straw! This is the time in life where even women who’ve never had to watch their weight may start to notice that the pounds are creeping on and most women find that it takes a lot more effort to shift a spare tyre than it used to. But help is at hand with this month's guest: the brilliant Dr Zoe Harcombe joins me to talk through her tips for successful weight loss. Zoe is a researcher, author and specialist in weight management and obesity. It’s an area she’s always been passionate about, even when she was working full-time as a senior executive for a large blue chip organisation, where she somehow found time to publish 3 books on the subject! In 2007, she left to become a full-time researcher, and this culminated in the publication of The Obesity Epidemic: What caused it? How can we stop it? Zoe has also published numerous academic papers and her Harcombe Diet Club is an online community for people who are seeking support in developing a healthier lifestyle. Her advice is definitely worth listening to, so tune in to hear what she’s got to say! You'll discover Zoe's 3-step approach to successful weight management, learn why fat is your friend during the menopause and discover a brilliant new tip to stop to snacking in the evening. If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a review on Apple iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show and join The Happy Menopause party. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 06 Feb 2020 | How to Boost Your Libido & Have Great Sex in Midlife, with Tracey Cox, Sex and Relationship Expert - S1. Ep 12. | 00:35:24 | |
Low libido is one of those extra little gifts from the menopause which you may not have expected. As sex hormones start to decline, it can have a very real impact on your va va voom and there are lots of ways this might affect you – vaginal dryness might make sex too painful; you may lack body confidence – it’s hard to feel desire for your partner if you’re not feeling very desirable yourself; fatigue or headaches – classic but very real reasons for saying “no thank you” to a nudge from your partner. Low mood, depression or anxiety will directly affect your motivation and all of the above may impact your relationship. If any or all of these are an issue for you, there’s very little chance that any bedroom action is on the cards, but help is at hand with the latest episode of The Happy Menopause. This podcast is full of simple and practical advice to get your intimate life back on track, as I have a frank conversation with Tracey Cox, who’s one of the world’s foremost writers on sex and relationships. She’s just the woman we need for this subject, because she’s been writing, researching and talking about sex for thirty years and has toured the world as an international sex, body language and relationship expert. Her multiple books include the best-selling Hot Sex: How to Do It and her brand new book Great Sex Starts At 50: How to Age-Proof Your Libido simply has to be the go-to sex and relationship manual for women in midlife! Tracey has so many brilliant and practical tips that you're sure to find the solution to whatever challenges you're facing in the bedroom, and I throw in some nutrition advice to help you tackle low libido. If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a review on Apple iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show and join The Happy Menopause party. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Mar 2020 | Transformation & New Beginnings – How to Reinvent Yourself in Midlife with Camilla Sacre-Dallerup, Life Coach and Author - S1. Ep 13. | 00:35:22 | |
The menopause might be the end of a chapter, but it’s also an opportunity for a whole new one. This stage of life can actually be transformative and enormously liberating on a number of levels, because the hormones that have driven your decisions, your approach and your emotions since puberty start to take a back seat. It’s an opportunity for a whole new perspective and a new start, where you can become more aware of yourself and have the confidence and head space to focus on your own choices. So that’s exactly what we explore in this episode, as I speak to the inspirational Camilla Sacre-Dallerup. One of her many wise comments in this interview is that “Confidence is like a muscle that we go to the gym and train” – find out how you can increase your self-confidence and boost your motivation so that you’re as happy and fulfilled as you deserve to be for the next phase of your life. If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a review on Apple iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show and join The Happy Menopause party. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 08 Mar 2020 | International Women’s Day Special: The Menopause Café – From Light Bulb Moment to Global Movement - S1, Ep 14. | 00:31:12 | |
International Women’s Day celebrates the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. It’s all about getting the message out there and enabling and empowering women to make a difference to their lives. So I thought it was the perfect opportunity to interview Rachel Weiss, the founder of Menopause Café, a grassroots project to support women in midlife and raise awareness in local communities. It’s an inspirational tale of how a light bulb moment can become a global movement! Rachel Weiss is an accredited counsellor, coach and entrepreneur, plus full-on menopause champion. Her work has made a tangible difference to women in midlife when she was inspired to start Menopause Café after watching a TV programme about the menopause in 2017. It’s taken off in a big way, expanding across the UK and a whole range of countries, helping to support women in local communities. She’s also founded the annual Menopause Festival (aka #Flushfest), a celebration of women in midlife which features everything from health and wellbeing workshops, arts and crafts activities and midlife-themed cabaret and stand-up comedy. Tune in to find out more about this incredibly dynamic woman and to hear the Menopause Café story. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Apr 2020 | How to Exercise Effectively in Midlife (Part 1): Exercising at Home, with women's health and fitness coach, Baz Moffat - S1. Ep 15. | 00:39:13 | |
Exercise is a non-negotiable for women in midlife. It can make a material difference to bone density and muscle tone which both decline significantly during and post-menopause, and of course it’s also crucial for heart health, mental health and stress management. And with self-isolation now part of our daily lives, it’s more important than ever at the moment, for our overall well-being. In this episode I speak to Baz Moffat, former Team GB rower and women’s health & fitness coach, who thinks we all need to move more and she’s absolutely right! The UK is in Corona virus lockdown right now, so I speak to Baz remotely from her She Shed! She’s an exercise specialist and all-round inspiration with a fascinating story and she’s made it her business to support women in midlife with her Strong To The Core exercise programmes. A lifelong fan of sport, she put the groundwork in with a BSc (Hons) in Sports Science, followed by a Masters at Bristol University, where she became fascinated by the psychology of health-related behaviour change, in other words: how can you get people to do something consistently that they fundamentally don’t want to do, even though they know it’s good for them? Does that sound familiar?! I’m sure we could all benefit from her magic touch in the exercise arena, especially now we’re all stuck at home. Her new online programme, Strong With Baz, could be just what we need in these times of self-isolation! We discuss the importance of exercise for optimum health in midlife and beyond, and Baz is full of helpful advice about how to motivate yourself to exercise effectively at home during this time of lockdown, as well as looking ahead to a time when we can go back to our gyms, parks and pools. We explore the types of exercise that are most relevant for women in midlife and how to practice “body literacy”, so that you apply the approach that’s most appropriate for you and learn when to push through and when to go easy on yourself. I really enjoyed chatting to Baz, she’s full of good suggestions and useful insights. One of the things that really chimed with me was her comment that women will be hit especially hard by the Corona virus, taking on more caring responsibilities, home schooling, worrying about food supplies, nutritious meals and the overall well-being of everyone else around them. If that sounds familiar, then there’s no doubt that this episode will be very relevant to you! If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a review on Apple iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show and join The Happy Menopause party.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 May 2020 | How to Improve Your Sleep with circadian neuroscientist, Professor Russell Foster - S1. Ep 16. | 00:39:53 | |
Sleep can feel like the holy grail for women in midlife – something you’re desperately searching for which is incredibly hard to find. There are many reasons that sleep can be elusive during the menopause – hot flushes, night sweats, palpitations and anxiety can all play their part in disrupting our slumber. And when we don’t get enough sleep, this dramatically affects our health and well-being – leading to fatigue, irritability, poor judgement and loss of creativity; affecting mental health, immune function and even contributing to weight gain. But help is at hand with my latest podcast guest, as I speak to renowned sleep expert Professor Russell Foster who’s just the person we need to help us get our sleep back on track. Russell is the Founder and Director of the Sleep & Circadian Research Institute and Head of Oxford University’s Nuffield Laboratory of Ophthalmology and has carried out decades of research into the science of circadian rhythms and sleep cycles. With multiple awards and worldwide recognition for his work and over 250 scientific papers on the subject, there’s no doubt that we’ll be receiving the very best advice to support our sleep. Discover Russell’s 4-pillar approach to getting a good night’s sleep; learn why sleep apps are mostly a waste of time and understand the science behind our circadian rhythms and how exposure to morning light is the key to a good night’s sleep. Russell is full of fascinating insights and practical tips to make a material difference to the quality of your sleep, so tune in to hear what he has to say. If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a review on Apple iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show and join The Happy Menopause party. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 04 Jun 2020 | Nutrition for Managing Stress & Boosting Resilience, with Jackie Lynch, Nutritional Therapist - S1. Ep 17.and Author | 00:33:28 | |
In this episode, we hear from expert nutritional therapist and host of The Happy Menopause podcast, Jackie Lynch, as she explores a nutritional approach to managing stress. It’s been a bruising few months in lockdown and everyone has faced different challenges, which can’t have been easy. Whatever’s been going on with you, the chances are that your stress levels have been going through the roof at times and the combination of stress and menopause is an explosive one. That's why it seems to be a good time to focus on relieving stress and supporting resilience, and Jackie will take you through her favourite nutritional strategies to help you keep calm and carry on. Some new research has revealed that women have been bearing the emotional brunt of the turmoil around Covid-19. It was absolutely no surprise to hear that women were more likely to be delivering essential front-line services in low-paid insecure roles; more likely to be leading on child care and home schooling, more likely to be caring for elderly relatives; more likely to have contacted someone lonely or vulnerable; more likely to have checked on family and friends and delivered supplies to someone who is self-isolating; more likely to have their employment impacted; more likely to have their employment impacted; more likely to be uncomfortable with the lifting of lockdown. And this is the main problem for women: we’re hardwired to nurture, so at a time like this the pressure really is on and women are going into overdrive to check their family is safe and well, support those around them, keep everything and everyone in the household on an even keel, perform at work and as per usual put themselves at the very bottom of the list of priorities. Add that to the pressures of the menopause and you've got a toxic combination of challenges that could be having a very negative impact on you. As lockdown starts to ease and we emerge blinking into this new world, you’re probably feeling a bit shattered by the experience which is why this episode focuses exclusively on food and discusses nutritional strategies to reduce stress and support resilience in today’s podcast. Jackie draws on all her clinical experience to provide you with a range of practical tools to empower you to . Tune in to find out about the power of protein, why vitamin C is crucial and discover the nutrient that is every menopausal woman's best friend. Jackie will also take you through a range of stress-busting ideas for meals and snacks so you have plenty of practical takeaways to add to your daily routine, so that you feel better equipped to cope with the pressures of daily life. If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a review on Apple iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show and join The Happy Menopause party. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Jul 2020 | Joy & Adventure: How to Make the Most of Midlife, with Jo Moseley, Joy Encourager & Midlife Adventurer - S1. Ep 18. | 00:33:25 | |
Summer is here and lockdown is easing in most places so I thought this would be a good time to start thinking about new adventures. Midlife is a time which can be transformational and enormously liberating because the hormones that have driven your decisions, approach and emotions for years start to subside and there’s some space for you to become more aware of yourself and consider life from a different perspective. Lockdown has also offered a period of reflection for lots of us. I’ve spoken to several people who are considering making changes to the way that they work or how they live, so this episode is a great opportunity to explore that a bit further. I’m speaking to the brilliant Jo Moseley a self-confessed midlife adventurer who says that you’re never too old to do something wild and it’s never too late to make a difference. Jo describes herself as a joy encourager, midlife adventurer & beach cleaner. In 2019 she embarked on a coast to coast challenge in the north of England, travelling along 162 miles of canals on a stand up paddleboard, picking up litter & raising money for charity. But life wasn’t always one big adventure for her. Several years ago, Jo was hit hard by the perimenopause, so tune in to find out how she went from sobbing in the supermarket to paddleboard pro! Jo is an incredibly inspiring woman and it’s so interesting to hear her story. I really love that she’s done all this alongside her day job and bringing up her children. It just goes to show that you don’t have to make a drastic life change to introduce a bit of adventure into your life. I hope this episode gives you some food for thought to embark on your own midlife adventure. This is the end of Season 1 of The Happy Menopause and I’ll be taking a break in August. This is a great chance for you to catch up with any of the episodes you haven’t listened to yet. I’ll be back in September with Season 2, which starts with a series of specials to kick things off. I’ll be speaking to more inspiring women and exploring more of those pesky menopause symptoms, so look out for episodes on skin, hair, nails and much more over the autumn. In the meantime, I hope you have a great summer, full of joy and adventure! If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show and join The Happy Menopause party. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 03 Sep 2020 | How to Have Great Hair, with Dr Sharon Wong, Consultant Dermatologist & Hair Specialist - S2. Ep 1. | 00:40:10 | |
Welcome to Season 2 of The Happy Menopause podcast. We're kicking off with a fascinating episode which focuses on hair, because dry and thinning hair can be one of the most frustrating symptoms of the menopause. Of course, hot flushes, anxiety and fatigue can have a hugely negative impact on women, but there’s something about hair that is particularly emotive. I think many of us carry our identity as a woman in our hair and thinning hair and poor condition can often exacerbate that loss of confidence that hits some women in midlife. So I’ve reached out for some expert advice in this episode from consultant dermatologist and hair specialist Dr Sharon Wong and what a revelation it was! Dr Sharon Wong is a consultant dermatologist who specialises in treating hair and scalp disorders. After graduating with a first class honours degree in medicine and clinical genetics, Sharon pursued her specialist training at some of the most prestigious hospitals in London. She went on to set up a dedicated hair loss clinic at Homerton Hospital. Sharon now runs her private clinic at the HCA Outpatients Centre in the iconic Shard at London Bridge and is a sought-after speaker in her specialist area. In short, she’s a super-busy woman, so I’m thrilled that she found time to record this interview. Get your notebook ready before you start listening, because you won’t want to miss a single second of her expert advice, as we discuss the impact of genetics, ethnicity, diet and lifestyle on the condition of your hair. Sharon is full of fantastic practical advice on hair products and how to look after your hair in midlife to deal with all the challenging There really is nothing like listening to an expert talk about their subject. I learned a lot from Sharon and I think you're going to really enjoy listening to everything she has to say, and you might want to rethink your approach to hair care! If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show and join The Happy Menopause party. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 03 Sep 2020 | How to Exercise Effectively in Midlife (Part 2): Exercising in Public Spaces, with Women’s Health & Fitness Coach Baz Moffat - S2. Ep 2. | 00:35:55 | |
This interview is Part 2 of my exercise series and is full of brilliant advice from former Team GB rower, medallist and women’s health and fitness coach Baz Moffat on the best ways for women in midlife to exercise. It was actually recorded some months ago, just before lockdown, but much of the advice became irrelevant at that stage because we couldn’t access all those public spaces that we’d discussed. And so we recorded a lockdown special about exercising at home, which is Part 1 of this podcast and aired back in April. But now we’re out and about again and the gyms and fitness centres are open, it's time to release this episode, so you can benefit from Baz’s brilliant advice as you launch your autumn fitness regime. With a lifelong passion for sport and exercise, and a degree and a Masters in sports science and behavioural change, Baz is fully equipped to motivate and support us with our exercise challenges as we transition through the menopause. She specialises in supporting women in midlife and knows exactly what we need to be doing to get fit and stay strong, and how to motivate us to get there. We discuss all manner of different types of exercise including dancing, swimming, yoga, resistance work and pelvic floor, as well as how to keep active when you’re deskbound. Whatever your fitness status, Baz is full of simple, practical advice, so tune in for some excellent exercise analysis. If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show and join The Happy Menopause party.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 03 Sep 2020 | Finding Passion, Profit & Purpose in Midlife, with Laurie Wright, Master Neuro Coach & Business Mentor - S2. Ep 3. | 00:38:05 | |
September is the perfect time to be thinking about new beginnings and of course midlife can often provide an opportunity for a whole new perspective too. As reproductive hormones subside, you’ll have the headspace to become more aware of yourself and to focus on your own choices, so it can be a time of big change. Many women decide to step away from the corporate world at this time to work independently or start their own business. So if you’re ready to do things differently and are looking for a new way to live and a little confidence boost to encourage you, this is the perfect episode for you. I’m speaking to Master Neuro Coach and Business Mentor Laurie Wright who’s made it her mission to ensure that nobody gets to the end of their life and has any regrets! Laurie is also known as Not Your Average Grandma but there’s certainly nothing average about her! She’s a certified Master Neuro Coach and Business Mentor who focuses on helping empty nesters find passion, purpose and profit in their life. Queen of the Midlife Transformation, she’s drawn on her extensive experience of a busy corporate role and her own personal and professional journey in midlife to develop a highly successful coaching business. Laurie teaches women how to discover what lights them up and then how to create a business around that passion, so that they'll never dread another Monday. This could be the start of something big for you, so tune in for some brilliant advice from a fascinating woman. We discuss Laurie's extraordinary journey and her own personal midlife transformation which will have you absolutely gripped! She's an absolute inspiration and a truly dynamic woman. One thing that especially struck me is when she said “Don’t ever use age as an excuse not to make your life better”. There’s a shot in the arm, if ever I heard one! Can you afford NOT to listen if you want to get your life onto a happy and fulfilling path through midlife and beyond? If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 01 Oct 2020 | How Nutrition Can Help You Manage Your Menopause, with Registered Nutritional Therapist, Jackie Lynch - S2. Ep 4. | 00:35:52 | |
It’s October at last and my regular listeners will know that my new book The Happy Menopause: Smart Nutrition to Help You Flourish comes out this month. This book has been burning away inside me for a long time now, as there simply isn't enough information out there to support women during this hugely transitional phase of life. So I've drawn on my clinical expertise as a nutritional therapist and included all the information about diet and lifestyle that you could wish for to empower you to build you own menopause diet and specifically target the symptoms that are troubling you. It really is the one-stop solution for every woman juggling her menopause with the daily challenges of a busy life. This episode provides a sneak preview to some of the diet and lifestyle advice in the book and I’ve handed the reins of the podcast over to my colleague and friend Christien Bird of the excellent White Hart, because I’d like you to get the perspective of another health professional. Christien is a Chartered Women’s Health Physiotherapist and features in Season 1, talking about bone health. She’s a stickler for a proper evidence-based approach, so if she approves, then it’s definitely a good sign. I know she’ll take her usual forensic approach to questioning me, so that you can be sure to get an objective inside track on the book. We discuss my favourite nutritional strategy for managing menopause symptoms and take a deep dive into the range of different symptoms that can affect women and how the right diet can make a material difference to how you feel in your 40s, 50s and beyond. Find out why this is really not the time for a crash diet and why magnesium is every menopausal woman’s best friend! If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2020 | Living With Premature Menopause, with Dr Rebecca Gibbs, Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist - S.2 Ep 5. | 00:43:49 | |
It’s World Menopause Day and this year’s theme is premature ovarian insufficiency otherwise known as premature menopause. It’s a condition which affects 1 in 100 women under 40, 1 in 1000 under 30, and 1 in 10,000 under 20. This is where the ovaries are unable to produce oestrogen and progesterone and the menopause happens many years before it naturally should. It can be incredibly stressful for the women concerned and requires specialist hormone treatment to negate the health risks of an oestrogen deficiency at such a young age. So I’ve reached out to Dr Rebecca Gibbs, who’s the perfect person to discuss this because of her professional specialism in obstetrics and gynaecology and her own personal experience of premature menopause. It was a privilege to chat to Dr Rebecca Gibbs who is a consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist working at the Royal Free Hospital in London and at The Portland Hospital. Rebecca was diagnosed with premature ovarian insufficiency in her early 30s whilst undergoing fertility treatment. She has used her experiences as both a doctor and a patient to volunteer for Daisy Network, the UK’s premature ovarian insufficiency charity and she’s full of great, practical advice on how to cope with this difficult condition and to live a positively child-free life. We have a frank conversation about the health implications of a diagnosis of premature menopause, the devastating reproductive impact it has on girls and women, the appropriate treatment and how her own experience has changed the way Rebecca approaches all her menopausal patients. Rebecca talks about the excellent support from her GP after her diagnosis, the counselling she received to help her and her husband come to terms with it and how she has created a full, happy and positive life for herself over the past 5 years. We cover the unwitting lack of sensitivity that is often shown towards women who don’t have children and Rebecca is funny and forthright about how she deals with the inevitable: “And when are you going to start a family?” question. We also discuss her work with Daisy Network as their Advice Doctor and all the wonderful support that this charity offer women with premature ovarian insufficiency. Tune in to hear more from this sparky, interesting and highly inspirational woman! If you've enjoyed this episode please leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts as it helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2020 | My Top 10 Menopause-Friendly Foods with Jackie Lynch, Registered Nutritional Therapist & Author - S.2 Ep 6. | 00:21:24 | |
Following on from last month’s popular episode How Nutrition Can Help You Manage Your Menopause, I’m shining the spotlight on nutrition again for this World Menopause Day special as we look at the top 10 foods to support a healthy menopause. Get your notebooks ready so you can add them to your shopping list! My usual pattern for the podcast is to interview an expert on a menopause related subject, but I’m flying solo for today’s episode, because it’s all about nutrition, which is my own area of expertise. I’m a Registered Nutritional Therapist with a special interest in women’s health and the menopause and my WellWellWell nutrition consultations are available online. My new book The Happy Menopause: Smart Nutrition to Help You Flourish came out just last week, so I've picked some of my favourite foodie tips for this podcast, to celebrate the launch. Find out why leafy greens are a powerhouse of menopause-friendly nutrients, how they can support your bones, deal with that annoying twitchy eyelid and improve energy levels. We look at the best food sources of vitamin C and calcium, with some practical ideas of how to include them in your diet. You'll discover the different sources of hormone-balancing phytoestrogens; that you can have an egg every day if you want to and get the inside track on how your diet can help to reduce the risk of urinary infections, thrush and a whole host of other niggling menopause symptoms. I've included a lot of my best tips in this session, so tune in and take note - you won't regret it! Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 05 Nov 2020 | How to Live a Longer, Healthier, Happier Life, with Susan Saunders, Researcher & Author - S2. Ep 7. | 00:33:12 | |
Ageing is something that inevitably starts to preoccupy us in midlife, because we all want to be as fit and well as possible as we grow older, and let’s be honest, we’d like to keep looking good too. As my latest guest Susan Saunders remarks, “We all know people who are ageing at different rates. Once you get to midlife, everyone starts to age in a very different way – a small part of that is genetic but a lot of it is down to lifestyle.” Susan has made it her business to compile the very latest research on cellular ageing and some of things she flags up are a real eye-opener in this fascinating discussion on how to age well. Susan Saunders is a TV producer, author and health coach. She's spent the last decade researching how to live a longer healthier, happier life and truly believes that we can change the way we age. The fruits of this research led to her co-authoring The Age-Well Project, a brilliant book on the science of ageing and she’s just published her new book The Age-Well Plan, which is full of simple strategies to apply the science in our everyday lives and help us all to lead a longer, healthier, happier life. This episode is packed with fascinating information about cellular ageing and how we can slow it down to be the best possible version of ourselves as we move through midlife and into old age. Susan is a fount of interesting information about how we can do some very simple things to get results quite quickly. The investment you make into your health now will reap benefits both immediately and in later life, so tune in to find out how you can lay the cornerstones for optimum health and happiness. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 03 Dec 2020 | How to Manage Anxiety & Enhance Emotional Wellbeing, with Rachel Weiss, Accredited Counsellor & Coach - S2. Ep 8. | 00:37:03 | |
Well, 2020 has been quite a year! As we slide into December, it seems a good time to reflect and check in with ourselves. I think everyone has struggled with their own different challenges over the past few months and this second lockdown here in the UK has felt especially difficult as we’ve moved into winter. It wouldn’t be surprising if you were feeling a bit low and anxious, because whatever your situation, we’ve all experienced a lot of uncertainly and disruption in our lives this year. So it’s more important than ever that we focus on our mental health and wellbeing and that’s exactly what we’re doing in this episode. I’m delighted to welcome Rachel Weiss back to the podcast who is just the woman for the job. I interviewed Rachel earlier this year to celebrate International Women’s Day for episode 14 of season 1and we talked all about the lightbulb moment that led to her founding the Menopause Café, which has grown into a highly successful international movement. She’s also gone on to create the first annual Menopause Festival which is a celebration of women in midlife. If that’s whetted your appetite and you’d like to find out more, you should listen to that episode next, because it’s fascinating! This time Rachel is joining us with her other hat on, because she’s an accredited counsellor, coach and co-founder of the Rowan Consultancy which provides a range of counselling and psychotherapy services. We discuss what’s going on in the brain when we become worried and anxious and how this can impact on our body. Rachel talks us through some simple, everyday strategies to manage our mental health and wellbeing, which she describes as emotional "first aid". Tune in to find out how you can support yourself through stressful situations and when you’re feeling pressured, so that you feel more resilient and better equipped to cope with the challenges of daily life. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Jan 2021 | Why Can’t I Lose Weight? With Tanja Shaw, Weight-loss and Life Coach - S2. Ep 9. | 00:37:25 | |
New Year is a great opportunity to take stock, so why not make this the moment for you to take positive action to improve your health and wellbeing? Weight management is usually firmly on the agenda in January and it’s a topic I covered last year when I spoke to Dr Zoe Harcombe, so this year I’m looking at it from a different angle. What do you do if, despite all your stringent efforts, you simply can’t lose weight in a sustainable way? There’s nothing more frustrating than that, so I’ve called on Tanja Shaw to help us with the burning question of Why Can’t I Lose Weight? Tanja is a highly experienced weight-loss and life coach and has helped thousands of women achieve and sustain a healthy weight without resorting to drastic diets, radical regimes or any weird stuff! How good does that sound? She’s also the host of the Fit and Vibrant You Podcast, and the founder of Ascend Fitness + Lifestyle, a holistic health coaching studio in British Columbia, Canada. If you’ve been struggling with yoyo dieting or find it hard to disentangle your emotions from food, Tanja is just the person for some practical advice on a successful weight loss journey, so tune in to find out what she’s got to say! There’s so much great advice in this episode and I was especially struck by what Tanja had to say about not judging yourself too harshly. The theme of being kind to yourself has come up repeatedly from my guests throughout this podcast and it really is so important for women in midlife .It’s interesting to hear it applied to weight management, because this is the area where we typically beat ourselves up when things don’t go according to plan. Give yourself a little love this January and think carefully about Tanja’s advice on how you approach your planning and setting your goals. It will reap dividends! If you've enjoyed this episode, please leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 04 Feb 2021 | Managing Heavy or Painful Periods & Dealing with PMS, with Joyce Harper, Professor of Reproductive Science - S2. Ep 10. | 00:35:52 | |
This episode is all about periods, because long before you hit menopause day – which is officially 12 months since your last period - you’ll have experienced changes. The hormonal rollercoaster of the perimenopause can cause a lot of period havoc and it may all start sooner than you’d think and last longer than you’d expect. For many women, periods can get closer together and become heavier and more painful, long before they start to get lighter and further apart,. They might stop and start or you might find that life turns into one big period for a while. Professor Joyce Harper is an author, academic, scientist and educator and Head of the Reproductive Science and Society Group and Director of Education at the Institute for Women’s health at University College London. She’s worked in the fields of fertility, genetics and reproductive science since 1987, written over 200 scientific papers and published three books. Her latest book, Your Fertile Years, What you need to know to make informed choices comes out in April this year. Her years of research and expertise in the field of female health make her just the woman we need to help us navigate the perimenopause and the havoc this can wreak on our periods. Joyce explains in simple practical terms exactly what’s going on with your monthly cycle and why things change as you move into your 40s. We discuss heavy and painful periods, why they happen, and diet and lifestyle strategies to manage them. We also look at PMS and menstrual migraine, that nagging headache that usually starts in the days before your period and tends to be relieved on the first day of bleeding. I really hope this podcast and Joyce’s expert insights will help to shine some light on what might be going on with your periods so that you can take steps to manage your symptoms. If you've enjoyed this episode, please leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 04 Mar 2021 | How To Nourish Your Skin From The Inside Out & From Outside In, with Ada Ooi, Skin Specialist - S2. Ep 11. | 00:35:39 | |
Skin is a hot topic for most women of any age, but never more so than in midlife, when hormonal changes during the perimenopause can wreak havoc. It can be baffling and infuriating to find yourself grappling with acne in your 40s, especially if it’s never been a problem in the past. And dry skin, ageing skin and wrinkles are all common concerns for women as we transition through the menopause. The skin is a real barometer of your overall health and what’s going on in the body, so it’s not just all about creams and potions. In this episode, we’ll be looking at managing your skin from the inside out as well as outside in and I’ve got just the person for you! This month’s guest is Ada Ooi, a skin specialist trained in acupuncture, aromatherapy and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), and she’s the founder of the 001 Skincare brand. Her interest in skin health developed as a little girl, when she helped her grandfather in his pharmacy in Macau, where he prescribed both western and Chinese medicine. Since then she’s gone on to develop her own multi-faceted approach to skincare, drawing on her experience and her heritage to support her clients. Ada focuses on nourishing and healing the skin from the outside and from within, which is just the right approach for women in midlife. Ada explains how the skin is structured and what we can do to support a healthy skin. She takes us through the TCM approach to managing skin and we exchange ideas about how diet and lifestyle can help you to have a healthy, glowing skin. Ada is full of useful advice about what to look for in skincare products, how to make the most of your budget and the best approaches to manage midlife acne, dry skin and what to do about wrinkles. She’s a goldmine of brilliant tips, so tune in to find out more. If you've enjoyed this episode, please leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 08 Mar 2021 | Creating a Menopause-Friendly Workplace with Deborah Garlick of Henpicked: Menopause in the Workplace - S2. Ep 12. | 00:34:22 | |
The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day is Choose to Challenge and that couldn’t be more relevant to what we’re discussing in this episode, because we’re turning the spotlight on the workplace, which can be a very unfriendly place for women in midlife. So much so that some recent statistics suggested that 1 in 4 women consider leaving their job due to their menopause symptoms. The impact of this female brain drain on businesses can be immense, so it makes complete sense for employers to actively create a menopause-friendly environment for their staff and this is where today’s guest comes in. I’m speaking to Deborah Garlick, founder of Henpicked.net and Director of Henpicked: Menopause in the Workplace. With a professional background in organisational change, she’s passionate about helping people live better lives by raising awareness and understanding of the menopause. Henpicked started as a community for women in midlife, grew incredibly fast and has now developed into an impressive resource for organisations who want to support female employees transitioning through the menopause. Deborah and her team provide guidance and practical support in training, policies and best practice in this critical area. So if you’ve been struggling at work yourself or if you’re a line manager wondering how to support a menopausal team member, this episode will be right up your street. We discuss the challenges women face in the workplace and the steps you can take to help yourself and the processes an employer can put in place to support female staff members who are struggling with menopause symptoms. Deborah is a powerful champion of women at work and we talk about her latest project which is a menopause-friendly accreditation scheme for employers. Tune in to find out how you can change things for the better in your workplace. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 08 Mar 2021 | Challenging the Stereotypes Around Older Women with Journalist & Motorhome Adventurer, Siobhan Daniels - S2. Ep 13. | 00:33:43 | |
International Women’s Day is that time of year when we come together to celebrate the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. This year’s theme is choose to challenge, because with challenge comes change. Today’s guest is a brilliant example of this, because she’s passionate about challenging ageism and redefining the narrative around older women. And she’s certainly set about changing things! I’m speaking to Siobhan Daniels, a 61-year old ex-BBC journalist with a fascinating story. She’s given up her home and is travelling solo around Great Britain in a motorhome in a bid to challenge the stereotypes around retired women and have some fun and adventures along the way. Although her odyssey has been rudely interrupted by lockdown, she’s simply parked up in a field and she’ll be on the move again as soon as the rules allow. “Ageless fearless women, that’s what we are!”, she says and she certainly lives up to that impressive description. We discuss ageism in the workplace and Siobhan’s frustration at the sense that younger colleagues were writing off women over-50 as old, which fuelled her determination to change the dialogue around ageing. Her motorhome adventure has given her a new-found sense of freedom, but it hasn’t been without its challenges and she explains the new skills she’s learned – from filling up the water tank and manoeuvring her large vehicle to increased resilience and confidence. She shares her fascinating story from her triumphant departure and her initial travels to the challenges of lockdown and motorhome living. It’s very empowering chatting to Siobhan, and I’m already experiencing itchy feet! She’s a real inspiration to us to step up and become the ageless fearless women she’s convinced that we are, so I hope this interview gives the impetus to think about an adventure of your own, be it small or large. If you've enjoyed this episode, please leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 01 Apr 2021 | Shining a Spotlight on the Sandwich Generation with Katie Taylor, Founder of The Latte Lounge - S2. Ep 14. | 00:35:09 | |
We’re the sandwich generation. That group of - let’s face it - mostly women who are caught in the middle between caring for elderly parents and supporting our children, whatever age they might be. That’s a big burden to be carrying and multigenerational needs have grown even more acute during the pandemic, so that a previously heavy load may have now become intensely pressured and stressful. Add that to the perimenopause and menopause, and you have an explosive combination as the physical, mental and emotional strain starts to tell. Today’s guest has made it her business to shine a spotlight on the sandwich generation, providing support and guidance via her online community to release the pressure valve at this difficult time. Meet Katie Taylor, founder of The Latte Lounge and a woman who has definitely earned her menopause spurs, because she suffered debilitating perimenopausal symptoms for 4 years, which were misdiagnosed as depression and forced her to give up 3 much loved jobs. It was this experience that inspired her to set up the Latte Lounge Facebook Group, to provide support and guidance to women in midlife so they don’t waste quality years of their life as she did. Katie has reached out to medical, health and wellbeing experts to create an advice hub on the Latte Lounge website, where she can signpost her members to evidence-based, practical information and support. The membership which is currently at 20,000 and growing, is a real testament to the power of the sisterhood and shows just how important it is for we women in the sandwich generation to have a support community. We discuss the challenges of the perimenopause and how hormonally-driven psychological symptoms may lead to an inappropriate prescription for antidepressants. Katie explains the importance of community and how reaching out for relevant advice from health experts and moral support from friends, family and colleagues can make a huge difference to women in midlife. The main takeaway here is not to suffer alone if you’re struggling with menopause symptoms. Katie is a one-woman powerhouse. Tune in to find out more about Katie's campaign to support women in midlife. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 06 May 2021 | Dealing with Vaginal Dryness with Kathy Abernethy, Menopause Specialist - S2. Ep 15. | 00:32:41 | |
In this episode, I’m focusing on the Cinderella of the menopause. In recent years, we’ve become a bit more confident about discussing our menopause – some women will mention their hot flushes without turning a hair and the common mental health symptoms such as anxiety and mood swings have also started to come out of the closet, which is a great thing, but we’re still not quite ready to be open about the vaginal symptoms. So now we’re going to shine the spotlight on vaginal dryness which can be a huge issue for many women through the menopause and beyond. To help us, I’ve turned to one of the most clinically experienced menopause specialists in the UK. Kathy Abernethy has been a leading light in the field of women’s health and the menopause for over 30 years which makes her the perfect person to advise us on this tricky topic. A registered British Menopause Society Menopause Specialist with extensive clinical experience, Kathy has consistently championed women’s health and transformed the lives of hundreds of women with her clinical advice and support. There is no better person to give us the lowdown on how to manage vaginal dryness, so tune in to find out what she’s got to say. We discuss moisturisers & lubricants, and why and how to use them. Kathy explains exactly why vaginal scrubs are best avoided, and she’s reassuring and insightful on the subject of locally applied oestrogen. We also talk about the long-term importance of caring for the vagina to avoid the knock-on problems of bladder and urinary tract infections, which are common ongoing issues for women post-menopause. Throw in a bit of nutrition advice from me and you’ve got an all-round approach to managing vaginal health in this podcast! Kathy leads a busy multidisciplinary NHS menopause clinic in London, as well as her own private clinic in southwest London. She is also the director of menopause services at Peppy health, a digital health company, former chair of the British Menopause Society and the author of “Menopause: The One Stop Guide”. She’s full of so much brilliant, expert advice in this episode that I think you’ll feel much more confident about tackling any issues you might have around vaginal dryness, so that you can get the support that you need. Isn’t it time to give your vagina a bit of love? Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 03 Jun 2021 | Beating Brain Fog with Dr Sabina Brennan, Neuroscientist & Psychologist - S2. Ep 16. | 00:38:13 | |
Do you ever wonder what you came upstairs for, forget where you’ve parked the car or find yourself grappling for the right word that just won’t come? These are all common concerns for women in midlife because brain fog is one of the classic symptoms of perimenopause and menopause. All that hormonal turmoil plays havoc with the oestrogen receptors in your brain and the resulting forgetfulness, poor concentration and focus, plus an overall sense of your brain not firing on all cylinders can be incredibly disconcerting. I’ve come across many women in my nutrition clinic who were genuinely worried about early onset Alzheimer’s when it was actually all about the hormones. The focus in this episode is brain fog as we get to the bottom of what it is, why it happens and what you can do about it. I’m delighted to be speaking to Dr Sabina Brennan. She’s a chartered health psychologist, neuroscientist and host of the Super Brain podcast, so brains are very much her business! Sabina directed a dementia and brain health research programme for seven years at Trinity College, Dublin where she also led a large-scale research study examining the relationship between brain health, lifestyle, genomics and dementia risk. Her latest book Beating Brain Fog is a wonderful read, with lots of practical strategies to support and tune up your brain. We discuss the different forms of brain fog, and how they can affect you and your day-to-day performance and wellbeing. Sabina gives us strategies for tuning up your brain and explains the importance of novelty and learning. We discuss the role of diet and lifestyle and why a simple smile has a host of wonderful health benefits. This episode is essential listening for any woman struggling with cognitive issues, so tune in for some amazing practical advice! If you've enjoyed this episode, please leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 01 Jul 2021 | How to Boost Your Energy & Stop Feeling Tired All The Time with Jackie Lynch, Registered Nutritional Therapist & Author - S2. Ep 17. | 00:35:54 | |
This episode of The Happy Menopause is all about energy. Have you lost your Va Va Voom? Do you feel tired all the time? Do you blame your age for your lack of energy? If this sounds familiar, then it’s definitely time to take action, because whether you’re 29 or 69, it’s far more likely that your diet and lifestyle are the main culprits and a few simple changes and new habits could make a world of difference to the way you feel, so that’s what we’ll be focusing on today. Registered Nutritional Therapist and The Happy Menopause host, Jackie Lynch is flying solo in this episode, because nutrition for energy is a specialist subject of hers. In fact she’s written a whole book about it called Va Va Voom: The 10-Day Energy Diet. We’re all feeling a bit weary from the impact of Covid, whether we had it or not. Our lives have changed a lot in the past year and dealing with all the associated issues around the pandemic have ground many of us down, so it wouldn’t be surprising if you’re feeling generally tired. And that’s before we take into account all the hormonal havoc that comes with the perimenopause and menopause, because that also has a significant impact on physical and mental energy. So this episode takes a close look at energy for all you tired midlife women out there – how the body produces it, the different types, the role of different nutrients in the energy production process and Jackie’s written some little quizzes to help you identify whether a deficiency might be playing a part in your symptoms. Tune in for her best energy nutrition tips to help you get your Va Va Voom back so that you feel like a whole new woman! Jackie Lynch is a Registered Nutritional Therapist and founder of the WellWellWell nutrition clinic where she specialises in women’s health and the menopause. Keen to break the taboo about discussing the menopause, she launched the popular diet & lifestyle podcast The Happy Menopause and her new book, The Happy Menopause: Smart Nutrition to Help You Flourish is out now. If you've enjoyed this episode, please tell your friends and family, and leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Sep 2021 | How to Reclaim Your Time Off with Fab Giovanetti, Author & Entrepreneur - S3. Ep 1. | 00:36:33 | |
September is the perfect time for new beginnings and a different way of doing things. For most of us, things tend to be a little quieter in August, so that we can enjoy a bit of a break and this can be a handy reminder of the importance of work-life balance and getting plenty of free time. So that’s what I’d like to focus on in this episode, because things usually start to crank up again as we move into the autumn and it’s easy to let your good resolutions slide, so that before you know it, the pressure’s piling up again and you don’t know which way to turn. In this episode, I’m chatting to Fab Giovanetti, author of Reclaim Your Time Off who’s going to help us to get the balance right. Fab is an award-winning entrepreneur and social media & marketing expert who’s supported multiple start-ups and helped them establish and grow their brand. She’s also the founder of Creative Impact, a collective of hundreds of creatives aiming to make a positive impact on others and the planet. Fab is a woman who’s been juggling a huge amount of things for a long time and it was this that caused her to stop, take stock and develop some key strategies to improve her work-life balance. This is what led to her wonderful new book Reclaim Your Time Off which is full of advice on just how we can do that effectively, because we midlife women definitely need to give ourselves a break! In this episode we discuss the importance of setting boundaries and how to have the confidence to say ‘no’. Fab talks us through strategies for an effective work-life balance and to help you disconnect from the pressures of work. She also shares her 3-step solution to reclaiming your time off to help you make the most of your free time. If you've enjoyed this episode, please tell your friends and family, and leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Sep 2021 | How to Transform Yourself in Your 40s, 50s & Beyond, with Rachel Lankester, Founder of Magnificent Midlife - S3. Ep 2. | 00:36:18 | |
Every woman deserves to have a happy menopause – regular listeners will know how important that is to me and that’s the entire inspiration behind this podcast. In this episode we’re going to go a little broader and talk about not just having a happy menopause but how to have a magnificent midlife! This time in a woman’s life can be truly transformational, as the hormones that have driven your decisions, your approach to life and your emotions since puberty, start to subside and there’s headspace for you to focus on yourself and what you want to do with the rest of your life. Rachel Lankester is just the woman to help us with this, because she’s the founder of the Magnificent Midlife Movement which is all about celebrating and empowering women who are over 40, and we could all do with a bit of that! Rachel is on a mission to disrupt negative ageist and sexist stereotypes about older women, menopause and aging. Founder of Magnificent Midlife and host of an inspiring podcast of the same name, she's passionate about changing how society perceives women in midlife and beyond, and also how we view ourselves. She’s full of practical advice on how we can build up our confidence and transform ourselves and our lives so that we can truly make the most of our 40s, 50s and beyond. Tune in for an injection of confidence and some fantastic insights and inspiration on how you can transform yourself and your life at this pivotal time for women. If you've enjoyed this episode, please tell your friends and family, and leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 02 Sep 2021 | How to Manage Hormonal Headaches with Professor Anne MacGregor, Specialist in Headaches & Women’s Health - S3. Ep 3. | 00:40:00 | |
Tense, nervous headache anyone? Did you know that during our fertile years, women are 3 times more likely to suffer from headaches than men? Up until puberty and then after the menopause, our propensity for headaches is roughly the same as for men, so those pesky hormones have a lot to answer for. If menstrual migraine is an issue for you, then this episode could be just what you need because I’ve called in the big guns to help us out here. I’m speaking to Professor Anne MacGregor who has spent her career studying hormonal headaches and treating women who struggle with them so there is no one better to advise us here. From her initial doctorate where she explored the role of oestrogen in migraine, Anne has gone on to publish over 200 research papers and authored numerous books on the subject. A specialist trainer, researcher and clinician, she’s really pushed the boundaries of research in the area of hormonal headaches and has supported countless women along the way. She is currently based at the Headache and Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare Centre at St Bartholomew’s Hospital in London and is a British Menopause Society specialist and trainer. Tune in to find out about Anne’s fascinating journey from her initial research which led to her blazing a trail in the field of hormonal headaches and giving a voice to women who have struggled with this issue for years. We discuss menstrual migraine – what it is, why it happens and what you can do about it; the role of nutrition in brain function; and what to look for in over-the-counter pain relief. There’s so much to learn here and it’s an invaluable episode for anyone who struggles with headaches and migraines. If you enjoy this episode, please tell your friends and family, and leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 07 Oct 2021 | How to Make the Most of Your Doctor’s Appointment with Dr Dawn Harper, GP, Author & TV Presenter - S3. Ep 4. | 00:38:02 | |
Our family doctor is at the heart of the community and the first port of call for health advice, support and treatment for us and our loved ones. But even before the restrictions around the pandemic, that had become more difficult. With appointments often limited to 10 minutes and a one problem: one appointment policy in many surgeries, what does the menopausal women do, if she’s struggling with multiple debilitating symptoms? And how does she make herself heard? I’ve come across so many examples of women feeling that they’ve been dismissed, ignored and simply not listened to and it’s really heart-breaking to hear those stories. So in this episode I’m tackling the doctor’s appointment – how to get one and how to get the most out of it so that you get the exact support you need. Who better to call upon for this than the nation’s favourite GP, Dr Dawn Harper, who’s worked in the NHS for over 30 years. Possibly best known for her role in the BAFTA-award winning series Embarrassing Bodies, Dawn is a very familiar face on our TV screens, commenting on medical matters. She’s also the author of 12 health and well-being books, but most importantly, she’s still a practising GP, serving her local community. So there’s no one better to give us the inside track on how to manage the conversation with your doctor. We discuss strategies for getting the appointment in the first place; how to make sure you get to see the right person; how a little planning can go a long way; which questions to ask your doctor and why you should never, ever feel embarrassed! Tune in for Dawn’s brilliant practical advice on how to make the most of your doctor’s appointment. Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2021 | Everything You Need To Know About Your Bones with Sarah Leyland, Osteoporosis Specialist Nurse - S3. Ep 5. | 00:36:26 | |
Bone health is a very real concern for women in mid and later life, because when they go through the menopause, oestrogen levels drop rapidly and bones lose strength at a much faster rate. There are 3.5 million people living with osteoporosis in the UK today, and 50% of women and 20% of men over 50 will break a bone because of it. Osteoporosis is a condition that causes bones to lose strength and break more easily. However, it’s often referred to as a ‘silent disease’ because of under-diagnosis, under-treatment and low levels of public awareness. The theme of this year’s World Menopause Day is bone health, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to get some expert advice from a woman who knows all about bones. I’m delighted to be speaking to Sarah Leyland, who is an osteoporosis specialist nurse currently working as a clinical adviser with the Royal Osteoporosis Society. With over 20 years of experience in providing specialist advice, guidance and support, she’s exactly the person we need to tell us how we can support our bone density and reduce the risk of fractures that can be a very real concern for women, post menopause. Sarah and I discuss what bones are made of and how they renew themselves. She explains the various risk factors for low bone density and why it’s important to assess your own fracture risk, as well as talking us through the diet and lifestyle factors that can affect your bones, plus the various treatment options available. It was fascinating to hear about her work at The Royal Osteoporosis Society, which is the UK’s only national charity dedicated to bone health and osteoporosis. They work to improve the bone health of the nation and support everyone with osteoporosis to live well through their support services and advice. Their free Helpline, run by a team of specialist nurses, including Sarah herself, provides information and support to anyone with questions about their bone health or osteoporosis. This really is an episode that covers everything you might want to know about bones, so tune in for her excellent practical advice. If you enjoy this episode, please tell your friends and family, and leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 18 Oct 2021 | How to Strengthen Your Bones & Muscles in Mid & Later Life with Dr Catherine Walter, Academic & Powerlifter - S3. Ep 6. | 00:40:56 | |
The theme of this year’s World Menopause Day is bone health, something that really needs to be front of mind for women in mid and later life. Bones contain cells called osteoclasts which dissolve old bone and osteoblasts which build new bone. This regular renewal process helps to keep our bones strong, but bone tissue is reactive and needs impact to grow, which is why resistant forms of exercise are so important. So while the drop in oestrogen post-menopause significantly affects our bone density, we really do have it in our hands to arrest and even reverse that decline. My guest in this podcast is the perfect role model because she’s done just that and now has the bone density of a 20-year-old. I’m sure we’d all like to know how she’s done it! Meet Dr Catherine Walter – she’s a shining light in the world of English-Language Teaching and an Emeritus Fellow in Applied Linguistics at Oxford University, but she’s also a world-record-holding power lifter, who took up the sport at the age of 65 and hasn’t looked back since. Catherine’s story is incredibly inspiring and is a real example to any woman who wants to take control of her own health and wellbeing. We discuss all the ins and outs of power lifting:- what it actually is; how to get started; why it can make such a difference to your health in ways that reach far beyond strength and stamina and how it could help you become a whole new woman. I have to say that just a short chat with her left me feeling hugely motivated to get out there, find myself a power coach and start lifting. Tune in to learn about Catherine’s fascinating journey, her helpful advice for exercising as an older woman and the physical confidence she’s achieved through building her strength which provided her with the ultimate put-down for an annoying guy in a bar! If you enjoy this episode, please tell your friends and family, and leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||
| 04 Nov 2021 | Foods to Support a Healthy Immune Function, with Ed Joy, Herbalist and Naturopath - S3. Ep 7. | 00:36:58 | |
Now that November is here, the cold and flu season is well underway and many of you have probably already succumbed to some sort of lurgy by now. And with the spectre of Covid 19 still lurking, supporting our immune system is very much on the agenda right now, which is why I’ve dedicated this episode to foods that can keep you and your family fighting fit and I’ve found the perfect guest for this. Today I’m welcoming herbalist Ed Joy back to the podcast. He’s a specialist in herbal medicine with over 20 years’ experience and he weaves a combination of homeopathy, naturopathy and nutrition into his work, taking a truly holistic approach. My interview with him on a herbal approach to the menopause was one of the big hits of Season 1 and in this episode I’ll be tapping into his expertise on the different foods that can help our immune system be more robust, because we all need a bit of that right now. Ed shares his top 3 everyday foods for immune support and gives us the inside track on not just what we should eat, but how we should cook it so that we can maximise the vitamin, mineral and antioxidant content of our food. There are so many culinary tips and tricks that I guarantee you’ll be fascinated by what he has to say. Ed shares his top 3 foods that every immune-conscious cook should have in their kitchen. We take an in-depth look at the role of the gut microbiome in immune health; discuss the nutritional powerhouse that is broccoli and how to optimise absorption of vitamin C and zinc; explore a whole host of tips around preparing, cooking and storing food; and Ed explains why a finger of ginger every day is just enough to keep you fit and well! If you enjoy this episode, please tell your friends and family, and leave a 5-star rating and a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you listen on, as it really helps to spread the word, so that new listeners can find the show. Because every woman deserves to have a happy menopause.
Check out the full Show Notes for this episode on my website www.well-well-well.co.uk/podcast, where you'll find all the relevant links and references for each guest. | |||