Midlife this week? Brain fog, broken gates, drinking less, saying no more often — and apparently blaming absolutely everything on menopause.

Gill and Barbara catch up on what’s actually happening in their lives right now: why late nights have lost their appeal, how their relationship with alcohol has changed, the revolving door of perimenopause symptoms, forgetting conversations that may or may not have happened, and getting much better at saying no.

There’s also a broken gate, an Aldi sofa-cover incident, a Bengal cat with strong opinions and one important family debate:

Can you really blame everything on menopause?

We think you’ll be surprised. 😂

Midrising Conversations is about what life really looks like in your 40s, 50s and beyond — careers, relationships, families, money, health, getting older, starting again and everything nobody really prepares you for.

Midlife. No filter.

What if life really does unfold in chapters of roughly 25 years?

In this episode of Midrising Conversations, Gill is joined by publisher and corporate historian Jaqui Lane to explore her idea of The 25 Rule.

The first 25 years are about growing up, learning and becoming independent. The next 25 can become a blur of careers, relationships, children, caring responsibilities and keeping everything moving.

And then something can shift.

Jaqui talks about reaching her 50s and feeling some of the energy and freedom she remembered from being 25 — this time with decades of experience, confidence and perspective behind her.

Gill and Jaqui talk about:

• What shapes us during our first 25 years
• Why 25–50 can carry such an enormous load
• Careers, children and the “club sandwich” generation
• Why “buy help” was some of the best advice Jaqui received
• How life changes as children become more independent
• Why women can become braver and less impressionable with age
• Feeling the energy of 25 again, with decades more wisdom
• Choosing whether your next chapter becomes bigger, simpler — or both
• Why taking time to work out what you actually want matters

The question at the heart of the episode:

What do you actually want from your next 25 years?

Midrising Conversations is the podcast for women in the middle of everything — real conversations about midlife, work, health, relationships, identity, reinvention and what comes next.

Watch on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/xZ51k7B5Rik

Midrising:
https://midrising.com.au

Your head is full.

Work. Kids. Parents. Relationships. Health. Life admin. What comes next. And probably another ten things you’ve just remembered.

In this solo episode of Midrising Conversations, Gill works through five questions designed to help clear some of that noise and get clearer about what actually deserves your energy now:

1. What’s taking up the most space in your head right now?
2. What doesn’t need your energy right now?
3. What feels harder than it should?
4. What are you ready to stop carrying?
5. What do you actually want now?

Along the way, Gill talks about building a company at 50, the difference between being busy and feeling drained, quitting vaping, changing friendships, ageing family and a conversation with an old school friend who wants something very different from this stage of life: fewer responsibilities, more travel and a simpler life.

You might want to build something enormous. You might want your world to become quieter. You might still be working it out.

The five questions explored in this episode come from Clear Your Head, part of the Stabilise stage of the Midrising framework.

Free 5-Step Reset:
https://www.midrising.com.au/pages/the-5-step-reset

If You Feel Restless, Start Here – free guide:
https://www.midrising.com.au/products/if-you-feel-restless-start-here

Explore Stabilise:
https://www.midrising.com.au/pages/stabilise

Watch Midrising Conversations on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/CPXrI8oDkyA