87 episodes

Hi, I’m Emma Thomas and I started the Middling Along podcast in early 2021. Often, we find as women hitting a ‘certain point’ in life, that we are so used to people-pleasing, and making sure that everyone else is OK, and their needs are met, that we have lost touch with what we want, what we need, who we are… I started Middling Along with the aim of reclaiming my own ‘midlife’ and finding my happy.

Along the way we’ve covered stories of people starting new businesses, changing careers, and taking up new hobbies that have changed their lives forever.

We also cover topics such as perimenopause, menopause, and positive aging.

Join us for a dose of inspiration - and make sure you spend your ’messy middle’ years thriving too!

Middling Along Emma Thomas

    • Education
    • 5.0 • 15 Ratings

Hi, I’m Emma Thomas and I started the Middling Along podcast in early 2021. Often, we find as women hitting a ‘certain point’ in life, that we are so used to people-pleasing, and making sure that everyone else is OK, and their needs are met, that we have lost touch with what we want, what we need, who we are… I started Middling Along with the aim of reclaiming my own ‘midlife’ and finding my happy.

Along the way we’ve covered stories of people starting new businesses, changing careers, and taking up new hobbies that have changed their lives forever.

We also cover topics such as perimenopause, menopause, and positive aging.

Join us for a dose of inspiration - and make sure you spend your ’messy middle’ years thriving too!

    Professor Jack Gilbert on why we should all be fascinated by the wonders of our gut microbiome

    Professor Jack Gilbert on why we should all be fascinated by the wonders of our gut microbiome

    The biology nerd in me is so happy about this one! Joining me this time is Professor Jack Gilbert from the University of California San Diego: in 2023 he gave the Annual Lecture at the British Menopause Society conference, which is how his work came to my attention (via our Managing the Menopause Clinical Lead - also my sister-in-law - Dr Beth Thomas). 
     
    In the course of this wide-ranging conversation that focuses on our gut microbiome we cover:
    why understanding the interaction of our sex hormones with the microbiome is a burgeoning area of science and how everything in the body is connected in series of complex feedback cycles; 
    The key role of decreasing oestrogen in inflammation: leading to depression, anxiety, aches and pains, and gastrointestinal issues;
    How our microbiome changes pre- to post-menopause (post-menopause the female microbiome tends to look much more like it would in men);
    The important of butyrate and why a healthy gut barrier is so important;
    Why we should consider ‘priming’ the body to consume fibre with fermented foods;
    The long-term chronic health implications of not getting enough dietary fibre, which are often not felt immediately but accumulate over decades;
    How fecal transplants are being used to repopulate the gut microbiome - early studies have shown promise in menopause symptom treatment but more research is needed;
    That HRT appears to ‘rescue’ gut dysbiosis (reduce inflammatory bacteria, more balanced microbiome);
    The Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis (aka how your body senses stress): - cortisol keeps you alert and anxious, but the system can be hijacked by inflammatory bacteria, neuroinflammation triggers the HPA axis causing elevated anxiety, i.e. there is no reason to be anxious but the body is on high alert;
    Why acetominophen (paracetamol) can cause liver cirrhosis with excessive consumption in certain people;
    How antibiotics wipe out other useful bugs that keep resistant strains under check, and how ‘problem’ strains thrive on high sugar and high saturated fat (and why your diet in the run up to an operation could make a huge difference);
    Exposure to microbes in nature and the potential impacts of bacteria in soil that have an antidepressant effect;
    ‘Gut feelings’: how the state of our gut can impact our decision-making abilities, and that changes in microbiome can impact how hungry we are, our propensity to snack, and even our choice choice of snacks…eg sugar cravings;
    How 80% of serotonin is made in gut, but that it is actually a  serotonin precursor that can pass out of the gut into the body to then be made into serotonin by other cells - although the relationships between levels of serotonin in the gut and the brain is not currently understood. 
     
    Listen to the end to find out about the research study that Professor Gilbert would  most like to run if he had no constraints! 
     
    You can find our more about Professor Jack Gilbert’s work at:
    https://gilbertlab.ucsd.edu/ 
    You can also find us over on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/middlingalong_podcast/ and you can listen to past episodes at https://middlingalong.com  
     
    Join our newsletter, The Messy Middle, for fortnightly goodness into your Inbox: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/323784/90772270045202190/share 
     
    We’re delighted to be listed as one of the Top 25 podcasts for midlife and menopause here: https://www.lattelounge.co.uk/podcasts-about-the-menopause/
     
    It would mean so much if you’d subscribe, rate, and review us to share the love and help others find the podcast too! 
    You can also find me at https://www.instagram.com/managingthemenopause  or at www.managingthemenopause.com where we offer 1-1 coaching and workplace training. 
    Get our free 'Guide to your GP appointment' at https://www.managingthemenopause.com/free-resources 

    • 38 min
    Petra Coveney on yoga as therapy as we navigate the menopause transition

    Petra Coveney on yoga as therapy as we navigate the menopause transition

    Joining me on the podcast this time is Petra Coveney - founder of Menopause Yoga™ - an international teacher, trainer, author and guest speaker specializing in supporting people through the stages of perimenopause to post menopause 
     
    Petra has trained over 700 Menopause Yoga teachers in 40+ countries and is the author of the book ‘Menopause Yoga - a holistic guide to supporting women on their menopause journey,’ which brings together modern western medical science with ancient eastern wellbeing. She positively reframes the menopause as a Second Spring awakening with an opportunity for long-term health and happiness.
     
    What a lovely and wide-ranging conversation this was! We start with a little time-travel, back to 2013 when Menopause Yoga first launched, and the conversation around menopause was vastly different than it is today! 
     
    I was fascinated to learn that Petra and the teachers she trains use subtly different types and combinations of yoga for perimenopause, menopause and post-menopause… Petra describes how in perimenopause - a  time of turbulence, instability, rewiring of the brain they use a combination of yin-yang yoga (stretching), breathwork, meditation and restorative yoga…helping support acceptance of changes.  (We also talk about the similarity to teenagers - who also get very tired as their bodies and brains are changing - just as ours do in perimenopause…!)
     
    I loved her analogy of  us “ladling out the soup to everyone else all our lives, and in perimenopause, really scraping the bottom of the soup pot”…such that if we don’t make time for rest and recharge, our bodies will find a way to make us stop, whether through illness, fatigue or something else.
     
    The in menopause (our ‘wintering’ phase) there is potentially more anxiety, overwhelm, insomnia, fatigue, joint pain, and muscle tightness - so the combination shift to provide more flowing, somatically releasing joint and muscle pain, toning the vagus nerve, together with meditation, and restorative practice.
    Then in the post-menopause stage there is another subtle shift to prioritize balance, muscle and bone strengthening, and even some weightlifting.
    We talk about the therapeutic approach to yoga practice and the importance of community, before moving on to look at reframing menopause and choosing to see this as a ‘second spring’ awakening - how our voices change not only physically, but how we commonly ‘find’ our voice in this life stage. 
     
    You can find Petra online at: https://www.menopause-yoga.com/ and on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/menopause_yoga/?hl=en
     
    You can also find us over on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/middlingalong_podcast/ and you can listen to past episodes at https://middlingalong.com  
     
    Join our newsletter, The Messy Middle, for fortnightly goodness into your Inbox: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/323784/90772270045202190/share 
     
    We’re delighted to be listed as one of the Top 25 podcasts for midlife and menopause here: https://www.lattelounge.co.uk/podcasts-about-the-menopause/
     
    It would mean so much if you’d subscribe, rate, and review us to share the love and help others find the podcast too! 
    You can also find me at https://www.instagram.com/managingthemenopause  or at www.managingthemenopause.com where we offer 1-1 coaching and workplace training. 
    Get our free 'Guide to your GP appointment' at https://www.managingthemenopause.com/free-resources 

    • 40 min
    Professor Joyce Harper on the forthcoming national Menopause Education and Support Programme

    Professor Joyce Harper on the forthcoming national Menopause Education and Support Programme

    In this episode of the podcast I chat to Professor Joyce Harper - an award-winning educator, author, podcaster, academic, and scientist. She is Professor of Reproductive Science at University College London in the Institute for Women’s Health where she is Head of the Reproductive Science and Society Group. I’m very grateful that Joyce agreed to come and chat to me about her work leading the development of a UK Menopause Education and Support Programme.
    Joyce and her team are already well into the discovery phase of researching what the programme should include - and here’s the fun part - if you’re listening to this close to the release date in 2024, you can participate in their research by completing this survey: https://ifwh.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8CVKG2I1RZzHGXI or by joining one of the focus groups: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/global-health/uk-national-menopause-education-and-support-programme 
     
    The team is very keen to get feedback and input from as broad a range of participants as possible - so if you have things to say, please get in touch with them! 
    We also talk about Joyce’s podcast - Why Didn’t Anyone Tell Me This? - and her love of cold water swimming - she's even co-authored a scientific paper all about the impact of cold water swimming on menstrual and perimenopausal symptoms: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38271095/ (free to read)
    You can also find her at www.joyceharper.com and follow her on Twitter, Instagram, Tiktok and Linkedin
    https://joyceharper.com/podcasts/
    You can also find us over on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/middlingalong_podcast/ and you can listen to past episodes at https://middlingalong.com  
     
    Join our newsletter, The Messy Middle, for fortnightly goodness into your Inbox: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/323784/90772270045202190/share 
     
    We’re delighted to be listed as one of the Top 25 podcasts for midlife and menopause here: https://www.lattelounge.co.uk/podcasts-about-the-menopause/
     
    It would mean so much if you’d subscribe, rate, and review us to share the love and help others find the podcast too! 
    You can also find me at https://www.instagram.com/managingthemenopause  or at www.managingthemenopause.com where we offer 1-1 coaching and workplace training. 
    Get our free 'Guide to your GP appointment' at https://www.managingthemenopause.com/free-resources 

    • 32 min
    Tate Smith on the trans male experience of menopause

    Tate Smith on the trans male experience of menopause

    My guest this time is Tate Smith - an award-winning trans activist, consultant, and speaker. Tate's accolades include being named one of Attitude Magazine's 10 LGBTQ+ Trailblazers To Watch Out For In The Future, and in 2022 he was selected as a LinkedIn Top Voice, and nominated for PinkNews' Community Role Model.
    He speaks on topics including the effects of testosterone, intersectionality, family and workplace acceptance, toxic masculinity, men’s mental health, trans male menopause, male privilege and more.
    I confess, before this interview my understanding of trans lived experiences was fairly minimal. Tate shares with us his transitioning journey - starting aged 16 when he first realised his discomfort living in a female-presenting body was something that he could do something about, through coming out to friends and family, going back into the closet for two years, and then undergoing surgery and testosterone therapy. 
    Tate explains gender dysphoria, and a little of the physical, mental, and financial toll of waiting to transition (opting to do so privately instead of waiting many years to be seen on the NHS).
    He also explains how hormone therapy propelled him headlong into an early menopause, something that neither he, nor the medical professionals he saw were prepared for, and a topic that is not really spoken about in the trans community. Tate is now working with NHS researchers to develop practical guidance for GPs, to help others who go through this in future.
    We discuss the steps that workplaces can take to be more inclusive and how we as individuals can be trans allies (see some of the resources he mentions, listed below). We also talk about how parents and carers can best support young people in their lives that come out as trans or express curiosity about transitioning.
    You can find Tate at https://www.tatesmith.uk/ and at the links below
     
    Resources:
    https://www.wecreatespace.co/glossary 
    https://www.stonewall.org.uk/list-lgbtq-terms 
    Disclosure on Netflix 
    Tate on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tate-smith-6331b2152/ 
    Tate on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tatemichaelsmith/ 
    Charities: Gendered Intelligence and Mermaids - both offer support for families and children, residential camps etc
    Find out more about the annual trans day of visibility here https://www.stonewall.org.uk/about-us/blog/trans-day-visibility-global-perspective 

    • 33 min
    Anna Allerton on working smarter through perimenopause

    Anna Allerton on working smarter through perimenopause

    My guest this time is Anna Allerton…a former journalist and TV producer who spent 17 years at Sky where she was an industry leader in women’s sports journalism and was listed in Management Today’s ‘35 Under 35’.
    She’s the founder of Allerton Coaching and is a business coach and consultant specializing in perimenopause. 
    Anna started to experience crippling anxiety at the end of her maternity leave with her second child, at just 38 years old, compounded by horrendous brain fog whilst dealing with sleep deprivation, and a stressful job. 
    Like so many others, Anna was fobbed off with anti-depressants multiple times, and only her dogged journalistic skills and refusal to take no for an answer led her to an eventual perimenopause diagnosis… Her experiences led her to change career and retrain as an executive coach - listen in to find out more about what an exec coach actually is (and does - or doesn’t do), as well as hearing more about why Anna is passionate about sharing her story to help others who might be dealing with outbursts of rage, raging insomnia, or a whole host of other symptoms, whilst juggling the demands of toddler tantrums, potty-training and weaning feel less alone!
     
    We also cover:
    the most common issues that her clients tend to struggle with in the workplace;
    some of the practical strategies that Anna has seen work really well to overcome some of these
    why she is a huge fan of symptom logging to help us work smarter
    what parallels she sees to recent developments in women’s sport that she has applied in her work
     
    You can find Anna at https://www.allertoncoaching.com and on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/allertoncoaching/
    You can also find us over on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/middlingalong_podcast/ and you can listen to past episodes at https://middlingalong.com  
     
    Join our newsletter, The Messy Middle, for fortnightly goodness into your Inbox: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/323784/90772270045202190/share 
     
    We’re delighted to be listed as one of the Top 25 podcasts for midlife and menopause here: https://www.lattelounge.co.uk/podcasts-about-the-menopause/
     
    It would mean so much if you’d subscribe, rate, and review us to share the love and help others find the podcast too! 
    You can also find me at https://www.instagram.com/managingthemenopause  or at www.managingthemenopause.com where we offer 1-1 coaching and workplace training. 
    Get our free 'Guide to your GP appointment' at https://www.managingthemenopause.com/free-resources 

    • 36 min
    Leigh Walters-James on the importance of male allies at work

    Leigh Walters-James on the importance of male allies at work

    In this episode I am joined by Leigh Walters-James who is a Managing Director with Accenture in the UK. Leigh is an advocate for inclusion and diversity and sponsor of the Accenture Accent on Gender and MenoWarriors initiatives within the UK. Leigh’s colleagues Jill Ross and Sarah Garton were interviewed here on the podcast last year to talk about what Accenture has been doing to move the needle on menopause in the workplace, and having met Leigh in person, I’m delighted that he agreed to come on and talk to me about the role of male allyship.
    Given that Accenture has been so proactive on the topic of menopause for many years now, Leigh has lots of learning to share, including:
    how important it is for men to learn about menopause so they can recognise if and when it impacts someone in their team;
    discuss it openly and often to help normalize it as a topic of conversation;
    share progress and best practice across office locations, and with customers where appropriate; 
    don’t overthink it too much - just start somewhere - where that is will be different for each organization so do it in a way that works where you are;
    culture may not be as much of a barrier as you think it will;
    get comfortable being uncomfortable - listen for more on Leigh’s tips for involving male colleagues in the conversations;
    the critical role of male sponsors and top-down support;
    don’t ‘segregate’ sessions into those for just women or just men;
    breaking down the taboo also opens the door for men to be open and honest about their own health/mental health challenges, and their vulnerabilities: it’s a win-win;
    becoming a ‘go to guy’ for menopause can get you a lot of attention at parties! 
     
    Most, if not all, of these apply whatever the size of the organization - or available budget.
    If you'd like to catch up with the earlier episode with Sarah and Jill, you can find it at https://middlingalong.com/episodes/middling-along-jill-ross-and-sarah-garton-on-developing-a-community-of-menowarriors-at-accenture/
    You can also find us over on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/middlingalong_podcast/ and you can listen to past episodes at https://middlingalong.com  
     
    Join our newsletter, The Messy Middle, for fortnightly goodness into your Inbox: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/323784/90772270045202190/share 
     
    We’re delighted to be listed as one of the Top 25 podcasts for midlife and menopause here: https://www.lattelounge.co.uk/podcasts-about-the-menopause/
     
    It would mean so much if you’d subscribe, rate, and review us to share the love and help others find the podcast too! 
    You can also find me at https://www.instagram.com/managingthemenopause  or at www.managingthemenopause.com where we offer 1-1 coaching and workplace training. 
    Get our free 'Guide to your GP appointment' at https://www.managingthemenopause.com/free-resources 

    • 24 min

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
15 Ratings

15 Ratings

Gillygeorge61 ,

Great podcast-Anna Kilpatrick (Notneedingnew )

I came to listen to Anna Kilpatrick whose Instagram page I follow, really enjoyed listening to her chat. I’d love to hear more of her but will return to listen to more guests.

SteveoMcjeevo ,

Love it

I’ve been inspired by the fitness and nutrition guests. It has helped me be less scared of the menopause and be more supportive of my partner as she deals with some of the many issues around this. A great listen.

HealthyHappy50 ,

Inspiring and interesting!

I have just discovered Emma’s podcast and am so glad I did! Interesting and inspiring guests that will make midlife women feel seen, heard, understood and not alone. It’s great to have a positive podcast that helps us make the most of this time of life. Enjoying Heather Jackson as we speak! Well done Emma! Jo ☀️

Top Podcasts In Education

The Mel Robbins Podcast
Mel Robbins
A Little Bit Richer
Legal & General
Coffee Break Spanish
Coffee Break Languages
Coffee Break French
Coffee Break Languages
TED Talks Daily
TED
The Rich Roll Podcast
Rich Roll

You Might Also Like

Postcards From Midlife
Lorraine Candy & Trish Halpin
The Mid•Point with Gabby Logan
Gabby Logan
The Shift with Sam Baker
sam baker
Just One Thing - with Michael Mosley
BBC Radio 4
The Liz Earle Wellbeing Show
Liz Earle
Power Hour
Adrienne Herbert