Own Your Midlife Podcast: Hormones, Perimenopause & Reinvention for Women 40+

Susie McLean
  • 5.0 (6)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Updated Weekly

Own Your Midlife is a podcast for women in their 40s+ navigating midlife transitions, perimenopause, changing hormones, career pivots, and the deep desire for reinvention. It's a space for heartfelt conversations about confidence, clarity, identity, and all the messy, beautiful shifts that happen in this season of life. Host Susie McLean sits down with inspiring guests and shares real stories, practical tools, and gentle nudges that help you reconnect with your voice, trust your intuition, and take the next small step toward a life that feels true to you. If you've ever thought "I'm not where I expected to be," or wondered what's next for you, you're not alone. This podcast supports women who want to show up for themselves, feel better in their bodies, understand their changing hormones, rebuild confidence, and create a fulfilling second act. So grab your earbuds, settle in, and let's navigate this season together.

  1. 5d ago

    Midlife Imposter Syndrome: Stop Letting Self-Doubt Make Your Decisions

    Self-doubt has a way of making us question everything. It can make us wonder if we're qualified enough, experienced enough, or even capable of taking the next step. For many women, that's exactly how imposter syndrome (also spelled impostor syndrome) in midlife begins to show up. In this episode of Own Your Midlife, we're talking about the thoughts that fuel self-doubt, what imposter syndrome can sound like in everyday life, and how those beliefs can influence the decisions we make. If you've ever thought, "Who do I think I am?" or "Someone else could do it better," you're not alone. I'll also share the three mindset shifts that have helped me recognize those thoughts, build confidence through action, and stop letting imposter syndrome make my decisions. Whether you're thinking about changing careers, starting a business, writing a book, going back to school, or simply stepping into a new season of life, I hope this episode reminds you that you don't have to wait until you feel confident to move forward. ✨In this episode, you'll learn: • What imposter syndrome is and what it can sound like in everyday life • How to recognize the voice of self-doubt • Why confidence is built by taking action • How to collect evidence instead of excuses • Three practical ways to stop letting self-doubt make your decisions 😊 Connect with Susie  Instagram - @susiemclean.xo 📧 Tell me what episode you enjoyed! Email: ownyourmidlifepodcast@gmail.com ⭐️ If this show has made you feel less alone in the middle of it all, a review on Apple Podcasts would mean the world. It helps other women find their way here too ❤️

    7 min

  2. Jun 23

    Hidden Generational Beliefs Keeping Women Stuck in Midlife with Anthony McLean

    Have you ever wondered who decided what age you're supposed to have life figured out? Or why so many of us feel like there's a timeline we're supposed to follow, and if we miss it, we've somehow fallen behind? In this episode, I'm sitting down with my husband, Anthony McLean, and we're getting into something most of us have never stopped to question. The unspoken rules our generations handed us. The beliefs we absorbed without even realizing it about asking for help, following the right path, and what life is supposed to look like by a certain age. One of the things I appreciate most about Anthony's work is his heart for bringing generations together rather than driving them apart. This conversation isn't about blaming one generation or another. It's about understanding where our beliefs came from and getting curious about whether they're still serving us today. We talk about why midlife women often carry the belief that asking for help is weakness, why so many elder Millennials feel like they followed the map and it still didn't work out, and how to recognize the beliefs we've been carrying for years, where they came from, and whether they're still serving us today. Because here's what this conversation kept coming back to. The rules you've been living by were written for a world that doesn't exist anymore. And it is never too late to write new ones. In this episode, we discuss: • The unspoken rules Gen X and elder Millennials were handed growing up • Why asking for help feels like weakness for so many midlife women • The outdated map many elder Millennials feel they've been following • How to recognize which beliefs are still serving you in midlife • Why midlife reinvention is more possible now than ever before • Why those of us between 35 and 55 are in a uniquely powerful position right now If this episode resonated with you, please follow the podcast, leave a review, and share it with a friend.  Connect with Susie @susiemclean.xo Connect with Anthony Instagram: @anthonymcleantv Anthonys Book: The Four Generations: How Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z Can Finally Work Together

    19 min

  3. Jun 16

    Divorce in Midlife: The Emotional Survival Guide for Women Starting Over with Oona Metz

    Divorce can feel overwhelming, heartbreaking, and incredibly lonely, especially in midlife when so much of your life feels intertwined with your marriage, family, finances, identity, and future. In this episode we talk about the emotional side of divorce that so many women struggle through quietly. Oona shares the five phases of divorce grief, what to do first when you don't know where to start, how to protect your mental health through the process, and why the emotional rollercoaster you're feeling may be more normal than you think. Today I'm sitting down with Oona Metz, author of Unhitched: The Essential Divorce Guide for Women. Oona is a therapist with 30 years of clinical experience and has spent the past 15 years helping women navigate divorce. She leads three weekly divorce support groups and trains mental health professionals to support women through divorce. Oona shares what she has seen happen for hundreds of women in midlife who once believed divorce was the worst thing that could happen, only to later find healing, growth, confidence, and even joy again. This conversation is going to give you a roadmap for what to expect, how to move through this emotionally, and hope for what's possible on the other side. ✨ In this episode, we discuss: The 5 phases of divorce grief What to do first when facing separation or divorce How to protect your mental health during divorce Why divorce in midlife feels so overwhelming Financial fears and what women should know Finding support and rebuilding after heartbreak Hope, healing, and life after divorce Connect with Susie McLean Instagram: @susiemclean.xo Email: ownyourmidlifepodcast@gmail.com Connect with Oona Metz Website: oonametz.com Instagram: @oonametz Facebook: Women Navigating Divorce LinkedIn: Oona Metz, LICSW, CGP YouTube: Oona Metz Substack: Unhitched: Let's Talk Divorce Get Oona's book: Unhitched: The Essential Divorce Guide for Women Article Mentioned in Episode: When Someone You Know Gets Divorced. Condolences or congratulations

    29 min

  4. Jun 9

    Why You Feel Disconnected in Your Relationship (And What It's Costing You) with Colette Jane Fehr

    Feeling disconnected in your relationship and not sure why? Wondering if resentment in marriage or emotional distance with your partner is quietly building? In this powerful conversation, licensed psychotherapist, relationship expert, TEDx speaker, and author of The Cost of Quiet, Colette Jane Fehr joins me to talk about the hidden cost of staying quiet in relationships, especially for women who have spent years people pleasing, avoiding conflict, or putting everyone else first. Because sometimes relationship problems don't start with huge fights. Sometimes it looks like biting your tongue. Keeping the peace. Feeling unseen. Feeling emotionally disconnected in marriage or wondering why your relationship feels "off" even when nothing is technically wrong. In this episode, we talk about: ✨ The early signs of resentment in relationships and marriage ✨ Why emotional disconnection happens in long-term relationships ✨ How people pleasing can quietly damage intimacy ✨ Better communication in relationships and how to have hard conversations without blowing everything up ✨ How to rebuild trust after betrayal or infidelity ✨ Practical tools for healthier communication and emotional connection Whether you're navigating resentment in your marriage, struggling with communication in a relationship, dealing with emotional distance, or simply trying to understand yourself better in love and midlife, this episode will leave you feeling seen and give you practical tools you can actually start using today. 👉 Connect with Colette Jane Fehr: 📚 Get Her Book: The Cost of Quiet: How to Have the Hard Conversations That Create Secure, Lasting Love 🎙️ Podcast: Insights from the Couch: Real Talk for Women at Midlife 🎙️ Relationship Podcast/Radio Show: Love Thy Neighbor 📱 Follow Colette on: Instagram 🌐 Visit Colette's: Website If this episode resonates with you, send it to another woman who needs this conversation. Connect with Susie: Instagram Email Susie: ownyourmidlifepodcast@gmail.com

    38 min

  5. Jun 2

    Why Comparison Hits Differently in Midlife (And What to Do About It)

    If you're in midlife and comparison has been making you feel like you're behind, too late, or like everyone else has figured something out that you haven't, this episode is going to hit home. Comparison in midlife feels different than it did in your twenties. Back then it felt like fuel. Now it feels more like a deadline. And that shift is not an accident. It's something a lot of women feeling stuck in midlife are experienced but rarely talk about. In this episode we cover: Why comparison feels so much heavier in midlife than it ever did before How to stop letting someone else's timeline mean something about your own What to do the next time comparison shows up. Because it will Why holding on too tightly to a plan or a timeline could be costing you your clarity How to start trusting your own path again even when it looks nothing like everyone else's You are not behind. You are not too late. And you are not the only woman in this season of life wondering why everyone else seems to have figured it out. If comparison has been quietly convincing you that you missed your window, this episode is your reset. Come say hi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/susiemclean.xo

    8 min

  6. May 26

    Playing it Safe in Midlife? It's Time to Bet On You

    Betting on yourself in midlife can feel scary, especially when you've spent years putting everyone else first. In this episode, we're talking about what it actually looks like to stop waiting, trust yourself, and finally take a chance on the life you really want. If you've ever found yourself thinking, maybe next year, when life settles down, or when I feel more ready. This conversation is for you. In this solo episode of Own Your Midlife, I'm getting personal about my own journey of waiting for permission to start this podcast, and the moment I finally realized nobody was coming to hand me the green light. We're talking about what it really means to bet on yourself in midlife, why so many women slowly stop choosing themselves, and how easy it is to spend years betting on everyone else while quietly putting yourself on the back burner. We also get into why confidence doesn't always come first, how fear shows up when you're stepping into something new, and why sometimes the bravest bet isn't starting over, it's ending something that no longer fits. In this episode: • Why betting on yourself in midlife often means taking action before you feel ready • The quiet ways women stop choosing themselves over time • Why sometimes the bravest bet is ending something that no longer fits • How fear, self-doubt, and waiting for permission can keep us stuck • The one question I want you to ask yourself before this episode ends If you've been feeling pulled toward something new, questioning what's next, or wondering if it's too late to choose yourself again, I hope this episode reminds you of one thing: You are what you're bringing to the table. Connect with me on Instagram: @susiemclean.xo

    8 min

  7. May 19

    Nervous System Overload? Small Midlife Resets That Actually Help

    If you've been feeling emotionally exhausted, overwhelmed, or like life just feels heavier than it used to, this episode is for you. Maybe you're juggling work, kids, aging parents, relationships, your health, and somehow still feeling like you're supposed to hold everything together. Maybe you're waking up already feeling behind, constantly overstimulated, and wondering why everything suddenly feels like so much. And sometimes we think something is wrong with us when really, our nervous system is just overloaded. In this short solo episode, I'm talking about small nervous system resets that actually help when life feels overwhelming. No perfection. No complicated routines. Just real life ways to calm your nervous system, lower stress, and feel more like yourself again. Here's what we're getting into: • Why you don't owe everyone immediate access to you • Nervous system resets that help you feel calmer in midlife • Drained from doing it all? Perfectionism may be exhausting you more than your to-do list • Giving yourself permission to choose the easy version If life feels heavy right now, I hope this episode feels like a deep breath and a reminder that you don't have to do it all. Small shifts really do add up. And if someone came to mind while listening, send this episode their way. Maybe they need a little encouragement too Connect with Susie: Social media: Instagram Email: ownyourmidlifepodcast@gmail.com

    6 min

  8. May 12

    Midlife Reinvention: How to Become Who You're Meant to Be (with Wendy Valentine)

    If you're in your 40s or 50s and things feel like they're starting to unravel, this episode is going to remind you that breakdown and breakthrough can often happen at the same time. Today I'm sitting down with Wendy Valentine, internationally published author of Women Waking Up, founder of Midlifology, and host of the Midlife Makeover Show, a podcast ranked in the top 1% globally. After going through divorce, job loss, debt, menopause, chronic illness, and devastating loss all at once, Wendy transformed her life completely and now empowers women to do the same. This conversation is about midlife reinvention, shifting your mindset, quieting your inner critic, and giving yourself permission to become the woman you've always wanted to be. Because so many women in midlife feel stuck, lost, or like it's too late to start over. It is not too late. In this episode we talk about how to change your thinking when everything feels like it's falling apart, why staying stuck can feel safe and how to move through it anyway, the ACE method for managing emotions and getting out of a rut, and why midlife is a catalyst for reinvention rather than a crisis to survive. If you've been feeling lost in midlife, questioning your identity, or wondering if your best years are behind you, this conversation will shift the way you see this season of your life. In this episode we cover: How your thoughts are either working for you or against you and how to change that Why identity is the missing piece most women skip when trying to change their lives How to stop negative thought spirals before they take over Wendy's Believe, Behave, Become method for real, lasting transformation How to start showing up as the woman you want to become before you fully feel like her Why feeling stuck is often just familiarity dressed up as comfort Simple ways to start rewiring your brain and shifting your mindset in midlife Connect with Wendy: Website: The Midlife Makeover Show  Book: Women Waking Up: The Midlife Manifesto for Passion, Purpose, and Play Follow on: Instagram Substack: Midlifology  Connect with Susie: Instagram If this episode resonated, share it with a friend who's in this season too and follow Own Your Midlife so you don't miss what's coming next.

    30 min
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About

Own Your Midlife is a podcast for women in their 40s+ navigating midlife transitions, perimenopause, changing hormones, career pivots, and the deep desire for reinvention. It's a space for heartfelt conversations about confidence, clarity, identity, and all the messy, beautiful shifts that happen in this season of life. Host Susie McLean sits down with inspiring guests and shares real stories, practical tools, and gentle nudges that help you reconnect with your voice, trust your intuition, and take the next small step toward a life that feels true to you. If you've ever thought "I'm not where I expected to be," or wondered what's next for you, you're not alone. This podcast supports women who want to show up for themselves, feel better in their bodies, understand their changing hormones, rebuild confidence, and create a fulfilling second act. So grab your earbuds, settle in, and let's navigate this season together.

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