Wise Women's Conversations

Angela Counsel
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Wise Women's Conversations, is a podcast for women who want to thrive in the second half of life. Hosted by naturopath and health coach Angela Counsel, each episode explores health, wellbeing, mindset, purpose and the wisdom that comes from lived experience. Through practical insights and inspiring conversations, you'll discover new ways to age well, stay curious, embrace new adventures and create a future that feels fulfilling and meaningful. Because your story is far from over.

  1. 3d ago

    I Will Not Die With My Song Unsung: Kareena Glanville on Becoming Who You’re Meant to Be

    Who Are You When the Labels No Longer Fit? Wife. Mother. Business owner. Successful. Then one day, the labels stop fitting. And you’re left with one question: Who am I now? This week on Wise Women’s Conversations, I’m joined by Kareena Glanville, co-founder of ReclaimHer, who supports women in midlife and beyond through some of life’s biggest transitions. We talk about letting go of old identities, what spirituality really means, and how to rebuild trust in your own inner wisdom as you step into your next chapter. Kareena knows transition from the inside. She and her husband built a business to close to seven figures, then lost everything. For six years she waited for something to come along and rescue her, until she realised “no one’s coming, no one’s coming except me.” That lesson in self-responsibility became a turning point. Now in her 50s, she’s taking responsibility for “future Kareena” and the woman she wants to become, determined not to die with her song unsung. We explore why no single identity could ever do a woman justice, and how you can love something you created with all your heart and still choose to let it go. Kareena shares what spirituality means to her: a connection to something greater, closely woven with intuition and her relationship with herself. She describes the dance between receiving guidance and taking action, because staying only in spirit makes you the dreamer, and staying only in your to-do list makes you the doer. For busy women who don’t have an hour a day to meditate, Kareena offers simple, practical steps. Start by getting honest about your values (she discovered her highest value was actually invisibility and comfort, not the expression she wanted to live by). Then add small practices like a weekly writing ritual and a few minutes of connection on waking and before sleep. It all leads back to self-trust: knowing you can move through the unknown and reach the other side. Perhaps the question isn’t who you used to be. Perhaps it’s who you’re ready to become. In this episode, you’ll discover: Why no single identity can hold the whole of who you areHow to grieve, honour and let go of something you once loved creatingThe lesson Kareena learnt when she realised no one was coming to rescue herWhat spirituality, intuition and connection to self look like in everyday lifeThe balance between receiving guidance and taking action, and why you need bothWhy getting clear on your values is the first step before making any changeSimple daily and weekly practices that don’t become another item on the to-do listWhy self-trust is the real gift of the evolving woman, and how your ripple reaches further than you think Questions to reflect on: Which identity have you been holding on to that no longer fits who you are now?What would you need to let go of to become the woman you want to be?Where in your life are you waiting to be rescued instead of taking the next step?What does spirituality, or connection to something greater, mean to you? This week’s invitation is simple: Take five minutes this week to ask yourself: Who do I want to be now, not ten years ago, but now? Connect with Kareena Glanville Kareena’s complimentary Manifesting Journal has already been downloaded by more than 6,000 women. It’s a beautiful resource designed to help women reconnect with themselves, gain clarity on what truly matters to them and begin imagining and creating their next chapter. https://reclaimher.com/manifesting-journal-2/ Reclaimed is Kareena’s online coaching community for women in midlife and beyond. It’s a space where women come together to explore what’s possible in this next chapter and are supported through meaningful conversations, coaching and connection. https://reclaimher.com/reclaimed/ Website: https://www.reclaimher.com Instagram: @ReclaimHer Facebook: @ReclaimHer

  2. Oct 26

    “Do You Need to Stay?” The Question That Set Her Dream Free

    She had the boat. The date. The perfect weather. And then she couldn’t step off the dock. What happens when the dream you’ve worked toward for years is finally here, and you freeze? This week, Angela sits down with her friend Jackie Campbell, a business coach, a corporate leader, photographer and story collector, who is joining us from a sailboat anchored beside a coral reef in Indonesia. Jackie and her husband Dave have been living aboard their self-built boat, Barefoot Sunset, for almost 540 days. Jackie shares what it took to untangle a life full of contracts, boards, programs and people who needed her, and why choosing yourself over the flattering feeling of being needed is so much harder than it sounds. She tells the story of the morning they left Perth: everything was ready, and she stood frozen on the jetty with the last rope in her hand. She also describes hanging onto a mast in a night-time squall and what it taught her about needing to be “as good as” everyone else. She talks openly about what she misses, from the networking rooms where everyone knew her name to the big ideas she could run with, and about what she gained in their place. That includes a marriage with new magic in it, a slower pace and a business that finally has space around it. Jackie’s message to women who sense there’s something more is simple. You don’t have to burn it all down, and you already know how to trust yourself. We just forget. Perhaps the dream was never too big. Perhaps it was waiting for you to give yourself permission. Perhaps the “shoulds” were only ever a set of train lines, and you’re allowed to change course at the next crossing. In this episode, you’ll discover: Why Jackie’s answer to “Who are you?” no longer includes what she doesHow constant “what’s next?” thinking can stop us from ever feeling that we’ve arrivedWhat it takes to choose yourself and your dreams when everyone around you needs youJackie’s story of freezing on the dock, and the question from Dave that changed everythingWhy the scariest part of her journey wasn’t the weather, it was feeling incompetentWhat it’s like to leave behind an identity built on success and recognitionWhy Jackie believes you don’t have to burn it all down, and how to keep the pieces you wantThe shift from “shoulds” to “coulds,” and how to start trusting your own wisdom again Questions to reflect on: If someone asked “Who are you?”, which words would come up that aren’t your job title?Where in your life are you still saying “yeah, but” to your own success?What dream have you been waiting for permission to start?Which “shoulds” could you swap for “coulds” this week? This week’s invitation is simple: Sit quietly for a few minutes, with a coffee if you like, and ask yourself what you already know you want. Connect with Jackie Campbell: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jacquelineccampbellYouTube: @JackieCCampbell. Jackie is currently sharing stories in a 100-day challenge, along with her stunning underwater photography.Email: jackie@arcamorai.com.au

  3. Oct 20

    Your Brain Hasn’t Lost Its Edge. It’s Lost Its Buffer

    The email arrives. You read it twice. Then three times. You replay it in the shower. At 2am, you’re still writing replies in your head. This week on Wise Women’s Conversations, we finish my series on the brain after menopause with the hormone that’s been mentioned in almost every episode so far: cortisol. You’re as capable as you’ve ever been. So why can’t you shrug things off the way you used to? It’s not your imagination. Your stress response has changed. I’ve burnt out four times, so stress and adrenal burnout are topics I know from the inside. Late last year I noticed the early signs again, and because I recognised them, I knew how to turn things around. In this episode I explain cortisol as the hormone that keeps you alive, not the bad guy, and how our modern “tigers” (notifications, inboxes, the news, social media) keep it switched on all day. Using Hans Selye’s three stages of stress (alarm, resistance and rest), I show why so many successful women stay stuck in resistance, holding the weight until their body forces them to drop it. I also look at why your adrenal glands become your hormone backup system after menopause, and why stress always comes first. Then we look inside the brain. Long-term high cortisol affects your memory centre (the hippocampus) and your planning and word-finding centre (the prefrontal cortex), while it turns up your alarm centre (the amygdala). I share research from the Framingham Heart Study, Dr Lisa Mosconi’s 2024 study and a University of Southern California study, which together suggest stress shows up in women’s brains more than men’s, and that estrogen once softened that hit. For decades, estrogen and progesterone buffered you without you knowing. Now that job is yours. Perhaps you’re not falling apart. Perhaps your brain has simply handed you the job of protecting it, and that could be a gift. In this episode, you’ll discover: Why cortisol keeps you alive, and why it’s not the bad guyThe three stages of stress, and why so many women stay stuck in “resistance”How your adrenal glands become your hormone backup system after menopauseWhat long-term high cortisol does to your memory, focus and word-findingWhat the research shows about cortisol, women’s brains and memoryHow estrogen and progesterone buffered your stress response for decadesWhy poor sleep, sugar cravings, belly weight and brain fog can be stress signals, not “just menopause”Simple ways to calm cortisol: breathing, morning sunlight, mini breaks, the right exercise, regular meals, carbs, magnesium and reframing your story Questions to reflect on: Where in your life are you holding the weight longer than you need to?What are the “tigers” that keep your brain on alert each day?What early warning signs does your body give you when you’re pushing too hard?What story are you telling yourself about a situation that’s upsetting you right now? This week’s invitation is simple: The next time stress hits, stop and take three slow breaths with a longer out-breath than in-breath. Then ask: Is there anything I can change here? If not, can I let it go? Catch up on the brain series: Episode 1: Why “Brain Fog” Might Actually Be an Identity CrisisEpisode 2: Why Your Sleep Broke After Menopause – And How To Fix It Without EstrogenEpisode 3: Hope Molecules: The Surprising Way Movement Grows Your BrainEpisode 4: Your Brain Isn’t Broken. It’s Hungry.

  4. Oct 13

    Your Brain Isn’t Broken. It’s Hungry.

    Two o’clock. Desk. Meeting. Screen. Your focus fades. Your thinking turns to sludge. And the biscuit tin starts calling your name. This week on Wise Women’s Conversations, we’re up to episode four of my series on the brain after menopause, and this time we’re talking about fuel. Your brain makes up about 2% of your body weight but uses around 20% of your energy, which makes it the hungriest organ you have. So what happens to that energy supply when estrogen, your brain’s energy manager, steps back? We often hear about glucose and insulin when the conversation is about the meno belly. Today I’m talking about something else: how glucose and insulin fuel your brain. I explain insulin as the gatekeeper that lets glucose into your cells, and why those gates can stop answering the knock as our reproductive hormones decline. I also share Dr Lisa Mosconi’s brain scan research, which shows glucose in some areas of the brain dropping by as much as 30% through the menopause transition. And there’s good news in her follow-up scans. The brain compensates, increases blood flow and finds a new normal. It’s a renovation, not a decline. We also look at the bigger picture. Insulin resistance is linked to type 2 diabetes, heart disease, fatty liver, and Alzheimer’s disease, which some researchers now call “type 3 diabetes.” As women’s brain researcher Dr Roberta Brinton puts it, sustaining metabolic health sustains cognitive health. You can’t choose where your estrogen lands. You can choose what goes on your plate. And insulin resistance is reversible. Perhaps that afternoon craving isn’t a lack of willpower. Perhaps it’s your brain asking for fuel, and it’s time we listened. In this episode, you’ll discover: Why your brain is the hungriest organ in your body, and why it never switches offHow insulin works as the “gatekeeper” that lets glucose into your cellsEstrogen’s role as your brain’s energy manager, and what changes after menopauseWhat Dr Lisa Mosconi’s brain scans reveal about glucose, and how the brain finds a “new normal”How insulin resistance develops, and why it’s about more than dietThe link between insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s diseaseFive practical ways to give your brain steady fuel, starting with your next mealSimple signs to watch for, plus the blood tests worth asking your doctor about Questions to reflect on: When do your energy dips usually hit, and what do you reach for when they do?What does your breakfast (or first meal) usually look like, and is there protein in it?Which of the five strategies would be easiest for you to start this week?When you get cravings, what story do you usually tell yourself about them? This week’s invitation is simple: Next time a craving hits, pause before you reach for the biscuits and ask: What is my brain asking for right now? Catch up on the series: Episode 1: Why “Brain Fog” Might Actually Be an Identity CrisisEpisode 2: Why Your Sleep Broke After Menopause – And How To Fix It Without EstrogenEpisode 3: Hope Molecules: The Surprising Way Movement Grows Your Brain Next week is the final episode in the series: cortisol and stress.

  5. Oct 6

    Hope Molecules: The Surprising Way Movement Grows Your Brain

    he next word vanishes mid-sentence. The name you've known for years won't come. Post-it notes cover your desk. Before you decide something is wrong with your brain, hear this: it isn't failing you. It's asking for different inputs. This week, Angela continues the brain series with a look at BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor), a protein she describes as fertilizer for your brain. It helps brain cells survive, grow and form the connections that let you learn, remember and bounce back from stress. She also introduces "hope molecules," the messengers your muscles release when you move. Angela explains why BDNF tends to drop after menopause, when estrogen, which supports it, falls away. Long-term stress can lower it too, which is why things you once handled easily can start to feel like too much. The good news is that brain chemistry can change. Drawing on Dr Kelly McGonigal's work on myokines, and on Dr Mindy Pelz's description of BDNF as a "personal trainer for your brain," Angela walks through how a brisk walk, lifting heavy and time in nature all send your brain the same message: grow. Angela also shares a personal story of the time she was overwhelmed and walked away from it all on a multi-day hike. The clarity and solutions she found there are the same mechanism at work, whether you're hiking, gardening or out on the water. Perhaps your brain fog isn't a warning that you're slipping. Perhaps it's an invitation to step away from the desk. Perhaps the clarity you're searching for is waiting on the other side of a walk. In this episode, you'll discover: What BDNF is and why it's often described as fertilizer for your brainHow the drop in estrogen after menopause, and long-term stress, can lower BDNFWhat "hope molecules" (myokines) are, and how muscles send your brain the message to growHow irisin and lactate travel to the hippocampus, your memory centre, to switch BDNF onWhy even a brisk walk, and especially resistance training, can lift BDNF levelsWhy movement in nature and morning sunlight take the benefits furtherFive simple invitations for supporting your brain, with no extreme exercise requiredWhen memory changes are worth raising with your doctor Questions to reflect on: When did you last feel your mind go quiet, and where were you?How often do you move your body in a way that raises your heart rate?Where is your "place," the spot where you can move your body and rest your mind?What would it take to book that time in your diary so no one else can claim it? This week's invitation is simple: Choose one thing, whether a brisk walk in nature, a morning in the sunlight or a few heavy lifts, and notice how your brain feels afterwards. A note from Angela: if you notice sudden or fast-worsening memory changes, or you're worried, especially with a family history of dementia, please speak with your doctor. If you have injuries or are recovering from surgery, check with a physio or personal trainer before starting new exercise. Catch up on the brain series: Why Brain Fog Might Actually be an Identity Crisis: https://wisewomensconversations.substack.com/p/why-brain-fog-might-actually-be-an-001Why Your Sleep Broke after Menopause: https://wisewomensconversations.substack.com/p/why-your-sleep-broke-after-menopause-b62 Books and resources mentioned: The Menopause Brain by Dr Lisa MosconiThe Upgrade by Dr Luann BrizendineAge Like a Girl by Dr Mindy PelzThe Joy of Movement by Dr Kelly McGonigal

  6. Sep 29

    Why Your Sleep Broke After Menopause - And How To Fix It Without Estrogen

    2:14am. Then 2:16am. Then 3:14am. Wide awake, mind spinning, wondering if you'll ever sleep again. If that's a familiar scene, you're not broken — your hormones have just changed jobs. This week, Angela continues the brain series with a deep dive into the hidden relationship between estrogen and melatonin, and why so many women find that even after doing "all the right things," sleep still doesn't come easily in postmenopause. This episode builds on [last week's episode on how the brain changes through menopause]* — so if you haven't caught that one yet, it's worth going back to first. Angela explains the science in plain terms: estrogen and melatonin work as a team, with estrogen acting as coordinator for your brain's internal clock — the pineal gland and the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). When estrogen was abundant, it kept this clock running smoothly. Once estrogen drops, that signalling weakens, leading to what researchers call circadian dysregulation — which is exactly why so many postmenopausal women find themselves wide awake at 2am for no obvious reason. She also shares her own experience of hitting a burnout-driven sleep crisis about 12 months ago — sub-5-hour nights, a racing heart, and a mind that wouldn't switch off — and how recognising disrupted sleep as a signal from her body, rather than a personal failing, led her to make real changes. At the heart of it all, Angela reframes the goal: it's not about replacing estrogen, but about teaching your nervous system it's safe enough to produce melatonin on its own — something our ancestors managed without estrogen too, simply by living in sync with light, temperature and rhythm. Perhaps the problem was never that you're broken. Perhaps your nervous system is just waiting for permission to feel safe again. Perhaps sleep isn't something you have to force — it's something you can invite back in. In this episode, you'll discover: Why estrogen and melatonin are tightly linked, and what happens to your sleep when estrogen dropsWhat the pineal gland and SCN actually do, and why they need estrogen to function wellWhat recent research reveals about circadian dysregulation in postmenopausal womenWhy disrupted sleep also disrupts your brain's ability to detoxify and rewire itself overnightThe role cortisol plays in blocking melatonin productionWhy honoring your own personal circadian rhythm matters more than following generic sleep adviceFour practical, hormone-free ways to support your body's natural melatonin productionWhy timing your meals affects your ability to fall — and stay — asleep Questions to reflect on: When you wake in the night, is your body signalling stress rather than a "sleep problem" to fix?Are you currently working against your natural circadian rhythm, or with it?Which of the four melatonin-supporting habits could you realistically start with this week?What would it take for your nervous system to feel genuinely safe enough to switch off at night? This week's invitation is simple: Get outside for 10 minutes of direct morning sunlight within the first hour of waking, without sunglasses — and if you can, catch the sunset too. *Catch up on last week's episode on how the brain changes through menopause here: https://wisewomensconversations.substack.com/p/im-64-and-i-dont-feel-old-so-what-5c7

  7. Sep 22

    Why "Brain Fog" Might Actually Be an Identity Crisis

    Forgetting mid-sentence. Losing your train of thought. Wondering if this is the start of something worse. If your brain feels like it's betraying you right now, you're not broken — you're renovating. This week, Angela kicks off a new series diving into what's actually happening in the brain through perimenopause, menopause and beyond — starting with the big picture: why your brain feels chaotic right now, and why that chaos is temporary. Drawing on two books that changed how she understood her own experience — The Menopause Brain by neuroscientist Dr Lisa Mosconi, and The Upgrade by psychiatrist Dr Luann Brizendine — Angela shares the science behind what so many women describe as "losing their mind," and why it's actually the opposite. She unpacks Dr Mosconi's research on brain "pruning" — a process the brain goes through three times in a woman's life: puberty, pregnancy, and menopause. Just like a home renovation, things get pulled out and rewired before they settle into a new normal. Angela shares her own rock-bottom moment during perimenopause — nearly walking away from a business she'd built for years — and how understanding this pruning process, well after the fact, finally made sense of what she'd been living through. She also explores Dr Brizendine's concept of the brain "upgrade": as oestrogen (the "people-pleasing hormone") drops, women often become less focused on managing everyone else's needs and more focused on their own — a shift that can bring a sharper sense of purpose, but can also shake up relationships, careers and identity along the way. Perhaps your brain isn't declining. Perhaps it's rewiring itself for exactly who you need to become next. Perhaps the fog isn't the end of clarity — it's the renovation before it. In this episode, you'll discover: Why brain fog and forgetfulness are so common in perimenopause and beyondThe concept of brain "pruning" and the three life stages it happens inWhat Dr Lisa Mosconi's imaging research revealed about grey and white matter changesWhy these brain changes are temporary, not permanentHow oestrogen's drop reshapes people-pleasing tendencies and personal boundariesWhy Dr Luann Brizendine calls this shift an "upgrade" rather than a declineHow this rewiring can trigger identity shifts, relationship strain, and career reassessmentOne simple, practical starting point for supporting your brain right now: sleep Questions to reflect on: Where in your life have you noticed yourself becoming less inclined to people-please?Has a shift in your priorities or sense of purpose caused tension in any of your relationships?What would it look like to treat your current brain fog as temporary renovation rather than permanent decline?How are your sleep habits currently supporting — or undermining — your brain health? This week's invitation is simple: Get outside for a few minutes of morning sunlight, without your sunglasses on, and let it reset your body's clock for the day. Books referenced in this episode: The Menopause Brain by Dr Lisa MosconiThe Upgrade by Dr Luann Brizendine

  8. Sep 14

    I'm 64 and I Don't Feel Old — So What Is "Old," Really?

    When do you get old? Not on paper. Not the number on a form. When do you start believing it? I'm 64. By most official measures, I'm creeping toward "old" — the top box on the form, the pension I still don't love the word for. And most days, I don't feel old at all. So in this episode, I'm unpacking what actually makes someone old — because the more I've looked at it, the less it seems to have anything to do with age at all. It started at a morning tea for women over 50, where I found myself thinking "everyone here is old" — until I realised several of them were younger than me. It wasn't their age creating that impression. It was something else entirely: an energy, a posture, a quiet belief that they'd said out loud without meaning to — I'm too old for that now. I share the story of a client from years ago who seemed decades older than she was, right up until I checked her date of birth and found she was a month younger than me. I talk about my mother, who's 85 and has chosen to stop moving through the world — and about the women I hiked alongside in Cornwall, some in their seventies, who hadn't made that choice at all. And I get honest about my own version of this: a moment twelve months ago where I decided, quietly, that 72 would be "too old" to still be running my business — and what I've realised that thought was actually asking me. Perhaps old was never a number to begin with. Perhaps it's a belief we picked up somewhere — from a form, an advertisement, a room full of people who decided it before we did — and never thought to question. And perhaps the real question isn't how old you are, but who's actually been deciding that for you. In this episode, you'll discover: Why a room full of women over 50 left me thinking "I don't fit here" — and what I got wrong about whyThe real story behind being labelled a "geriatric" pregnancy at 40What separated the women I hiked with in Cornwall in their 60s and 70s from the women at that morning teaA story about a client who was younger than me but seemed decades older — and what actually gave that awayThe research on "subjective age" — and why how old you feel may matter more than how old you areMy own honest reckoning with a belief I've quietly held about turning 72Why the word "retirement" carries more of a verdict than we realiseThe one shift that changed how I think about ageing altogether Questions to reflect on: Where have you already decided you're "too old" for something — and is that actually true, or borrowed from somewhere else?Who in your life seems "old" to you, and is it really about their age?What would you be doing right now if no one, including you, had put an age limit on it?If ageing is partly a belief, which of your beliefs about getting older are actually serving you? This week's invitation is simple: just notice — once — the moment you catch yourself thinking or saying "I'm too old for that." Don't judge it, don't fix it. Just notice where it came from. Want to keep exploring this one with me? Visit my Wise Women's Conversations Substack to continue the conversation

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About

Wise Women's Conversations, is a podcast for women who want to thrive in the second half of life. Hosted by naturopath and health coach Angela Counsel, each episode explores health, wellbeing, mindset, purpose and the wisdom that comes from lived experience. Through practical insights and inspiring conversations, you'll discover new ways to age well, stay curious, embrace new adventures and create a future that feels fulfilling and meaningful. Because your story is far from over.

Information

  • Creator
    Angela Counsel
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    20
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Angela Counsel
  • Show Website
    Wise Women's Conversations