Midlife Advice | Perimenopause, Hormones and Midlife Women’s Health

Jessica Long | Helping Overwhelmed Women Over 40 Feel Fully Alive Again
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You're a woman over 40, you're in the thick of perimenopause or menopause, and lately you keep coming back to the same thought: I just don't feel like myself anymore. You're doing everything right. Showing up for your family, your work, everyone who needs you. But you feel exhausted in a way that sleep doesn't fix. Work feels harder and less fulfilling than it used to. Your relationship feels distant. Your body is changing. You’re overwhelmed with the neverending decisions. And no matter what you do, you just feel off. Disconnected from yourself.  Midlife Advice is the podcast for intelligent midlife women who are ready to stop white-knuckling through life and feel next-level good. Each week, host Jessica Long brings you honest conversations about navigating perimenopause and menopause, hormones, overwhelm, relationships, confidence, and the identity shift nobody warned you was coming. Not as a patient. Not as a problem to be solved. As a woman who deserves to actually feel GREAT again. Jessica is a holistic health coach, certified menopause coaching specialist, breathwork facilitator and fellow midlife woman navigating all of this right alongside you. If you've ever searched: Why am I so exhausted all the time?Why does work feel so hard lately?Why do I feel so disconnected from my partner?Why do I have low libido and will it ever come back?Why don't I feel like myself anymore?Is this perimenopause or something else? This podcast was made for you. 💌 If you’re a midlife woman navigating perimenopause, hormone shifts, personal growth, and just not feeling like yourself, you’ll fit right in to my community. Join my email list where I share personal stories, nervous system regulation tools, favorite products, high-protein recipes, book recs and exclusive discounts. I’ll send you my FREE 10-minute breathwork session to get better sleep tonight to get you started! ✨For more midlife advice on perimenopause, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and living with purpose in your 40s and 50s follow me: @midlifeadvicepodcast | @heyjessicalong ⚡️Ready to feel f*cking GREAT again? Learn more about working together at belongwellness.com. 

  1. 6d ago

    Low Libido in Midlife: What's Really Shutting Down Your Desire

    Low libido in midlife is likely not just your hormones. There are other factors at play that are important to know about. Let’s talk about what's actually shutting down desire for midlife women, and what helps bring it back. Brooke Bralove, LCSW-C and AASECT Certified Sex Therapist and I talk about what women over 40 actually need to know about low desire, sexual ruts in long-term relationships, and how unresolved trauma can live in the body and affect intimacy for decades. Here’s what we cover: Why familiarity and too much emotional safety can kill eroticism in long-term relationshipsThe myth of spontaneous desire, and what's actually more realisticHow mental overload, exhaustion, and resentment shut down libido faster than any hormone shiftWhy "willingness to try" is more useful than waiting to be in the moodHow trauma, big and small, can show up in the body and affect intimacy years laterWhat Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) is, and how it's helping women resolve sexual trauma in as few as one sessionOne thing you can do this week to reconnect with your own desireBrooke Bralove, LCSW-C, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, psychotherapist, and AASECT Certified Sex Therapist with over 20 years in private practice.  brookebralove.com | @BrookeBralovePsychotherapy  Chapters: 00:00 Understanding Low Libido in Midlife Women 03:11 The Role of Familiarity and Newness in Relationships 05:57 The Myth of Spontaneous Desire 08:55 The Importance of Communication and Willingness 11:49 Addressing Resentment and Unmet Needs 14:21 Exploring Root Causes of Low Libido 17:03 Healing from Trauma and Its Impact on Desire 19:49 Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) Explained 22:37 Practical Steps to Reconnect with Desire I want to hear from you. Send me a text or voicemail! 😴 Sleep better tonight with my free 10-minute audio breathwork session! (https://your.belongwellness.com/sleep) ⚡️Join the waitlist for Hello, Next-Level You, my upcoming 3-month group breathwork experience for midlife women who are ready to feel f*cking GREAT. Program launches in September. (https://www.belongwellness.com/work-with-me) ✨For more midlife advice on perimenopause, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and living with purpose in your 40s and 50s follow me: @midlifeadvicepodcast | @heyjessicalong

  2. Jul 14

    Reinventing Yourself in Midlife: A Novelist on How to Write the Next Chapter of Your Life

    Feeling stuck in midlife even when life looks successful from the outside? Novelist and coach Ellen Baker says we can reinvent ourselves the same way an author writes a character into existence: by choosing who we need to be before we have proof we're there. Ellen Baker spent a decade navigating divorce, rejection, and reinvention before her novel The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson became HarperCollins' Lead Read for Winter 2024 and was featured in People and Woman's World. Her new novel, Summerland Cove, is out June 2026. She is also the founder of The Next Chapter Studio, where she helps women rewrite the internal beliefs that shape how they show up. She says we can write the next chapter of our own lives the same way an author writes a character into existence: by deciding who that character needs to be before writing a word. You choose the identity first. The outcomes follow. I can’t wait for you to hear this! We talk about: Why the identity that got you here isn't the one that will carry you forwardThe author's approach to identity change: deciding who your character needs to be before the story startsHow to look at yourself from the outside, the way an author looks at a character she's writingThe "I choose to" shift that gives you your agency back right nowWhy we've been conditioned to think achievement has to come before identity (and why that's backwards)How to tell the difference between an identity that's truly yours versus one you're just performingThe "What if?" question that lets you try on a new identity without pressureWhat actually changes first when a woman steps into a new identityHow an identity shift ripples into relationships, and how to navigate thatThe first thing to do if you suspect you've been living from an outdated identity Connect with Ellen Baker: ellenbakernovels.com | The Next Chapter Studio: ellenbakernovels.com/studio I want to hear from you. Send me a text or voicemail! 😴 Sleep better tonight with my free 10-minute audio breathwork session! (https://your.belongwellness.com/sleep) ⚡️Join the waitlist for Hello, Next-Level You, my upcoming 3-month group breathwork experience for midlife women who are ready to feel f*cking GREAT. Program launches in September. (https://www.belongwellness.com/work-with-me) ✨For more midlife advice on perimenopause, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and living with purpose in your 40s and 50s follow me: @midlifeadvicepodcast | @heyjessicalong

  3. Jul 7

    What Creatine Does for Your Muscle, Brain and Mood After 40

    Creatine isn't just for bodybuilders. Functional medicine doctor Miranda Naylor explains why women over 40 actually need creatine for muscle, brain, mood, and sleep. Thank you, Dr. Naylor, for clearing up all the confusion around creatine and whether it is helpful and safe for midlife women.  What you'll hear: Why women naturally have lower creatine stores than menHow estrogen affects creatine metabolism and why midlife women may need moreWhat creatine actually does for muscle, brain function, mood, and sleepDosing guidance: loading vs. maintenance, and what to look for in a productDr. Miranda Naylor is a functional medicine doctor in San Diego, CA and the host of the podcast Modern Women's Wellness.  Connect with Dr. Miranda: drmirandanaylor.com | @drmirandanaylor | Modern Women’s Wellness podcast ➡️ My favorite creatine: Be Well By Kelly (https://go.shopmy.us/p-50264235) I want to hear from you. Send me a text or voicemail! 😴 Sleep better tonight with my free 10-minute audio breathwork session! (https://your.belongwellness.com/sleep) ⚡️Join the waitlist for Hello, Next-Level You, my upcoming 3-month group breathwork experience for midlife women who are ready to feel f*cking GREAT. Program launches in September. (https://www.belongwellness.com/work-with-me) ✨For more midlife advice on perimenopause, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and living with purpose in your 40s and 50s follow me: @midlifeadvicepodcast | @heyjessicalong

  4. Jun 30

    AI for Midlife Women: Why Chat and Claude Fall Short (and the Tool Being Built for Us)

    The AI tools you're using weren't built for midlife women. But now there’s one that is customized for women over 40 and you’ll learn all about it (including how you can start using it) in this episode. If you've ever asked ChatGPT something deeply personal and gotten back an answer that was technically fine but somehow missed the point, you need to hear about this new AI tool for midlife women. Today I'm talking with Stephanie Georges, a former top-ranked Wall Street analyst, C-suite executive, and Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative Senior Fellow who is now building The Meraki Dignity Project: an AI platform trained specifically on women-informed, evidence-based research, with a community layer built in. What you'll hear: - Why the biggest AI tools are under-serving midlife women (the pay gap example will stop you cold) - What "human-centered AI" actually means and why it changes the quality of support we can get - How Sophie, the platform's AI guide, walks you through a conversational onboarding and gets to know you holistically - Why community is the missing layer in almost every AI tool right now - How the platform builds a visual roadmap of your life, not a task list - How to get into the free beta right now More about Meraki Dignity: Website: merakidignity.com Instagram: @merakidignity 😴 Sleep better tonight with my free 10-minute audio breathwork session! https://your.belongwellness.com/sleep I want to hear from you. Send me a text or voicemail! 😴 Sleep better tonight with my free 10-minute audio breathwork session! (https://your.belongwellness.com/sleep) ⚡️Join the waitlist for Hello, Next-Level You, my upcoming 3-month group breathwork experience for midlife women who are ready to feel f*cking GREAT. Program launches in September. (https://www.belongwellness.com/work-with-me) ✨For more midlife advice on perimenopause, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and living with purpose in your 40s and 50s follow me: @midlifeadvicepodcast | @heyjessicalong

  5. Jun 23

    🥳 It’s My Birthday! Let’s Reflect on Who We’re Becoming

    In this personal birthday episode, I’m sharing what’s been guiding me this year and the practices helping me step into my next-level self now, instead of waiting for someday or some arbitrary accomplishment. And I invite you to reflect alongside me, not on tasks you’ve completed, but on who you are becoming. Every year around my birthday, I find myself asking a few questions: How am I really doing? Am I spending my time on what matters most? Am I becoming the person I want to be? My birthday falls right in the middle of the year, so it feels like the perfect time for all of us to pause, reflect, and intentionally choose how we want the second half of the year to feel. In this episode, I’m sharing a few of the intentions I set at the beginning of the year, what’s been working well, where I’ve faltered, and the practices that are helping me feel more connected to myself, my family, and the future I’m creating. In this episode, I share: The intention that has guided nearly every decision I’ve made this yearWhat it really means to make choices from your future selfThe behind-the-scenes work of building my new program, Hello, Next-Level YouWhy supporting other women in business feels so important to me right nowMy preferred practice for grounding and sourcing what I needHow I’m bringing more presence, play, and joy into parentingAn invitation for you to reflect on where you are and how you want the rest of your year to feel ⭐️ If this podcast has ever made you think, dream, wonder or laugh, inspired you to try something new, or enriched your life in any way, please make my birthday wish come true and leave a 5-star rating and written review on Apple Podcasts or 5-star rating and comment on Spotify!  I want to hear from you. Send me a text or voicemail! 😴 Sleep better tonight with my free 10-minute audio breathwork session! (https://your.belongwellness.com/sleep) ⚡️Join the waitlist for Hello, Next-Level You, my upcoming 3-month group breathwork experience for midlife women who are ready to feel f*cking GREAT. Program launches in September. (https://www.belongwellness.com/work-with-me) ✨For more midlife advice on perimenopause, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and living with purpose in your 40s and 50s follow me: @midlifeadvicepodcast | @heyjessicalong

  6. Jun 16

    Summer Reading List 2026: 3 Books You Won't Be Able to Put Down

    Get your summer reading recommendations for women over 40, curated by someone who reads more in a month than most people read in a year. This episode is your 2026 summer reading list, plus the permission to quit every book that is not worth your precious time. Today I’m joined by my friend (since preschool!) and repeat guest Alexis Lynch for our annual summer reading conversation. Alexis shares three picks for 2026, including a novel about midlife identity and reflections on aging, a prison book club story that restores your faith in humanity, and a guilty pleasure page-turner she finished in 24 hours.  We also discuss Heart the Lover by Lily King, including the passionate-love-versus-stable-partnership theme and the concept of how our identity evolves over the decades. Oh, and Alexis admits this book inspired her to secretly sleuth her college boyfriend… What you'll hear: Alexis's three summer reading picks for midlife women, with honest reviews on eachUpdated tips for actually reading more when life is completely fullA discussion of Heart the Lover: the big themes, what the hidden name means, and why this book grabs hold of your heartThe one book to start with if you haven't read anything in a long timeAlexis Lynch is a practicing attorney, a lifelong reader, and a self-described quitter of bad books. Alexis’ summer 2026 reading list for women over 40: So Old, So Young by Grant Grinder How to Read a Book by Monica Wood These Summer Storms by Sarah MacLean The book Alexis and Jessica discuss that is SO good: Heart the Lover by Lily King I want to hear from you. Send me a text or voicemail! 😴 Sleep better tonight with my free 10-minute audio breathwork session! (https://your.belongwellness.com/sleep) ⚡️Join the waitlist for Hello, Next-Level You, my upcoming 3-month group breathwork experience for midlife women who are ready to feel f*cking GREAT. Program launches in September. (https://www.belongwellness.com/work-with-me) ✨For more midlife advice on perimenopause, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and living with purpose in your 40s and 50s follow me: @midlifeadvicepodcast | @heyjessicalong

  7. Jun 9

    Plastic Surgery After 40: What Actually Works for Jowls, Hooded Eyes, and the Body Changes Skincare Can't Fix

    If you have tried fillers or lasers for jowls, hooded eyes, or skin laxity after 40 and are still not happy with what you see, you're in the right place. Dr. Carolyn Chang is a board-certified plastic surgeon who has spent her career focused on natural-looking results for midlife women, and she is here to give you real answers. She trained under one of the inventors of the modern facelift and is one of the only female plastic surgeons in San Francisco named annually to Castle Connolly's America's Top Doctors. She is also refreshingly direct about what actually works and what doesn't, and this conversation covers all of it. We discuss: What fillers, lasers, and tightening devices can realistically do for jowls and skin laxity, and where they hit their limitEyelid surgery (blepharoplasty): who it actually helps, what it involves, and why most women are surprised by how short the recovery isWhat a modern facelift is really doing, and why it looks nothing like what most people pictureThe deep plane facelift: what the marketing gets wrong and what to actually ask your surgeonWhether repeated energy treatments like Ultherapy can affect your ability to have a facelift laterTummy tuck and breast surgery after pregnancy: what you can realistically expectBreast implant illness: is it real? The two things that have to be true before the timing is right for surgeryWhat facial surgery, tummy tucks, and mommy makeovers cost in a major metro marketHow to evaluate a surgeon, what before-and-afters actually tell you, and the red flags to look for in a consultation Guest: Dr. Carolyn Chang, Board-Certified Plastic Surgeon drcarolynchang.com | @carolynchangmd I want to hear from you. Send me a text or voicemail! 😴 Sleep better tonight with my free 10-minute audio breathwork session! (https://your.belongwellness.com/sleep) ⚡️Join the waitlist for Hello, Next-Level You, my upcoming 3-month group breathwork experience for midlife women who are ready to feel f*cking GREAT. Program launches in September. (https://www.belongwellness.com/work-with-me) ✨For more midlife advice on perimenopause, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and living with purpose in your 40s and 50s follow me: @midlifeadvicepodcast | @heyjessicalong

  8. Jun 2

    Hair Extensions for Thinning Hair: What Actually Works (and What to Skip)

    Hair extensions can be a great solution for midlife women experiencing hair thinning, but they are not right for everyone. A 20-year specialist breaks down who qualifies, which method works best for thinning hair, and what it really costs. This conversation covers everything I didn't know to ask. Extensions are not a one-size-fits-all solution. Whether they work for you depends on the type of thinning you have, how much hair you have, and which method is used. The wrong choice can actually make things worse. This episode helps you figure out which category you're in before you spend a dollar. My guest is Aubree Hill, founder of Exhale House, a luxury hair salon in Mill Valley. She has over 20 years of experience and specializes in invisible, ethically sourced Great Lengths hair extensions for women with thinning or changing hair. In this episode we cover: Why hair thinning in midlife hits harder than you'd expect (it's not just about the hair)Which types of thinning are actually good candidates for extensionsWhat strand-by-strand, tape-in, and weft extensions are and how they're differentWhy the method matters so much for women with thinning hairHow much hair you need to qualify and what to do if you're not there yetWhat Great Lengths extensions are and why Aubree uses them exclusivelyThe real cost breakdown: what to budget per year and per appointmentWhat the daily maintenance actually looks like (and who it won't work for)What you can and can't do with extensions: workouts, pools, oceans, saunasThe safety risk that can permanently damage your follicles (and how to avoid it)How to find the right stylist and what questions to ask in a consultationWhy this work is about more than hair Connect with Aubree:  exhalehousesalon.com | @exhale_house | @thebusinessofbeautiful | 415-704-6335 I want to hear from you. Send me a text or voicemail! 😴 Sleep better tonight with my free 10-minute audio breathwork session! (https://your.belongwellness.com/sleep) ⚡️Join the waitlist for Hello, Next-Level You, my upcoming 3-month group breathwork experience for midlife women who are ready to feel f*cking GREAT. Program launches in September. (https://www.belongwellness.com/work-with-me) ✨For more midlife advice on perimenopause, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and living with purpose in your 40s and 50s follow me: @midlifeadvicepodcast | @heyjessicalong

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You're a woman over 40, you're in the thick of perimenopause or menopause, and lately you keep coming back to the same thought: I just don't feel like myself anymore. You're doing everything right. Showing up for your family, your work, everyone who needs you. But you feel exhausted in a way that sleep doesn't fix. Work feels harder and less fulfilling than it used to. Your relationship feels distant. Your body is changing. You’re overwhelmed with the neverending decisions. And no matter what you do, you just feel off. Disconnected from yourself.  Midlife Advice is the podcast for intelligent midlife women who are ready to stop white-knuckling through life and feel next-level good. Each week, host Jessica Long brings you honest conversations about navigating perimenopause and menopause, hormones, overwhelm, relationships, confidence, and the identity shift nobody warned you was coming. Not as a patient. Not as a problem to be solved. As a woman who deserves to actually feel GREAT again. Jessica is a holistic health coach, certified menopause coaching specialist, breathwork facilitator and fellow midlife woman navigating all of this right alongside you. If you've ever searched: Why am I so exhausted all the time?Why does work feel so hard lately?Why do I feel so disconnected from my partner?Why do I have low libido and will it ever come back?Why don't I feel like myself anymore?Is this perimenopause or something else? This podcast was made for you. 💌 If you’re a midlife woman navigating perimenopause, hormone shifts, personal growth, and just not feeling like yourself, you’ll fit right in to my community. Join my email list where I share personal stories, nervous system regulation tools, favorite products, high-protein recipes, book recs and exclusive discounts. I’ll send you my FREE 10-minute breathwork session to get better sleep tonight to get you started! ✨For more midlife advice on perimenopause, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and living with purpose in your 40s and 50s follow me: @midlifeadvicepodcast | @heyjessicalong ⚡️Ready to feel f*cking GREAT again? Learn more about working together at belongwellness.com. 

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