Grief, Alcoholism & Building a Dating Empire with Nicky Wake l EP45

Grief, Alcoholism & Building a Dating Empire with Nicky Wake l EP45

In this episode of The Midlife Awakening, I sit down with Nicky Wake — widow, recovering alcoholic, serial entrepreneur, and solo parent — for one of the most raw and powerful conversations we've had on the show. In 2017, Nicky's husband Andy suffered a heart attack that left him with a catastrophic brain injury. For three years she lived in a devastating limbo, running a multi-million-pound events business and solo-parenting their son while grieving a husband who was still alive. When Andy passed away during COVID lockdown in 2020, the grief she'd suppressed came crashing down — and she became a highly functioning alcoholic, drinking up to three bottles of wine a day while never missing a day of work. Nicky opens up about: * Anticipatory grief and the "limbo" of loving someone who's gone but not gone * Becoming a high-functioning alcoholic while running a successful business * The rock-bottom moment that led her to choose rehab * Rebuilding her life through sobriety and launching Chapter2Dating, Widow's Fire, and SoberLove * Embracing her bisexuality after years of assumed heterosexuality * Ethical non-monogamy and finding an unexpected second chapter of love * Why community and peer support were essential to her healing This is a conversation about grief, addiction recovery, midlife reinvention, and turning pain into purpose. Connect with Nicky Wake: Website: nickywake.com [https://www.nickywake.com/] Apps: chapter2dating.app [https://www.chapter2dating.app/] | widowsfire.dating [https://widowsfire.dating/] | soberlove.app [https://www.soberlove.app/] Community: thewidowedcollective.com [https://www.thewidowedcollective.com/] If this episode resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share The Midlife Awakening with someone who needs to hear it. Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2343819/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2343819/support] Rate the Show : RateThisPodcast.com/ [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fratethispodcast.com%2Fmidlife&data=05%7C02%7C%7C0c664f3c9453444edf6408de5e81d892%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639052108942556504%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=J4wNEQGaRTNwTjZ5ALWL8YBQ6lDcIRuxo1h5mRwdQWM%3D&reserved=0]midlife [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fratethispodcast.com%2Fmidlife&data=05%7C02%7C%7C0c664f3c9453444edf6408de5e81d892%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639052108942570637%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=qs1oZK3kQjuoRgD9hmeEhmPPL2aaidrewQol3wnuJiE%3D&reserved=0] Facebook Community : https://www.facebook.com/groups/1717887919057641/ [https://www.facebook.com/groups/1717887919057641/] Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/the.midlife.awakening/ [https://www.instagram.com/the.midlife.awakening/] Substack : https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/ [https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/] The Awakened Community - https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/subscribe [https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/subscribe] To submit your story to be featured on...

What Your Skincare Is Really Doing to Your Hormones with Nicky Hughes l EP44

Episode Title What Your Skincare Is Really Doing to Your Hormones (with Nicky Hughes, Intrinsic Skincare) Episode Description Did you know that the average woman absorbs hundreds of synthetic chemicals through her skin every single day — many of which are known hormone disruptors? In midlife, when our hormones are already in flux, this matters more than ever. In this episode of The Midlife Awakening, host Odilia sits down with Nicky Hughes — founder of Intrinsic Skincare and a student doctor of naturopathy — for a conversation that will change the way you look at everything in your bathroom cabinet. Nicky shares her own extraordinary story: how a desperate search to heal her son's chronic acne scarring during lockdown led her to formulate her own natural skincare, how that grew into a 30-product clean skincare range now sold across the UK, USA and South Africa, and how she eventually used the same principles to reverse her own menopausal weight gain and exhaustion — coming off HRT and losing 10kg through diet and clean skincare alone. You'll Learn •       Why ingredients labelled “fragrance” or “parfum” are a legal loophole that lets brands hide hormone-disrupting chemicals •       How chemical sunscreen ingredient oxybenzone has been shown to remain in the bloodstream for 21 days and affect testosterone production •       Why your body becomes far less “forgiving” of processed food and toxins after menopause •       The truth about magnesium — which type to take, and why it's linked to over 400 functions in the body •       Why Nicky reverses thyroid issues with Brazil nuts instead of medication (and the real story behind it) •       The collagen mistake almost everyone makes, and the cheap trick to make it actually absorb •       Her simple “would you eat it?” test for deciding what's safe to put on your skin This is an honest, practical, and genuinely eye-opening conversation — exactly the kind of information every midlife woman needs and deserves to hear. Guest Links Website: www.intrinsicshop.co.uk [https://www.intrinsicshop.co.uk/] Instagram: instagram.com/intrinsicskincareuk [https://www.instagram.com/intrinsicskincareuk/?hl=en] Facebook: facebook.com/Intrinsicskincareuk [https://www.facebook.com/Intrinsicskincareuk?locale=en_GB] YouTube: youtube.com/@IntrinsicSkincare [https://www.youtube.com/@IntrinsicSkincare] Use code NEWSITE10 for 10% off at intrinsicshop.co.uk (valid until end of June, excludes promotional items). Nicky also offers free 30-minute skincare consultations — email her directly via her website to book  Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2343819/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2343819/support] Rate the Show : RateThisPodcast.com/ [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fratethispodcast.com%2Fmidlife&data=05%7C02%7C%7C0c664f3c9453444edf6408de5e81d892%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639052108942556504%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=J4wNEQGaRTNwTjZ5ALWL8YBQ6lDcIRuxo1h5mRwdQWM%3D&reserved=0]midlife [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fratethispodcast.com%2Fmidlife&data=05%7C02%7C%7C0c664f3c9453444edf6408de5e81d892%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639052108942570637%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=qs1oZK3kQjuoRgD9hmeEhmPPL2aaidrewQol3wnuJiE%3D&reserved=0] Facebook Community : https://www.facebook.com/groups/1717887919057641/ [https://www.facebook.com/groups/1717887919057641/] Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/the.midlife.awakening/ [https://www.instagram.com/the.midlife.awakening/] Substack : https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/ [https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/] The Awakened Community - https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/subscribe [https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/subscribe] To submit your story to be featured on...

Pregnancy Loss, Grief & Building Cocoon: Sam's Story of Miscarriage, Maternity Care and Midlife Reinvention l EP43

Pregnancy loss, miscarriage recovery and the gaps in NHS maternity care — this episode goes straight to the heart of all three. Sam, founder of Cocoon, a midwife-led pregnancy ultrasound clinic in Harrogate, shares the devastating loss of her baby, Willow, and how that experience — and the dehumanising language used around it — became the catalyst for building the maternity care she wished had existed. Sam opens up about the anxiety of a subsequent pregnancy after loss, leaving a successful corporate career at Bettys & Taylors to start again from scratch, and why she believes proper qualifications and regulation matter so much in private ultrasound clinics. We also talk about Cocoon's next chapter — a new preventative health and diagnostics site, Science and Soul, launched in memory of her best friend who died from metastatic breast cancer — and what it really takes to build a business on purpose rather than a plan. In this episode: * Sam's experience of miscarriage and the language of "product of conception" * Pregnancy after loss: managing anxiety through a subsequent pregnancy * Why Sam left a stable corporate career to found a maternity clinic * What's missing from regulation in private pregnancy scan clinics * Building Cocoon with a midwife-led, trauma-informed model of care * Cocoon's new diagnostic and preventative health clinic, Science and Soul * Late-diagnosed neurodivergence and ADHD as an entrepreneurial superpower * Sam's advice for anyone standing on the edge of a midlife career change Resources & Links mentioned: * Cocoon — https://cocoon-hgt.com/ [https://cocoon-hgt.com/] * Taking Baby Steps — https://takingbabysteps.co.uk/ [https://takingbabysteps.co.uk/] * Brighter Skies — https://www.brighterskies.org.uk/ [https://www.brighterskies.org.uk/] Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2343819/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2343819/support] Rate the Show : RateThisPodcast.com/ [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fratethispodcast.com%2Fmidlife&data=05%7C02%7C%7C0c664f3c9453444edf6408de5e81d892%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639052108942556504%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=J4wNEQGaRTNwTjZ5ALWL8YBQ6lDcIRuxo1h5mRwdQWM%3D&reserved=0]midlife [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fratethispodcast.com%2Fmidlife&data=05%7C02%7C%7C0c664f3c9453444edf6408de5e81d892%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639052108942570637%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=qs1oZK3kQjuoRgD9hmeEhmPPL2aaidrewQol3wnuJiE%3D&reserved=0] Facebook Community : https://www.facebook.com/groups/1717887919057641/ [https://www.facebook.com/groups/1717887919057641/] Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/the.midlife.awakening/ [https://www.instagram.com/the.midlife.awakening/] Substack : https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/ [https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/] The Awakened Community - https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/subscribe [https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/subscribe] To submit your story to be featured on...

From "Something's Wrong With Me" to Radical Self-Love: Breaking Subconscious Patterns in Midlife l Liora Sponko l EP42

Have you ever felt like you're living smaller than you were meant to? Like something invisible is holding you back — and you can't quite name what it is? In this episode of The Midlife Awakening, I sit down with empowerment coach and motivational speaker Liora Sponko to explore the subconscious patterns, limiting beliefs, and childhood wounds that keep so many of us stuck — and how midlife is actually the perfect moment to finally break free from them. Liora spent years living under the weight of one quietly devastating belief: there's something wrong with me. That story fuelled anxiety, people-pleasing, and self-doubt — until she committed to peeling back the layers through deep transformational work. Today she helps women, entrepreneurs, and leaders move from scarcity to abundance, from fear to radical self-love. In this episode we cover: * Why 95% of our thoughts are subconscious loops from the past — and how to interrupt them * The difference between scarcity mindset and abundance mindset, and how to shift between them * Liora's three-step Internal Work Framework: unblock the past, reprogram the present, embody the future * Why midlife is not a crisis — it's an awakening and an opportunity * The power of emotional release (yes, including crying) as a somatic healing tool * How to tell the difference between your thoughts and your intuition * Why inner child healing is the key to changing your outer world Connect with Liora Sponko: * 🌐 Website: liorasponko.com [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.liorasponko.com%2F&data=05%7C02%7C%7Cf6dc383ddb854d5fd1c008deb6c900b6%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639149171563213585%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=7Yo8Qe6OwcXrtejKniA7NUVLNBq3uq4baFNQ7dynAfE%3D&reserved=0] — download her free Internal Work Framework * 📞 Book a free Breakthrough Call via her website * 📸 Instagram: @liorasponko [https://instagram.com/liorasponko] * 👥 Facebook: @lioramotivates [https://facebook.com/lioramotivates] Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2343819/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2343819/support] Rate the Show : RateThisPodcast.com/ [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fratethispodcast.com%2Fmidlife&data=05%7C02%7C%7C0c664f3c9453444edf6408de5e81d892%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639052108942556504%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=J4wNEQGaRTNwTjZ5ALWL8YBQ6lDcIRuxo1h5mRwdQWM%3D&reserved=0]midlife [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fratethispodcast.com%2Fmidlife&data=05%7C02%7C%7C0c664f3c9453444edf6408de5e81d892%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639052108942570637%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=qs1oZK3kQjuoRgD9hmeEhmPPL2aaidrewQol3wnuJiE%3D&reserved=0] Facebook Community : https://www.facebook.com/groups/1717887919057641/ [https://www.facebook.com/groups/1717887919057641/] Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/the.midlife.awakening/ [https://www.instagram.com/the.midlife.awakening/] Substack : https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/ [https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/] The Awakened Community - https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/subscribe [https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/subscribe] To submit your story to be featured on...

Healing Autoimmune, Money Wounds & Midlife Purpose: Kristen Renee on the 12-Element Framework l EP41

What if the chronic pain, exhaustion, and stuckness you're feeling isn't just physical — and the solution isn't another diet, supplement, or protocol?   In this episode, Odilia sits down with author, speaker, and transformational coach Kristen Renee to explore the radical idea that lasting healing — physical, emotional, and financial — requires us to address the whole person. After a decade of autoimmune disease and a financial crisis in her forties, Kristen developed a 12-principle framework that bridges the spiritual with the practical, helping busy midlife women create real, lasting change without overhauling their entire lives overnight.   This conversation is for you if you've tried everything and still feel like something is missing. IN THIS EPISODE WE COVER: •       Why you can't manifest or find your purpose when you're living in survival mode •       The overnight healing events that proved the mind-body connection is real •       How suppressed emotions and trauma show up as physical symptoms in the body •       The masculine/feminine energy imbalance driving burnout in midlife women •       How to start a body scan practice even when you've never felt connected to your body •       Why healing your environment — including your home and your food — matters •       The 12-week framework that gently folds healing into your real, busy life •       Finding your purpose in midlife and the 'pre-purpose steps' that make it possible RESOURCES MENTIONED: •       Kristen's book: The Elements of Healing — available on Amazon (author name: Kristen Renee) •       Upcoming book: Healing the Money Wound •       Louise Hay — You Can Heal Your Life •       Gabor Maté — on trauma and autoimmune disease in women CONNECT WITH KRISTEN: •       Website: www.kristenreneehealing.com [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.kristenreneerebuilding.com%2F&data=05%7C02%7C%7Cca47170201c64375716408debbf11884%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639154841373481002%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=AF%2BqqMpp3GQhBWIwe%2FWIMowUc2SiO%2BoFbJG1VkI2Orw%3D&reserved=0] •       Instagram : @kristenreneehealing [https://www.instagram.com/kristenreneehealing/] •       Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/KRISTENRENEEREBUILDING?locale=en_GB [https://www.facebook.com/KRISTENRENEEREBUILDING?locale=en_GB] •       TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@kristenreneerebuilding [https://www.tiktok.com/@kristenreneerebuilding] •       YouTube: @kristenreneerebuilds [https://www.youtube.com/@KristenReneeRebuilding] •       LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kristen-appleby [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fkristen-appleby%2F&data=05%7C02%7C%7Cca47170201c64375716408debbf11884%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639154841373463074%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=Q65A5P2HxeUHgAkNrU4DB00Mxd2bJRc%2B2Ho9MTjd2IU%3D&reserved=0] •       Amazon Author Page: Search 'Kristen Renee' on Amazon midlife healing, autoimmune healing, mind-body connection, trauma healing, women's health midlife, burnout recovery, healing framework, Kristen Renee, The Elements of Healing, midlife awakening, feminine energy, purpose in midlife, somatic healing, nervous system regulation, emotional healing Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2343819/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2343819/support] Rate the Show : RateThisPodcast.com/ [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fratethispodcast.com%2Fmidlife&data=05%7C02%7C%7C0c664f3c9453444edf6408de5e81d892%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639052108942556504%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=J4wNEQGaRTNwTjZ5ALWL8YBQ6lDcIRuxo1h5mRwdQWM%3D&reserved=0]midlife [https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fratethispodcast.com%2Fmidlife&data=05%7C02%7C%7C0c664f3c9453444edf6408de5e81d892%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639052108942570637%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=qs1oZK3kQjuoRgD9hmeEhmPPL2aaidrewQol3wnuJiE%3D&reserved=0] Facebook Community : https://www.facebook.com/groups/1717887919057641/ [https://www.facebook.com/groups/1717887919057641/] Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/the.midlife.awakening/ [https://www.instagram.com/the.midlife.awakening/] Substack : https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/ [https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/] The Awakened Community - https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/subscribe [https://themidlifeawakening.substack.com/subscribe] To submit your story to be featured on...