Women in the Middle®: Loving Life After 50 - Midlife Coach Podcast

Hosted by Suzy Rosenstein

Business Careers EducationInterviews guests

Website RSS feed LinkedIn Instagram YouTube

Episodes

486

Latest episode

Oct 2026

Language

About the show

Women in the Middle® is a podcast for midlife women who are ready to hear some good news about being over 50! Suzy Rosenstein, MA and Master Certified Life Coach shares the good, bad, ugly, and sometimes downright hysterical about growing older and making the changes you want to make so you don't have regrets in your second chapter. As a midlife coach for women, Suzy shares an upbeat perspective along with coaching & guidance about self-care, career boredom, career change, entrepreneur lifestyle, happiness, relationships, mindset, empty nest, aging, and life transitions with a mix of guests, humor and no-nonsense. If you feel stuck in your midlife moment, get unstuck and clear about what you want at https://suzyrosenstein.com/podcast-bundle/

Listen to episodes

60 recent

October 22, 2026Episode 4821 hr 1 min

EP #482: Opening the 5 Doors of Friendship in Midlife with Stacey Tessa K. Battat

Today we're talking about the importance of midlife friendships. Friendships after 50 deserve your attention, especially when your life, interests, and priorities are changing. My guest today is Stacey Tessa K. Battat. Tessa is a self-proclaimed relationship geek, who encourages others to see friendship as one of the soul's greatest paths on the journey of becoming more whole. Tessa also facilitates and hosts workshops and women's circles that focus on integrating embodied practices to deepen our connection with ourselves and others. She holds an MA in Consciousness Studies and is committed to a deep curiosity about what awakens the human spirit. Tessa is a speaker, author and the passionate endive behind The Open Nesters podcast, empowering people to live more open-hearted and courageous lives as they age. Based in New England, Tessa shares her life with her partner, husband of 36 years and podcast co-host, and together they have three strong, kind and loving children, a wise and wonderful daughter-in-law and a love-filled grandson. Join us as we discuss how these five doors can help you appreciate existing friendships and discover new connections that reflect who you are becoming. You'll also hear why getting clear about what you want matters, how expectations can affect your friendships, and why making time for connection is an important part of regret-proofing your life. Please enjoy this interview! Featured in this Episode Next Chapter Midlife Quiz : www.midlifequiz.com Talking with My High School Friends Turning 60 This Year Envy for Good: The Unexpected Tool for Figuring Out What You Really Want Reinventing the Family Farm for Midlife Happiness with Adrea McFadden When You're Too Busy in Midlife Celebrating Friendships in Midlife Connect with Stacey Tessa K. Battat Website: https://theopennesters.com Book: The 5 Doors of Friendship

October 15, 2026Episode 48139 min

EP #481: Want More Midlife Clarity? Get Unstuck With Your Next Best Step

Do you feel stuck in midlife because you're waiting for more clarity before making a change? Maybe you want to figure out what's next with retirement, relationships, work, or simply how you want to spend your time. You keep thinking, researching, journaling, and talking about your options, hoping you'll eventually feel certain enough to move forward. But what if you've got the order backwards? What if taking your Next Best Step is actually how you create more clarity? In this episode of Women in the Middle , I'm sharing one of my favorite coaching principles for getting unstuck in midlife. You'll learn why you don't need a perfect plan to start moving forward, how new experiences give you valuable data about yourself, and why self-trust is so important when you're figuring out your next chapter. I'll also share a fun Slinky analogy that explains the difference between looping and learning versus spinning in confusion. Most importantly, we'll explore why participating in your life while you're figuring things out matters just as much as reaching your destination. Learn more here!

October 8, 2026Episode 48020 min

EP #480: Stop Rushing Through Your Life

Do you notice yourself rushing in life? In this episode of Women in the Middle, we take a closer look at my tagline, "It's time to stop living like time doesn't matter, because it does" and how it does NOT mean that living this way is a call to hurry. For many women in their 50s and 60s, busyness starts to feel like proof that life is being lived well. We unpack the gap between how you're spending your days and how you'd spend them if you were committed to your priorities. We also explore the cycle of feeling busy in detail, so you are better prepared to notice it in your life. Drawing on personal examples (specifically, gardening, mindful doodling and the Zentangle® Method, and my infamous "mango moment,") today's show highlights how we rush through ordinary routines and even the things we love, placing all the reward at the finish line. Several reflection questions and "Life Leadership" prompts are offered to support the question, "Am I spending my time on my priorities?". The episode closes with a simple practice for slowing down and coming back to the moment you're in. Listen here!

October 1, 2026Episode 47943 min

EP #479: Who's the Favorite? Understanding Sibling Relationships in Midlife with Catherine Carr

Today we're talking about why our sibling relationships might be the longest and least understood relationships of our lives and why that's so important. My guest today is Catherine Carr, an award-winning documentary maker, presenter, and podcast producer with over twenty years in audio, including work for BBC Radio 4 and the World Service through her own company, Pocket Productions. She's the middle child of three, which led her to create the podcast Relatively , dedicated to sibling relationships. Her first book, Who's the Favorite? , argues that our brothers and sisters shape us as much as our parents do. Sibling relationships often outlast every other bond in our lives, yet we rarely talk about them beyond childhood squabbles. Drawing on over seventy sibling interviews from her podcast, along with psychology research and pop culture, Catherine explores the roles we get assigned, the friendships and rivalries, the shared history, and the estrangements, and makes the case for building stronger relationships with our siblings going forward. This episode is easy to relate to, so please enjoy this interview! Listen to the full interview here!

September 24, 2026Episode 47823 min

EP #478: Women in Midlife: Just Because You Can, Doesn't Mean You Want To

You can, but do you want to? Women over 50 are often incredibly capable. You know how to handle things, solve problems, take care of people and get stuff done. But after decades of being the woman who can , it's easy to stop asking a completely different question: "Do I actually still want to?" In this episode, we explore the difference between capability and desire and also why something doesn't have to become unbearable before you reconsider it. Listen Here.

September 17, 2026Episode 47740 min

EP #477: When a Feminist Judge Writes Her Memoir in Midlife

Today's guest did something unexpected when she chose to leave her judgeship and follow a new direction in poetry. Her name is Jacqueline St. Joan. Jackie is a retired lawyer, judge, and law professor, as well as an early feminist activist, community organizer, memoirist and novelist whose path to the bench was anything but planned. She started her career as a secretary, went to law school at 28 as a divorced mother of two, and ended up representing domestic violence survivors before becoming the first judge in Denver's centralized protection order court. Her outspoken feminism brought public scrutiny though her rulings were consistently upheld and she was voted back into office. Her shift away from law began after her father's death, when she started writing about their complicated relationship. A trip to a writers' conference in Aspen turned that project into a lifelong pull toward poetry, then fiction. Jackie stepped down from the bench gradually, working part-time as a mediator and law professor to stay financially stable while building a writing career. Her memoir, Your Verdict: A Judge's Reckoning with Lawand Loss , (Golden Antelope Press) was recently published. Jackie is also the author of two novels, My Sisters Made of Light and The Shawl of Midnight . Jackie served as a Denver County Judge from 1987-1994. Jackie was also recently inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. Please enjoy this fascinating interview here!

September 10, 2026Episode 47627 min

EP #476: What Kind of Daughter Do You Want to Be in Midlife?

Being intentional about the kind of daughter you want to be with your aging parents is important. While we're busy noticing our own aging, our parents are aging too, and that realization tends to sneak up on us. This episode moves past the logistics of caregiving (appointments, prescriptions, forms) and into the relationship underneath it. We need to ask ourselves an important question and it's not "what does a good daughter do" with senior parents. Instead, a better questions is "what kind of daughter do YOU want to be" with your aging parents. Discover how my regret-proofing framework can work to support you during this time of your life. Learn how to become intentional in a relationship you can't control, with the person aging in front of you. This is a great way toregret-proof your life! Learn More Here.

September 3, 2026Episode 47550 min

EP #475: Creativity and Living a Curious Life with Fredrik Härén

In this episode, you'll learn from Fredrik Härén, "The Creativity Explorer," a Swedish creativity expert who has spent 25 years traveling to 75 countries interviewing people to learn as much as he can about human creativity. Fredrik is the author of ten books, including "The Idea Book," which was included in "The 100 Best Business Books of All Time," and he has been invited to speak more than 2000 times in 75 countries on six continents. As The Creativity Explorer, he aims to discover more about creativity, be it from innovators in Silicon Valley or nomads in the desert of Mongolia. His latest book is called "The World of Creativity" – a journey across 37 countries to discover the secret of creative minds. You'll also discover how a mispronunciation from his young son led to his signature nickname, and why he believes "explorer" captures the creative mindset better than "expert" ever could. Along the way, you'll pick up the etymological roots of curiosity across English, Icelandic, and Bulgarian, and understand why questioning, rather than answering, may be the real engine behind creative thinking. Finally, you'll come away with an unconventional philosophy on timing and opportunity, including the surprising nautical origin of the word "opportunity" itself. The conversation closes with a preview of his new book, The World of Creativity, and his core piece of advice for women navigating midlife.

August 27, 2026Episode 47426 min

EP #474: Are You Really Older & Wiser? The Reality of Wisdom

Are you really older and wiser? Research suggests that wisdom doesn't automatically increase just because we get older. Age gives us experience, but experience and wisdom aren't the same thing. Wisdom grows when we pay attention to our experiences, reflect on what they're showing us, and allow what we learn to influence how we understand, trust, and lead ourselves. And this matters so much in midlife because by now, you have an incredible amount of data about yourself. You've had decades to discover what energizes you, what drains you, what you love, what you tolerate, what you regret, what you keep coming back to, and what keeps getting your attention. Learn more here.

August 20, 2026Episode 47341 min

EP #473: Alcohol Moderation, Midlife Reinvention & Resilience with Michele D. Perron, PhD

Today we're talking to a guest who helps professionals with personal alcohol concerns create a new relationship with alcohol withalcohol moderation coaching as an alternative to abstinence-only treatment. My guest today is Michele D. Perron. Michelle was originally a guest on Ep 134 of my sister podcast, the Women in the Middle Entrepreneurs, which is about the reality of running your business after 50. Her story of resilience is so compelling and interesting, I couldn't resist sharing here as well. Michele's career path has been quite a diverse, unusual journey. Learn More Here!