40ish | The Funny Podcast on Perimenopause, Menopause & Midlife

This week on 40ish, Nicole has discovered eyemaxxing and naturally wants to know whether we should all be doing it and whether our faces have somehow acquired another department that needs managing.  Meanwhile, Alison Hammond is hitting back at critics of her age-gap relationship, raising the question of why women still seem to face a completely different set of rules when it comes to love, age and who they're allowed to date. In todays big relationship dilemma: is it ever OK to discuss your marriage with your best friend? Where does healthy venting end and marital treason begin? And should your partner be worried about what your friends know about them?  Plus, we investigate one of midlife’s greatest financial mysteries: how do you walk into Boots for one thing, emerge £67 poorer, and still not have the thing you went in for? Whatever it is, we need answers. Just another week of trying to navigate midlife without buying unnecessary eye products or accidentally bankrupting ourselves in Boots. 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk 📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lauren’s so peri-peri she forgot to change her HRT patch AND how to board a plane. Plus: why are women thirsting over the Wicker Husband from Olivia Colman and Alexander Skarsgård’s new film Wicker? This week on 40ish, Nicole has been locked out of LinkedIn… again. In Midlife News, we dig into the Wicker Husband craze. Could a tall, handsome man woven from rattan fix modern dating fatigue? Searches for personalised wicker baskets are reportedly soaring. Then it’s your dilemmas. A listener has met a charming man in his 50s. Is he a gentleman taking it slow, or just a bit uptight? Should she make the first move? We talk dating after divorce, reading the signs and taking a chance on romance. Plus airport dads, and proof that midlife is anything but boring. 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk 📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast #Perimenopause #DatingAfterDivorce #MidlifeWomen Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In today's 40ish, Nicole is celebrating a personal best at the gym as she gears up for turning 50ish. Lauren is staying up far too late watching The Substance (again). One of us is getting stronger. The other is getting sleepier. Both are entirely committed to their choices. In Midlife News, the underwire bra is making a comeback. Designers including Prada and Tom Ford are embracing lingerie-inspired looks, while celebrities are wearing bras as outerwear. But after years of wireless bras, stretchy fabrics and finally being able to breathe, are women in their forties and beyond really ready to return to something that feels like scaffolding around the ribcage? Our listener dilemma is all about celebrating her mum’s 80th birthday when the birthday girl hates a fuss. With a mum who doesn't want a big party, how do you make such a milestone special without making her miserable? We're talking about aging parents, family expectations and learning to celebrate people in the way that actually makes them happy. In this week's midlife meltdowns. Cutlery is causing disproportionate levels of irritation, and we're exploring the complicated business of angry gratitude. Because sometimes even the smallest inconvenience is enough to push us over the edge. Join us for honest, funny and gloriously relatable conversation about life in your forties and beyond, getting older, family dilemmas, midlife fitness and all the little things that somehow become very big things. Follow 40ish for more midlife news, relatable dilemmas, funny meltdowns and the things nobody warned us about in our forties. 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. 40ish,midlife podcast,midlife women,women in their 40s,midlife comedy,midlife news,underwire bra,underwire bra trend,fashion trends 2026,comfortable bras,midlife fashion,80th birthday ideas,80th birthday celebration,ageing parents,elderly parents,family dilemmas,milestone birthdays,midlife meltdowns,angry gratitude,women's lifestyle podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on 40ish: Lauren wonders if it’s too early to put the heating on and Nicole has a tupperware invention that could transform the world of reusable plastic storage. We're also tackling a parenting dilemma that will resonate with anyone whose teenager is thinking about university. One listener is concerned about student debt, future job opportunities and whether university will live up to expectations. But how do you balance wanting to protect your children from an expensive mistake with giving them the freedom to make their own decisions? Plus, we're sharing the meltdowns that come with travelling light, having a cold and resolving what to do about grey eyebrow hair. It’s another dose of midlife honesty, ridiculous everyday frustrations and the reassurance that we're probably all losing the plot just a little bit. If you're navigating midlife, parenting teenagers, perimenopause or simply wondering why your eyebrows are turning grey while your patience disappears, you're in the right place. 40ish,midlife,midlife podcast,women in their 40s,midlife comedy, parenting teenagers,university choices,student debt,university vs apprenticeship,parenting adult children,perimenopause,perimenopause anxiety,midlife meltdowns,ageing,grey eyebrows,midlife motherhood,empty nest,women's health 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. #Menopause #HRT #Perimenopause #Midlife #WomenOver40 #40ish Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Brain fog, anxiety, weight gain, poor sleep: is it always perimenopause? This week on 40ish we ask whether we're blaming everything on our hormones, and whether that means other health issues get missed. A recent article questioned whether every symptom in a woman in her 40s should be put down to perimenopause. After decades of women's symptoms being dismissed as stress or "getting older", recognising the impact of oestrogen and hormonal change is vital. But not everything is menopause, and persistent or unusual symptoms deserve proper investigation. Plus: a listener from the sweaty-underboob contingent refuses to join the no-bra movement, and this week's 40ish dilemma asks whether it's rude to leave someone on WhatsApp blue ticks for days. One listener now matches everyone's reply time exactly. Fair play, or WhatsApp weirdo? 40ish is the podcast about the funny, messy and ridiculous reality of life in your 40s. 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk 📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast & Substack @The Midlife Club Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30-day money-back guarantee. Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on 40ish: Nicole is wondering if her post menopause personality is here to stay - and if so how worrying is that (answer: very) Whilst Lauren has finally found somewhere to wear the white shoes. Then we revisit the subject that has divided the nation: pillow protectors. The 40ish listeners have spoken… and Lauren is feeling VERY smug. The listener dilemma is about sex and libido in midlife. What happens when you’re 47, your husband is 51, and your sex drive is absolutely fine… but his has disappeared? We talk about long-term relationships, changing libidos, testosterone, attraction, communication and the awkwardness of being the woman who wants more sex. Finally, one listener is in meltdown when she discovers that her husband has somehow reached his 50s without knowing what HRT is. As ever, 40ish is the podcast about the funny, messy, ridiculous reality of life in your 40s: relationships, sex, hormones, health, ageing, family, marriage and all the things nobody quite warned us about. 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast & Substack @ The Midlife Club If you’re ready to launch your business before Black Friday, go to shopify.com to start your free trial Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's a 40ish Midlife News Special, and this week we're asking a fairly important question: how much do doctors actually learn about menopause? An ITV News investigation into medical schools in England and Wales found that some student doctors receive as little as one hour of formal menopause teaching during their entire five-year medical degree, with around 20% of universities that responded reporting less than 90 minutes of dedicated menopause teaching. There's also a brilliant new midlife comedy-drama to talk about. Sharon Horgan's new series Youth follows Alex, a recently divorced middle aged woman who is juggling a teenage son, ageing parents, work and the pressure to find a new relationship before she gets "too old". It's the sandwich generation, dating, ageing and midlife anxiety wrapped up in a comedy-drama, and we are obsessed!  💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023.  Finally, we investigate the booming menopause supplement industry. A new review published in Climacteric looked at 201 menopause supplement products available in the UK and found huge variation in their ingredients, doses and prices, with products ranging from around £1.50 to £95 per month. The researchers also found that fewer than half contained vitamin D and only 23.9% contained calcium, despite the importance of both nutrients for bone health. With the global menopause supplement market predicted to reach billions of dollars, we ask what women are actually getting for their money and how to separate evidence-based menopause advice from clever marketing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on 40ish: we kick off with the ultimate sign that Christmas is approaching: booking the Ocado Christmas delivery slot and immediately announcing it on the family WhatsApp. Because nothing says festive spirit quite like securing your sprouts three months early. We hear from a listener who discovered 40ish at 47 when she was feeling miserable and alone, and says the podcast helped her feel seen, empowered and much more positive about midlife. In Midlife News, there is promising new research into a potential non-invasive test for womb cancer and reducing the need for invasive investigations such as hysteroscopies. Hooray!  This week's dilemma: the lounge set. Is it a tracksuit? Is it a co-ord? Is it pyjamas that have been promoted to daywear? Our listener wants to know whether an oatmeal wide-leg M&S lounge set is chic, chavvy or practical midlife dressing. We investigate the great lounge-set rebrand and discuss where women over 40 can find clothes that are comfortable enough for the sofa but respectable enough for the supermarket. Finally, the midlife meltdown that proves we really have entered a new phase of life. One listener is turning 48 and for her birthday, her husband has given her her heart's desire: a 300-litre outdoor garden compost bin with a flip latch. Honestly? She couldn't be happier.Forget diamonds. Forget handbags. Apparently, the road to midlife happiness is organic waste management. Because this is 40ish: midlife, but make it compostable. 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the Midweek Meltdown Show, where we're talking midlife meltdowns, 3am anxiety and the wildly irrational thoughts that hit in your 40s. Proper, deeply middle-aged meltdowns. Lauren wants to know why on earth she thought she needed a pair of white kitten heels. We get into the psychological damage social media does to women in midlife. And there's a double-bagging pillowcase situation that has become far more important than it should be. A primary school teacher shares one of the most spectacularly awkward moments we've ever heard. Another listener has developed a completely separate personality at 3am. At 7am? Completely normal again. If you've ever lain awake overthinking, you'll know exactly what she means. If you've ever had a midlife meltdown, a 3am anxiety spiral, an embarrassing social moment or a thought that seemed completely reasonable at the time, this episode is for you. What's your most ridiculous 40ish meltdown? Tell us in the comments. 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices #40ish #MidweekMeltdown #MidlifeMeltdown #WomenInTheir40s #Midlife #Perimenopause #3amThoughts #Anxiety #Overthinking #Sleep #MiddleAge #MidlifeWomen Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ever heard us mention a pair of jeans, a hair product or a recipe in passing and wished you'd written it down? That's exactly why we've started The Midlife Club on Substack. It's our home for everything behind the episodes: the products, recipes, clothes and bits and pieces we chat about on the show, all in one place, plus extra content you won't hear anywhere else. Come and join us: https://substack.com/@themidlifeclub See you in the club x 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on 40ish, Nicole hits a major midlife milestone as she drops her eldest child off at university. We’re not crying, you’re crying. Meanwhile, Lauren is experiencing a very different kind of midlife humiliation: changing from heels into flats on the Tube because comfort has officially won. We hear from a listener struggling with unpredictable energy levels and fluctuating hormones. She can feel full of energy and excited to make plans one day, then reach the day itself and want to cancel everything and hide under a duvet. So how do you make plans when you genuinely have no idea which version of yourself is going to turn up? In Midlife News, three 40ish stars have all welcomed new babies. Finally, this week’s dilemma is a big one. A friend has cancelled their girls’ weekend just five days before they’re due to go. Is this the end of a friendship? Have your friendships changed in your 40s? Do you have less energy for nights out than you used to? And how do you deal with making plans when your energy levels are completely unpredictable? #40ish #Midlife #Perimenopause #HRT #WomenInTheir40s #MidlifeFriendships #Friendship #Menopause #MidlifeWomen #University 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk 📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Too much to cover and not enough time on Tuesday's episode, so here's a bonus show for you, Quazzers. Lauren went to a 50th birthday celebration and did something no one expects at a party; showed off her HRT patch like an accessory. Meanwhile Nicole thinks she has found her true calling: ‘bobfluencer’. Yes, it's a thing, and yes, she's considering it as a career path. Settle in for a bonus dose of 40ish nonsense, You're welcome. 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today on 40ish: Nicole has bought a steam mop and it's love at first swipe. Lauren, meanwhile, is about to celebrate her silver wedding anniversary ( surely that's for old people?) This week's listener feedback brings an enthusiastic leggings recommendation (sorry, Lululemon). Then Mary-Anne gets in touch from deep inside perimenopause brain fog; words? Gone. Executive function? Also gone. If you've ever walked into a room and forgotten why, this segment is basically a support group. This week's Dilemma: Rosie's best friend has gone full doomsday prepper. Six months of food, industrial quantities of water, head torches, a camping stove, a wind-up radio - the lot. Completely unhinged, or the only one who'll be laughing when civilisation collapses? And finally, Meltdown of the week: a listener rings her husband to ask what flavour cake he wants for his birthday. One small problem: it isn't his birthday. Perimenopause symptoms, memory loss, marriage milestones, friendship dilemmas, panic buying, doomsday prepping, activewear obsessions and the eternal question: why did we walk into this room again? This is 40ish. You're welcome. 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There was simply too much to cover and not enough time on Tuesday’s episode, so here is a little bonus one for you, Quazzers. The ladies have been out -out, going to see Hamilton (Lauren’s first time, so obviously we have thoughts.) We also discuss The Invite (spoiler alert: do NOT watch this one with your husband) and Lauren is put off avocado for life after a woman on the internet describes what it tastes like in a way that can never be unheard. Honestly, we could tell you what she compared it to… but where’s the fun in that? So settle in for a bonus dose of 40ish nonsense, theatre chat, questionable viewing choices and the complete destruction of one woman’s relationship with avocado. You’re welcome. 💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on 40ish: Nicole is becoming allergic to everything and has to reign in her dad as he brings new meaning to “life begins at 40” when he insists on walking a marathon for charity for his 80th birthday. Lauren has been spending too much time alone and queries what quantifies a gift after being given a toilet brush. We have feedback from 44yr old rave queen and a very special surprise from DJ Penelope, who has taken things one step further and actually made us a 40ish song. Yes, really In Midlife News, M&S has entered its saucy era. Crotchless knickers have appeared on the nation's most trusted high street retailer and Britain is absolutely beside itself. Has M&S gone S&M? Our dilemma this week comes from a woman whose mother-in-law lives abroad, which sounds lovely until you realise that every visit involves several uninterrupted days of being talked AT by someone who appears to have forgotten that conversation is supposed to be a two-way activity. So how do you tell a beloved but exhausting relative that perhaps they could occasionally STFU?  If you’re enjoying 40ish, please share this episode with a friend who you think will love it too.  💌 Send us your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk📱 Follow: @40ish.podcast Donate to Food Bank Aid: https://www.charityextra.com/hub/foodbankaid/tony-singer Try AG1 now at https://drinkag1.com/selfcare and get £20 off your first order + 5 AG1 Travel Packs for on the go, a bottle of Vitamin D3+K2, and the Welcome Kit for FREE. No risk with the 30- day money-back guarantee.  Find all details about the health benefits in the link. Study results are on file with AG1, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on 40ish, Nicole has bought a steam mop and is feeling like she’s absolutely nailed adulthood. Meanwhile, Lauren has finally disposed of some Uniqlo “slacks” that were making her feel approximately 60ish. In Midlife News, we’re talking about the latest research into HRT and dementia risk and what it actually tells us about menopause, HRT and brain health. Then we tackle this week’s dilemma: when your pregnant sister asks what you think of her baby name, are you actually obliged to tell the truth? Especially when the name makes you think of a Victorian ghost haunting the corridors of a stately home. Finally, we investigate one of the great mysteries of modern masculinity: the moustache. Why is every man suddenly growing one? Is there such a thing as a genuinely good moustache apart from on Tom Selleck? If you’re enjoying 40ish, please share this episode with a friend who you think will love it too. Because nothing says friendship like sending someone a podcast about midlife, menopause, HRT, moustaches and Victorian ghost babies. We love to hear from you! Send your dilemmas and rants: hello@40ish.co.uk / @40ish.podcast 🎧 New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the brand new season of 40ish - the midlife and menopause podcast for women in their 30s, 40s & 50s. This week: a couple who are healthy, financially secure and stable, but have completely lost their spark. How do you start enjoying life and each other again? Plus, is raving the new midlife self-care? We're asking whether swapping the spa day for a crop top and loud music actually counts as wellness. Also in this episode: Nicole has a full nervous breakdown over new studio tech, Lauren goes deeply evangelical about arch support and flip-flops (this is genuinely where we are in midlife), and has a disturbing realisation in a school uniform shop that she's turning into her own mother. And today's meltdown: a woman wants it made very clear that marrying another woman does NOT automatically mean you get a partner who does the housework. Is it time for a formal domestic performance review? New season, same 40ish chaos. Let's get into it. We love to hear from you! hello@40ish.co.uk @40ish.podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We are taking a break over the summer holidays . In the meantime, please enjoy this classic episode from the archives. This week on 40ish: Lauren and Nicole receive an email offering varicose vein treatment, a listener is in a bit of a pickle after lying at work and one woman in desperate need of a wee completely loses her sh*t in public and now regrets it.  We would love to hear from you!  To share your dilemmas, rants, funny stories or general complaints about midlife please be in touch. We love to hear from you! To share your feedback, dilemmas, rants, funny stories or general complaints about midlife please be in touch  Email hello@40ish.co.uk  Instagram https://www.instagram.com/40ish.podcast   TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@40ish.podcast  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We are taking a break over the summer holidays . In the meantime, please enjoy this classic episode from the archives. This week on 40ish; a woman asks if it’s sweet or if it’s weird to give her daughter a necklace to celebrate her first period. Lauren is hoping the idea may inspire Nicole’s husband to buy her a very special wedding anniversary gift. Plus, a listener asks what happened to her rock n’roll husband who used to play the guitar but now the only bass he is interested in is Homebase.  We love to hear from you! To share your feedback, dilemmas, rants, funny stories or general complaints about midlife please be in touch Email hello@40ish.co.uk Instagram https://www.instagram.com/40ish.podcast  TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@40ish.podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We are taking a break over the summer holidays . In the meantime, please enjoy this classic episode from the archives. This week on 40ish: Nicole has embarrassed her daughter, Lauren is dressing like an extra from Top Gun, a listener wants to make a raunchy dance video for her lover and a woman has a very unnerving situation with her shoulder surgeon.  We love to hear from you! To share your feedback, dilemmas, rants, funny stories or general complaints about midlife please be in touch  Email hello@40ish.co.uk  Instagram https://www.instagram.com/40ish.podcast   TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@40ish.podcast  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices