Stronger Bolder Wiser

No one really prepares you for this stage of life. One day you wake up and realise… You’re exhausted. Your body feels different. Your sleep is off. Your tolerance for things you used to accept has disappeared. And you start quietly asking yourself: “Surely life is meant to feel better than this?” If you’ve ever had that thought… this podcast is for you. Stronger Bolder Wiser is a space for honest and science backed conversations We’re talking about the things women are actually experiencing: hormones, health, alcohol, stress, identity shifts, and the quiet reinvention happening behind the scenes. Because this stage of life isn’t about shrinking. It’s about becoming: Stronger in your boundaries Bolder in your choices Wiser about what really matters

Stronger Bolder Wiser is a education podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 30 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Unknown Host hosts Stronger Bolder Wiser, a education show with 30 episodes published.

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  Episode #31

  What Women Need to Know About Perimenopause, Hormones & Birth Control | Lara Briden

  Sep 28, 20261h 8m

  Struggling to know what to do when stress, boredom or big emotions hit? Download my free guide "100 Things to Do Instead of Drinking", a toolkit for sitting with those feelings instead of reaching for a glass of wine. Get your free guide → https://bit.ly/4qOiGUw Perimenopause is not a medical condition and you are not broken. Dr Lara Briden explains what is really happening to your hormones after 40, and why alcohol makes all of it harder. In this episode I sit down with Dr Lara Briden, naturopathic doctor and author of Period Repair Manual, Hormone Repair Manual and Metabolism Repair for Women. Lara reframes perimenopause as a second puberty and pushes back on the fear-based messaging filling our feeds. We cover alcohol as the bigger hidden hormone disruptor, the iron deficiency being mislabelled as brain fog, what the pill really does to a teenage cycle, and why insulin resistance locks women out of their own energy stores. This is the kind of knowledge that lets you walk into your doctor's office and advocate for yourself. Key Topics Covered - Why periods go chaotic after 40, and what ovulation winding down really looks like. - Perimenopause as second puberty, not a medical condition, with many symptoms temporary. - The iron deficiency hiding behind brain fog, and why heavy bleeding needs full iron studies. - Alcohol as the bigger hormone disruptor, raising estrogen and steepening the drops. - What the pill does to a teenage cycle, and the twelve years it takes to mature ovulation. - Hormonal IUDs and heavy periods, the real wins, the androgen side effects, and keeping your uterus. - The rethink around endometriosis, and why experts want to stop cutting young women open. Timestamps Dr Lara Briden On Chaotic Perimenopause Periods (00:00) Second Puberty, Low Iron And Brain Fog (04:37) Estrogen Swings, Alcohol And Fear Marketing (12:00) What The Pill Does To Teen Cycles (20:32) Pill Bleeds, Hormonal IUDs And Real Periods (25:29) Should You Get Endometriosis Surgery? (32:25) PCOS Should Be Renamed PMOS (38:45) How To Treat High Androgens Naturally (44:53) How Insulin Resistance Starts In Midlife (50:36) Why Midlife Weight Loss Advice Fails (57:40) Rapid Fire Hormone Questions Answered (01:01:36) Dr Lara Briden is a naturopathic doctor with more than 25 years in women's health and the author of Period Repair Manual, Hormone Repair Manual and Metabolism Repair for Women, published in Australia and New Zealand as The Metabolism Reset. A former evolutionary biologist, she now consults from Christchurch, New Zealand, treating women with PCOS, PMS, endometriosis and perimenopause. Website: https://www.larabriden.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/larabriden/ Podcast: https://www.larabriden.com/podcast/ Resources and references for Lara Briden’s books Hormone Repair Manual, Period Repair Manual, and Metabolism Repair for Women. https://www.larabriden.com/resources/ *** Sarah Rusbatch is an accredited Health and Wellbeing Coach and one of Australia’s leading experts on grey area drinking. Her podcast, Stronger, Bolder, Wiser, is the go-to space for women who are questioning their relationship with alcohol, navigating life alcohol-free, or simply curious about what life could look like on the other side of the bottle. *** Find out more about my other programs here: https://sarahrusbatch.com/ If you want to join a space where women feel safe to be seen, ask the questions they don’t always say out loud and connect with others going through the same, join my free Facebook group, Women’s Wellbeing Collective here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/342319476897067 And if changing your relationship with alcohol is something you want to explore further, you can find my book Beyond Booze on Audible, Spotify, Kindle and Amazon. Click the link here: https://sarahrusbatch.com/beyond-booze

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  Stronger Bolder Wiser

  Why Alcohol Hits Women Harder After 40 + 3 Ways to Drink Less

  Sep 24, 202610 min

  Struggling to know what to do when stress, boredom or big emotions hit? Download my free guide "100 Things to Do Instead of Drinking", a toolkit for sitting with those feelings instead of reaching for a glass of wine. Get your free guide → https://bit.ly/4qOiGUw If you cannot bounce back from two glasses of wine the way you did in your twenties, you are not imagining it. There are three biological reasons women process alcohol less effectively than men, and all three get stronger as we age. In this solo episode I walk you through the three reasons women cannot metabolise alcohol as effectively as men. I cover the body composition difference, the enzyme we produce less of than men and less again as we age, and the hormonal piece almost no one talks about. I also share what I learnt in my menopause coach training about shrinking liver volume in midlife, and the health risks that arrive faster for women. Then I give you the three tips I use with the twelve thousand women I have supported through my alcohol reset challenges. I was a grey area drinker for twenty-nine years, so none of this comes from a place of judgement. Key Topics Covered -Less water and more body fat, and why a man dilutes the very same drink far more effectively than you do. - The enzyme that clears alcohol, and why men produce more of it than women do from the start. - Why aging stacks the odds, as we make less of that enzyme every decade that passes. - The harms that arrive faster for women, from liver disease and stroke to addiction and breast cancer. - Oestrogen and where you are in your cycle, and why two glasses can feel like nothing one week and floor you the next. - The shrinking midlife liver, and what that means for the organ doing most of the work. - Adding something in when you take alcohol out, because a break with no plan for stress and fun rarely holds. - Awareness first, then thirty days of data, tracking sleep, mood, energy and anxiety so the decision is yours. *** Sarah Rusbatch is an accredited Health and Wellbeing Coach and one of Australia’s leading experts on grey area drinking. Her podcast, Stronger, Bolder, Wiser, is the go-to space for women who are questioning their relationship with alcohol, navigating life alcohol-free, or simply curious about what life could look like on the other side of the bottle. If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone who needs to hear it. And if you haven’t already, subscribe so you never miss an episode, and leave a review to help more women find this community. *** Find out more about my other programs here: https://sarahrusbatch.com/ If you want to join a space where women feel safe to be seen, ask the questions they don’t always say out loud and connect with others going through the same, join my free Facebook group, Women’s Wellbeing Collective here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/342319476897067 And if changing your relationship with alcohol is something you want to explore further, you can find my book Beyond Booze on Audible, Spotify, Kindle and Amazon. Click the link here: https://sarahrusbatch.com/beyond-booze

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  Stronger Bolder Wiser

  Is Alcohol Keeping You Stuck? The Questions Every Woman Who Drinks Should Ask | Jen Hirst

  Sep 21, 20261h 8m

  Feeling like alcohol has quietly become your default way to unwind, reward yourself, or take the edge off? Join my October Reset Challenge, a supportive, guided reset to help you break the daily drinking habit, reconnect with yourself, and prove you can feel good without the glass of wine. Join the October Reset → https://bit.ly/4gJyKSY What does it really take to walk out of the "sober closet" and let go of the shame we carry around drinking? In this episode of Stronger, Bolder, Wiser, I sit down with sobriety coach Jen Hirst to trace her journey from hidden, high-functioning drinking to lasting recovery, and to talk about the tools that actually work. Jen shares how her drinking escalated from teenage experimentation to using alcohol to numb heartbreak, anxiety and the weight of perfectionism, and how wedding stress pushed her to rock bottom. She walks us through the secrecy, the failed attempts at moderation and recovery, the mouthwash and dangerous substitutes, the two DWIs, hospitalisation and detox, and the day she finally surrendered. We talk about how alcohol fuels anxiety, how perimenopause and hormones shape our vulnerability, and the practical tools that ease cravings and stress, from breathwork, walking and affirmations to protein, blood-sugar stabilisation and her bedtime "protein pudding" trick for those 3am wake-ups. Key Topics Covered How Jen's drinking escalated from teenage experimentation to hidden, high-functioning dependence Why perfectionism, heartbreak and wedding stress fuelled the drinking What "coming out of the sober closet" meant, and how sharing her story dissolved shame How alcohol worsens anxiety, and the role of perimenopause and hormones in midlife Why blood-sugar stabilisation and a bedtime protein snack ease 3am wake-ups The warning signs of cross addiction and why moderation so often fails Jen Hirst is a sobriety coach who has been alcohol-free since 24 April 2013. After years of hidden, high-functioning drinking that escalated to job loss, two DWIs, hospitalisation and detox, she surrendered and rebuilt her life, then publicly "came out of the sober closet" on 7 September 2017. Website: https://www.jenhirst.com/ Timestamps: Getting sober and breaking out of the sober closet with coach Jen Hirst (00:00) Using alcohol to self medicate heartbreak, anxiety and wedding stress (04:23) Hiding drinking in marriage and early failed attempts to get sober (09:17) Two DWIs, hospitalisation and detox as the drinking spirals (14:12) Surrendering to sobriety and rebuilding life after rock bottom (18:29) How alcohol worsens anxiety and how perimenopause affects cravings (22:11) Building an early sobriety toolkit to handle cravings (28:07) Overcoming shame, labels and alcohol culture around drinking (31:59) How sharing your sobriety story kills shame (37:04) Why moderation fails and how alcohol changes brain chemistry (45:08) How protein and blood sugar balance reduce alcohol cravings (52:04) Cross addiction warning signs to watch for in sobriety (58:53) Regulating your nervous system without alcohol (01:05:00) *** Download my free guide "100 Things to Do Instead of Drinking", a toolkit for sitting with those feelings instead of reaching for a glass of wine. Get your free guide → https://sarahrusbatch.com/free-guide-100-things-to-do-instead-of-drinking?utm_source=sbw&utm_medium=ep28&utm_campaign=100+things&utm_content=list+building Find out more about my other programs here: https://sarahrusbatch.com/ If you want to join a space where women feel safe to be seen, ask the questions they don't always say out loud and connect with others going through the same, join my free Facebook group, Women's Wellbeing Collective here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/342319476897067 And if changing your relationship with alcohol is something you want to explore further, you can find my book Beyond Booze on Audible, Spotify, Kindle and Amazon. Click the link here: https://sarahrusbatch.com/beyond-booze

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  Stronger Bolder Wiser

  Am I Drinking Too Much? The 7 Signs of Grey Area Drinking Every Woman Over 40 Should Know | Grey Area Drinking Coach Sarah Rusbatch

  Sep 17, 202611 min

  Struggling to know what to do when stress, boredom or big emotions hit? Download my free guide "100 Things to Do Instead of Drinking", a toolkit for sitting with those feelings instead of reaching for a glass of wine. Get your free guide → https://bit.ly/4qOiGUw Most women who recognize themselves in this episode do not identify as alcoholics, and that is exactly why the term grey area drinking exists. It is the space between the every now and then drinker and physical dependency, and it is where a whole generation of midlife women are quietly living. In this solo episode I explain what grey area drinking actually is and walk you through the seven signs that you are sitting in it. I was a grey area drinker for twenty-nine years and I now work with women aged forty to seventy, so I know how normal this looks from the outside and how loud it feels on the inside. I cover the rules we make and break, how alcohol arrives as a solution long before it ever looks like a problem, and why alcohol hits women so much harder through perimenopause and beyond. If you have ever silently asked yourself am I drinking too much, this one is for you. Key Topics Covered - What grey area drinking really means and where you sit on the one to ten scale. - The drinking rules we keep breaking and the counting, justifying and rewarding that keep us stuck. - Why alcohol-free breaks like dry January never seem to stick. - How alcohol affects midlife women differently, from 3am wakeups to anxiety and rising tolerance. Timestamps: Not An Alcoholic? You Could Be A Grey Area Drinker (00:00) What Is Grey Area Drinking?(00:35) The 1-10 Scale For High Functioning Drinkers(01:20) Sign 1 Counting And Justifying Your Drinks(02:18) Sign 2 You Keep Breaking Your Own Drinking Rules(02:34) Sign 3 Wine Has Become Your Reward(04:33) Sign 4 Your Dry January Never Sticks(05:57) Sign 5 You Keep Asking Am I Drinking Too Much(06:38) Sign 6 Alcohol Takes More Than It Gives(07:37) How Alcohol Hits Women Harder In Perimenopause(08:00) Sign 7 Rising Tolerance And Getting Defensive(09:00) The First Step To Changing How You Drink(10:16) *** Sarah Rusbatch is an accredited Health and Wellbeing Coach and one of Australia’s leading experts on grey area drinking. Her podcast, Stronger, Bolder, Wiser, is the go-to space for women who are questioning their relationship with alcohol, navigating life alcohol-free, or simply curious about what life could look like on the other side of the bottle. If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone who needs to hear it. And if you haven’t already, subscribe so you never miss an episode, and leave a review to help more women find this community. *** Find out more about my other programs here: https://sarahrusbatch.com/ If you want to join a space where women feel safe to be seen, ask the questions they don’t always say out loud and connect with others going through the same, join my free Facebook group, Women’s Wellbeing Collective here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/342319476897067 And if changing your relationship with alcohol is something you want to explore further, you can find my book Beyond Booze on Audible, Spotify, Kindle and Amazon. Click the link here: https://sarahrusbatch.com/beyond-booze

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  Stronger Bolder Wiser

  How to Protect Your Brain After 40: A Brain Scientist’s Guide for Women | Tommy Wood

  Sep 14, 20261h 6m

  Struggling to know what to do when stress, boredom or big emotions hit? Download my free guide "100 Things to Do Instead of Drinking", a toolkit for sitting with those feelings instead of reaching for a glass of wine. Get your free guide → https://bit.ly/4qOiGUw Your brain is knackered by 5pm because you've been stuck in middle gear all day, and that exhaustion is exactly why the wine starts calling. In this episode I sit down with Dr. Tommy Wood, neuroscientist and author of The Stimulated Mind, to unpack the three cognitive gears (high, middle, low) and why constant task switching leaves midlife women depleted and reaching for a drink. We cover what a real low gear brain break looks like, why so many of us have lost the ability to rest, and the link between perimenopause, brain health and dementia risk in women. We finish on the most hopeful message of all: it's never too late to protect your brain. Key Topics Covered - The three brain gears (high, middle, low) and how each feels day to day - Why middle gear quietly exhausts you, since the brain can't truly multitask - The 5pm wine trigger, and why alcohol is the fast but costly off switch - What a real low gear break looks like (green space, breathwork, one thing at a time) - Time blocking and why feeling out of control drives poor cognitive outcomes - Perimenopause and the brain: verbal memory, estrogen, and vasomotor symptoms - Why dementia risk is higher in women, and the factors behind the gap - Why it's never too late, with evidence people in their late 60s still improve Dr. Tommy Wood is a neuroscientist and Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Neuroscience at the University of Washington, where his research focuses on brain health across the lifespan. He holds an undergraduate degree in biochemistry from the University of Cambridge, a medical degree from the University of Oxford, and a PhD in Physiology and Neuroscience from the University of Oslo. Alongside his academic work he is a performance consultant to elite athletes, including Formula 1 drivers, through Hintsa Performance. He is the author of The Stimulated Mind: Future-Proof Your Brain from Dementia and Stay Sharp at Any Age, and co-hosts the Better Brain Fitness podcast with neurologist Josh Turknett. Website: https://www.drtommywood.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drtommywood The Better Brain Fitness podcast, co-hosted with Dr. Josh Turknett, available at https://www.betterbrain.fitness/ and on regular podcast platforms The Stimulated Mind: Future-Proof Your Brain from Dementia and Stay Sharp at Any Age: https://www.amazon.com/Stimulated-Mind-Future-Proof-Brain-Dementia/dp/0593797817 Timestamps The Three Gears Of Your Brain (00:00) What High Gear Focused Work Really Means (02:24) Low Gear And Why Rest Matters (04:33) How Your Phone Kills Rest Time (06:37) The Midlife Woman's Mental Overload (11:21) Why You Reach For Wine At 5pm (12:40) Quick Brain Breaks That Actually Work (15:34) Music Breathwork And Calming Your Brain (21:49) How Time Blocking Regains Control (23:11) How Perimenopause Changes Your Brain (29:48) Does MHT Help Your Brain (34:21) Why Women Get Dementia More Than Men (38:40) Does Stress Raise Your Dementia Risk (45:07) What Alzheimer's Actually Does To The Brain (52:17) The Best Exercise For Your Brain (55:17) Start With One Small Change (58:20) Why It Is Never Too Late (01:00:21) *** Find out more about my other programs here: https://sarahrusbatch.com/ If you want to join a space where women feel safe to be seen, ask the questions they don’t always say out loud and connect with others going through the same, join my free Facebook group, Women’s Wellbeing Collective here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/342319476897067 And if changing your relationship with alcohol is something you want to explore further, you can find my book Beyond Booze on Audible, Spotify, Kindle and Amazon. Click the link here: https://sarahrusbatch.com/beyond-booze

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