If you've cleared the decks, simplified your life, and still have no clue what comes next - this episode is for you.

Most planning advice gets it wrong. It starts with "what do you want to DO?" - jobs, trips, projects, hobbies. But that's putting the cart before the horse.

The better question? How do you want to FEEL?

In this episode, Monique van Tulder walks you through the PLAN stage of the SPACE framework - the essential Winter work that most women skip in their rush to get to the good bit.

You'll discover:

• Why planning is an act of self-respect, not control
• How to identify the three feelings that will shape your next chapter
• Why one picture on your mirror is more powerful than a ten-step plan
• The Dolly Parton quote that will change, how you think about change
• How to write your own version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

Plus: the "Dear Blokes" segment - what to say to your partner when you're suddenly talking about "purpose" and "your next act."

This is Winter work. Foundation work. The kind that doesn't look flashy but makes everything else possible.

Additional Resources:

• Your SPACE Prescription
• Free Weekly Newsletter
• Dear Blokes Downloadable
• Setting Boundaries That Stick - checklist
• 52 Ideas for YOUR Version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

📚 Get your copy of A Grown Up’s Gap Year the book, from Amazon, moniquevantulder.com, bookshops and libraries, subscribe to the podcast, and take the first step toward your own A Grown Up’s Gap Year.

• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram

Overwhelmed and Over It: How to Simplify One Part of Your Life This Week ...so there’s more time for what you actually want to do.

In this solo episode of *A Grown Up’s Gap Year – The Podcast, author and health and wellbeing professional Monique van Tulder brings an evidence-based wellbeing lens to real life: mid-life, mental load, the domestic corporation, and that nagging thought that everyone else has hobbies and you have logistics. Space, she argues, is a legitimate prescription – sometimes in another country, often in your own postcode.

This is the first in the S.P.A.C.E series Season, where Monique walks you through her simple roadmap: Simplify, Plan, Act, Connect, Explore. Today is S = Simplify – not as in outer space, or moving to a monastery or throwing your life in a skip, but deliberately removing what no longer fits so you can move through your days with more ease and less resentment.

Along the way, Monique reads from A Grown Up’s Gap Year on why decluttering isn’t cosmetic, talks frankly about running a domestic corporation on top of a day job, and offers a “Dear Blokes” fridge-note for the men who are wondering why the woman they love is suddenly talking about space and simplifying.

No personality transplant. No beige minimalism. Just less noise, more breathing room, and one part of your life that finally starts to feel like it belongs to you.

Additional Resources:

• Your SPACE Prescription
• Free Weekly Newsletter
• Dear Blokes Downloadable
• Setting Boundaries That Stick - checklist
• 52 Ideas for YOUR Version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

📚 Get your copy of A Grown Up’s Gap Year the book, from Amazon, moniquevantulder.com, bookshops and libraries, subscribe to the podcast, and take the first step toward your own A Grown Up’s Gap Year.

• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram

Today we’re talking about something that doesn’t get nearly enough airtime: life after menopause. Not the hot flush headlines, not the “is this peri?” panic – but what comes once the immediate hormone storm has settled and you’re looking at your 50s, 60s and beyond thinking: Right. What now? And how do I stay well enough to actually enjoy it? 

In this episode of A Grown Up’s Gap Year – The Podcast, Monique is joined by Dr Joanna Bruce, GP and practice owner of Myma Health in Bondi Junction. Dr. Jo has been a doctor for almost 30 years, a GP for almost 20, and now spends much of her time seeing women exactly like us – post-menopause, carrying a lot, and wanting to feel well, strong and supported in the next bit of life. 

Together they explore:

• what Dr Jo wants a woman to know when she’s been told she’s “through it” but still doesn’t feel herself
• the key health pillars for the 10–20 years after menopause – bone, heart, brain, muscle, pelvic floor
• where HRT might sit in the longer-term picture, not just for symptom relief but for future health
• what not to dismiss as “just getting older” 
• how to tune out the noisy supplement and “meno-washing” market (and what actually is worth spending money on) 
• how to have better, less rushed conversations with your GP or specialist about this phase, including what to bring to appointments and what to ask 

You’ll also hear them talk about travel and time-out – what to think about if you’re planning your version of A Grown Up's Gap Year and want your body to keep up. 

This conversation is general in nature – it’s not personal medical advice or a substitute for seeing your own doctor – but it is designed to help you ask better questions and feel more informed when you do. 

No scare tactics, no miracle fixes. Just clear, evidence-based guidance on how to feel strong, supported and well in the decades after menopause, so the next act of your life.

 

Additional Resources:

• Your SPACE Prescription
• Free Weekly Newsletter
• Dear Blokes Downloadable
• Setting Boundaries That Stick - checklist
• 52 Ideas for YOUR Version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

📚 Get your copy of A Grown Up’s Gap Year the book, from Amazon, moniquevantulder.com, bookshops and libraries, subscribe to the podcast, and take the first step toward your own A Grown Up’s Gap Year.

• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram

If you’re the one who remembers everyone’s everything – the logistics, the appointments, the emotions – but can’t remember the last time you had proper time-out, this episode is for you. In this Season Three opener of A Grown Up’s Gap Year – The Podcast, Monique talks about the mental load, invisible labour and unpaid work so many women carry, and introduces The Anti-Guilt Calculator – your SPACE Prescription to finally see what you do, name what it costs, and carve out real space and time-out without apology.

In this episode you’ll:

• Turn the mental load into a visible “receipt for services rendered” you can see, share and use as a starting point for change.
• Use SPACE (Simplify, Plan, Act, Connect, Explore) as a practical, repeatable way to protect time-out in your actual week.
• Try a 10-minute writing exercise to sketch your next season of life and design one realistic “toe-in-the-water” escape.

Additional Resources:

Your SPACE Prescription - calculator
Free Weekly Newsletter
Dear Blokes Downloadable
Setting Boundaries That Stick - checklist
52 Ideas for YOUR Version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

📚 Get your copy of A Grown Up’s Gap Year the book, from Amazon, moniquevantulder.com, bookshops and libraries, subscribe to the podcast, and take the first step toward your own A Grown Up’s Gap Year.

• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram

Hello, for the first episode of season three, I'm going to replay one of our most downloaded, most messaged about episodes to ease you into the year and ask, what about me and what about right now?

Season 2, episode 8:
If you’ve ever looked around your life and thought, “Is this it?” while simultaneously being needed by everyone, this one’s for you.

In the final episode of Season Two, author and nutritionist Monique van Tulder looks at what actually happened when she stopped just writing about A Grown Up’s Gap Year and lived it – running away, coming home, writing the book, and then spending a year saying “yes” to things that made her mildly nauseous but curious: TV couches, radio interviews, speaking gigs and all.

Monique shares:

• how one “Mum got mad and took off” moment became a book, a podcast and a very public experiment in mid-life reinvigoration
• what readers and listeners have done with the ideas – from cruises and retreats to blunt conversations at home and long-service-leave experiments
• why the Sydney Morning Herald comments and Morning Show clips made her double down on solo women’s travel, money, and the mental load
• what changed in her 25-plus-year marriage when she stopped being the default setting and both partners decided to partner with purpose

You’ll also hear how her new Your SPACE Prescription quiz (the “anti-guilt calculator”) and the 52 Ideas for Your Version of a Grown Up’s Gap Year list fit into all of this – simple tools to help you put yourself back in the picture, whether your escape is a solo night in a hotel or something more adventurous.

No resolutions, no 75-day challenges, no pressure to be anyone else. Just one woman reporting back from the field so you can plot your own version, in a way that fits the life you have now.


Additional Resources:

Your SPACE Prescription - calculator
Free Weekly Newsletter
Dear Blokes Downloadable
Setting Boundaries That Stick - checklist
52 Ideas for YOUR Version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

📚 Get your copy of A Grown Up’s Gap Year the book, from Amazon, moniquevantulder.com, bookshops and libraries, subscribe to the podcast, and take the first step toward your own A Grown Up’s Gap Year.

• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram

Hello and Happy New Year. During January, I'm replaying four of our most downloaded, most messaged about episodes. Think of them as a short series to ease you into the year and ask, what about me and what about right now? So we're going right back to the Foundations.

Season 1, episode 5:
Ever feel like you’re circling the same question - What now? Why not me? - without actually moving forward? This episode of A Grown Up’s Gap Year takes you straight to the compass you’ve been missing: your values.

In less than half an hour, you’ll learn how to uncover your 3–5 non-negotiables - the litmus test for every yes, no, and “not for me.” Monique van Tulder guides you through her five-step “Values Lab,” weaving in real-life stories, Joan Didion wisdom, and practical micro-actions you can try this week.

Episode Resources & Links:

• Download: Grown Up's Guidebooks - Core Values List

Additional Resources:

• Your SPACE Prescription
• Free Weekly Newsletter
• Dear Blokes Downloadable
• Setting Boundaries That Stick - checklist
• 52 Ideas for YOUR Version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

📚 Get your copy of A Grown Up’s Gap Year the book, from Amazon, moniquevantulder.com, bookshops and libraries, subscribe to the podcast, and take the first step toward your own A Grown Up’s Gap Year.

• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram

Hello and Happy New Year. During January, I'm replaying four of our most downloaded, most messaged about episodes. Think of them as a short series to ease you into the year and ask, what about me and what about right now? So we're going right back to the Foundations.

Season 1, episode 6:
If your house is quieter and you aren't quite sure what comes next - this episode is for you. Mid-life reinvigoration, an emptier nest, and the everyday resets that stick. Monique talks with Prue Francis about naming the wobble, choosing small changes that actually work, and rebuilding connection - fun and supportive. Practical, candid, immediately usable. Why not now? Why not you? Plus, an invitation, to join us at 'A Grown Up’s Gap Year – THE CLUB' (Facebook) to keep the conversation going — plan escapes (big or small), share what’s working, meet some new friends - all to 'put yourself back in the picture'.

Prue highly recommends this article: Why growth requires saying goodbye - Ozan Varol. ozanvarol.com/why-growth-requires-saying-goodbye/

Use this program to check in with better eating and nutrition habits: healthwithbec.com/

And if you would like to get in touch with Prue you will find her business details here: Agricultural Consultants. Experts in farm business strategy and growth.
instagram.com/agrista.au/

Additional Resources:

• Your SPACE Prescription
• Free Weekly Newsletter
• Dear Blokes Downloadable
• Setting Boundaries That Stick - checklist
• 52 Ideas for YOUR Version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

📚 Get your copy of A Grown Up’s Gap Year the book, from Amazon, moniquevantulder.com, bookshops and libraries, subscribe to the podcast, and take the first step toward your own A Grown Up’s Gap Year.

• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram

Hello and Happy New Year. During January, I'm replaying four of our most downloaded, most messaged about episodes. Think of them as a short series to ease you into the year and ask, what about me and what about right now? So we're going right back to the Foundations.

Season 1, episode 7:
Somewhere between society decided women need permission slips to take a breath. If you need it (and of course we don't 'require permission' - our lives, we need look to only ourselves for how to live life fully) “But if a good nudge is required — take this episode as your signed slip."

Episode Resources & Links:

• glamgirlsluxtravels.com
• instagram.com/pineapplevilla
• intrepidtravel.com/au/womens-expeditions

Additional Resources:

• Your SPACE Prescription
• Free Weekly Newsletter
• Dear Blokes Downloadable
• Setting Boundaries That Stick - checklist
• 52 Ideas for YOUR Version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

📚 Get your copy of A Grown Up’s Gap Year the book, from Amazon, moniquevantulder.com, bookshops and libraries, subscribe to the podcast, and take the first step toward your own A Grown Up’s Gap Year.

• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram

Hello and Happy New Year. During January, I'm replaying four of our most downloaded, most messaged about episodes. Think of them as a short series to ease you into the year and ask, what about me and what about right now? So we're going right back to the Foundations.

Season 1, episode 1:
What happens when you hit your limit - and run away instead of continuing to ‘run on empty?’ In this first episode of A Grown Up’s Gap Year – The Podcast, host Monique van Tulder (author of #1 amazon bestselling A Grown Up’s Gap Year - The Guidebook for mid Lifestyle. Wellbeing. Adventure) shares the real story behind her eight-month escape, why she left, what she discovered, and what it means to hit pause without burning your whole life down.

This is the beginning of a bold, heartfelt season - and a cultural reset for women everywhere who’ve been juggling it all.

👂 Plus: A book reading, a listener prompt, and a surprising note for ‘The Blokes’

• Free Resources

Additional Resources

• Your SPACE Prescription
• Free Weekly Newsletter
• Dear Blokes Downloadable
• Setting Boundaries That Stick - checklist
• 52 Ideas for YOUR Version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

📚 Get your copy of A Grown Up’s Gap Year the book, from Amazon, moniquevantulder.com, bookshops and libraries, subscribe to the podcast, and take the first step toward your own A Grown Up’s Gap Year.

• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram

If you’ve ever looked around your life and thought, “Is this it?” while simultaneously being needed by everyone, this one’s for you.

In the final episode of Season Two, author and nutritionist Monique van Tulder looks at what actually happened when she stopped just writing about A Grown Up’s Gap Year and lived it – running away, coming home, writing the book, and then spending a year saying “yes” to things that made her mildly nauseous but curious: TV couches, radio interviews, speaking gigs and all.

Monique shares:

• how one “Mum got mad and took off” moment became a book, a podcast and a very public experiment in mid-life reinvigoration
• what readers and listeners have done with the ideas – from cruises and retreats to blunt conversations at home and long-service-leave experiments
• why the Sydney Morning Herald comments and Morning Show clips made her double down on solo women’s travel, money, and the mental load
• what changed in her 25-plus-year marriage when she stopped being the default setting and both partners decided to partner with purpose

You’ll also hear how her new Your SPACE Prescription quiz (the “anti-guilt calculator”) and the 52 Ideas for Your Version of a Grown Up’s Gap Year list fit into all of this – simple tools to help you put yourself back in the picture, whether your escape is a solo night in a hotel or something more adventurous.

No resolutions, no 75-day challenges, no pressure to be anyone else. Just one woman reporting back from the field so you can plot your own version, in a way that fits the life you have now.

Episode Resources & Links:

• Your SPACE Prescription - calculator
• Free Weekly Newsletter
• Dear Blokes Downloadable
• Setting Boundaries That Stick - checklist
• 52 Ideas for YOUR Version of A Grown Up's Gap Year

📚 Get your copy of A Grown Up’s Gap Year the book, from Amazon, moniquevantulder.com, bookshops and libraries, subscribe to the podcast, and take the first step toward your own A Grown Up’s Gap Year.

• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram