Feeling stretched thin but not sure a “holiday” will fix it? This episode unpacks what a real retreat looks like—and how to choose one that doesn’t fall apart the second you’re home. We talk best-practice design, how to avoid the Wellness Trap, and why intentional space beats a packed schedule of treatments every time. If you’ve ever wondered whether a retreat could actually help you feel better, think clearer, and get back in the picture—start here. Wellness Travel, done well.

Episode Resources & Links:

• Why We Swim - by Bonnie Tsui
• Art Of Stillness - by Pico Iyer
• Retreat Idea - Austria Hotel Post Bezau
  
  

📚 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.

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Anna Manlulo said yes to herself and walked the Camino de Santiago — one step, one day, along hundreds of kilometres of ancient pilgrim paths. We talk about the moment she moved from “one day” to “I’m going,” the logistics around work and family, the day-to-day reality on the trail, and what changed when she came home. You’ll leave with five things: one mindset shift, one planning tip, one safety habit, one packing tip, and a prompt to find a ‘local Camino’ you can try in your own postcode. Why not now? Why not you?

Episode Resources & Links:

• Buy Anna Manlulo's book here
• And say hello to her on Instagram Adobo Downunder
• Travel journalling app mentioned - Polar Steps
• Family Organiser App - Family Wall
• Anna's Camino Tour with Catholic Mission Australia

📚 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.

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Something significant is happening in midlife. More women over 50 than ever before are booking the trip alone — and coming back changed.

Monique unpacks why solo travel after 50 has become a movement, what's driving it, and what midlife women actually report when they go. This isn't backpacker territory or wellness-retreat performance — this is grown-up women, in good hotels, doing what they want with no one to consult.

You'll hear:

• Why solo travel for midlife women is different from solo travel at 25 • What women actually do on their own, and what surprises them most • Why a hotel review habit became a 17-year travel philosophy • The practical handy hints for booking your first solo trip • Why your next bit might start with one weekend, not one year

An honest conversation for midlife women wondering whether to finally go.

Episode Resources & Links:

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

📚 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
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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/

📚 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.

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Episode Resources & Links:

Ever feel like you're circling the same question — what now? Why not me? — without actually moving forward?

This episode hands you the compass you've been missing: your values.

In under thirty minutes, Monique walks midlife women through how to uncover the three to five non-negotiables that become the litmus test for every yes, every no, and every not for me. Joan Didion on self-respect. Practical micro-actions you can try this week. No retreat, no detox, no plan B required.

You'll hear:

• How to spot the difference between an inherited value and one that's actually yours • The three-to-five non-negotiables exercise — built for women who don't have hours to journal • Joan Didion on self-respect — and why she still matters at 50, 60, 70 • Real-life stories of women using their values as the filter for what comes next • Micro-actions you can try this week

A useful conversation for midlife women asking: what comes next, and is it actually what I want?

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

📚 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.

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What if you could start again — not by burning the old life down, but by rewriting it?

Monique sits down with author, editor and mentor Melinda Louise Hutchings to talk about The Rewrite — her framework for women in midlife who know something needs to change but don't yet know what. Whether you're navigating divorce, career end, empty nest, or just the quiet sense that the script you've been living isn't yours any more — this is the conversation about what comes next.

You'll hear:

• Why rewriting your life is different from running away from it • The first question to ask when you sense something needs to change • What it actually looks like to begin again in midlife — without the wellness clichés • Why letting go is the precondition for everything that comes next

An honest conversation for midlife women asking: what do I actually want the next decades to look like?

Because F**k, I forgot to live my life is not going to be our epitaph.

Episode Resources & Links:

• fithiitpilates.com

📚 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
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A Grown Up’s Gap Year starts here — Tiny acts, big shifts: the art of feeling alive again. (no job-quitting or plane ticket required).

📚 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.

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Before the book, before the podcast, before the well-meaning comments about being so lucky — there was a woman who ran away. Not forever. Just far enough to hear herself think.

In this episode, Monique shares the real reason she wrote A Grown Up's Gap Year — and how this whole community was born. The financial truths nobody talks about. The invisible workloads. The quiet ache of disappearing behind to-do lists and family schedules.

This isn't one woman stepping back. It's about the systems that keep so many stuck — and why it's time we talked about them.

You'll hear:

• Why the decision to take a gap year at 55 wasn't selfish — it was necessary • The financial reality of midlife women that almost nobody puts numbers on • What our daughters are watching, and why our sons need a different kind of masculine • A reading from A Grown Up's Gap Year — the chapter that started it all • Why your next bit doesn't require a plane ticket

An honest conversation about the next bit of life — and an invitation to begin our own version of running away.

Because F**k, I forgot to live my life is not going to be our epitaph.

📚 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
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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’

Episode Resources & Links:

• Free Resources

📚 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
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This is the original launch episode of what was A Grown Up's Gap Year — The Podcast, now How To Run Away (& Other Handy Hints for Your Next Bit). Same host. Same conversation. Bigger frame.

A series of interviews with women — and a few blokes — doing inspiring things in fascinating places. The sorts of journeys, physical and internal, that are courageous, creative, and quietly joyful. Women who have designed a life that suits them. Their paths may offer possibilities you've never considered.

Entertaining. Practical. Useful.

If you're a midlife woman wondering what comes next — for you — start here.

📚 A Grown Up's Gap Year — the book — is available on Amazon, at moniquevantulder.com, in bookshops and libraries.

🎙 New episodes drop weekly. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Handy hints for your next bit. Because F**k, I forgot to live my life is not going to be our epitaph.

📚 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