Midlife Rising

Why Midlife Women Are So Hard On Themselves (and How to Stop)

Have you ever caught yourself thinking…

•  “Why can’t I keep up like I used to?” 
•  “What’s wrong with me that I need more sleep?” 
•  “Why do I feel less capable, less sharp, less resilient?” 

I was talking to a client recently, and she said something that stopped me in my tracks:

“I need more sleep… and I have so much judgment about it.”

The truth is, so many women in midlife feel this way.  You’re needing more rest. Your energy isn’t the same. You’re not as productive, not as able to multitask, not as tolerant to stress, alcohol, or intense workouts…

And instead of meeting yourself with understanding, you meet yourself with self-criticism.

But here’s what we want you to know:  Your body isn't failing.  You're in conflict with it. 

In this episode you're going to find out:

• Why midlife changes in sleep, energy, and brain function are completely normal 
•  The hidden self-judgment that’s making your experience harder than it needs to be 
•  Why you feel less productive or less capable and what’s actually happening 
•  How your identity (being the one who can handle everything) is shifting 
•  The self-judgment loop that keeps you stuck in frustration and burnout

The real work isn't fixing your energy, it's ending the war with yourself.  Listen to this episode and begin the journey to quieting the inner critic. 

References from this episode

Limitless: Upgrade Your Brain, Learn Anything Faster, and Unlock Your Exceptional Life  by Jim Kwik

Find us on instagram:

 @midlifewomenrising

@jenreimercoaching

Here's What's Wrong With the Body Positivity Movement

The body positivity movement has done a lot of good… but is it actually helping women in midlife, or is it subconsciously keeping us more stuck in criticism than ever?

In this honest and nuanced conversation, we unpack the uncomfortable truth:
 👉 Even body positivity still keeps us focused on appearance.
 👉 It can disconnect us from true body love.
 👉 And it may even prevent us from addressing real health and emotional needs.

If you’ve ever felt like you’re supposed to love your body… but find yourself even more critical of your body as you hit your 40's and 50's, this episode will hit home.

You are going to discover:

• Why body positivity still keeps us obsessed with appearance 
•  How the movement ignores aging and the emotional reality of midlife bodies (and why that matters deeply in midlife) 
•  Why affirmations like “I love my body” often don’t work 
• The difference between not caring what others think and true stewardship of your body 
•  How body positivity can sometimes ignore real health concerns 

The body positivity may reduce shame, which matters, but it doesn’t teach women how to:

•  Truly connect with their bodies 
•  Care for them deeply 
•  Or love them through aging and change

We’ll address the question: can you truly stop caring what others think about your body… without first learning to love it yourself?

Find us on instagram:

 @midlifewomenrising

@jenreimercoaching

No is NOT a Complete Sentence.  So many of us want to believe “no is a complete sentence” and will try to will ourselves into saying it.  But this line falls apart when it matters most.

In this solo episode Sheri explains the missing pieces behind this social-media slogan and reveals the real prerequisites for a boundary that protects your own needs, your heart and your relationships. You’ll hear the short list of things every effective boundary requires (and why missing any one of them makes a single “no” fragile), plus a simple practice plan to get you started.

The power move is not that you learn to say ‘no’ and walk away - the power move is learning to wrap that no in kindness so that you actually maintain the relationships you want to keep.

If you're a recovering people pleaser, or simply want to get better at setting and maintaining your own boundaries, here's what you'll discover:

• 8 different reasons women find it so hard to say no and walk away
• the damage a flat out "no" can do to a relationship and how to avoid that
• how to effectively set up boundaries and what they require 
• 5 steps to start setting boundaries more effectively 

If you want to set better boundaries, steal our simple boundary scripts here. 

Find us on instagram:

 @midlifewomenrising

@jenreimercoaching

Get the Midlife Sleep Sanctuary

If you're a midlife woman who is waking up in the middle of the night and can't get back to sleep for 2 hours, the first step to fix this (and yes, it's fixable), is to understand the reasons why this is happening.  From there, you'll have clear direction on what to do next. 

If this is you, falling asleep isn’t the problem - staying asleep is.

For midlife women, especially during perimenopause and menopause, those 2–4am wake-ups are incredibly common. But they’re not a mystery… and they’re not a personal failure.

In this episode, Sheri goes solo and explains the five most common reasons midlife women wake up in the middle of the night, and how your body is actually responding intelligently to deeper stress patterns.

You’re going to find out:

• Why blood sugar drops at 3am can trigger cortisol and anxiety
• How natural cortisol rhythm disruption keeps your brain alert at night
• What nervous system dysregulation really means (and why high-capacity women experience it most)
• The connection between liver detox processes and sleep
• Why unprocessed stress and subconscious beliefs surface when the world gets quiet

This episode bridges science and self-awareness so you can understand what’s happening in your body and what it’s trying to communicate.

Here's a bonus: for each of the 5 reasons midlife women wake up at night, you're going to find out what limiting belief is behind the pattern.  This is what is going to quantum leap your ability to shift the disruptive sleep pattern and get a full night's rest. 

And if you are waking up in the middle of the night and are ready to finally sleep through the night consistently, send us a message on Instagram, type the word INSOMNIA and we'll send you the details for our free masterclass: Stop the 3 am Wake Up Without HRT or Medication. 

Find us on instagram:

 @midlifewomenrising

@jenreimercoaching

Get the Midlife Sleep Sanctuary

Waking at 2 AM with your mind racing? In this episode, we unpack why we ruminate at night and the surprising steps that actually stop it.

So many woman in midlife says the same thing: they wake at 2 or 3 a.m. and can’t fall back asleep because their mind won’t stop replaying the day - or rehearsing the future. 

The surprising thing about ruminating is that it's often about avoiding feelings - shame, fear, or uncertainty - not about the facts of a situation. 

In this episode you are going to discover: 

• the four common ways our brains rumble at night: replaying the past, trying to problem-solve, planning for the future, and avoiding painful feelings
• why pushing those thoughts away actually makes them louder. 
• the counterintuitive approach that works

You’ll learn practical steps you can use tonight, plus why cortisol, survival brain patterns, and perfectionism fuel midnight rumination. 

If you’re ready to sleep through the night, our process and solution - the Sleep Sanctuary is opening soon!  It's designed to stop middle-of-the-night rumination and bring restful sleep back in as little as two weeks.  Send us a message on Instagram with the word SLEEP to be the first to know when we launch!

References from this episode: 

Atlas of the Heart by Brené Brown 

Find us on instagram:

 @midlifewomenrising

@jenreimercoaching

Get the Midlife Sleep Sanctuary

Have you ever said to yourself, "I just need better boundaries"?  But when you try to maintain your own boundaries, you just can't say no without guilt?  If that's you, then this episode is for you!  

In this episode, we dive into soul-aligned boundaries.  Not rigid rules, but wise, intuitive ways of knowing when you truly want to say “yes” and when you want to say "no". 

We unpack why boundary-setting feels impossible (hint: willing yourself into it doesn't work), the three parts that must be present for maintaining boundaries to feel easy, and the real piece most people miss when they try to “just do better.” 

In this conversation you’ll discover:

• How to spot the tiny moments you cave (and the surge of resentment that follows)
• Why focusing on guilt (and the fear or the emotion underneath it) is more useful than rehearsing what you’ll say. 
• A mind/body/spirit strategy that actually trains your nervous system to experience tending to your own needs as safe

We finish up the episode by offering a somatic approach to calm your nervous system, a step-by-step way to name boundaries that actually fit your life, and practical language you can use the next time a boundary is needed.

Want to go deeper?  Get our Soul-Aligned Boundary Scripts here. 

Find out which of the 6 midlife coping strategies is killing your boundary setting.  Take the quiz! 

Find us on instagram:

 @midlifewomenrising

@jenreimercoaching

Get the Midlife Sleep Sanctuary

Why Confident Women Start Questioning Themselves in Midlife

If you’ve ever thought “I’m confident… so why do I still not speak my mind sometimes?"  Or maybe you still find yourself putting other people's needs before your own.  Perhaps you just can't stop feeling guilty when you try to say no. 

In this deeply personal conversation, we explore why midlife and menopause rock our sense of self-worth - even for confident, successful women. 

This episode gently dismantles the myth that confidence equals self-worth and reveals how so many midlife symptoms, patterns, and struggles are actually rooted in a quiet disconnection from our inherent value.

If you’ve found yourself:

• Over-giving, over-functioning, or people-pleasing
• Feeling guilty for resting, receiving, or even spending time or money on yourself
• Hustling for approval yet deflecting compliments and offers of help

…this conversation will land straight in your body and soul.

✨ In this episode, you'll discover: 

• The critical difference between self-worth, self-esteem, and confidence
• Why midlife (and menopause) naturally bring self-worth wounds to the surface
• How patriarchy, pronatalism, ageism, and productivity culture quietly erode women’s worth
• Why people-pleasing, over-self-sufficiency, and guilt are not personality traits but signals
• How ignoring your intuition slowly chips away at your self-worth
• The subtle ways self-worth shows up as:
  • Feeling like a burden or not wanting to "bother" people
  • Struggling to receive help, compliments, or support
  • Staying quiet in rooms where your voice matters
  • Feeling intimidated or “imposter syndrome” around authority, leadership or even men

Find out which of the 6 Midlife Coping Strategies are Killing Your Self-Worth. Take the quiz! 

References from this episode: 

Atlas of the Heart - by Brené Brown

The Wisdom of Menopause - by Dr. Christiane Northrup, MD 

The Let Them Theory - by  Mel Robbins

Find us on instagram:

 @midlifewomenrising

@jenreimercoaching

Get the Midlife Sleep Sanctuary

Feeling stuck when it comes to decisions in midlife? In this episode, we explore why intuition gets quiet - from conditioning and fear to nervous-system protection - and show a clear, practical process to retrieve and trust that inner voice. 

Sheri shares a deeply personal example about decision-making around parenthood, while Jen walks you through concrete tools you can use right away to separate your true desires from the “shoulds.” 

If you want to stop being driven by worry, or what everyone else wants for you - and start making choices that feel aligned, this episode is for you.

You'll discover:

• Why the universe simply reflects what you’re putting out - not a test you must pass. 
• How conditioning, ego and the nervous system block intuition and create “I should” thinking.
• A repeatable step-by-step practice to quiet the noise, identify core desires, and test whether a choice is coming from intuition vs. fear.
• Practical exercises to calm the nervous system and listen reliably.

Find out which midlife coping strategy is blocking your intuition.  Take the Quiz! 

5 Key takeaways from this episode:

1. Intuition often gets drowned by conditioning and “should” thinking — name the “shoulds” and you’ll begin to hear what you actually want. 
2. The nervous system protects you; if it doesn’t feel safe, it will sabotage riskier, intuitive choices. Learn to regulate the nervous system before deciding. 
3. The world/universe tends to reflect your inner clarity — if you’re unclear, many opportunities will show up; if you’re clear, reflection is clearer. 
4. Use the practical process Sheri and Jen describe: list fears & “shoulds,” identify what you truly want, test it in your body, and regulate your nervous system. 
5. Small decisions are practice: practice listening for intuition on low-stakes choices so you’ll trust it on big ones.

Find us on instagram:

 @midlifewomenrising

@jenreimercoaching

Get the Midlife Sleep Sanctuary

If midlife has you feeling lonelier, more disconnected (even from longtime friends), or like you suddenly don’t fit like you used to - you’re not imagining it, and you’re not alone.

In this episode, we explore the deep, often unspoken sense of not belonging that so many women experience in midlife. Our conversation goes beyond surface-level loneliness and dives into why belonging is a biological, nervous-system need, how early family dynamics shape our sense of safety, and why midlife can reactivate old “core wounds” of exclusion, rejection, and feeling like something is wrong with us.

If you’ve ever thought “I don’t fit anymore”, “I can’t find my people”, or “Why does this feel like high school all over again?” , this episode will help you understand what’s actually happening.

You'll discover:

• Why belonging is wired into our nervous system as a survival instinct, not a personality trait 
• How midlife hormonal and life transitions naturally change who we connect with, and why that can feel disorienting 
• How exclusion in adulthood can instantly take us back to being 12 years old and “not invited to the party” 
• The hidden stress created by modern nuclear family life versus how women evolved to live in community 
• Why some midlife women often crave deeper, more spiritually aligned connections - and lose interest in surface-level relationships 

If you want to find out how you can create a sense of belonging no matter who you're with or what room you're in, come to our mini-online retreat: Where You Belong.  

Key Takeaways from this episode:

• Feeling like you don’t belong is not a personal failure, it’s a nervous-system response rooted in evolution.
• Midlife is an initiation into a new phase of life, and old relationships may no longer fit.
• True belonging isn’t just about finding the right people, it starts with feeling safe, secure and worthy within yourself.

References from this episode:

• Braving the Wilderness by  Brené Brown 

Find us on instagram:

 @midlifewomenrising

@jenreimercoaching

Get the Midlife Sleep Sanctuary

If you can’t slow down...if rest feels uncomfortable…or if you’re always “on the go” even when you’re exhausted...then this episode was made for you.

In this episode we unpack “Keep Moving”, one of the six subconscious midlife coping strategies many women develop to stay safe, productive, and valued.  And we'll break down how it's actually an addiction that fuels burnout, emotional numbness, and disconnection from yourself.

This pattern often shows up in midlife, especially during perimenopause and menopause, when your nervous system is already under pressure and your old strategies stop working.

In this episode, we explore:

• What the Keep Moving coping strategy really is (and why it’s not “just being busy”)
• Why slowing down can feel unsafe, even when you desperately need R&R
• The connection between busyness, self-worth, and workaholism
• How “productivity = value” gets wired into women from a young age
• How this pattern shows up at work, at home, and in relationships
• Why midlife is often the moment this strategy starts to fall apart, and why that’s a gift

You might recognize yourself here if:

• You feel uncomfortable sitting still or doing “nothing”
• Rest feels like something you have to earn
• Your mind constantly replays conversations or runs future to-do lists
• You’re successful and capable, but still feel like it's never enough
• You’re exhausted but don’t know how to stop

This episode is especially powerful for women who are:

• In midlife, perimenopause, or menopause
• Experiencing burnout, chronic busyness, or overwhelm
• Questioning their relationship with work, productivity, and rest
• Ready to rebuild self-worth from the inside out

Want to go deeper?  There are six midlife coping strategies, and Keep Moving is just one of them.
You can discover your primary coping strategy, and how to begin releasing it, by taking our free, 2-minute quiz.

👉 Take the Midlife Coping Strategies Quiz and find out which one is costing you the most!
 

Find us on instagram:

 @midlifewomenrising

@jenreimercoaching