Thrive Solo

Send us Fan Mail

My guest on the podcast this week is the fabulous Julia Hotz.

Julia is a journalist and award-winning author of The Connection Cure — the first book chronicling the science, stories, and spread of social prescribing. She helps other journalists report on evidence-backed ideas at the Solutions Journalism Network, and advises health organisations like Walk with a Doc and Social Prescribing USA. For her work on social prescribing, she has spoken at TEDx, taught in medical schools and practices, delivered keynote speeches, advised policymakers, and more. 

Topics that we cover are:

• how she came to write her book, The Connection Cure;
• what she discovered about loneliness;
• social prescribing, and what exactly it is;
• how 80% of our health is determined by social and environmental factors;
• how 1 in 5 people in the UK are going to their GP for social reasons;
• link workers — who they are and what they do;
• how loneliness is correlated with things like anxiety and depression;
• how depression is strongly related to the loss of a connection;
• the huge importance of moving our bodies;
• the story of Amanda who was prescribed sea swimming for her depression;
• the undeniable benefits of spending time in nature;
• how art can be effective for people suffering from anxiety disorders;
• the connection between mental and physical health;
• how social prescribing pertains to single women;
• what matters to you vs what’s the matter with you;
• how your relationship status is about as interesting as your hair colour, i.e. not very!

Buy Jules' book, The Connection Cure: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Connection-Cure-Prescriptive-Movement-Belonging/dp/1035423081

Check out her website: https://www.hotzthoughts.com/

Follow Jules on Instagram: @https://www.instagram.com/hotzthoughts/

Support the show

• JOIN MY ITALY TRIP IN APRIL 2027: https://www.explore.co.uk/thrivesolo-italy

• Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

• Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo

• Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
  Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
•  Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks

• Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson 

• Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share

• Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/

• Email me: [email protected] 

And thank you so much for listening!

Send us Fan Mail

On today's minisode, I'm asking the question: are you playing small?

So many of us — especially women — are not living into our highest potential, even though we know deep down that we're capable of more. Why is this?

Listen to this episode if you're tired of holding yourself back, getting in your own way, and not showing up as the fullest expression of you. It's time to change that.

Press 'Play' and let me know what you think.

Support the show

• JOIN MY ITALY TRIP IN APRIL 2027: https://www.explore.co.uk/thrivesolo-italy

• Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

• Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo

• Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
  Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
•  Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks

• Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson 

• Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share

• Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/

• Email me: [email protected] 

And thank you so much for listening!

Send us Fan Mail

This week on Thursday Thoughts, Polly and I are talking about how to create a life you don’t feel the need to escape from.

Ever catch yourself counting down to the weekend or living for your next holiday?

You’re not alone - so many of us slip into that ‘just get through it’ mode.

But what if, instead, you could shift your perspective and find ways to enjoy every day, rather than wish so many of them away.

We hope this conversation gives you something to think about… and maybe even something to try.

Love, 

Polly & Lucy xxx

Support the show

• JOIN MY ITALY TRIP IN APRIL 2027: https://www.explore.co.uk/thrivesolo-italy

• Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

• Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo

• Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
  Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
•  Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks

• Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson 

• Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share

• Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/

• Email me: [email protected] 

And thank you so much for listening!

Send us Fan Mail

Pre-Order my new book, Shiny Happy Singles (UK) / Thrive Solo (US & Canada) here: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

This week on the podcast, I’m doing a collaboration episode with fellow podcaster, Elizabeth Joy.

The host of the podcast 'Other Than Motherhood', Elizabeth lives in Dubai and enjoys a life without children. 

Other Than Motherhood seeks to expand the conversation around the decision to be childfree, and explores the influences and messages that impact our thinking, as well as all of the possibilities of a life that is other than motherhood.  The podcast also focuses on bringing unique perspectives and interrogating the difficult questions, as well as aiming to really elevate the importance of identity for women who choose to not become mothers. 

In this conversation, Elizabeth and I talk about both of our journeys of not being mothers, what a life well lived looks like when you don’t have children, the duality that comes when you end up not having kids, as well as the question of regret. 

Support the show

• JOIN MY ITALY TRIP IN APRIL 2027: https://www.explore.co.uk/thrivesolo-italy

• Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

• Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo

• Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
  Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
•  Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks

• Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson 

• Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share

• Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/

• Email me: [email protected] 

And thank you so much for listening!

Send us Fan Mail

On today's minisode, I'm talking about one of my favourite topics — energy, of the vibrational frequency kind.

Most of us know by now that whatever the energy we're putting out into the world, is what we're going to attract back into our lives. And because our emotions are simply 'energy in motion', the question we need to ask ourselves is: how we feel most of the time.

If we're feeling low, stressed, or anxious more often than not, then we can be sure to bring more people, circumstances and situations into our lives that are going to make us feel those same emotions. But the good news is that it works the other way around, too.

Press 'Play' and let me know what you think!  

Pre-Order my new book, Shiny Happy Singles (UK) / Thrive Solo (US & Canada) here: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book. If you're in the UK, pre-order direct from Bloomsbury and get a 25% Discount by using the code: SHS25 at checkout! https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/shiny-happy-singles-9781399416436/

Support the show

• JOIN MY ITALY TRIP IN APRIL 2027: https://www.explore.co.uk/thrivesolo-italy

• Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

• Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo

• Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
  Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
•  Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks

• Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson 

• Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share

• Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/

• Email me: [email protected] 

And thank you so much for listening!

Send us Fan Mail

On today’s Monday Motivation, Polly and I are talking about AI.

We chat about how we’re both using AI (specifically the free version of ChatGPT), and how we’re finding it useful in our businesses; we also share how we both use it like a virtual assistant, asking it to perform various tasks for us as we would if it was an actual assistant.

Whether you love it or hate it, AI is happening and we’re better off embracing it than getting left behind.

We hope you’ll find this conversation helpful in some way.

Love,
Polly & Lucy x

Support the show

• JOIN MY ITALY TRIP IN APRIL 2027: https://www.explore.co.uk/thrivesolo-italy

• Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

• Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo

• Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
  Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
•  Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks

• Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson 

• Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share

• Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/

• Email me: [email protected] 

And thank you so much for listening!

Send us Fan Mail

Pre-Order my new book, Shiny Happy Singles (UK) / Thrive Solo (US & Canada) here: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book. If you're in the UK, pre-order direct from Bloomsbury and get a 25% Discount by using the code: SHS25 at checkout! https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/shiny-happy-singles-9781399416436/

My guest on the podcast this week is the fabulous James Reeves.

James is an author and coach, as well as a world-leading teacher, and the first in Europe to deliver iRest Yoga Nidra teacher training courses, based on the ancient teachings of yoga nidra. He’s also the co-author of The Book of Rest, published by Harper Collins — a book that invites us to ‘find calm in a chaotic world’, and describes rest as the doorway to our internal anchor — one that can always be found and is always accessible, regardless of external events. 

In our conversation, James and I talk about the benefits of deep rest, whether in the form of yoga nidra, meditation, or simply sitting and staring out of the window; we also talk about how to find deep rest, learning to stop, why we are so restless and what we can do about it. 

Topics that we cover are:

• the wake-up call that made James question what he was doing with his life;
• the trip to India that led him to the work he now does around deep rest;
• his thoughts on the endless distraction that is the world today;
• how “I’m so busy” has become our stock response;
• why we find it so hard to ‘do nothing’;
• what happens when we truly stop and have no information coming in;
• the difference between informal rest, and structured rest;
• what deep rest means to James;
• consciousness, and the quiet observer inside us all;
• accessing the part of ourselves that is always ok;
• how all of our emotions are instructive, and trying to tell us something;
• what Yoga Nidra is, and how it allows us to resolve tensions within ourselves;
• how simply stopping for a minute at a time can be incredibly effective;
• the benefits of deep rest, including lowering cortisol levels;
• the incredible structural changes that happen to the brain when we experience deep rest regularly;
• how getting enough deep rest makes us nicer humans;
• how James helps his clients, and his book, The Book of Rest.

Check out James' website: https://www.deeprest.com/

Follow James on Instagram: @jamesreevesresting

Buy The Book of Rest: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Book-Rest-James-Reeves/dp/0008321639

Support the show

• JOIN MY ITALY TRIP IN APRIL 2027: https://www.explore.co.uk/thrivesolo-italy

• Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

• Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo

• Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
  Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
•  Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks

• Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson 

• Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share

• Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/

• Email me: [email protected] 

And thank you so much for listening!

Send us Fan Mail

On today's minisode, I'm talking about how us humans seem to thrive on drama — or at least some of us do, some of the time.

Whether it's drama in a romantic relationship, or a drama that's going on with a friend, do we get a buzz out of the chaos? And do we mistake those intense emotions for love or excitement?

Press 'Play' and let me know what you think!

Pre-Order my new book, Shiny Happy Singles (UK) / Thrive Solo (US & Canada) here: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book. If you're in the UK, pre-order direct from Bloomsbury and get a 25% Discount by using the code: SHS25 at checkout! https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/shiny-happy-singles-9781399416436/

Support the show

• JOIN MY ITALY TRIP IN APRIL 2027: https://www.explore.co.uk/thrivesolo-italy

• Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

• Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo

• Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
  Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
•  Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks

• Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson 

• Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share

• Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/

• Email me: [email protected] 

And thank you so much for listening!

Send us Fan Mail

On this week’s Thursday Thoughts, Polly and I are talking about pets.

We share how our own pets bring us so much joy and explore why animals can be such healing additions to our lives.

We chat about how pets can help regulate our nervous systems, bring us back to the present moment, and lift our mood on the days we need it most.

We hope you enjoy this conversation.

Love 

Polly & Lucy xxx

Support the show

• JOIN MY ITALY TRIP IN APRIL 2027: https://www.explore.co.uk/thrivesolo-italy

• Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

• Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo

• Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
  Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
•  Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks

• Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson 

• Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share

• Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/

• Email me: [email protected] 

And thank you so much for listening!

Send us Fan Mail

Pre-Order my new book, Shiny Happy Singles (UK) / Thrive Solo (US & Canada) here: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book. If you're in the UK, pre-order direct from Bloomsbury and get a 25% Discount by using the code: SHS25 at checkout! https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/shiny-happy-singles-9781399416436/

My guest on the podcast this week is the fabulous Yidan Xiong.

Born and raised in China, but now living in northern Thailand, Yidan went from being a marketing executive in Beijing, to being a farmer living in rural Thailand with an array of animals, from cats and dogs to pigs and chickens. Yidan has created her very own farm stay, Yidan’s Farm, for travellers and people living a nomadic lifestyle to come and immerse themselves in nature, interact with the animals, and help grow and harvest the food on the farm, as well as cook and eat together.

Yidan is single and childfree.

Topics that we cover are:

• her life in Beijing before she started a new life in, Chiang Dao, Thailand;
• the hard working ethic of the Chinese people;
• how she ended up creating Yidan’s Farm, and what that journey looked like;
• the picture she had in her mind when she started building her farm;
• the houses she built using bamboo because her Grandpa worked with bamboo in her childhood;
• how Yidan found local workers to help her with her project;
• the kinds of guests who tend to stay with Yidan on the farm;
• the many animals that Yidan has on the farm, and how many of them ‘found her’;
• how important nature is to her, having rediscovered the connection she always had to it as a young girl;
• the slower pace of life that she now enjoys;
• what freedom means to Yidan, and the part that money plays in feeling free;
• how her parents have reacted to her life in Thailand;
• her mother’s disappointment that Yidan hasn't married or had kids, and how she found it hard to believe that Yidan was ‘really’ happy;
• how she deals with the opinions of others when it comes to her way of life;
• the wonderful relationships she has with the people — largely women — who stay on her farm;
• what thriving solo means to Yidan.

Follow Yidan's Farm on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@yidansfarmlifeinthailand7931

Find her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lazybearka/?locale=en_GB

Follow Yidan on Instagram: @https://www.instagram.com/yidan333/?hl=en

Follow Yidan's Farm on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yidansfarm/

Book a stay on the farm: https://www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/707506011857011499?source_impression_id=p3_1742665507_P3f-mhnCLVPD4QuS

Support the show

• JOIN MY ITALY TRIP IN APRIL 2027: https://www.explore.co.uk/thrivesolo-italy

• Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book

• Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo

• Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
  Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
•  Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks

• Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson 

• Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share

• Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/

• Email me: [email protected] 

And thank you so much for listening!