A Certain Age

Stop letting society tell you your best years are behind you. Author, activist, podcaster, and polymath Reshma Saujani (founder of Girls Who Code and Moms First) is turning up the volume as she approaches 50. Reshma calls BS on what she calls the "midlife penalty"—the price we pay in status, health, and earning power as we age. We get into the biggies like: How do you rebel against a culture that wants you invisible? What does the "midlife penalty" cost women over 50? How can we evolve to become "broken open" versus burning out? In a world that calls on women to shrink (and then disappear at a certain age), this convo is a call to keep expanding, beauties! FOLLOW A CERTAIN AGE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ GET INBOX INSPO: Sign up for our newsletter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AGE BOLDLY⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ We share new episodes, giveaways, links we love, and midlife resources Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Many millennial women are sleepwalking toward menopause—unprepared for what's coming during this critical life stage. At 39, reproductive mental health expert Lauren Tetenbaum had a shocking realization—she knew nothing about menopause despite her expertise in women’s health. Now at 40, after interviewing hundreds of menopause experts and everyday women, she sounds a “get ready” clarion call and offers a science-backed playbook for thriving in peri/menopause and beyond with her new book "Millennial Menopause.” Lauren uncovers treatment options for symptoms you thought were "just life now," how to advocate for yourself when healthcare providers dismiss you, and why men need to be part of this conversation. This show is for anyone—no matter your generation—who has wandered the thickets of menopause “dazed and confused.” FOLLOW A CERTAIN AGE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ GET INBOX INSPO: Sign up for our newsletter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AGE BOLDLY⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ We share new episodes, giveaways, links we love, and midlife resources Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We get roughly 4,000 Mondays in a lifetime—are you making the most of your days? Jodi Wellman, author of "You Only Die Once," discovered the power of no-regret living after finding her late mother's apartment filled with unrealized dreams. The former corporate executive turned motivational speaker now helps people stop squandering their precious Mondays. We explore: How to get to the end of your life with next to no regrets, crunch the numbers on "Monday Math"—a guesstimate on how many Mondays you have left, and investigate useful prompts from Jodi's book. What would make your "in/out circle" if you redesigned your life today? How can you identify your "pre-grets" before they become real regrets? Stop letting Mondays, weeks, and years slip by unnoticed. Listen in for ideas on living what Jodi calls an "astonishingly alive" life. FOLLOW A CERTAIN AGE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ GET INBOX INSPO: Sign up for our newsletter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AGE BOLDLY⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ We share new episodes, giveaways, links we love, and midlife resources Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Midlifers are saying the quiet parts out loud—and we have stories that will make you laugh, cry, and feel like you've found your tribe. This week, writers, reinventors, and editors Dina Alvarez and Dina Aronson join host Katie Fogarty to explore their new essay collection "Midlife Private Parts"—a series of revealing essays that will change the way you think about age. Dina and Dina spent two years gathering 27 contributors (including many ACA podcast favorites like Dr. Mary Claire Haver, Sarah Milken, and Laura Belgray) to capture snapshots of midlife in all its magnificent, messy, comical glory. From hormone chaos to happiness breakthroughs, to sex and dating, recalibrating midlife friendships and marriages, to dabbling in cosmetic procedures, to the mixed bag of empty nesting, this collection serves up the midlife realness we all crave. We also explore what it took to bring this project to life, and why midlife is exactly the right time to become wildly visible, creative, and collaborative. Ready for a book that'll make you text your girlfriends immediately? Get "Midlife Private Parts" wherever books are sold. FOLLOW A CERTAIN AGE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ GET INBOX INSPO: Sign up for our newsletter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AGE BOLDLY⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ We share new episodes, giveaways, links we love, and midlife resources Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tired of living on autopilot while your dreams sit on the back burner? Shannon Watts knows that restlessness. Before founding Moms Demand Action and earning accolades including Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential, Shannon was an overwhelmed mom who broke down in a doctor's office, covered in stress-induced eczema from living a life that no longer worked. In her new book "Fired Up," Shannon shares her transformation from breakdown to fired-up founder of a grassroots movement against gun violence and champion of "summoning the audacity of women." You'll discover how to identify what's truly calling you, push through the fear of being "too late," and give yourself permission to live audaciously at any age. Your midlife restlessness isn't something to fix—it's a fire waiting to ignite. Ready to light that spark, beauties? FOLLOW A CERTAIN AGE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ GET INBOX INSPO: Sign up for our newsletter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AGE BOLDLY⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ We share new episodes, giveaways, links we love, and midlife resources Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Let's be honest—walking down the skincare aisle in midlife is overwhelming. So many products, so much BS. If you're tired of "anti-aging" products that promise miracles, this show will help you cut through marketing hype, make you a shrewder shopper, and give your skincare smarts a science-backed glow up. Today's show is a crash course in the science of skin aging with Dr. Alessandra Zonari, who holds a PhD in skin regeneration and tissue engineering and is the co-founder of cult-favorite OneSkin, a line of skin, suncare and scalp products. Alessandra and her team spent five years screening 900+ peptides to discover the first molecule that targets "zombie cells"—damaged cells that accelerate skin aging after 30. We cover what makes skin age, why some people’s skin ages faster than others, why lifestyle beats genetics in aging—and which choices matter most. Plus, a primer on spotting science-backed products versus lotions and potions hyped only by clever marketing. Understanding the real science behind skin aging isn't about skin-deep vanity—it's about making informed choices that protect your health and confidence as you age. Learn to love (and protect) the skin you're in, beauties! SPECIAL OFFER: Get 15% off your first order with code ACA at www.oneskin.co. FOLLOW A CERTAIN AGE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ GET INBOX INSPO: Sign up for our newsletter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AGE BOLDLY⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ We share new episodes, giveaways, links we love, and midlife resources Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bestselling author Karen Dukess returns to the show to pour out a piping hot cup of mystery, murder, and Anglophile fun as we explore the pages of her genre-bending new book "Welcome to Murder Week"—a delightful mystery romp through the English countryside. Plus, we spill the tea on creative setbacks, midlife resilience, and the power of leaning into fun to unlock our best work. Karen was the first author to ever appear on A Certain Age. She returns to share a BTS of book publishing, “second novel syndrome,” and how writing a novel that didn’t sell taught her she truly is a writer. Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, family dramas, and lovers of a good comeback. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can midlife be a portal to our most powerful selves? What if menopause came with superpowers? In this A Certain Age bonus episode, listen in as host Katie Fogarty and author Kirsten Miller explore "The Change," a razor-sharp feminist revenge fantasy about three women who navigate the thickets of menopause and small-town murder with superpowers unlocked by midlife. Miller crafts a tale that's equal parts thriller, feminist manifesto, and pacy, page-turning magical realism—a recipe that landed "The Change" as a GMA Book Club pick. We explore how righteous anger can be alchemized into creativity and action, why women in their forties and fifties represent "the most powerful generation of women in the history of the world," and how midlife gives us a clearer vision of our gifts. Forget invisible—in "The Change," the women are powerful and completely out of f*cks to give. That is to say, they are unstoppable. This bonus episode aired on our sister show The Midlife Book Club. Find our midlife book content 24/7 on social @themidlifebookclub and on our website: www.themidlifebookclub.com.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is your birthday something to celebrate or avoid? This week, Katie explores this question with author Tamar Hurwitz-Fleming, author of “How to Have a Happy Birthday,” who reveals how to transform annual milestones from sources of dread into opportunities for joy.  "A birthday is the most powerful day of our year," says Tamar, who offers ideas for birthday rituals and reflections, to meaningful gift exchanges and epic parties. Birthdays can be more than candles on a cake—birthdays are portals for reflection, intention-setting, and celebrating how beautifully we've grown into ourselves. Embrace your next trip around the sun, beauties! FOLLOW A CERTAIN AGE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠ GET INBOX INSPO: Sign up for our newsletter ⁠⁠⁠⁠AGE BOLDLY⁠⁠⁠⁠ We share new episodes, giveaways, links we love, and midlife resources Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We all know that midlife is more fun with friends. But friendship is more than a nice-to-have—female friendships are a balm and a salve, tethering us when the roller coaster of (mid)life threatens to catapult us off the tracks. This week, Katie explores the uplifting power of friendship with Vanessa Cornell, founder of the women's community NUSHU. After experiencing her own breaking point at 35, this Harvard graduate and mother of five built what she needed—a community that lets women unmask and connect deeply. Want friendships that help you squeeze all the juice out of life? Craving relationships that accept even your "darkest, ugliest self?" Listen in for practical wisdom on friend-making, cultivating vulnerability, and why midlife is the perfect time to begin "no-regret living." Start now, beauties! Today is the day! FOLLOW A CERTAIN AGE: ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠ GET INBOX INSPO: Sign up for our newsletter ⁠⁠⁠AGE BOLDLY⁠⁠⁠ We share new episodes, giveaways, links we love, and midlife resources Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices