Feel Good, Live Well: Why emotional wellness matters in midlife

Navigating midlife can be tough – not only are women often dealing with the pressures of work, family and everyday life, but their emotional landscape can also be shifting in subtle or not-so-subtle ways.  Whether it is impact of changing priorities, life transitions, or changing hormones in perimenopause and menopause, sometimes emotions can be like uninvited guests showing up at inconvenient times!

Emotional wellness isn't about controlling or suppressing emotions; it's about understanding and nurturing them as part of a healthy, balanced life. This is because emotions, or feelings, play a key role in driving both our thoughts and actions.

During midlife, bringing some conscious attention to caring for your emotional health can have a profound impact on your overall wellbeing.  This is especially true if you tend to suppress your emotions or rely on indirect or unhelpful ways to cope with them, for example by engaging in emotional eating.

What is emotional wellness?

Emotional wellness, as defined in Dr John Travis' acclaimed Wellness Workbook, is all about becoming aware of, accepting, and safely expressing your feelings, rather than denying or suppressing them. It is the ability to handle the full spectrum of emotions—whether that’s joy, anger, grief or fear —in a way that’s healthy and constructive. Emotional wellness also involves building resilience, creating supportive relationships and having healthy boundaries, and understanding that your emotions are there to inform you, not to control you.

For midlife women, these concepts become even more crucial. With life transitions, hormonal changes, and shifting priorities, emotional wellness can feel elusive. But once you start paying attention to your emotional health, it can have a ripple effect on the rest of your wellbeing, and also the wellbeing of those around you.

The connection between emotional and overall wellness

Emotional wellness impacts other areas of your life in the following ways:

1. Physical health: You have likely felt the physical toll that emotional stress can take on your body. Tension in your shoulders, headaches, a racing heart—these are all signals that your emotions are intertwined with your physical health. Research shows that chronic stress can weaken your immune system, disrupt your sleep, and even lead to long-term health conditions like high blood pressure. By tuning into and managing your emotions, you’re not only protecting your mental health but also supporting your body's equilibrium.

   
   

2. Mental clarity: When you don’t process your emotions, they can cloud your thinking and decision-making. For example, feeling overwhelmed can often lead to difficulty focusing. Developing your emotional wellness can help you to clear that mental clutter and overthinking by giving yourself the chance to acknowledge your feelings and work through them.  Building emotional wellness will help you to approach challenges in your life with more clarity and to be able to find effective solutions.

3. Self care: Emotional wellness invites you to connect with yourself on a deeper level, which is an important form of self-care. When you honour your feelings, you create space for self-compassion, empathy, and gratitude. These qualities can then act as a reminder to pause, reflect, and cultivate a sense of inner calm, no matter what life brings your way. They help you to treat yourself in the same way that you would treat your loved ones.

   
   

4. Relationships and connection: Emotional wellness also plays a huge role in how you connect with others. If you are in tune with your own emotions, you will be better able to communicate your needs, set healthy boundaries, and cultivate deeper, more authentic relationships. Emotional wellness is also key to maintaining a sense of community and belonging, both of which are vital for overall wellbeing.

How to start nurturing your emotional wellness

Here are some practical ways you can nurture your emotional wellness:

• Check in with yourself daily: Make a habit of asking yourself, “How am I really feeling today?” This simple practice of emotional awareness can help you better understand and process your feelings.

• Practice emotional resilience: Resilience doesn’t mean avoiding emotions; it means allowing yourself to feel, process, and move forward. Try mindfulness or journaling to work through difficult emotions without letting them overwhelm you.

• Seek connection: Surround yourself with people who support and uplift you emotionally. Don’t hesitate to lean on your network when you need to talk, and be open to receiving the support that comes your way.

• Set healthy boundaries: Whether it’s in personal or professional relationships, boundaries are essential for protecting your emotional health. Learning to say “no” or express your needs can prevent emotional burnout.

• Release what no longer serves you: Holding onto past emotional baggage can weigh you down. Similarly holding on to grudges can be like that old saying of "drinking poison and expecting the other person to die". Regularly reflect on what emotions or experiences you need to let go of, and give yourself permission to release them, or seek the support of a mental health professional to work on this.

Embrace Your Emotions for Better Wellbeing

Your emotional wellness is a cornerstone of your overall health. By paying attention to your feelings and giving them the space they deserve, you can create a ripple effect that positively impacts the other areas of your life. As midlife women, embracing your emotions allows you to move forward with greater clarity, resilience, and joy. Honouring your emotions is another way to nurture yourself towards high-level wellbeing, from the inside out.

If you're ready to dive deeper into your emotional wellness, join me for one of my upcoming workshops (check them out by clicking HERE) or register your interest in 1:1 coaching with me using the twelve dimensions of the Wellness Inventory – a coaching program designed to help you thrive emotionally, mentally, and physically - by emailing me at hilary@hdwellbeing.com.au.

As always, please, look after yourself.

Love,

Hilary x

Travis, J & Ryan, R, Wellness Workbook: How to Achieve Enduring Health and Vitality, 3rd ed, Random House, Inc, 2004.

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