BOOK A FREE CONNECTION CALL


Coaching for women over 50 who’ve given so much

REDISCOVERY

Rediscover Yourself & Live a Life You Love

The Rediscovery Blog

  • The courage to start again

    How are you? I hope you’re well.

    Monday’s email was about starting something new. Yesterday that was me, in a hard way.

    My sister and I cleared out my Mum’s things. She died in September, and we’d been putting this off waiting until the New Year…

    Mum was a great declutterer – she’d often say, “If you want it, have it!  I don’t need it!” – so she had very few possessions. Some clothes. A little jewellery. We went through everything in just a few hours.

    It was sad. But it was necessary. It was the beginning of a new era whether we wanted it or not.

    Some new starts can’t be avoided.

    Death. Divorce. Redundancy. Your kids leaving home. Your body changing in ways you can’t control.

    These beginnings are thrust upon you. You don’t choose them. But you have to start anyway.

    Other new starts? Perhaps we avoid those.

    Even when we know avoiding them costs us.

    We avoid starting because starting requires courage. It requires being a beginner again, admitting maybe we got something wrong and need to try differently.

    Starting requires being willing to be bad at something.

    I’ve started lifting weights. I’ve never done it before and I feel daft doing it.

    But I know that in 10 years, I’ll either thank myself for starting now or regret that I didn’t.  I already regret that I didn’t start earlier.

    So I bought some dumbbells and I’m doing 10 minutes three times a week. I’m not good at it, I just do it anyway.

    And that’s the point.

    Starting doesn’t require you to be good. It just requires you to begin.

    The question is:

    Are you avoiding starting something?

    • The difficult conversation you need to have?
    • The boundary you need to set?
    • The dream you’ve been putting off?
    • The small practice that would change your life?

    You don’t have to do it perfectly and you don’t have to know how it will turn out.

    You just have to take the first step.

    With love and best wishes always,
    Susy

    P.S. What’s the one thing you’ve been avoiding starting? Hit reply—I read every response.

    Ready to go deeper?

    If you’re ready to stop avoiding and start choosing yourself, I’d love to support you.

    —

    by

    Susy Rosemary
    in

  • What if 2026 is the year you stop waiting?

    I’m writing this on the first Monday of 2026.  The Christmas tree and decorations are all put away and there is a sense of freshness and clarity.

    So is it time to start afresh, to try something different, to finally do that thing you’ve been thinking about for months.

    But sometimes that idea can get squashed with the thought of…

    “Is it too late? What’s the point?”

    We’ve all played the waiting game at some point in our lives…

    Maybe you’ve been waiting to pursue something you put aside years ago.
    Maybe you’ve been waiting until the kids left home.
    Maybe you’ve been waiting until you have more time, energy, money.
    Maybe you’ve been waiting for someone to say it’s okay, go ahead, go for it.

    And maybe you’re tired of waiting.

    I spent a long time not prioritizing myself. Waiting until everyone else’s needs were met. Waiting until it wouldn’t inconvenience anyone. Just waiting.

    Until one day I looked around and thought: What am I waiting for, exactly? What magical moment am I expecting where suddenly it will be easier, less complicated, more acceptable to finally choose myself?  At this rate, I will never do what I actually want to do – learn French, live in France, go dancing, sing, love the clothes I wear, feel good about myself, start my own business…

    There’s no one who will tell you to stop waiting.   

    It comes from you.

    And it’s okay to start messy, imperfect, not know what you’re doing exactly, learn as you go.

    So a few years ago, I stopped waiting.

    Not in one dramatic decision, but in a series of small choices that gave me butterflies. I took my life coaching course (I loved it, it changed my life), when people said I shouldn’t be wasting money.   I started building this business slowly when people asked why I wasn’t just grateful to have a stable and rewarding work as a nurse.  

    I carried on because I knew deep down that I wanted to support women in a different way to how I support mothers who come to the neonatal intensive care unit.  I knew my new work in life coaching was important and worthwhile.  Because it was what I had needed myself and it had changed my life.

    Some people didn’t understand.

    But I carried on regardless.  My journey of rediscovery continued and in doing so, I improved my relationships, authenticity, my strength and joy. I started recognizing myself again.

    That woman who used to have dreams and opinions and a sense of what she wanted from life – she was still there. I’d waited so long that I’d almost forgotten who I really was.  But I’m back and it feels great.  I’m still on that rediscovery journey – I think I always will be because we are always evolving and I love it.

    So who’s permission do you need to be you? No-ones – just you.
    You don’t need perfect timing – there is never a perfect time.
    You don’t need anyone’s approval – you will always be judged so just go for being the true you.

    There will always be one more reason to wait. One more person who needs you. One more thing that should come first.

    But let’s face it, there’s never a socially acceptable time to prioritize yourself. When you’re younger, you’re needed – by children, partners, money to earn, aging parents to care for (and you truly are needed, and it can be beautiful, it’s not a bad thing).

    When you’re older, you’re expected to be grateful, be content with what you have and stop wanting more.

    There’s no magical window where everyone suddenly cheers you on saying, “Yes, now is your time. Go ahead. Chase that dream. Choose yourself. 

    You just have to decide it’s your time. And then start.

    Even if it feels too late (it’s not). Even if people are confused (soon they won’t be). Even if it’s messy and imperfect and you’re figuring it out as you go (that’s just fine – you won’t know the second step until you take the first step).

    This year, what if you just started on one idea that keeps coming back to you, that just stays with you?

    I’m not saying it will be easy. But what if this is the year you let go of the idea that “it’s not the right time”?

    Here’s something for you to practice this week:

    Answer this question honestly:

    What have you been wating to do but have let it sit on a shelf gathering dust?

    Write it down. Don’t edit yourself. Don’t make it reasonable or small or acceptable.

    Just write what you’ve been waiting to do, be, or become.

    Then ask yourself: What’s one tiny step I could take toward that this week?

    Not the whole thing or a perfect plan. Just one small movement in that direction.

    That’s the beginning.   Choose one thing and start anyway.

    —

    by

    Susy Rosemary
    in

  • Finding Direction in Midlife Motherhood

    As we enter August and this season of finding our compass, I want to start with something that might surprise you: it’s perfectly okay to feel completely lost right now. In a world that demands we always know our next move, admitting you don’t know what you want feels almost rebellious.  And definitely disorganized and not “together”.  And shouldn’t we have it together as midlife mothers?   If not by now, when?

    You know that panicky feeling when someone asks about your five-year plan, and you can barely think past next week.  I used to think this uncertainty meant I was failing at life.  Particularly since my plans rarely went to plan…it seemed that everyone else had some internal GPS that I was clearly missing.

    What you really want is permission to not have all the answers. You want to find your direction without the pressure of having everything figured out immediately. You want to trust that it’s okay to wander while you’re finding your way – that not all those who wander are truly lost.

    I remember sitting in my car after dropping the kids at school one morning, tired but surviving. A friend had asked: “What do you want to do today?” Not what needed to be done, not what others expected – what I wanted. I just wanted to sit still and do nothing, nothing at all.

    It seemed like other mothers had some secret compass that pointed them toward their desires, their dreams, their direction.  I just wanted peace. I didn’t want a direction or a plan in that moment.

    That’s when I learned something life-changing: uncertainty isn’t a character flaw. It’s information. When you don’t know what you want, it often means you’ve been so busy meeting everyone else’s needs that you’ve lost touch with your own internal navigation system.

    The breakthrough came when I stopped trying to figure out what I wanted and started exploring what mattered to me. Instead of asking “What’s my dream?” I began asking “What are my values?” Instead of demanding a destination, I focused on finding my compass.

    Here’s how you can start finding your direction when you feel lost:

    First, identify what you absolutely don’t want. Sometimes our “no” is clearer than our “yes.” Write down three things that drain your energy or make you feel misaligned.

    Second, notice what you value in small moments. When do you feel most like yourself? What situations make you feel energized rather than depleted? What brings a smile to your face? These clues point to your direction today.

    Third, make one small decision this week based purely on what feels right to you, not what you think you should want. Trust your internal compass, even if it’s just choosing which coffee to order and which seat to sit in.

    “Not all those who wander are lost.” – J.R.R. Tolkien

    Don’t worry about the idea that everyone needs you to have direction, to be the steady one, to know the plan.

    You’re allowed to be uncertain about your direction. You’re allowed to take time to figure out what you want. You’re allowed to wander while you find your way. Take that breath. 

    Your internal compass is there – it’s just been buried under years of putting everyone else’s needs first. This isn’t about having all the answers; it’s about trusting yourself enough to explore the questions.

    You matter. Your direction matters. Your journey of discovery matters.

    With love and best wishes, as always,

    Susy x

    —

    by

    Susy Rosemary
    in