Midlife Reset: Why Your Soul Needs Care as Much as Your Body

Episode Summary:
You can eat right, exercise daily, and get enough sleep—but if your soul is starving, you’ll still feel empty. In midlife, that emptiness can feel even louder.
In this episode of Aging with Grace and Style, Valerie dives into the importance of soul nourishment for women over 50. From faith and gratitude to stillness and connection, she shares how tending to the soul is just as vital as caring for your body and mind.
So many of us in midlife focus on check-ups, diets, and routines, yet still feel restless or overwhelmed. Without soul care, no amount of physical wellness can bring lasting peace. Valerie opens up about her own journey and why prioritizing self-care for women over 50 is the missing piece of true wellness.
You’ll discover practical wellness tips for women that strengthen your inner calm, help you build resilience, and restore your confidence in this new season of life. Get ready to shift your perspective, create space for peace, and keep aging with grace and style—inside and out.
✨ Reflection Prompts for Your Journal
- What daily practices make my soul feel nourished, and which ones do I want to bring back into my life?
- How can I create more intentional stillness in my day, even if it’s just for five minutes?
- Who are the trusted people I can reach out to when I need support, and how can I lean on them more?
Timestamps
- 00:20 - Nourishing the Soul
- 02:55 - Nourishing the Soul in Everyday Life
- 05:35 - Finding Stillness in a Noisy World
- 08:10 - Finding Inner Peace Through Connection
Key Takeaways:
- Why soul nourishment matters just as much as diet and exercise in midlife
- How faith, gratitude, and stillness fuel inner peace for women over 50
- The role of connection in building strength and confidence
- Simple wellness tips for women to balance mind, body, and soul
- How to keep aging with grace and style—from the inside out
Links + Resources Mentioned:
☕ Buy Me a Coffee: Support the podcast at buymeacoffee.com/ValerieHatcher
🌐 Podcast Website: pod.agingwithgraceinstyle.com for more tips, stories, and community connection
📖 Journal Prompt (from today’s episode): What practices make my soul feel nourished, and which ones do I want to add back into my life?
Let’s Stay Connected:
Find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads @iamvaleriehatcher.
Got questions, comments, or feedback? Email hello@agingwithgraceandstyle.com.
Join Me Next Time:
If this episode inspired you, please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe—it really helps more women find the show.
And don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode of Aging with Grace and Style.
Until next time—keep shining, keep growing, and keep embracing the beauty of this chapter. ✨
You can eat right, exercise daily, and even get enough sleep.
Speaker ABut if your soul is starving, you'll still feel empty.
Speaker AIn midlife, we realize it's not just about how our bodies look or how our minds perform.
Speaker AIt's about whether our soul feels at peace.
Speaker AAnd today I want to talk about how faith, gratitude, and inner calm can nourish us in ways nothing else can.
Speaker BLiving our best life.
Speaker BIt's good to be alive, but it's best to truly let your spirit fly.
Speaker BCelebrate the journey every single day.
Speaker BAging with grace and style in our own special way.
Speaker AWelcome to Aging with Grace and Style, the podcast where we celebrate midlife and beyond with purpose, wellness, and unapologetic confidence.
Speaker AI'm Valerie, and this is part three of the Gracefully well series.
Speaker AWe've already talked about the mind and the body, and today we're going deeper into the soul.
Speaker ABecause true wellness isn't just about physical or mental.
Speaker AIt's spiritual.
Speaker AIt's about the peace that you carry inside, no matter what's happening around you.
Speaker AAnd if I'm honest, these last few months tested me in new ways.
Speaker AWhen the waiting and the doubt came, I had to lean into my faith differently.
Speaker AAnd in that space face, I found not perfection, but peace.
Speaker ANot because everything around me was calm, but because I chose to create calm on the inside.
Speaker AYou can be the picture of health on the outside, but feel restless, disconnected, or spiritually dry on the inside.
Speaker AThat's why soul nourishment matters.
Speaker AIn midlife, especially, so much shifts careers, family roles, our own bodies.
Speaker AIt's easy to feel like we're losing more than we're gaining.
Speaker ABut soul nourishment reminds us that peace isn't about circumstances.
Speaker AIt's about what you anchor yourself to.
Speaker AAnd here's where what I've learned your soul needs care just as much as your body and your mind do.
Speaker AIf you neglect it, everything else eventually feels off balance.
Speaker ASo how do we nourish the soul in everyday life?
Speaker ALet's talk about a few practices that have carried me through.
Speaker AFaith has always been a part of my life.
Speaker AIt's the lens that I see the world through, the source of my values, the thing that grounds me day to day.
Speaker ABut if I'm honest, and I think many of us can relate, sometimes we take it for granted.
Speaker AIt's like oxygen, always there, always sustaining, until something shakes us and we realize just how much we've been leaning on it all along.
Speaker ADuring my health scare, I leaned into my faith differently.
Speaker ANot because it wasn't there before, but because I needed to experience it in a deeper way.
Speaker APrayer became more than a routine.
Speaker AIt became conversation.
Speaker AScripture wasn't words on a page.
Speaker AIt was my anchor.
Speaker AAnd here's the thing.
Speaker AFaith doesn't mean that you never feel afraid.
Speaker AIt means that when fear comes, you know where to run.
Speaker AYou have a foundation that steadies you even when everything around you feels shaky.
Speaker AThe second one for me is gratitude as a daily reset.
Speaker AGratitude is powerful because it redirects your focus.
Speaker AIt doesn't erase what's happening, but it changes how you carry it.
Speaker AI remember on some of my hardest days, my gratitude list looked so small.
Speaker AIt was things like the sun came out today, or my coffee was hot, or even no test results came in today so I can breathe for a few more hours.
Speaker ABut those little things, they added up.
Speaker AGratitude pulled me back into the present instead of living in the what ifs.
Speaker AIt reminded me that even in uncertainty, goodness still existed.
Speaker AAnd when you consistently practice gratitude, it rewires your perspective.
Speaker AInstead of scanning for life for what's missing, you start scanning for what's already there.
Speaker AAnd that, over time, makes your soul lighter.
Speaker ANumber three is stillness as soul care.
Speaker AIn a noisy world, stillness can feel almost impossible.
Speaker ABut it's one of the most nourishing things that you can give your soul.
Speaker AAnd I don't mean just sitting in a quiet room while your mind runs wild.
Speaker AI mean intentional stillness, the kind where you breathe, release, and allow yourself to simply be.
Speaker AWhen I practice stillness, sometimes answers came, Other times peace came.
Speaker AAnd sometimes nothing came at all.
Speaker AExcept the reminder that I don't always have to be on.
Speaker AStillness isn't empty.
Speaker AIt's spacious.
Speaker AIt's the space where your soul gets to breathe again, where God whispers.
Speaker AWhispers can be heard and where your own inner voice becomes clearer.
Speaker AAnd I believe so many of us are soul tired because we never let ourselves be still long enough to notice.
Speaker AWe what we need.
Speaker ANumber four is connection as fuel.
Speaker ANow, here's the truth about me.
Speaker AI've always been that person who doesn't want to bother people when I'm going through something.
Speaker AMy mindset was, I can handle it.
Speaker AI'll pray about it quietly.
Speaker AI don't need to pull anyone else in.
Speaker ABut this time, I realized I couldn't.
Speaker AI reached out to a few of my trusted prayer partners, the ones I know will cover me in love and not gossip.
Speaker AAnd let me tell you, it made all the difference.
Speaker AAround that same time, my pastor preached a message called Hush till it breaks.
Speaker AAnd that resonated so deeply.
Speaker ASo I did just that.
Speaker AI hushed and I prayed.
Speaker AI stayed quiet in the noise of the world, but I pulled close to those who prayed with me until the breakthrough came.
Speaker AThat's the beauty of connection.
Speaker AIt doesn't mean that you broadcast your business to everyone.
Speaker AIt means you choose wisely.
Speaker AA handful of people who can stand in the gap with you when your strength feels thin.
Speaker ABecause soul nourishment isn't a solo project.
Speaker AWe're built for connection.
Speaker AAnd when you put it all together, faith, gratitude, stillness, connection, you begin to cultivate something that the world can't give and the world can't take away.
Speaker AInner peace.
Speaker AInner peace doesn't mean life is perfect.
Speaker AIt means you're not shaken by every storm.
Speaker AIt's a quiet confidence that says, I may not know the outcome, but I know I'll be okay.
Speaker AAnd here's the beautiful thing.
Speaker AInner peace isn't something that you wait for.
Speaker AIt's something that you create daily through what you focus on, what you practice and what you believe.
Speaker ASo here's this week's action steps.
Speaker AStart with a gratitude list.
Speaker AThree small things a day.
Speaker AThat's not much, right?
Speaker ASpend five minutes in stillness.
Speaker ANo phone, no noise, just breathing and being.
Speaker AAnd of course, here's a journal prompt.
Speaker AWhat practices make my soul feel nourished?
Speaker AAnd which ones do I want to add back into my life?
Speaker AToday we talked about why soul nourishment matters.
Speaker AHow faith, gratitude, stillness, and connection can feed your spirit.
Speaker AAnd why inner peace is something that you create, not something that you wait for.
Speaker AThe soul is what carries you when your body is tired and your mind is overwhelmed.
Speaker ATake care of it and it will take care of you.
Speaker AIf this episode encouraged you, share it with a friend who could use a little more peace in her life right now.
Speaker AAnd if you'd like to support the show, here's a thought.
Speaker AYou can buy me a coffee.
Speaker AYes, I said a coffee.
Speaker A@buymecoffee.com ValerieHatcher I've also linked it in the show notes.
Speaker AIt's just a simple way to show some love.
Speaker AStay graceful, keep nourishing your soul, and keep aging with grace, style and a touch of sass.
Speaker AAnd I will see you right back here next week for the final part of the Gracefully well series.
Speaker AThanks for hanging out with me today.
Speaker AIf you love this episode, do me a favor.
Speaker AShare it with a friend and leave a quick review.
Speaker AIt's a small thing that makes a big difference difference.
Speaker ADon't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode.
Speaker AAnd hey, let's keep the conversation going.
Speaker AJoin me atpod.agingwithgraceinstyle.com for more tips, stories and a whole lot of connection.
Speaker AUntil next time, keep shining with grace, style and a touch of sassy.