Drinks with the Girls®

The word was “clusterf*ck”… and honestly? It only gets more real from there.

This is the conversation every educator—and every midlife woman holding it all together—has been having behind closed doors.

Karen and Lisa sit down with returning guest Amanda to pull back the curtain on the toxic reality of education today—where passion collides with burnout, boundaries disappear, and the job that once felt like a calling starts to feel ...

Ever feel like saving the planet is just… too much?

Between the plastic at the dentist, the endless Amazon boxes, and the constant noise of “do more,” it’s easy to slip into that quiet midlife question: does anything I do even matter?

In this honest and often hilarious Earth Day conversation, Karen and Lisa  unpack the overwhelm, the guilt, and the small but meaningful ways we can reconnect—with the planet and with ourselves. From ...

Your body is reacting… and you don’t even know why. One text, one look, one moment—and suddenly you’re spiraling, shutting down, or ready to run.

Karen and Lisa get real about those “where did that come from?” reactions in relationships—and the answer might be trauma. The kind that quietly shapes how we love, communicate, trust, and show up… especially in midlife.

With trauma therapists Alex and Alyssa guiding the conversation, th...

Something feels off… and you can’t quite explain it.

You’re forgetting things you never used to forget. Questioning yourself in rooms you used to own. Wondering, quietly, “What is happening to me?”

This conversation goes straight into that moment—the one where confidence starts slipping, identity feels shaky, and you barely recognize yourself anymore. And here’s the truth that hits hard: it’s not just in your head.

With functional ...

The world feels heavy… and sometimes you just need something that makes you laugh, escape, or feel like yourself again.

This week, Karen and Lisa are sharing the binge-worthy shows, movies, books, and music they turn to when life feels overwhelming—from laugh-until-you-snort favorites like Ted Lasso and Derry Girls to darker, can’t-look-away British mysteries and true crime escapes.

But this isn’t just about zoning out. It’s about ...

Twenty years later, Eat, Pray, Love still hits a nerve—and this conversation goes way beyond pasta and passports. Karen and Lisa unpack why so many women saw themselves in one woman’s breaking point… and what it really means to admit, “This life isn’t working anymore.”

From impulsively driving away just to breathe for a few hours to memories of mothers who quietly chose themselves, this episode is filled with those oh wow, I’ve bee...

The Winter Olympics gave us more than medals this year—it gave us a powerful reminder that women don’t come with an expiration date.

From the fearless comeback of Lindsey Vonn to Olympic moms racing, skating, and competing at the highest level while raising young kids, this conversation dives into the real stories behind women who refuse to age out, shrink back, or follow the timeline society hands them.

Karen and Lisa unpack the d...

Moving abroad in midlife sounds romantic… until the real transformation begins.

In Part 2 of our conversation with women who left the U.S. to build lives in places like Italy, Belize, and the Caribbean, the fantasy gives way to something deeper: identity shifts, unexpected loneliness, freedom, and the courage to start again.

Our guests share the honest, unfiltered side of creating a life overseas in midlife — from finding community...

The patriarchy isn’t just politics or headlines — it’s the air midlife women have been breathing for decades. And once you see it, you can’t unsee it.

Karen and Lisa pull back the curtain on the quiet, insidious ways the patriarchy shapes women’s lives — from being told to be “likable” and low-maintenance, to carrying the emotional load at home, to shrinking our ambition so everyone else stays comfortable. Using Taylor Swift’s figh...

You still love to dance — you just don’t want to stay out until 2AM.

Somewhere between raising kids, caregiving, running businesses, and rebuilding ourselves, joy started coming with a curfew. But what if midlife fun didn’t have to mean exhaustion the next day?

This conversation dives into the magic of the Early Bird’s Club — a women-centered dance movement created for those of us with real responsibilities and early mornings. But ...

You look in the mirror and think, When did I disappear?

Somewhere between raising kids, managing relationships, building careers, and being the “low maintenance” one, you stopped centering yourself. You became productive. Reliable. Easy.

And now? You’re not so sure who you are anymore.

This Valentine’s week, Karen and Lisa get real about what self-love actually means for women in midlife — and it’s not bubble baths and spa ...

America feels louder, harsher, and more unsteady than ever — and midlife women are carrying the weight of it all. The fear. The anger. The exhaustion. The constant question of how much more can we hold?

Karen and Lisa pull up their chairs for a raw, honest conversation about what it actually feels like to live through this moment in the U.S. as women in our 40s, 50s, and 60s. No debating. No talking points. Just real talk about pol...

Speaking your truth after 40 often feels like breaking rules you were praised for following your entire life. In this episode of Drinks With the Girls, Karen and Lisa unpack the unspoken expectations midlife women are finally questioning — from people-pleasing and emotional labor to staying comfortable instead of honest.

This conversation explores midlife reinvention, gaslighting ourselves into staying unhappy, motherhood, caregivi...

Why does money feel so complicated, especially in midlife? Because it is. And yet, as Karen Van Voorhis gently reminds us in this episode, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible—or that we’re behind.

If you’ve ever stared at your pay stub, shrugged at your 401k, or avoided eye contact with your Fidelity login like it’s an ex at the grocery store… this episode is your financial permission slip to get curious, not critical.

Karen Van Voor...

When Jane Fonda tells you to get your shit together—you listen. That’s exactly how Chelsea Handler’s latest book kicks off, and trust us, it only gets juicier from there. This week, Karen and Lisa crack open I'll Have What She's Having and find way more than celebrity gossip or comedy—they find a woman doing the deep, uncomfortable, glorious work of coming home to herself.

From therapy breakthroughs to choosing solitude over settl...

If you’ve ever been told your labs are “normal” but you still feel exhausted, anxious, inflamed, or just off, this episode is for you. We sit down with Dr. Tracy McCarthy, a functional medicine physician who helps women understand what’s really going on beneath the surface in midlife. From hormone shifts and thyroid dysfunction to gut health and the long-term effects of stress and trauma, Dr. McCarthy explains how the body and brai...

A job gone. A marriage ended. A role you gave everything to—vanished. In this raw and unfiltered episode, Karen and Lisa unpack what happens when midlife reinvention isn’t a choice—it’s a reckoning.

This isn’t the “vision board” version of starting over. This is the kind where your world gets pulled out from under you, and you're left staring at the pieces, wondering who y...

🌿 What if the “New Year, New You” mindset is actually making you feel worse — not better?

If you're over 40 and exhausted by toxic wellness trends, diet pressure, and the constant demand to “fix” yourself every January… this episode is your reset.

We’re tossing out the guilt, the grind, and the goals that don’t serve us — and replacing them with something radical: self-trust. Lisa and Karen dive into what real wellness looks like ...

What if your struggles with food, focus, and fatigue weren’t failures—but signs that your brain has been asking for a different kind of care all along?

In this eye-opening episode, Karen and Lisa sit down with nutrition and wellness coach Caroline Hinchliff to unpack the messy, misunderstood relationship between neurodivergency and nourishment—especially for women in midlife. If you've ever stood in front of the fridge completely o...