The Next Phase

What if your home is affecting your nervous system more than you realize? In this episode, Stacey sits down with interior designer, feng shui master, and author Lisa Morton for a conversation about clutter, energy, burnout, and the surprising emotional impact of the spaces we live in. After experiencing severe burnout early in her own design career, Lisa became fascinated by the connection between...

Micropeels. Botox. Retinol. Peptides. Red light masks. 11-step skincare routines. The pressure on women to “age well” right now can feel completely overwhelming — especially when your skin suddenly starts changing seemingly overnight in your late 30s and 40s. In this episode, Stacey sits down with Stephanie DiPisa, founder of Solara Suncare, for a conversation that starts with sunscreen… and turns...

Have you ever felt like your entire life became one giant self-improvement project? In this solo episode, Stacey explores what happens when high-achieving women become trapped in a constant cycle of optimization — always trying to become healthier, calmer, more productive, more healed, more emotionally regulated, more “their best selves.” From self-help books to wellness culture to nervous system...

If your hair suddenly feels different in this phase of life… you’re not imagining it. In this episode, I’m talking with Allison Conrad and Jay Small, founders of AREY, about what actually happens to women’s hair in perimenopause — and why so many of us feel completely caught off guard by it. We talk about:  why your hair suddenly feels completely different in midlife   the science behind gray hair...

What if success isn’t supposed to cost you yourself? So many of us did everything “right.” We chased the goals. Built the life. Hit the big hairy audacious goals. And then somewhere along the way… we started to feel like we were losing ourselves in the process. In this episode, I’m talking with Jess Ekstrom—speaker, founder, and bestselling author—about what happens when high-achieving women reali...

Many millennial moms are going through something that past generations never had to do: Raise young children while also caring for aging parents. It’s overwhelming, emotional, and (somehow) completely unexpected. In this episode of The Next Phase Podcast , Stacey Hutson sits down with elder care clinician Debra Kooser to talk about what really happens when the roles begin to reverse—and why so man...

Are you doing nervous system work… and it’s still not working? In this episode, I’m sharing a realization that completely changed the way I approach anxiety, overwhelm, and “regulation” as an ADHD mom. For years, I did everything I was supposed to do: meditation, breathwork, supplements, EFT, energy work… And yet, I still felt stressed, rushed, and completely out of control in my daily life. Why?...

Messy. Overwhelmed. Always behind. At some point, you start to wonder… Is this just who I am? In this episode, I’m talking to Dana K. White — creator of the No Mess Decluttering Process and author of Decluttering at the Speed of Life — about what it actually takes to get your home (and your life) under control… especially if you’re not naturally organized. Because here's the thing you need to...

Do you feel like you’re constantly playing catch-up in your own life? Like no matter how many times you promise yourself you’ll “get it together”… you’re still forgetting things, missing things, and starting every day already behind? In this episode, Stacey breaks down why high-achieving women—especially moms—can feel completely scattered… even though they’re capable, smart, and doing all the “rig...

If you’ve ever been curious about tarot… but also a little skeptical… this episode is for you. Today, I’m joined by tarot reader and teacher Rosetta Magdalene for a grounded, beginner-friendly conversation on what tarot actually is — and how you can use it as a tool for clarity, intuition, and even nervous system regulation. We’re not here to prove whether tarot is “real.” We’re here to explore wh...

Somewhere in our late thirties and forties, a lot of women start to feel like something isn’t working anymore. The way we’ve been living. The expectations we’ve been carrying. The constant pressure to improve ourselves. But what if this phase of life isn’t a crisis? What if it’s a wake-up call? In this episode, I’m joined by intuitive astrologer, yoga teacher, and shadow work practitioner Jamie De...

If your body suddenly feels harder to live in — you’re not imagining it. In your late 30s and early 40s, hormones start shifting. Sleep changes. Stress hits harder. The workouts and diets that used to work suddenly… don’t. But hormones are only part of the story. In this episode of The Next Phase Podcast , Stacey breaks down what is actually happening in a woman’s body during early perimenopause —...

Millennial moms were raised on one fitness message: More cardio. Eat less. Push harder. Sleep when you’re dead. And now? We’re herniating discs. Developing “meno belly.” Feeling exhausted. And wondering why the workouts that used to work… don’t anymore. In this episode of The Next Phase Podcast , I sit down with Dr. JJ Thomas, Doctor of Physical Therapy , to talk about what is actually happening i...

I’m sharing my full experience with intermittent fasting for women in perimenopause — why I started it after struggling with postpartum weight gain, how I followed Fast Like a Girl closely, and why it felt empowering… until it didn’t. If you’ve been exploring time-restricted eating, fasting for weight loss, or fasting in perimenopause, this conversation is for you. We’re diving into: The potential...

Lately, everything has felt like… too much. Too many activities.  Too many Amazon boxes.  Too many decisions.  Too many tabs open in our brains. In this episode, I sit down with Stephanie Seferian , host of the Sustainable Minimalists and author of Sustainable Minimalism , to talk about what minimalism actually looks like in midlife. Not the white-wall, aesthetic version. The nervous system versio...

In the wake of Catherine O’Hara’s death, a lot of millennial women felt unexpectedly emotional. Not just because we lost a legendary actress — but because we lost Kevin’s mom . In this episode, I reflect on Kate McCallister , the iconic 90s movie mom from Home Alone , and why her character still lives in our bodies decades later. The busy, overwhelmed, loving mom who held everything together — oft...

Perimenopause can feel like a confusing full-body mystery… but today’s conversation is a deep exhale. I’m sitting down with Jane Barlow , an herbalist and founder of Barlow Herbal , who literally grew up in plant medicine—her dad was a college-educated medicinal botanist, and herbal healing was just normal in her house. And while Jane’s own menopause experience was basically a “nothing burger” (ye...

51 days. That’s how long the too-small sweater sat in my trunk before I finally made the return. In this episode, I’m talking about the mundane tasks we avoid — the returns, the laundry, the mail, the subscriptions we never cancel — and why they take up way more space in our bodies and nervous systems than we realize . For years, I told myself these tasks were beneath me. That I had more important...

January has a way of turning us into projects. Fix your habits. Fix your body. Fix your mindset. Fix your life. In this episode, Stacey reflects on the familiar New Year self-help spiral—and why, after decades of goal-setting, optimizing, and trying to become “better,” she’s choosing something different. Through a deeply personal New Year ritual, a surprising realization, and one tiny experiment t...

Have you ever been set off by something that looks small to everyone else — but suddenly your chest is tight, your throat feels blocked, and you can’t fully exhale? Your body feels like it’s under attack… even though nothing “that bad” just happened. That’s spiraling — and if you’re a millennial mom in perimenopause, it may be happening more often than ever. In today’s episode of The Next Phase Po...

After watching K-Pop Demon Hunters , my daughters asked me if they “should want abs”… and that moment changed the entire direction of this episode. Today we’re talking about meno belly — why your belly is changing in perimenopause, what’s actually happening biologically, and the stories we’ve carried since growing up as millennial girls raised on Friends, Ally McBeal, The O.C., and the Victoria’s...

You know that low-key identity crisis that hits somewhere around 38–42? The mood swings, the random rage, the 3 AM wakeups, the nostalgia for your 90s life and the feeling that you’re somehow running out of time? It might not just be burnout. It might be perimenopause. In this episode, I’m talking with Lauren Tetenbaum — therapist, former lawyer, certified menopause practitioner, and author of Mil...

Between kids, work, and mom-life chaos, no one has the bandwidth to reinvent a grocery list every week based on their hormones. Today I’m teaching you how to make cycle syncing automatic with four reusable grocery lists—one for each phase. Instacart or in-store, it works either way. Just tap → add to cart → done. By the end, cycle syncing won’t be something you try —it’ll be something you actually...

You know that low-grade shame storm that hits every time you look at the piles, the laundry baskets, the boxes you never unpacked? In this episode, I sit down with certified professional organizer and “clutter whisperer” Star Hansen to completely flip the script on what your mess actually means. Instead of treating clutter as proof you’re lazy, scattered, or “bad at adulting,” Star shows us how it...

What if you hit 40 and realized you still hadn’t really grown up? In this week’s episode, Stacey gets brutally honest about the behind-the-scenes chaos of adulthood — from forgotten bills and overflowing inboxes to that constant hum of anxiety that comes from not having systems in place. This isn’t a how-to or a list of tips. It’s a confession. If you’ve ever: Let a medical bill go to collections...