“The most beautiful thing about a woman who is 50 is that she has finally stopped asking for permission to exist.” This is the sentiment shared by author Elizabeth Gilbert. For her, this decade represents an era when the “shoulds” of youth are replaced by a fierce, protective commitment to one’s own peace. As she puts it, “You are allowed to decide that your life is for you. It is not a community project.”
It is a time marked by the shedding of the heavy, often invisible cloak of societal expectation, which we outlined as ‘milestone pressure’ in your 40s, and personal performative perfectionism. Elizabeth notes that by this stage of life, a woman often “gets tired of being ashamed all the time. After that, she is free to become whoever she truly is.”
I do not think any of us need to wait until our 50s to do this – I advocate for “no shoulds” on a very regular basis (in fact, I self-sensor if I catch myself saying it to myself or someone else), but now seems like a good decade in this series to really lean into it.
Building your support
To support these bold shifts – and they are shifts, because we know women tend to prioritise others over themselves throughout their lives – one needs to create an architecture of support to find and remain strong. Part of that architecture must support physical health because there are inescapable challenges to ageing that cannot be ignored. Recent health reports, such as the Healthy Ireland Survey 2025 and the Women’s Health Plan 2026, provide a candid look at the physical landscape for women in their 50s:
Menopause: Among women aged 50–54, approximately 35% are in the active menopause transition, while 24% remain in perimenopause.
Sleep: 48% of midlife women report poor quality sleep, often linked to night sweats or the “mental load” of caregiving.
Bones: Women are twice as likely as men to be admitted for hip fractures by age 55, making resistance training a non-negotiable health pillar in recent literature like Kate Rowe-Ham’s The Longevity Solution.
For the growing number of women navigating peri- and menopause while simultaneously parenting young children, these challenges are amplified. Calling in support from your local Boots pharmacist can be an invaluable step, whether it’s for easy-to-access screening, such as a Blood Pressure Check, or advice on HRT or daily supplements.