Scenic Route through Midlife — Society, Self & Shifting Gears

Are you happy? It sounds simple. But for Aly Kravetz — Bronx-born witch, tarot reader, Reiki practitioner and spiritual entrepreneur — that three-word question from her mum became the pivot point for everything: leaving law school, ending a marriage, and building something entirely her own from the ground up during a pandemic. In this episode of The Scenic Route, Aly breaks down Spellwork 101 in a way that makes complete sense even if you've never touched a crystal in your life. Because spell...

Every spring, you're told to declutter your wardrobe, your goals, your relationships, and your mindset. And if you don't feel the urge? There's a low hum of guilt that says something's wrong with you. This week on The Scenic Route, we're asking: what if that impulse isn't wisdom, and who actually benefits from the story that your whole life needs a seasonal audit? For many women in midlife, spring-cleaning pressure hits differently. You're already navigating a season of your own — one that do...

You've done the therapy. You've journalled. You can explain your patterns with real precision — where they came from, what they're protecting, why they formed. And yet. There you are. Doing it again. This episode is about the gap between knowing something and actually being free of it. Insight is a beginning. It's not the destination. And once you really accept that — not as a defeat, but as genuinely useful information — it completely changes where you look. What we cover: Why self-awareness...

You've been propagandised today. Probably in the last hour. And I'm not talking about political ads or conspiracy theories—I'm talking about ideas that feel so obvious, so natural, so true that you'd never think to question them. In this episode, we explore what propaganda actually is, how it works in modern society, and why the most effective propaganda doesn't look like propaganda at all. Here's what surprised me most while researching this episode: The best propaganda isn't loud. It's not ...

"Everyone has ADHD now." You've heard it. Maybe someone said it to you — with a half-joke, half-accusation edge. Like, neurodivergence is just the trend of the season. But what if that reaction tells us less about ADHD and more about the systems we're living in? In this conversation with Kristina Kyser — psychotherapist, educator, and creator of the Neurodivergent Rising course — we pull apart the "ADHD superpower" narrative that's everywhere right now. Because yes, there are gifts: innovatio...

Here's the thing nobody tells you: the way you order at a restaurant says A LOT about how you move through life. Are you the person who waits to hear what everyone else is getting before you decide? Do you need everyone's opinion before you can choose? Are you picking what you want, and it feels weirdly vulnerable? Yeah. We need to talk. In this episode, I sit down with Jillian Reilly, author of Ten Permissions: How to Stop Waiting and Start Living, to talk about why so many of us can't make ...

Pause for a breath you didn't know you were holding. This soft landing is for the woman who's been holding it together so well that no one thinks to ask if she's okay. This week's affirmation: "The strategies, steps, decisions that got me here served their purpose — I release them with grace." You don't have to carry what no longer fits. You don't have to make letting go mean you failed. What got you here won't always get you where you're going. And that's okay. This weekend, ask yourself: Wh...

Pause for a breath you didn't know you were holding. This soft landing is for the woman who's been holding it together so well that no one thinks to ask if she's okay. The affirmation: "I am allowed to disappoint people and still be good." Goodness isn't measured by how much access others have to you, but by how honestly you honour your limits. We examine why performance – the relentless yes, the full calendar, the reflex to fix – feels like safety, yet slowly erases our needs. And why bound...

Three years, 111 episodes, and countless conversations later — host Jennifer Walter sits down for a full-circle moment with Lauren Best to celebrate The Scenic Route’s third birthday. They flip the mic to talk about what really happens when you stop hustling and start listening: to your body, your luck, your burnout, and your joy. From viral posts to creative dry spells, from slow living to self-trust, this episode explores how to create — and live — at your own pace in a world that keeps sho...

We inherit shame like an unspoken family heirloom — stitched into our bodies, our ambition, our idea of enough. It’s the quiet undertone behind so many brilliant women asking, “Why do I still feel like I’m not enough?” In this conversation, Jennifer Walter sits down with therapist and facilitator Kyira Wackett to unpack the hidden ways shame shapes our lives — from body image and burnout to perfectionism and belonging. Together, they explore how shame isn’t just a feeling — it’s a lear...

Tired of buying cookbooks that collect dust (or shame you for not owning grape molasses)? Same. In this episode, we’re talking about how to choose a cookbook that actually fits your real life and not some Pinterest-perfect fantasy. I’ll show you how to spot the red flags (hello, pancetta prep on a Tuesday night 😵‍💫), how to tell if a cookbook is for beginners or pros, and what makes a recipe book actually useful. This isn’t just a rant – it’s a full-on guide to picking the best cookbooks ba...

Why do people still say women make “careless” decisions about abortion – and how can you shut that argument down fast? And what does it have to do with a shocking PhD thesis on endometriosis? In this episode of The Scenic Route, you’ll get: A toolkit to counter the “careless abortion” myth from three angles: logic, evidence, and power.Evidence-based insights you can drop in conversation to cut through opinion with data.A clearer lens on structural bias – why women’s pain is underfunded and di...