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I've just come back from Canada feeling jet lagged and full of reflection after time with a close friend and a women physicians fitness retreat. A simple conversation turns into an “It’s a Wonderful Life” moment about the friendships that change our lives and the words we rarely say out loud.

• returning from Canada and noticing what travel brings up
• moving through nature with hiking, biking and cold freshwater swims
• remembering the first day of medical school and the friendships formed fast
• recognising the quiet support that carries us through pregnancy, exams and heartbreak
• realising we often underestimate our impact on other people
• asking who changed your life and when you last told them properly


Let's stay connected:

• Get your free Midlife Health & Body Reset Guide: Here
• Find out more about the Midlife Reset Program: Here
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• Follow Dr. Corina on Instagram: @drcorinasimsopttothrive
• Connect on Facebook: Opt to Thrive (Dr Corina Sims)
• Opt to Thrive official website

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It's been more than a year since I last did an episode about GLP-1 weight loss medications — and a LOT has happened since then.

I've also now had much more experience prescribing and managing these medications as a GP.

I've seen people achieve significant, life-changing weight loss.

I've seen people experience, for the first time in their lives, what it's like not to have the constant chatter about food running through their heads.

I've had patients reach their goal and come off the medication, others decide to remain on it long-term, and plenty who are still somewhere in between.

And I've also seen people handed a prescription with very little guidance about what they should actually be doing while taking it.

So I thought it was time for an update.

In this episode of Opt to Thrive, I'm taking a practical look at GLP-1 weight loss medications including Mounjaro (tirzepatide) and Wegovy (semaglutide) — what we now know, what we're still learning, and what I've learned from actually using these medications with patients in clinical practice.

We talk about how GLP-1 medications work, why they can have such a profound effect on appetite and the phenomenon we now call "food noise", and why some people describe finally feeling in control of their appetite for the first time in their lives.

We look at who these medications are actually recommended for — and importantly, why someone who simply wants to lose a few kilos isn't necessarily an appropriate candidate.

I also unpack some of the other potential health benefits we're learning about, including cardiovascular health, sleep apnoea and fatty liver disease, as well as emerging research around reward and craving behaviours such as binge eating and alcohol consumption.

And then we tackle some of the scary stuff.

Thyroid cancer. Pancreatitis. Depression and suicidality. Hair loss. And the rare eye condition NAION that has generated headlines about GLP-1 medications and blindness.

What do we actually know about these risks — and how do we put a very rare potential harm into context against the health risks of obesity itself?

But perhaps the part I feel most strongly about is how we use these medications.

Because getting the prescription is not the whole treatment.

For my patients — particularly midlife women — I don't simply want to see the number on the scales falling while muscle and bone go with it.

I want to see body fat coming down while we protect muscle, support bone and build habits that will serve them long after the weight loss phase is over.

That means strength training.

Enough protein.

Enough fibre.

Appropriate monitoring.

And weight loss that is steady rather than a race to get the kilos off as quickly as possible.

GLP-1 medications can be incredibly powerful tools when they're used appropriately.

But the medication is the tool.

What we build with it matters.

If you're taking Mounjaro or Wegovy, thinking about starting one, or you're simply curious about what all the fuss is about, this episode will give you a practical, balanced look at what you need to know.

Let's stay connected:

• Get your free Midlife Health & Body Reset Guide: Here
• Find out more about the Midlife Reset Program: Here
• Join the Opt to Thrive mailing list: Here
• Follow Dr. Corina on Instagram: @drcorinasimsopttothrive
• Connect on Facebook: Opt to Thrive (Dr Corina Sims)
• Opt to Thrive official website

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What if you’ve reached midlife and you still don’t know what you’re passionate about?

A recent conversation with someone who told me he'd never really had a passion — but wished he did — sent me down a research rabbit hole.

And what I found made me question something we hear all the time:

“You just need to find your passion.”

But what if passion isn't necessarily something sitting inside us waiting to be discovered?

And could believing that it is actually make us less likely to find something we love?

In this Mindful Moment, we're looking at some fascinating research into the psychology of passion — including how our mindset may influence what we're willing to explore, what we expect passion to feel like, and what happens when something that initially excites us gets hard.

And perhaps this matters even more in midlife, when it can be very easy to decide we already know who we are — and who we're not.

If you've ever wondered “What am I actually passionate about?”, this one is for you.

Let's stay connected:

• Get your free Midlife Health & Body Reset Guide: Here
• Find out more about the Midlife Reset Program: Here
• Join the Opt to Thrive mailing list: Here
• Follow Dr. Corina on Instagram: @drcorinasimsopttothrive
• Connect on Facebook: Opt to Thrive (Dr Corina Sims)
• Opt to Thrive official website

Research discussed:
O'Keefe PA, Dweck CS, Walton GM. Implicit Theories of Interest: Finding Your Passion or Developing It? Psychological Science. 2018;29(10):1653–1664.

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Have you ever typed a message to someone going through something unimaginable… and then deleted it because you simply didn't know what to say?

Do I call? Do I message? Will I bother them? What if I say the wrong thing? Should I give them space?

And sometimes, in our fear of getting it wrong, we end up saying nothing at all.

In today's episode of Opt to Thrive, I'm joined by my friend and colleague, clinical psychologist Elise Howie, for a conversation about how we show up for people during some of the hardest moments of their lives.

Elise brings a unique perspective to this conversation. She has spent her career helping people navigate incredibly difficult experiences, but she also understands what it is like to be the person on the receiving end of support.

Following the births of both of her children, Elise experienced severe postnatal depression with psychosis. After the birth of her second child, she became so unwell that she spent long periods in hospital and ultimately underwent close to 40 sessions of electroconvulsive therapy.

So today we're talking not only psychologist to doctor, but woman to woman, mother to mother and friend to friend.

We explore why we freeze when someone we care about is suffering, our instinct to try to make things better when sometimes there simply isn't a "better", and why we don't need to fix someone's pain in order to accompany them through it.

We talk about what to say when there really are no words, whether saying something imperfectly is better than saying nothing, the difference between giving someone space and disappearing, and why phrases like "at least...", "everything happens for a reason" or "I don't know how you're doing it" may not provide the comfort we intend.

We also talk about practical support — why "let me know if you need anything" can unintentionally put another job onto someone who is already overwhelmed, and how specific offers of help can make it much easier to say yes.

And perhaps most importantly, we talk about what happens afterwards.

When the meals stop arriving. When everyone else goes back to their lives. When the birthdays, anniversaries, Christmases and other firsts come around.

Sometimes support is simply remembering.

Sometimes it's sending the message:

I've been thinking about you today.

And sometimes it's being brave enough to say:

"I don't know what to say, but I didn't want my not knowing what to say to mean I said nothing."

This is a deeply human conversation about grief, adversity, friendship and how we can show up for the people we love — even when there really are no words.

Let's stay connected:

• Riverland Women Podcast episode featuring Elise: Here
• Get your free Midlife Health & Body Reset Guide: Here
• Find out more about the Midlife Reset Program: Here
• Join the Opt to Thrive mailing list: Here
• Follow Dr. Corina on Instagram: @drcorinasimsopttothrive
• Connect on Facebook: Opt to Thrive (Dr Corina Sims)
• Opt to Thrive official website

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Two little girls at a swimming pool in Fiji caught my attention.

They didn't know each other. One smiled. The other ran to the edge of the pool, knelt down in front of her and smiled back. Within moments, they seemed to be friends.

It was such a simple, beautiful interaction — but it left me wondering: when did we stop running to the edge of the pool?

Somewhere between being those little girls and becoming adult women, many of us learn to watch ourselves from the outside.

We learn the unwritten rules about how a woman should look, how loudly she should speak, how much space she should take up, how agreeable she should be and how much of herself she should reveal before knowing whether it will be accepted.

We learn to ask: What will other people think?

In this Mindful Moment, I'm exploring our very human desire to belong, the ways we learn to protect and edit ourselves, and what can happen when the price of belonging becomes abandoning parts of who we are.

Because perhaps the goal isn't to stop caring what anyone thinks.

Perhaps it's learning that we can belong without making ourselves smaller in the process.

And maybe, in doing that, we can help change the messages the little girls coming behind us hear too.

Let's stay connected:

• Get your free Midlife Health & Body Reset Guide: Here
• Find out more about the Midlife Reset Program: Here
• Join the Opt to Thrive mailing list: Here
• Follow Dr. Corina on Instagram: @drcorinasimsopttothrive
• Connect on Facebook: Opt to Thrive (Dr Corina Sims)
• Opt to Thrive official website

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Let’s talk about something that affects most women eventually…but we don’t talk about nearly enough: looking after your VJJ in midlife.

As oestrogen declines through perimenopause and menopause, the tissues of the vagina, vulva, bladder and urinary tract change too. And those changes can show up as dryness, itching, burning, painful sex, urinary symptoms, recurrent UTIs and more. Collectively, these symptoms can be part of Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause (GSM).

In this episode of Opt to Thrive, I’m taking a practical, no-embarrassment look at vaginal and vulval health in midlife — including some everyday habits that may actually be making things worse.

We talk about why your vagina really DOESN’T need cleaning, why soap and wet wipes may not be as gentle as you think, what to look for in a cleanser, and when vaginal moisturisers can be helpful.

I also break down what actually happens to these tissues as oestrogen declines, why GSM can affect everything from intimacy to bladder health, and the treatment options available — including vaginal moisturisers, lubricants, vaginal oestrogen and DHEA.

We also talk about vaginal oestrogen: how it works, why it’s considered the gold-standard treatment for GSM, why some women still need it even when they’re taking systemic MHT, and what we know about its safety.

And, of course, we get into lubricants — because painful sex is not something we should simply accept as an inevitable part of getting older.

In this episode:

• Simple vulval and vaginal skincare in midlife
• Why less really can be more when it comes to cleansing
• What GSM is and the symptoms to look out for
• Vaginal dryness, irritation and painful sex
• Bladder symptoms, incontinence and recurrent UTIs
• Vaginal moisturisers vs lubricants — and when to use each
• Vaginal oestrogen: how it works and who may benefit
• GSM when you’re already using MHT
• Other treatment options, including vaginal DHEA
• Practical ways to protect these delicate tissues as we age

If you’ve noticed things feeling a little different “down there” — or you simply want to know how to look after your vaginal, vulval and bladder health as you get older — this episode is for you.

Because these symptoms are common, but that doesn’t mean you just have to put up with them.

Let's stay connected:

• Take a Swimcation with Ocean Swim Fiji
• Get your free Midlife Health & Body Reset Guide: Here
• Find out more about the Midlife Reset Program: Here
• Join the Opt to Thrive mailing list: Here
• Follow Dr. Corina on Instagram: @drcorinasimsopttothrive
• Connect on Facebook: Opt to Thrive (Dr Corina Sims)
• Opt to Thrive official website

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We all have a story. Some parts we choose, and many we don’t.

In this Mindful Moment, I share some of my own story and the adversity that has shaped my life — and the lessons I’ve learned along the way.

Because ultimately, it’s not just what happens to us that matters. It’s the beliefs we carry forward, the choices we make, and what we decide to do with the story we’ve been given.

Let's stay connected:

• Get your free Midlife Health & Body Reset Guide: Here
• Find out more about the Midlife Reset Program: Here
• Join the Opt to Thrive mailing list: Here
• Follow Dr. Corina on Instagram: @drcorinasimsopttothrive
• Connect on Facebook: Opt to Thrive (Dr Corina Sims)
• Opt to Thrive official website

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We sit down with Dr Helen Wall to connect the dots between perimenopause, menopause and ADHD in women, especially the late-diagnosis pattern where lifelong coping suddenly collapses. We talk honestly about masking, burnout, brain fog, dopamine, and how to get practical support while you wait for answers.

• why women are missed with ADHD and how internal hyperactivity looks
• what masking and overcompensating cost over decades
• why perimenopause hormone volatility can trigger “unravelling”
• clues that suggest more than typical menopause brain fog
• strategies we can start now like externalising your brain and reducing decision fatigue
• how HRT may help stabilise symptoms for some women and why it may not the whole fix
• how to approach your GP with notes, history and advocacy
• what is changing in Australia with GP ADHD diagnosis and management pathways

Let's stay connected:

• Get your free Midlife Health & Body Reset Guide: Here
• Find out more about the Midlife Reset Program: Here
• Join the Opt to Thrive mailing list: Here
• Follow Dr. Corina on Instagram: @drcorinasimsopttothrive
• Connect on Facebook: Opt to Thrive (Dr Corina Sims)
• Opt to Thrive official website