Well Enough Alone - A Guide To Thriving Solo

If a romantic connection is something you see in your future – whether for one night or forever – then you do not want to miss this week’s episode.

Jill speaks to Alita Brydon – dating expert, body positivity champion and creator of the cult social media phenomenon, Bad Dates of Melbourne on Facebook.

Just because you enjoy time on your own doesn’t mean you can’t still dip your toe in the dating pool. And what a cesspit that can often be!

If you want to survive the modern dating scene, you’re going to need to be mentally prepared. And sometimes it helps to hear from those who have been through the wars too.

Alita is the perfect guide to walk you through it.

She’s created a space for people to share their dating horror stories – and the occasional triumph – and after hearing from hundreds of thousands of people from all over Australia, she has learned a thing or two about how to navigate the dating experience.

You can follow Alita and Bad Dates of Melbourne on Instagram and Facebook.

To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only early

content on Patreon.

Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a world obsessed with partnering up and settling down, it can sometimes feel like you’re a square peg in a round hole if you’re on your own.

So how can you learn to not just accept your own company but actually love it? Is loneliness something we can banish, or is it a necessary part of the human condition?

And how do you deal with pressure to be coupled and/or have children, from people in your life who may mean well but are not respecting your choices?

Today, Jill speaks with Dr Ahona Guha – a clinical and forensic psychologist and an author whose latest book, Life Skills For A Broken World is a guide to building essential psychological skills.

She writes widely for the media on matters related to mental health, social justice, and equity. And she’s also a single woman, living her best solo life with her greyhound rescue, Carla.

You can follow Ahona on Instagram @drahonaguha or check out her books and writing at ahonaguha.com

To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only early

content on Patreon.

Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production.

Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

To have kids or not have kids? In a world where marriage and parenthood are still seen as the expected life path, what does it mean to defy convention and choose a different way?

This week, Jill talks to award-winning documentary filmmaker Therese Shechter about her revolutionary film, My So-Called Selfish Life and the unstoppable rise of the child-free movement.

In a world where reproductive rights are under attack, Therese explores how the freedom to choose whether or not to become a mother has never been more urgent.

She’s a child-free woman whose work delves deep into a subject that has often been shrouded in shame and stigma, and finds that for many women, there simply is no physiological or emotional imperative to have children.

Therese also drops some truth bombs about the “biological clock”, and the surprising number of women who regret becoming mothers, and finds that much of what we’ve been told about the drive to procreate is a social construct.

Just one quick content note: this episode was recorded last year, prior to the US election before we knew that J D Vance, that famous lover of childless cat ladies, would be Vice President, so keep that in mind while you’re listening.

You can follow Therese on Instagram @trixiefilms, find out more about her film, My So Called Selfish Life here or head to her website for information on her other work.

To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or follow Jill @jillstark__

Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week’s guest is the very definition of thriving solo. Cindy Gallop is a trailblazer for single, child-free living. She’s torn up the rule book, rejected outdated societal expectations, and actively celebrates her solo life.

She’s also someone who is open about the fun she’s having as an older woman dating younger men casually for sex – a trend she says is the relationship model of the future.

In this episode, she talks to Jill about why she loves being unmarried and child-free and the liberation she finds in her own company.

An entrepreneur and a social disruptor, Cindy describes herself as the ‘Michael Bay of business’ because she likes to blow things up.

As the founder and CEO of MakeLoveNotPorn, Cindy’s visionary reimagining of the porn industry has challenged misogynistic and unrealistic depictions of sex.

It’s a movement that promotes healthy, consensual and authentic sexual behaviour that empowers women and prioritises connection and open communication.

Cindy also talks about her unique perspective on ageing and loving her body, and how she’s living life unapologetically on her own terms.

You can follow Cindy on Instagram @cindygallop or follow @makelovenotporn, and check out her website here.

To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__

Well

Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and

Trent Bartlett.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week’s episode is one we’re really honoured to bring to you.

Our guest is someone with boundless courage and compassion, who has shared some of her most vulnerable moments with the world so that others might feel less alone.

Rosie Batty is, as she says, the member of a club no mother wants to join. She lost her 11-year-old son, Luke, in 2014 when he was killed by his father that thrust her into the national spotlight as passionate campaigner on the issue of family violence.

In this raw and moving conversation, Rosie speaks with profound clarity about how she found hope in the darkest of places, and what she has learned about identity, solitude, the power of human connection, and cultivating a strong sense of self.

Rosie has spent the past ten years tirelessly advocating for social, cultural and legal change, on family violence inspiring millions not just in Australia but around the world.

In 2014, she won the Pride of Australia Award and in 2015 was named Australian of the Year.

Rosie is not on social media but you can read more about her memoirs, A Mother’s Story, and Hope here.

If you or someone you know is experiencing family violence, call or visit 1800RESPECT (in Australia) or contact your local support organisation.

To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only, early and ad-free episodes on Patreon.

Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett.

Get early access to new episodes by subscribing on Patreon.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.