Celebrating six months on Substack

Thank you thank you! 💌

In February of this year, I had my first panic attack. I had just come home from a lovely weekend away with Paul and his family; we went out in the crisp countryside air, we explored Bradford-Upon-Avon, we went swimming with my little niece and nephew. I remember getting into bed, and thinking that was such a nice weekend. And, then it happened.

Strange. It completely threw me, because I didn’t feel anxious at the time, and when it happened it felt like an out-of-body experience. I Googled “random panic attack” and it said: when your body goes on intense alert for no reason.

Even though it did feel totally random, it also sort of didn’t. Something had been bubbling under the surface, and things weren’t quite sitting right. I couldn’t really articulate it whenever anyone asked me how I was doing, because everything on paper was fine. For some reason, this particular physical situation felt like a wake-up call. A nudge of some kind. A moment to punctuate a before and after. It felt like my body was telling me to take a good look around, to stop, to see, to notice the very much hidden elephant in the room. It could have absolutely been random, but I had already started reading into it.

I had been anti-social for a while, post-Covid, feeling fragile, burying myself in writing my new book and home-life and DIY. I felt like bug-soup, as Martha Beck calls it, a soft little melted down caterpillar who is not yet ready to go into the cocoon to build new butterfly wings. Things were ticking along nicely as they always were, but I felt hidden away, cut off and squashed — with the textbook guilt-ridden layer of: who are you to complain?

In March, everything started to become very clear. I was needing a big change. Two major things happened following my anxious spell. I said no to most of the outwardly shiny jobs that were coming my way and I signed up to take a life-coach training course*. And, I met up with Farrah Storr (former ELLE editor and head of partnerships for Substack UK) for lunch who told me all about Substack, a place to earn money from writing. A place where writers could get back to just the words.

I didn’t realise it at the time, but these two things — coaching and Substack — would become the anchor for the rest of my year. And with both new exciting things added to my life, I felt lighter, better, less anxious, brave, excited and open. Whether it meant to or not, my panic attack pushed me in a new direction. A new career pivot. I like to think my body and mind were on my side somehow.

Learning to be a coach has enabled me to help others more directly, using what I already had in my toolbox. Substack has provided a safe place to connect.

So, why am I telling you this? Well, it’s a taste of what you get on this Substack. A space where I can be more honest (more so over on the paid community). I can speak openly about life, business, everything in between. On Instagram I just share glossy photos still because I’ve never quite worked out how to use it. It’s different here; over the last six months I’ve woken up excited to write for you. I needed something new, a place to write often, a place to grow — and I know I’m not alone in wanting a safe space to connect.

To celebrate these six brilliant months, I am offering 25% off a paying membership for a year. This is what you get:

• Access to my Sunday Scroll newsletters (a round-up of fascinating articles to read plus book/pod recs, to save you scrolling)

• Access to my Tuesday Threads — every week we discuss a topic as a community, be it comparison, favourite pieces of advice or tips on how to say no.

• The Hyphen Book Clinic — a monthly forum to discuss books with each other, giving specific recommendations based on what people in the group are looking for.

• Articles by me and guest columns — most writing on this newsletter goes behind a paywall, so you’d be accessing all future articles and everything in the archive.

• Plus, book giveaways, access to my new work/books first, and access to the comment section.

• *And re: life-coaching! I’m aiming to take on clients in early 2023. By becoming a paying Substack member you will be in the place to know more about this.

  Thanks for being here — and here’s to Substack, a new way to write, communicate and build a community. It’s been a really fantastic six months and I’m excited for what’s to come.