Hosted by Jody Day, founder of Gateway Women and author of Living the Life Unexpected: How to Find Hope, Meaning and a Fulfilling Life Without Children (Bluebird/PanMac) with special guests Rachael Lloyd of eharmony UK and Melanie Notkin, founder of SavvyAuntie.com
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Sometimes being a single and childless woman can feel like a double-whammy in a society that privileges the rights of couples and mothers over the millions of wonderful women who are neither. And never has that felt more obvious than in this pandemic…
For this Gateway Women Masterclass Webinar, we’d like to explore the idea of ‘owning’ your single and childless identity as a way to reclaim your identity from the negative opinions of others (and maybe yourself too…)
“It promises to be a validating and empowering hour which will hold space for the sadness and difficulties arising from these mostly unchosen situations, as well as hopefully introducing you to new and supportive ways to make your peace with them.
Many single, childless women live their lives as if they are on ‘pause’ until real life begins; what would it be like if you could instead learn to celebrate and value your life today as well as holding space for a possible future partnership, should you wish that? And what if that is unlikely, undesirable or impossible for many different reasons? How do we affirm our worth in a society obsessed with what social scientist and singles-researcher Bella dePaulo has termed ‘matrimania’?
My guests for this webinar are two wonderful women I’ve known for years and who each bring their own personal and professional experiences of being childless due to not meeting the right partner as well as unchosen singleness. Both of them are shining examples of how to make peace with the way many modern women’s lives are turning out, without sugar-coating how hard that can be some days…
- Rachael Lloyd (UK) is a Senior PR and Communications Manager with eharmony UK and a long time supporter of Gateway Women, having reviewed Jody’s book for the British press. She is childless-by-circumstance and currently single and will share her own philosophy of how she makes that work for her. And with her eharmony hat on, she will also share insights into some fascinating research commissioned by e-Harmony about how online dating has changed during the pandemic – for the better, you’ll be pleased to know! You can also find Rachael on Instagram @love_by_rachael
- Melanie Notkin (US) is the founder of SAVVY AUNTIE: A Celebration of Modern Aunthood – a multiplatform lifestyle brand for cool aunts, great-aunts, godmothers and all women who love kids and a foremost expert in the U.S. on the emerging demographic of childless, often single, women. Her data and insights focus on the PANK (Professional Aunts No Kids) – the influential and growing female cohort she uncovered and coined in 2008. Melanie is the national bestselling author of Savvy Auntie: The Ultimate Guide for Cool Aunts, Great-Aunts, Godmothers, and All Women Who Love Kids (Morrow/2011). And her reported memoir, Otherhood: Modern Women Finding a New Kind of Happiness (Seal Press/Penguin Canada 2014) received a Booklist Starred Review. You can find Melanie on Instagram (and most other social media platforms) @SavvyAuntie
If you would like to explore more about being single and childless and get support around that, here are some more resources:
- Gateway Women hosts a very busy ‘Single Life‘ subgroup in the Gateway Women Online Membership Community
- Two of our members, Joss (50s) and Julie (60s) were interviewed for this Full Stop Podcast episode ‘Single & Childless in a Pandemic’
- Shani Silver of The Single Serving Podcast interviewed Jody in January 2021 – listen and/or read the transcript here
- Living the Life Unexpected, Jody’s book, includes a section on ‘Grieving Alone: Solo Women’s Grief’ in Chapter 4 which has been expanded in the 2020 2nd edition. Find out more here
- The Australian author Donna Ward was interviewed by Jody about her book, ‘She I Dare Not Name: A Spinster’s Meditations on Life’ Watch/listen/read transcript here
- Jody’s blog ‘Forty, Single & Childless – Dammit!’ here
- Jody’s blog: ‘Double Whammy: Single and Childless’ here
- Jody’s blog: ’40, Single & Childless, Dammit!’ here
What's your experience?