While interviewing actress and Soulful Sunday teacher Julie Nimmo about the benefits of wild water swimming I realise there’s another recurring theme which I want to explore further. She is a fierce advocate for women; their wellbeing, their rights and their journey through life.
‘We’re the generation changing the idea that we’re ever too old to do something. It’s like women in their 50s are linking up. We’re having a kind of revolution and it’s fantastic. I’m right at the front. We talk about change and things getting more equal but they’re not. We’ve got miles to go. At this age we’ve got a golden opportunity to set the bar for the ones coming behind us.’
It's music to my ears and we soon find ourselves going head long into a conversation about the issues facing women in the middle years and how we find comfort in knowing we’re not alone.
‘I have a newfound respect for women. At this stage I look at all women and think they’re absolutely amazing. You look at all the stuff in life that makes women women and then you get to this age and realise there’s more to go through. I look at older women now and wonder what they’ve seen and what they’ve done. What have they endured? Women just keep going and they turn up and they make each other laugh. They’re amazing.’
Making a conscious effort to connect with others is a priority for Julie, and it’s something which she brings to all areas of her life.
‘Greg’s (husband Greg Hemphill) Mum used to say you’re never too old to make new friends and I carry that with me. Now when I do a play at the theatre I might think the play’s great but if I get a new pal out of it I’m over the moon. It’s important to make time to make the connections. I put my phone down in the tea break because I know I’m not going to be with the same people next month and so I want to know more about them while we’re together.’
Similarly, through her Soulful Sunday sessions she promotes not only physical, emotional and mental wellbeing but also social wellbeing by creating a sense of community which encourages people to forge new friendships.
‘Soulful Sunday is about connection, belief and community. I emphasise that at every session. I used to go on my own and every time I did I met someone new to talk to. The fact that they’ve all turned up there in the first place means they all have something in common. They all want to feel better otherwise they’d still be in their beds. And the fact that they’ve not joined a gym means they all want to be outside.’
Training to be a yoga teacher, leading Soulful Sunday sessions and filming Jules and Greg’s Wild Swims are all new directions in Julie’s life which embrace a renewed focus on wellbeing and a determination to reclaim parts of herself which got lost along the way.
‘If you’d told me at 40 that I would be doing this I’d tell you that you had the wrong person but it actually makes sense when I stop and think about it. When I was a wee girl I never sat still. I was outside all the time, I was in the water every chance I got and you forget that. Something happens in the middle and you get caught up in life - your sense of adventure goes down. One of the lovely things which comes at this stage is trying to get an adventure for yourself again, whatever it might be. I’ve got time now to do these things which I wouldn’t have had time for before.’
With the menopause years bringing a whole host of new challenges it can feel overwhelming and that’s where, as Julie explains, taking control in whatever way you can, and knowing you’re not alone in the struggle, can help you find your way through to the other side and beyond.
‘The nutrition side of the menopause is massive. I’ve started buying things like sunflowers seeds and pumpkin seeds – I’m eating like a gerbil but guess what, they work,’ she laughs.
‘Rolled oats work. Smoothies, dumping diet coke for water – it all works. You start changing how you’re feeling and that’s addictive. I can’t drink as much as I used to, it feeds into my anxiety, and then the sleep’s out the window during the menopause if you’re not on HRT - absolute nightmare. So get outside, do all the free stuff. Ask yourself what you can do. You can put on a pair of shorts and go for a walk with the dog - my dog’s never been fitter in her life. Leave that pile of ironing and decide you’re going to go for a walk and come back feeling better. That’s what you need to do. Women are the worst for telling themselves that they’re selfish if they take time out for themselves. We’re not. It’s about recharging the batteries. That’s what we all need to start doing and we need to start supporting each other to do it too. It’s about realising that we need to be stronger to deal with everything. We need to be happier. It’s about making a mindful change.’
For Julie, wild water swimming has been the thing which has given her that time to herself along with countless health benefits, a renewed sense of adventure and the chance to connect with a whole new community of women who are all supporting each other. I ask her if she has seen the benefits of wild water swimming impacting across other areas of her life, for example her work in television and most recently on stage at the Glasgow’s Tron Theatre, and it’s a resounding yes: it has boosted her confidence at a time when menopausal symptoms such as brain fog could have crushed it instead.
‘I nearly turned down that play at the Tron. When I got sent the script all I could think was what if I can’t remember my lines? TV’s a different discipline because you can get another take at it but when you’re live on stage in front of 280 people at the Tron, I don’t want to be the one who dries up. I was scared I wasn’t going to be able to remember the words but in the end that’s one of the reasons I took it – I knew I had to push myself. I needed to dig in deep. I was proud of myself because I said yes to it and I loved it. You think you can’t do something, but you can - you just need to push yourself a bit harder. You can do it. We can do hard things. And if I hadn’t done that play I would have gone to see it and absolutely kicked myself.’
Listening to her is a reminder that as women, particularly in the middle years, we have to work hard to bring our resilience to whatever it is we’re doing. We also have to develop an unshakeable commitment to ourselves, our wellbeing and each other and it’s the focus on each other that Julie re-iterates as our inspirational conversation comes to an end.
‘Being a woman is relentless. Keep you friendships up. Surround yourself with the women who love you and get rid of the ones who don’t. Find your tribe and keep them close.’
