We built the community we were missing ourselves
We started this community because we are on this path ourselves, dealing every day with the charms and the tectonic shifts this new phase of life brings. We learned how big the challenge is, and we felt isolated, misunderstood and alone, without a space to share our experiences or a proper understanding of what was actually happening to us. And how are we supposed to ask for support when we do not even know what we are going through.
We gather as a community to complain a little :), but also to swap the different options for relief, so we come out of it stronger and more valuable, to ourselves and to others, alongside the experts we need.
Believe us when we say you have not “cracked”, “lost your focus”, “become difficult” or “grown less capable than before”, even though we know it can feel as if you are not yourself any more and you often do not recognise yourself.
You are simply in a phase of life that nobody taught us to talk about, to recognise or to handle, and least of all at work. At the same time, the right professional help, support and understanding are missing too. Perhaps you have heard from your own doctors that you are “exaggerating”, that you should “put up with it”, that you are “too young for that”, along with all sorts of comparisons to our grandmothers.
We will not be superficial or judgemental (towards ourselves). We will try to understand each other and take meaningful steps forward.
How we see this community
You are not alone
What you feel is felt by many other women too, they were simply never taught or encouraged to talk about it.
A safe space
“What happens at the meetup stays at the meetup.” No judgement, no shame, no one-upmanship.
Knowledge is strength
We share verified information and experiences, so it is easier to talk to your doctor, your employer and yourself.
Milica and Tijana
Two women who wanted a conversation they could not find, so they created it themselves.
Milica Lubinić
Milica Lubinić is an ICF certified coach, an organisational development consultant and a change management lead, with more than ten years of experience working with teams, leaders and organisations across Europe. She believes real change happens when people are given the space to be honest, with themselves and with each other.
She built her career helping companies, teams and individuals inside a system discover what is slowing them down, co-create better solutions and build a culture where people can grow. She works with startups, corporations and leaders, and all of her work shares the same approach: the right questions, no ready-made answers, and deep respect for the people she works with.
Alongside that, she has years of personal experience with somatic experiencing therapy, an approach that helps a person get to know their own body, the ways they cope with challenges, and how to work with it as well as possible.
Milica is on this path herself, learning every day about perimenopause, about herself and about her own capacity, and that is exactly why she believes in the power of spaces where we can be vulnerable, curious and a support to one another. She organises and facilitates this meetup because she knows how much it means to have someone who listens, does not judge, and helps you find a way forward.
Tijana Karaklić
Tijana Karaklić is a certified coach, a somatic and kundalini yoga instructor and the founder of Flowrish, a space where coaching meets the body, the breath and movement, so we can move through life's transitions more easily and come out of them stronger.
She has more than 25 years of experience in international corporate environments, in supply chain, business excellence, people development and change management. Today, through Flowrish, she works with women, leaders and teams who want more clarity, more presence and a more authentic way of leading themselves and others.
Her personal and professional story has been turbulent, and for a long time it has circled one question: what happens when the body refuses to stay quiet, while we keep trying to function as if nothing is changing? Her own experience of perimenopause over the past few years shook her deeply. Tijana realised how enormous the change is and how little we know about this phase. She saw first hand how much she, and many women who are informed, capable, organised and used to carrying big responsibilities, can be taken by surprise by changes in the body, sleep, energy, focus, emotions and confidence. How much it shakes us on every possible level, all the way down to our sense of identity.
That is why this meetup is not just another project for her. It is a passion, a wish, a drive to help, to make space for an honest conversation about what so many women go through quietly, while still running meetings, teams, families, projects and lives.
Tijana believes the body knows long before the mind can explain. And that in this phase of life especially, we need less proving that “we can do it all” and more space to hear ourselves, hear each other, and find ways to keep going: stronger, more honestly and more in tune with ourselves.
Come and meet us
No pressure. Come exactly as you are and choose how, or whether, you want to take part or simply listen.