Travel as a Prescription

Why Solo Travel Is the Circuit-Breaker Every Woman Deserves in Mid-life

If you’ve spent the last 20 years carrying everyone else’s calendar, energy, and wellbeing – this is your sign.

It’s time to put yourself back in the picture.
To step away from the mental load – and step into the version of your life that still includes you.

“Sometimes the most important appointment is with yourself.”

Because after decades of doing it all, the most underrated form of healthcare for women in mid-life might just be this:
Solo travel.
Not a holiday. Not a disappearing act.
But A Grown Up’s Gap Year – or even a grown-up week – designed around rediscovering your agency, taking a rest, resetting to find clarity, and, yes, your turn for space.

I like to call this:

“Travel as a prescription”.

You can tell your loved ones when you deliver your departure news, ‘it’s mandated by Monique’.

The Rise of the Solo Women’s Travel As A Reset

Post-pandemic, solo women’s travel has surged more than 230% globally. And it’s not just about escaping – it’s about putting yourself back on the centre stage of your life.

And if this is something that has you reaching for a travel booking App, well you are not alone.

Women over 40 are driving the rise in:

wellbeing retreats and nature-based wellness escapes
travel to inspire and walking pilgrimages
solo hiking and adventure-lite (my version of adventure generally does not involve a tent)
and micro-getaways with a very different goal: clarity, not content.

It’s about feeling better.
It’s about choosing wellbeing travel that’s designed for real life, real seasons, and real recovery.

What Is a Travel Prescription?

It’s exactly what it sounds like – and no GP visit required.

As I shared in my bestselling book A Grown Up’s Gap Year, I didn’t need to dismantle my life to reclaim it. I just needed a circuit-breaker.

I booked a solo trip.
Packed a notebook.
And let the silence and serendipity do their thing.

What followed was a kind of reset I hadn’t found in decades of being productive.
Clarity. Courage. Creativity for my future possibilities..
And a blueprint for what I now call YOUR TURN | YOUR SPACE guide – a reinvigoration practice that’s become the basis of my podcast, book, and soon, The Clinic retreats.

The Science: Why It Works

If you’re wondering whether this is just a feel-good fad – it’s not.

Research now shows that purposeful novelty, awe, and solitude directly improve:

mood regulation
memory and cognitive flexibility
sleep and circadian rhythms
and even biomarkers for healthy ageing
Dr Dacher Keltner calls it the awe effect.
Dan Buettner’s Blue Zones call it purpose-based longevity.
The wellness travel industry is finally catching up.

The future of intentional tourism – curated, human-first, and designed to help people actually feel better.

Your Grown Up’s Gap Year Might Begin With One Night Away

This isn’t about flying to Florence next week (although I won’t stop you).
Your reset might start closer to home.

Here’s your permission slip – and your grown up’s travel prescription, personalised:

TRY THIS:

Book one night away – just you. No partner. Farm out the logistics (do a friend swap – you will find ideas in the Solo Travel podcast episode).
Choose somewhere in nature and with serenity.
Don’t fill the schedule. Let rest and randomness in.
Pack a notebook. Turn your phone on Do Not Disturb.
Watch what happens.
(Then maybe do it again.)

Wellbeing Travel Is Not the Same as Wellness Cliché

This isn’t about green smoothies and overpriced retreats.
It’s about finding your version of space.

A Grown Up’s Gap Year is whatever you need it to be:

a few days solo at the beach
a forest therapy escape (Shinrin-yoku) retreat
a house-swap in the country
a rail pass and a notepad
or simply a commitment to be alone with your thoughts – and not be interrupted for a few hours

It’s the start of a new conversation with yourself — the one that begins:
“What do I need next?”

Why This Matters (And Always Will)

Because when women step away – we return differently.
More rested. More creative. Less resentful.
More likely to make bold moves with clarity, not chaos.

And that ripple doesn’t just change our lives – it changes our households.
Our partnerships. Our parenting. Our leadership.

It’s your turn

YOUR TURN to choose your version of A Grown Up’s Gap Year.
YOUR TURN to write your own prescription.
YOUR TURN to stop waiting for things to line up perfectly.

You don’t need a diagnosis to feel depleted.
You need a room of your own – and YOUR SPACE..