Is your dress size holding back your career? In this episode of Females Thriving Over 30, Soraya and Jasmine sit down with Rachael Hunt, TEDx speaker, marketing manager and the voice behind Fat Funny Marketer, to talk honestly about plus size discrimination in the workplace and the weight bias women face in business.

Rachael shares what it's really like to be a plus size woman at work: being told at seven she couldn't be an actor because she was fat, comments about her lunch from colleagues, and being the only person in the office not offered a free gym membership. We unpack the research showing plus size women are less likely to be promoted, more likely to be paid less and unfairly labelled lazy, even though they often work longer hours to prove themselves.

We also get into diet culture, "almond mums," body image and body dysmorphia, the double standards women face as they age, and why Bridget Jones, a 58kg woman with her own London flat and a great career, was sold to us as a cautionary tale. Plus: how social media changed the way millennials see themselves, dealing with trolls and online hate, building a personal brand when you're scared of judgement, and the one phrase that shuts down an offensive "joke" every time.

If you've ever put your life on hold until you look a certain way, this one's for you. Your body size should never decide the size of your opportunities.

In this episode:

- Plus size discrimination and weight bias in the workplace

- Why plus size women are paid less and promoted less

- Diet culture, almond mums and body image

- The Bridget Jones weight debate and media beauty standards

- Confidence in your 30s and why your thirties are for being yourself

- Handling online trolls and building a personal brand

- How to respond when someone makes a comment about your body

Connect with Rachael:

LinkedIn: Rachael Hunt

Instagram & TikTok: @fatfunnymarketer

Females Thriving Over 30 is the podcast for women in their thirties, forties, fifties and beyond, and for the twenty-somethings quietly dreading the big 3-0. Spoiler: the best is yet to come. Every week we're proving that each decade brings more confidence, more clarity and more fun than the last, while we talk career, identity, self-worth and building a life that feels as good as it looks.

Sponsorship, guest and speaking enquiries: fto30podcast@gmail.com

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Have you ever gone through something that changed you so completely that the person you were before feels like someone else? Grief, a relationship ending, a career change, miscarriage, IVF, becoming a mum or not becoming one: after a major life change we're told to "get our confidence back." But what if confidence isn't really what we've lost?

This week, Soraya and Jasmine are joined by Tabby Kerwin, consultant psychologist, author, TEDx speaker and widow, who shares why widowhood made her happier and why rebuilding after loss starts with self-trust, not confidence.

We talk about:
• Why you can be happy and sad at the same time
• The "positivity pyramid": how self-kindness and self-compassion build self-trust, confidence and happiness
• The simple "Will I regret it?" filter for making decisions without needing other people's approval
• Guilt, relief, shame and the fear of other people's opinions after loss
• Why grief isn't a bereavement issue but a long-term mental health reality
• Grief in the workplace and how to become a grief-informed leader
• Miscarriage, IVF and why there are no "levels" of grief, only layers
• The two worst words to say to someone who's grieving
• Why grief education needs to start in schools

Plus, Soraya shares an update on living with endometriosis and getting approved for an access card, and Jasmine reveals the surprising toothpaste swap that changed her mouth health.

Whatever you've lost, if it feels like grief to you, it is grief, and you deserve support.

🔗 Connect with Tabby:

Website - www.tabbykerwin.co.uk

Insta & TT - @tabbykerwin

For widows: Insta & TT @widowhoodmademehappier

Free Grief and Mental Health Resources: www.theperformexperience.com

Insta & TT - @theperformexperience 💛 UK grief support: The Good Grief Trust & Cruse Bereavement Care

🎟️ Join us LIVE on 28 November! Grab your tickets (VIP includes an elevator-pitch speaking slot). Ticket can be bought ⁠⁠here

📩 Sponsorship & speaking: ⁠fto30podcast@gmail.com⁠

Females Thriving Over 30 is the podcast for women in their thirties, forties, fifties and beyond, and for the twenty-somethings quietly dreading the big 3-0. Spoiler: the best is yet to come.

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Cornell sexual assault lawsuit: what's alleged, why the case is back in the headlines, and why so many women still don't feel safe.

Content note: this episode discusses sexual assault. Please skip if that's not something you want to hear today.

A former Cornell student alleges she was drugged and sexually assaulted at the Chi Phi fraternity house in 2024. Her civil lawsuit is now public, prosecutors have reopened the case, and the internet is asking how it was handled. (Cornell disputes that essays were the only consequence and says the allegations were investigated under its policies. These are allegations, and the legal process is ongoing.)

Our guest cancelled at the last minute, so Soraya and Jasmine had the conversation that needed to happen. In this episode:

- What the Cornell lawsuit alleges and why it has sparked such anger

- Why women are still told to take every precaution while accountability lags behind

- The bystander effect: what it means when a whole group chat stays silent

- Why women don't report, and why reporting still matters, including to the police

- Elite universities, institutions protecting themselves, and The Hunting Ground and Promising Young Woman

- Is violence against women escalating? Social media, the manosphere and the under-16 ban debate

- The New York video that asked women what they'd do if they were guaranteed safe for a day

- More stories that show how often women aren't listened to, including the Tokyo Medical University admissions scandal

- What we can actually do: speak up, don't assume someone else has reported it, and teach both boys and girls

Females Thriving Over 30 is the podcast for women in their thirties, forties, fifties and beyond, and for the twenty-somethings quietly dreading the big 3-0. Every week we talk career, identity, self-worth and building a life that feels as good as it looks.

If this episode brings anything up: Rape Crisis England & Wales 0808 500 2222 | RAINN (US) 1-800-656-4673

Sponsorship, speaking and live event enquiries: fto30podcast@gmail.com

Follow along on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, and if this episode resonated, share it with a friend.

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