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In this episode of Spainly Living, Michelle speaks with Julia, originally from the United States, about leaving behind a successful life in Boston and moving to Spain with her husband and young children in search of safety, time, community, family connection and a more meaningful definition of success.

Julia shares how motherhood changed everything for her. After growing up in the Midwestern United States and spending much of her adult life between New York and Boston, she had built a life that looked successful on paper. She had a good job at Boston University, her husband worked at Harvard University, they owned a home, and they had started their family. But after becoming a mother during the pandemic, Julia realised that the life she was living no longer matched the life she wanted.

They discuss how the Camino de Santiago first planted the seed for moving to Spain. Julia and her then boyfriend, now husband, walked the Camino together and became engaged at the end of the journey. Years later, after the birth of their son, they decided to stop talking about the dream and start making it real.

Julia gives an honest account of applying for the Spanish non lucrative visa from the United States before the digital nomad visa was available and taking a leap of faith before the visa was fully secured, and using the proceeds of the sale to fund their move to Spain. This episode is especially useful for Americans moving to Spain and families relocating to Spain.

Julia shares how her family first lived in Mallorca, then Sevilla, then the coast of Granada, before finally settling near Alicante in Elche. She explains how each move was shaped by practical needs, cost of living, public transport, schools, language, community, work opportunities and her son’s needs as a neurodivergent child. She also reflects on the importance of choosing a place based not only on beauty, but on whether it truly works for your family.

Michelle and Julia also talk about giving birth in Spain. Julia shares her experience of pregnancy, maternity care, Spanish hospitals, language barriers, regional dialects, midwives, birth trauma, advocacy and the importance of having support during one of the most vulnerable moments in a woman’s life. Her own experience eventually led her to create Birth in Spain, a business supporting women through pregnancy, birth, postpartum, lactation and community building in Spain.

They also discuss the practical and emotional reality of becoming self employed in Spain. Julia explains how she moved from the non lucrative visa to the autónomo route, the challenges of building a business plan, dealing with Spanish bureaucracy, paying taxes, working with a gestor and creating a business that supports other women while allowing her family to remain in Spain.

This episode also explores the deeper reasons families choose Spain, including safety, healthcare, public spaces, playgrounds, slower living, bilingual children, cultural expansion, community, Mediterranean lifestyle and the feeling of raising children in a place where family life is valued.

Whether you are dreaming of moving to Spain from the United States, planning a family relocation, considering the non lucrative visa, exploring self employment in Spain, preparing to give birth in Spain or simply wondering whether there is another way to live, this episode is a thoughtful, honest and inspiring conversation about courage, reinvention and building a life that truly fits.