Claire King - The Uncluttered Mind

22/06/2026

Three guesses where I've spent my morning?

I've always known I have quite a high pain threshold. Ten days ago I had a fall and, since then, I've carried on as normal. I've worked, decorated my living room, walked the dogs, and generally got on with my daily life.

Over the last couple of days though, I noticed I'd started losing strength in my wrist. There was also a constant little ni**le that didn't seem to be improving.

So, this morning I finally went for an X-ray.
Turns out that "little ni**le" is actually a fractured radius. 🤦‍♀️

The upside is that I've timed it perfectly with annual leave, so I'm now I've put myself under strict instructions to rest for a week.

Not exactly how I planned to spend my holiday, but perhaps it's a reminder that sometimes our bodies whisper before they start shouting.

Anyone else ever carried on as normal only to discover you'd been more injured than you realised?

22/06/2026

21/06/2026

☀️ The Summer Solstice Reflection

The longest day of the year has arrived and while there's lots of posts on social media saying this is the perfect time to set new goals, reinvent yourself or "make the most of summer"...

Let's do something different, I always feel like the energy today is softer, lighter and just a little bit magical ✨️

So I'm asking you as you read this to take a gentle breath in.....unclench your jaw ..... let your shoulders drop ......slowly exhale & pause for a moment to simple relax in your surroundings and take a moment to notice just how far you've already come.

Because chances are if you're reading this, you're navigating perimenopause or menopause right now and the last six months may have felt like A LOT.

You may have found yourself lying awake at 3am, exhausted but unable to switch off your overactive brain

You may have looked in the mirror and wondered where your youth & confidence went?

You may have felt overwhelmed by things that never used to bother you?

You may have spent months trying to hold everything together while quietly feeling unlike yourself?

and hoping there is some magic supplement that will make all your symptoms go away (spoiler alert) but there's not!

However, you're still here, stronger and more resilient than you know.

It's okay that you've not got it all figured out, there's no such thing as a perfect life and 'being happy' all the time

The Summer Solstice has long been seen as a time of reflection. A moment to pause between what has been and what comes next.

🌿Instead of asking:

What haven't I achieved? What do I need to get done?

Ask yourself:

What small moments have I enjoyed?
What have I learned about myself?
What good things would I like more of for the rest of this year?
What can I stop carrying once and for all?

🌿Perhaps the most important question is:

What would make the next six months feel gentler?
Not more productive.
Just easier......

Menopause isn't simply a hormonal transition, for lots of us it's an identity transition too.

A chapter of rediscovering who you are beneath the expectations, responsibilities and roles you've carried for years.

✨️And that deserves recognition & patience.
So today, give yourself permission to pause....
To breathe....
To acknowledge that you've come so much further than you think.

Claire x

🌿 The Uncluttered Mind

If you've been feeling overwhelmed, anxious, disconnected from yourself or struggling with sleep, consider this your gentle reminder that you're not alone 🫶

17/06/2026

🌿 If you're missing the version of yourself that used to get excited about your life, and feel like you're just surviving and not really living, I'm here to help you find your spark and rediscover what it is you actually want.

16/06/2026

We've all heard the saying "Mind over matter" and this refection from Kirsty KnowU Wellbeing really highlights this.

We are all capable of achieving so much more if we let go of the "I can't", the "but's" and the "what ifs"

Ask yourself "what is one small change I can make today, to move me towards becoming the person I want to be?" and keep doing this Every Single Day, eventually you will become her ✨️

I've been enjoying swimming a bit more lately and this morning I swapped my usual routine for a swim at Phoenix Leisure Centre

Fifty lengths, 15 minutes in the sauna, 10 minutes in the steam room, and a walk home later, I found myself reflecting on a couple of conversations I'd had during the morning.

I chatted to two different people, both of whom had received life changing diagnoses several years ago.

One was diagnosed 14 years ago, the other 9 years ago.

What struck me wasn't their diagnoses. It was their mindset.

Neither conversation focused on what they couldn't do.

Instead, it was about what they could do, how they could adapt, and how they continue to work with the support around them to be the strongest, healthiest versions of themselves.

One spoke warmly about the support they receive from the team at Phoenix. The other about working closely with the team there and their physiotherapist to maintain strength, mobility and independence.

It reminded me of a simple phrase I've seen before:

Take the "T" off CAN'T and you get CAN.

Or perhaps even better:

Replace "I can't" with "How can I?"

As I left, the Aqua aerobics class was really getting going and it all just made sense.

Wellbeing isn't always about fixing what's wrong.

Sometimes it's about recognising what is still possible, finding the right support, and focusing on what you can do next.

A simple shift from "I can't" to "How can I?" can change everything.

So when was the last time you paused, checked in with yourself, and thought about where you're at right now?

Not what you can't do.

What you can do next. 💙

15/06/2026

♀️ Why hydration is a game changer during menopause from the perspective of a qualified cognitive behavioural hypnotherapist and menopause coach

🚰 Hydration is one of the 4 core pillars of menopause management. Water isn't just for quenching your thirst, its a critical tool for regulating the nervous system, managing your body's internal thermostat & stabilizing your mental and emotional wellbeing.

Here's why staying hydrated is an absolute game changer:

🌿1. Calming the Nervous System & Reducing Hot Flushes

Oestrogen plays a major role in how your hypothalamus (the brain's thermostat) manages your body temp. As oestrogen levels drops you become more sensitive to heat. Dehydration makes it even harder for your body to cool down and can increase the severity of your hot flushes.

When I'm working with clients, we use mental imagery during hypnosis to "turn down" the heat of their hot flushes. Keeping well-hydrated ensures your neurological pathways are firing optimally, allowing these visual and calming techniques to work much more effectively.

🧠 2. Sharpening Your Mind against "Brain Fog"
Your brain is roughly 80% water. Even mild dehydration (as little as 2%) can shrink brain tissue, leading to lower concentration, poor memory recall and heightened irritability.

😊 3. Stabilizing Mood & Lowering Stress
Dehydration acts as a physical stressor on the body, which increases the production of cortisol (a stress hormone).
Elevated cortisol increases both anxiety and mood swings.

Proper hydration is necessary for serotonin production. Staying hydrated supports your emotional resilience, making it easier to reframe negative thought patterns and manage the psychological challenges of midlife which are key to stress management and resilience building.

🍲 4. Supporting Digestion
Hormonal shifts naturally slow down your gut mobility. Water is the primary vehicle to help dietary fiber form a gel-like substance, which aids digestion and helps to reduce bloating and constipation.

Oestrogen helps lubricate your joints. Dehydration exacerbates joint stiffness and pain, for me if I don't stay hydrated, I notice it in my knees straight away!

♀️ 5. Bladder Health
Urinary Urgency: It might feel counterintuitive, but concentrating your urine by not drinking enough water can actively irritate your bladder lining, worsening incontinence and increasing the risk of UTIs.

📍Top Tip: Thirst signals diminish with age. Focus on incorporating daily micro-habits.
The bottle I have in the video reminds me to have 10 sips every 2 hours, which is completely do-able and psychologically sounds a lot easier than "I've got to drink 1.5 litres today"

I also top my levels up with a decaff coffee in the morning and non-alcoholic rhubarb & ginger spritzer, if I fancy something cheeky.

If you decide to try this yourself, the water bottles can be purchased both online and in all major supermarkets. I'd love you to let me know how quickly you notice positive changes ✨️

11/06/2026

🧁🍫🍪🧀 There’s a moment that can feel quite confusing when it keeps happening....

You’re not even remotely hungry and even though you know this, you find yourself hunting through the cupboard / fridge anyway. In our house we joke that we're 'hunting for truffles' (cue snorting piglet sounds). In a family environment it becomes acceptable, funny even.

But when you're on your own? It's usually after some random thought has popped into your head, or halfway through the afternoon, or perhaps when you're feeling a bit bored. There’s a pull towards food that feels like its come out of nowhere.

By the time you properly notice it, you’re already munching away on whatever came to hand.

Once you've shovelled it in and quite soon after, there's that feeling of guilt and shame and you're asking yourself “why did I do that again????” Because part of you already knows it has nothing to do with food.

Your brain has learned that food quickly changes how you feel. It's become your go to instant relief strategy, so when something feels off, or it's too quiet, it automatically goes there.

This is how the pattern builds and is reinforced. Once you begin to understand that, it becomes something we can actually change, rather than something you keep trying and failing to control.

If this resonates, you’re not alone, it's nothing to feel guilty about because habits can be broken. I know, I've been there!!!

10/06/2026

🌿I wonder, How many times have you said to yourself:
“I want to… but not right now.”
“I want to… but it’s probably too expensive.”

Those thoughts sound convincing and sensible but this is the truth:

Talking yourself out of things doesn’t protect you. It keeps your life small,nothing changes and it restricts your personal growth.

This has happened to me too… in my work & in my own life. You may genuinely feel like you WANT change but never quite make the move.

Your thoughts usually sound really reasonable, they're familiar, safe and make perfect sesnse to you and that's why they're so powerful.

Whats actually going on, is your thoughts trying to keep you safe from feeling FEAR

Fear doesn’t always shout “Don’t do it.”
Right now its probably whispering:
“What if I can't do it?”
“Maybe later.”
"What will everyone think?"
"I'm not good enough"

Your brain is there scanning for danger. Imagining what could go wrong and proiritising what it thinks are threats instead of what you want and need to make yourself happy.

That worked brilliantly thousands of years ago when survival meant hiding from bears and hunting for food and shelter. But in 2026? Not so much!

However your brain has nt caught up with these evolutionary changes and it is still running on those same survival instincts and applying them to your daily decisions, health choices, emotional risks and difficult conversations.

This is why any negative possibilities light up your brain faster than positive ones, they feel like facts that are both true and important, meaning your fears quietly gets promoted to your being the deciding factor in making decisions.

Once you notice yourself following this pattern and question those thoughts, they start to lose their power and you get to choose differently, choosing what will make you feel happy, excited and what will help you grow and move out of your comfort zone 🙌

💬 What’s something you’ve been saying “yes, but…” to?
Go ahead and let me know in the comments.

Warmly,
Claire

P.S. Quick note 🌿If you've been thinking about talking to me and you’ve been feeling stuck or in transition, send me a dm or click 'Book Now'

21/05/2026

What is something you used to tolerate, that you absolutely would not now?

And this can apply to work, home, family, or relationships, because boundaries are important.

For a lot of us women in their 40s and 50s, the answer changes, one of the best bits about feeling hot & angry, is that we are less likely to put up with up other people's BS 🙌

However, if you're not at that stage and are struggling with:
Constantly people-pleasing.
Feel like you're running on empty.
Are being spoken to badly.
Saying "yes" when you really mean a big fat "No"
If your current workplace expects too much & you to sacrifice your own wellbeing.
Girl, you need to set yourself some

☆ BOUNDARIES☆

They aren’t selfish and they tell you what your mind and body can no longer tolerate without consequences to your health and overall wellbeing (emotionally, physically & mentally)

I’d genuinely love to know, what’s something you no longer tolerate now that you once accepted as normal?
(And did setting that boundary change anything for you?)

📍Ps: If boundaries are something you know you genuinely struggle with, I'd love to help you.

19/05/2026

Sometimes it’s the quiet, daily habits that slowly wear your mind down.

Do you find yourself overthinking? Talking yourself out of things before you’ve even tried? Comparing yourself to everyone else, who looks like their happy and got their everyday 💩together, which makes you feel even worse? Are you putting your kids, partner, parents & work first, then silently wondering why you feel knackered, angry and fed up?

During peri-menopause your hormones can affect your sleep, which makes anxiety, focus and emotional regulation a lot harder to cope with… your mind often starts feeding on fear without you even noticing.

So you run your life on Fear-based decisions & Negative self-talk. Keeping your life quiet & small because it feels safer and comfortable... Living in survival mode instead of actually enjoying your life.

🌿However your mind can also be nurtured. Not by pretending everything is perfect… but through small, steady habits that help your nervous system feel safe again.

Start by Protecting your peace and learning to challenge anxious thoughts because

⚡️Newsflash : You dont have to believe every single thought you have!!!

Let yourself rest without feeling guilty.
Spend time with supportive people, not the ones who drain your energy or annoy you.
Try Speaking to yourself with more compassion and love (the way you speak to children)
Try doing one small brave thing instead of avoiding everything that scares you.

✨️Your mind listens to what you repeatedly feed it.

The average person has 165,000 thoughts a day and 95% of those are the same thoughts as you had the day before!

And no, you won’t get this perfect every day. NONE of us do.

🌿Small, tiny shifts repeated every single day will change how you feel emotionally, mentally and physically over time and If you'd like to know more on how I can help you with this, pop me a dm

❓️Which side of this picture do you recognise in yourself lately?