The Prescription Strength Podcast

You’ve finished cancer treatment.
Now what?
Most people default to being cautious — and for good reason. But when caution turns into inactivity, it quietly works against you.
In this episode:
Why fear and “being careful” can stall recovery

What inactivity does to muscle, fitness and long-term health

The evidence that exercise improves survival after cancer

How to rebuild safely with simple, structured movement

The shift:
Rest helped you survive.
Now it’s time to rebuild.

Start where you are — not where you were

Build confidence through small, repeatable steps

Aim for:
Regular walking

2 strength sessions per week

Fear will show up — that doesn’t mean you’re causing harm

Key Takeaways

In this episode, I’m joined by dietitian Victoria Schonwald to explore the link between eating disorders, malnutrition and brain function.

We discuss why restrictive eating doesn’t just affect the body—it changes the brain. And why, for many people, recovery isn’t about thinking differently first, but eating differently.

We cover:

How malnutrition affects mood, anxiety and thinking patterns

Why therapy alone can fall short without adequate nutrition

The rise of disordered eating in midlife women

The unintended consequences of weight loss injections

Orthorexia and the growing fear of “unhealthy” food

Why recovery is possible at any age

This is a practical, compassionate conversation about food, fear, and why the brain needs fuel to heal.

Eating disorders don’t just affect teenagers—and they don’t always go away.

In this episode, Rachel shares her experience of living with an eating disorder from adolescence into midlife, including how menopause and modern weight-loss culture triggered a relapse.

We talk about the difference between eating disorders and disordered eating, why many people don’t get help early enough, and what recovery really looks like in real life.

If your relationship with food has ever felt complicated, this will resonate.
We cover:
Eating disorders in midlife

Relapse and menopause

Diet culture and workplace conversations

Getting help (and barriers to it)

What recovery actually looks like

What if anxiety isn’t just something that happens to you — but something you unknowingly keep feeding?
In this episode, I’m joined by psychotherapist and bestselling author Owen O’Kane to talk about his book Addicted to Anxiety and why anxiety can become so hard to break free from.
We explore the habits that feel helpful in the moment — Googling symptoms, checking, avoiding, seeking reassurance — and why they often make anxiety worse over time.
We also discuss why anxious thoughts aren’t facts, how anxiety shows up in the body, and why learning to tolerate uncertainty is often the turning point.
In this episode we cover:
Why many people don’t realise how much anxiety is driving their behaviour

How reassurance, checking and avoidance reinforce anxiety

Why thoughts are not the problem — but what we do next is

The link between anxiety and physical symptoms

Why the body needs to be addressed, not just the mind

How walking and simple regulation strategies can help

Why anxiety is often learned — and can be unlearned

What it actually looks like to recover

If you’ve ever found yourself stuck in overthinking, symptom-Googling or needing constant reassurance, this episode will give you a very different way to understand anxiety — and a way forward.

Why Most People Over 50 End Up in A&E

Falls are one of the most overlooked threats to health and independence as we age—and they’re far more common (and serious) than most people realise.

In this Pocket Prescription episode, I explain why falls—not heart attacks—are one of the leading reasons people over 50 end up in A&E, and what actually happens after that fall that makes the difference between recovery and decline.

I cover:

Why falls are so dangerous (beyond just fractures)

The reality of hip fractures and loss of independence

The “long lie” and why being unable to get up can be life-threatening

The hospitalisation cascade: muscle loss, infections, and loss of confidence

Why falls risk increases with age (strength, balance, and sensory changes)

The surprising role of hearing loss in falls risk

Common hazards at home that are often missed

Most importantly, this episode focuses on what you can actually do:

How strength training reduces falls risk

Simple ways to improve balance at home

Why practising getting up off the floor matters

Practical changes to make your home safer

How to plan for a worst-case scenario

Falls are not just “bad luck” or clumsiness—they are predictable and, importantly, preventable.

If you want to stay independent, this is something worth paying attention to.

Links & resources:

Download my free Start Strength Safely plan

Join my weekly newsletter

Age UK home safety checklist (falls prevention)

You can also listen to my full conversation with A&E consultant Professor Rob Galloway on how to stay out of hospital.