21 Things to Let Go of in Your 50s Right Now (For a Lighter, Happier Life)
If you’re in your 50s, you’ve probably felt it — that pull toward wanting to feel lighter, clearer, and more at peace. Lately I’ve been telling my friends and family the same thing: I am cleansing — not just my home, but my mind and my spirit. And part of that cleansing has been letting go of things that feel heavy, outdated, or no longer aligned.
So if you’ve been searching for things to let go of in your 50s, you’re not alone. This decade brings powerful midlife mindset shifts — emotional, mental, and physical — and with it comes a deep desire to feel emotionally lighter and more grounded.
This isn’t about reinventing yourself in a dramatic way. It’s about releasing what weighs you down so you can move through life with more peace, clarity, and joy. Think of it as making midlife mindset shifts.
Below are 21 things to let go of in your 50s so you can step into your next chapter feeling free and fully connected to the woman you’re becoming.
21 Things to Let Go of in Your 50s
1. The Pressure to Be Everything to Everyone
You’ve spent decades being the helper, the steady one, the fixer, the glue.
In your 50s, that weight becomes too heavy — and that’s your cue to set it down.
Carrying everyone else is not your identity anymore.
2. Saying Yes When Your Spirit Wants to Say No
A “yes” that drains you is too expensive now.
A “no” that protects your peace is priceless.
Say no kindly. Say it early. Say it without guilt.
3. Relationships That Exhaust You
If someone constantly drains, diminishes, or destabilizes you…
you don’t have to keep making space for them.
Midlife is about adding peace, not fixing chaos.
4. Guilt for Choosing Yourself
This is the decade where you choose your health, your joy, your needs — not after everyone else, but first.
Let the guilt go. It was never yours.
5. Running on Empty and Calling It Normal
Survival mode is not a lifestyle plan.
Your 50s require a different fuel: rest, hydration, nutrition, strength training, softness, and slower mornings.
Your body is asking for care — not hustle.
If your weekends seem to disappear into chores and obligations, my Reset on the Weekend post can help you create small routines that bring your energy back instead of draining it.
6. Trying to Control Everything
The tight grip you once used to hold your world together?
It’s safe to loosen it.
Control is exhausting.
Peace lives in choosing what’s yours — and releasing what isn’t.
7. The Fear of Doing Life Differently
This is the decade of reinvention.
New routines.
New interests.
New friendships.
Doing things differently is not rebellion — it’s alignment.
8. The Belief That You’re “Too Old” to Start Something New
At 55 I picked up tennis.
At 56 I started lifting.
And in midlife, I started this blog.
You are not late.
Your brain is still adaptable.
Your story is still unfolding.
9. Carrying Other People’s Emotional Load
You can love people deeply without absorbing their stress, urgency, or chaos.
Support, yes.
Carry, no.
10. Perfectionism in Every Area of Life
Perfect routines.
Perfect meals.
Perfect home.
Perfect body.
Perfection is a weight.
Peace is freedom.
Choose peace.
11. Overthinking Every Decision
You’ve earned the right to trust your intuition.
Let overthinking retire — it’s served its time.
If overthinking is one of your habits to let go of after 50, you might love my Inner Coach vs Inner Critic post — it’s a gentle shift that makes decision-making feel emotionally lighter.
12. Shrinking Yourself to Make Others Comfortable
Your 50s are not the decade for disappearing.
They’re the decade for stepping into your fullness.
Own your wisdom and walk in your full expression.
13. Comparing Yourself to Younger Versions of You
Who you were at 25 was beautiful.
Who you are now is powerful.
Let go of the nostalgia that steals the joy of this moment.
14. Apologizing for Your Boundaries
A boundary is clarity — not rudeness.
And clarity is a kindness.
Stop explaining your “no.”
Say it.
Mean it.
Move on.
15. Believing Your Best Years Are Behind You
This belief weighs women down more than anything else.
You are entering a chapter full of wisdom, freedom, and self-respect.
Your best years can absolutely be ahead of you.
16. Doing Everything the Hard Way
This is your ease era.
Let go of complicated systems, exhausting routines, and doing things out of obligation.
Choose what feels simple, aligned, and emotionally light.
17. Living on Autopilot
Half your emotional heaviness comes from routines that don’t serve you anymore.
Refresh your habits.
Choose intention over obligation.
If your days feel repetitive or heavy, my Tired of Routines post walks through simple, doable changes that make life feel less like a blur and more like something you’re actually living.
18. Holding Onto Roles You’ve Outgrown
Caretaker.
Peacekeeper.
Fixer.
Rescuer.
You can retire roles that drain your spirit.
19. Ignoring Your Body’s Signals
In your 50s, your body speaks loudly.
It tells you when to rest.
When to hydrate.
When to slow down.
Listening makes life lighter.
20. Pretending You Don’t Need Support
You don’t have to carry everything alone.
Asking for help is strength now.
21. The Belief That You Must Keep Carrying What’s Heavy
You don’t.
Let go of whatever is taking your joy, stealing your peace, or dimming your spirit.
Lightness begins when the load gets lighter.
And if you’re ready for an even deeper emotional release, my How to Feel Like Yourself Again at 50 post offers gentle steps for reconnecting with the parts of you that got lost along the way.
Before You Go — Your 50s Are Your Lightening Season
Letting go isn’t a loss — it’s a reclaiming.
A clearing out. It’s identifying things to stop doing in your 50s.
A choosing of the woman you’re becoming.
If you’ve been wondering how to feel emotionally lighter in midlife, start here:
Let go of what no longer fits — so you can rise into what’s next. 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽
Your next chapter can be your lightest one yet.
And your most joyful.
⭐ Related Post
If you’re craving even more lightness in this season of life, don’t stop here.
Continue your simplifying journey with the physical side of letting go. Check out Decluttering After 50 — a gentle, practical guide to clearing the spaces that shape your daily peace.
