A Wellness Breakfast Celebrating Women Beyond What They Carry

Photo Credit: Supplied by Norleen Zulu

Norleen Zulu’s Woman Within Wellness Breakfast offered women a tender, transformative space to pause, reconnect, release what no longer serves them, and remember that they do not have to carry everything alone.

Johannesburg, South Africa (04 September 2026) – While early childhood development and children’s well-being remain at the heart of Norleen Zulu’s purpose, she recently turned her attention to those who carry, raise and give so much of themselves to young people: women.

Last Saturday, she had the privilege of hosting The Woman Within Wellness Breakfast, an intimate gathering shaped around a question that has long been at the heart of her work: What happens when we create space for the woman behind everything she does?

“As Women’s Month came to a close, I found myself reflecting on what felt like a deeply meaningful way to celebrate women, not simply by celebrating what we do, but by creating space to acknowledge who we are beyond what we do,” she shares.

For generations, women have been celebrated for how much they can carry: families, careers, businesses, relationships, expectations, grief and responsibility.

“We have become mothers, partners, daughters, caregivers, professionals, entrepreneurs and leaders. Yet, in celebrating everything we do, we do not always stop to ask: Who is caring for the woman carrying it all? That is the narrative I wanted to challenge.”

Norleen created Woman Within from a deeply personal conviction that women need spaces where they can stop performing and start reconnecting with themselves. Spaces where they do not have to arrive with all the answers or prove that they are strong. Spaces where they can simply be, fully, honestly and without apology.

The breakfast became that kind of space: a moment to pause, connect, reflect and, perhaps, begin finding a way back to the woman within, beyond all the hats she wears. A room full of women gathered around tables gradually became something far more sacred. It was softened by honest conversation, opened by shared experience and transformed into a space for healing, sharing, letting go and becoming.

“We arrived as women carrying different stories, responsibilities, wounds and hopes; we left having been reminded that none of us has to carry everything alone.”

One of the most powerful moments of the breakfast came from a single question: “What belief have you held on to that you are finally ready to let go of?”

The room grew emotional. Women cried, reflected and released. Long-held beliefs were named. Private burdens were acknowledged. Stories that had been carried quietly were brought into the light. Women began to offload, feel seen and, perhaps most importantly, realise they were not alone.

“In that moment, Woman Within came alive.”

Facilitators and keynote speakers Raeesa Essop Tayob, Anesu Mautsa, Nomfundo Madonsela, Dr Masooda Essop and Thato Ncube each helped shape the transformation of the space. They broke the awkwardness with warmth and intention, touched hearts with their honesty and wisdom, and offered experiential, interactive sessions that invited every woman to participate rather than simply observe.

For Norleen, the breakfast was also a reminder that the way we celebrate and support women must continue to evolve.

“Women’s Month in August is important, but our commitment to women cannot be confined to a single month, a campaign or a calendar of events. Celebration must become more deliberate. Support must become more consistent. Recognition must be embedded into the way we lead, work, build policy and shape our communities. Perhaps this even requires a policy addendum, a deliberate extension of our commitments beyond August, ensuring that women’s wellbeing, safety, development and visibility are not treated as seasonal priorities.”

Looking ahead, Norleen hopes to grow Woman Within into a platform of transformative wellness experiences for women; spaces where women can pause, learn, connect, release, rebuild and grow.

“I am not interested in simply creating beautiful events. I want to pioneer meaningful wellness spaces that genuinely help women live more whole lives. Because there is a woman within every woman. And sometimes, she simply needs the space to emerge.”