Your ability to find meaning in your life inspires others to do the same.

How one woman turned crisis into a purpose-driven life—and is helping others rewrite their own stories.

Dec 25 2025 - The first light of Chanukah and Xmas eve.

Every so often, I interview extraordinary people. This is my conversation with Anat Tabachnik.

Danny: Good morning, Anat!

Anat: Good morning, Danny!

Danny: How are you?

Anat: It's a beautiful day here in Tel Aviv—not too cold, not too hot. We're just before the famous Israeli winter: a little rain, some cold for a couple of months, and then back to the hot Mediterranean summer.

Danny: Tonight is Chanukah (or Christmas Eve—or time to visit a Winter Market if you’re in London and you’re going to the Leicester Square Christmas Market).

Let’s get started.

We’re here to talk about you.

You have an amazing story, and today we’re going to share it with our readers. This is going to be a completely freestyle conversation, like a podcast. Let’s have some fun.

Meet Anat Tabachnik: A Journey of Resilience and Renewal

Anat - who are you?

I’m a mother, an entrepreneur, breast cancer survivor and divorced.
I want to shine a light for people who have lost a partner, whether through divorce or death, after 40.

About five and a half years ago, I had a wake-up call.

I realized I was being given a second chance at life. After 12 and a half years of marriage and entrepreneurship with my husband—and it wasn’t simple—I decided to start a new chapter in my life, after receiving a wake-up call: breast cancer.

It wasn’t a snap decision. It came after several months of grappling and thinking. But that wake-up call made me realize life is here and now.

When the problems pile up—your body starts sending warning signals, and it affects your physical and mental state—you know it’s time to reset.

We had an e-commerce site selling flowers all over Israel, even internationally. I started at 23, and we built a successful business with a fair number of employees. As we grew, we diversified, opening a huge brick-and-mortar flower store tied to the online site.

We had started two other ventures. One was a retail app that allowed shops to bid for the business of people walking by. The other was a platform for foreign student scholarships in Australia.

We opened an office in Australia and raised money from a private investor. But one day, the investor booted us out of the company. Looking back, that was the beginning of the end of our marriage. We were more business partners than life partners, but we didn’t realize it at the time.

Overcoming a Triple Blow: Cancer, Loss, and a Pandemic

Danny: It sounds like you were running at 200 kph.

Anat: Exactly. I was 32 and doing so many things. I even opened an exercise studio but didn’t invest in marketing because I thought we’d be relocating to Australia.

Then, during a routine check-up, my physician found a malignant lump in my breast. I was 37 and a half. My life turned upside down. From diagnosis to surgery was just 10 days.

I went to the best private surgeon I could find. My life had always been about work and business, but now I knew I had to take care of myself. Those 10 days were heavy—I’d pick up my young daughter and wonder if it was the last sunset I’d ever see.

The oncologist told me I was incredibly lucky the cancer had been caught early. It was a particularly aggressive and fatal kind. Early detection saved my life.

I thought, “Call it God, the universe—something saved my life. I haven’t finished my work on Earth yet.”

After surgery, they recommended chemotherapy, but I pushed back. I didn’t want poison in my body. I wanted to heal naturally. I eventually found a doctor who agreed and put me on a radiation therapy program instead.

A few days after my surgery, my father was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. Between my own treatment and caring for him, it became clear to me what I needed to do. It was a choice: give up or live. I chose life, big time.

Every day, I drove myself from Emek Yizrael to Tel Aviv for radiation therapy, listening to Dire Straits on the way. It motivated me because I knew I had been given a second chance.

After treatment, I moved back to my parents’ home. Leaving my marital home was incredibly tough. I had no idea life could get so hard.

After moving in with my parents, I started seeing a psychotherapist who suggested visualizing my problems and finding solutions. I paired that with physical training and imagery. While lifting weights or running, I’d think about my future.

A genetic test confirmed the cancer wasn’t hereditary, which gave me confidence that this was a one-time event I could overcome. But then COVID hit. Everything locked down.

A scene from a horror movie

My father, who had just undergone a bone marrow transplant, told me I needed to leave the house because he was afraid of infection. I was in the middle of a separation and just couldn’t move back under the same roof as my ex.

That winter was brutal. I moved into a BnB in a nearby moshav. There were frequent electrical blackouts that winter. I would sit in pitch darkness during blackouts, with rats coming through the light fixtures. It was terrifying. There were nights I slept in my car.

Danny: Sounds like a scene from a horror movie.

Anat: Exactly. But despite everything, I found strength within myself. Eventually, I told my parents I was leaving the moshav, and I found an amazing apartment with a welcoming family nearby. For the first time in my adult life, I had my own home—a place I could share with my daughter.

It was during COVID, so my personal training programs were on hold, and the business I shared with my husband was still running, but I walked away from it.

I was broke, but I was happy. I knew I’d rebuild everything I lost, twice or three times over.

Danny: How did your daughter cope with the changes?

Anat: She struggled. We’d moved to a new junior high, and the kids were brutal—cliques of mean girls made her life miserable. I fought hard for her with the school, but it didn’t help.

Rebuilding Life and Family: A Fresh Start in Tel Aviv

I talked to my ex-husband and I suggested we move to the Tel Aviv area so that she could go to a better school. At first, he agreed, but later he resisted. We ended up in court, where the judge asked my daughter to testify. She was almost 14 at the time and expressed her desire to move. The judge ruled in our favor and we moved.

After we moved, I started my community for divorced people. It wasn’t easy. Startups never are. But I found two incredible business advisors who helped me. Moving to the Tel Aviv area played a big role in opening up these opportunities.

We moved on September 2, 2023. A month later, October 7 happened—the war. Living in a war zone, with missile attacks, only added to the stress.

During this period, I began helping divorced people in crisis, guiding them to rebuild their lives. I traveled a lot —Ireland, the U.S.—and wherever I went, people were drawn to me, wanting to share their stories.

I noticed parallels between those grieving a partner’s death and those going through a divorce. Both groups face profound loss and the challenge of rebuilding their identity.

One striking difference is that in divorce, you often still see your ex moving on, which can be incredibly painful.

I’ll make the bat mitzvah

I’d remind people: “You’re here for a reason. There’s work to be done—for yourself and your children. Just around the corner, there’s someone or something better waiting for you.”

Danny: You’ve faced an extraordinary amount of crises in a short time—your startup crashing, your father’s illness, your own breast cancer, and then COVID.

Anat: And then my father passed away.

He told my daughter he’d make it to her bat mitzvah. I said, “You’ll be at her wedding.” He replied, “No, just her bat mitzvah.” He was right.

The doctors offered to prolong his life with a home hospice system, but he refused. He wanted to die at home on his own terms. Two days after taking some morphine, he passed away peacefully in his sleep.

Danny: That’s a blessing—to die at home, not in a hospital.

Anat: It was. He thought of everything. He signed a DNR. He was a businessman, running a large agricultural company. He always told me, “Whatever you do, you have my blessing”.

When he passed, I realized that the safety net he gave me was gone. But knowing I had to go forward without him, gave me even more drive.

My daughter thrived after we moved to the Tel Aviv area. She went from failing grades and mean girls, to the top student in her class. She studied music and blossomed.

Ironically, the war improved my ex-husband’s relationship with her. After losing his job, he found work near her school and became an active part of her life. It’s been good for him and for her.

Club Anat: Helping People Rebuild and Thrive After Divorce

Danny: Tell me about your new venture, Club Anat.

Anat: Club Anat is a community for divorced people navigating an identity crisis after years of marriage. It’s confusing and painful, and people often feel lost.

The program runs for three months and includes:

• Physical training twice a week.

• Online workshops with experts to develop new skills and empower participants to rebuild their lives.

The community is a support group—men and women helping each other. It’s powerful for men to hear the feminine perspective and for women to hear the male side of the story. The pain is universal, regardless of gender.

Danny: What’s your community’s slogan?

Anat: “The time to decide is yours. Seize this moment for yourself.”

Interestingly, the community is attracting not just divorced people but also widows and widowers. They share a similar journey: while taking care of their sick partner, they neglected themselves. Now, they’re on their own and need to rebuild their lives.

Danny: What makes your program resonate so deeply with people?

Anat: I lived this experience. It’s not theoretical. I’ve walked this path.

Divorce or widowhood brings universal feelings of loss, loneliness, and doubt. Many rush into new relationships before they’re ready, only to realize they haven’t processed their grief.

I’ve also heard people say, “I’ve lost all faith in relationships.”

I tell them, “Love still exists. It’s out there for you.”

One of my school friends experienced this. He was convinced he’d never find love again. Then, at a party, he met a woman who turned out to be his perfect match. A year later, they were married with a child.

Looking Ahead: Anat’s Vision for the Future

Danny: Where do you see yourself in 3–5 years?

Anat: In three years, I envision Club Anat with three branches in Israel. By year four, I hope to open our first international branch. People already visit my website, use Google Translate, and reach out from abroad.

Danny: Do you think personal meaning is becoming more important than money in today’s world, especially with the rise of the creator economy and solopreneur culture?

Anat: In Israel, not yet. But people are starting to understand. Our community will grow in ways I can’t yet imagine.

Danny: You’re doing incredible work, drawing from your deeply personal and unique experiences.

Your ability to find meaning in your life inspires others to do the same.

Anat: Thank you, Danny. It’s a Chanukah miracle—showing people the light.

Danny: It’s been amazing talking to you.

For more information:

On the Web: Club Anat

On social media: Club Anat on Facebook Club Anat on TikTok LinkedIn