Mid-Life Mayhem; A guide to functioning in your 40's & beyond
This podcast features us having candid conversations about how to navigate all things mid life, including:
- Relationships
- Mental Health - anxiety, stress, depression, grief, fears, trauma (including generational trauma), estrangement, aging, parental aging and more
- Nervous system care & daily practices
- Sex
- Perimenopause & Cycle syncing
Mid-Life Mayhem; A guide to functioning in your 40's & beyond
Embracing Hormonal Changes: Navigating Midlife and Perimenopause with Empathy and Self-Care
Have you ever felt like you're losing touch with who you are as your body goes through midlife changes? Join us on this heartfelt journey as Katie Kovaleski and Natalie Diaz open up about the rollercoaster of hormonal shifts and their profound impact on personal identity and relationships. With candid honesty, Katie shares her battle with a progesterone deficiency and the emotional ups and downs that accompany it, while Natalie reflects on how certain phases of her cycle challenge her usual sunny disposition. Together, they explore the importance of self-awareness, self-care, and the grace to not always meet societal expectations, offering a comforting reminder that you're not alone in these transitions.
We also dive into the often-overlooked topic of perimenopause, shedding light on proactive steps like hormone testing and personalized healthcare approaches. Katie shares her personal experience with the Dutch test and the journey of finding a supportive osteopath to stabilize her hormone levels. As we navigate this transformative period, we discuss the role of empathy, self-love, and subconscious modalities like PSYCH-K in adapting to our evolving selves. With openness, curiosity, and self-compassion, we encourage you to embrace midlife changes, recognizing the power of shared experiences in building understanding and support.
You can reach us here:
Katie:
Website:
KatieKovaleski.com
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/coach_katiek/
Linkedin:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/katiekovaleski/
Natalie:
Website: http://www.jupiterbloomwellness.com/
Instagram: Https://www.instagram.com/jupiterbloomwellness
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-diaz-182592318/
Wavier & Release of Liability and Disclaimer: The information provided by the therapist(s) is not intended, nor is implied to be a substitute for professional medical or mental health advice. The listener is advised to always seek the advice of their health care practitioner or other qualified health care provider with questions regarding medical conditions, or the mental health and welfare of the listener. I (listener) accept that neither Kathryn Kovaleski or Natalie Diaz, is liable for any injury, or damages, to person or property, resulting from listening to this podcast.
Welcome to Midlife Mayhem, a podcast about all things midlife. I'm Katie Kowalewski, your host. On today's episode. You are going to be hearing Natalie and I, my co-host for the day, dive into all things midlife, including a focus on hormonal changes. I hope you enjoy today's episode.
Speaker 2:I think we enter this candidly, yeah, and we say I'm going to start. Is that okay? Yeah, yeah, that we were just so, katie and I welcome everyone. We were just talking candidly and then we were deciding, wait, we need to turn our microphones on for this. So today is a little bit of a real deal insight into some of the conversations that we have off camera, but we were still on camera. So on camera but not recorded around. Let's frame the topic hormones, midlife and what it's like to show up and what it's like to be ourselves in our lives at this time. Did I, does that make sense? Did I frame that right?
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, and I was just expressing how we're both kind of navigating our own sort of hormonal journeys and I'm 40 and had been struggling with certain things around my cycle for like a decade and then realized through a trial and error experiment that it was a progesterone deficiency. So I'm going to start spot treating that. But I was expressing to Natalie how relationships change and the way we show up for life changes, because it's almost like you hit 40 and it's like you care less what people think. You're still yourself. But also with hormonal changes it sort of makes me feel, at least like if I'm gonna have a tantrum or a breakdown, like I can't, I can't necessarily stop it. Where when I was younger I would be like shake it off, go have fun. Like have a cocktail, it's fine. Like I literally cannot do that anymore.
Speaker 1:And when I'm planning my life or my social life, there's certain days of the month where I just know I'm not gonna have the bandwidth and I cannot push myself through, like I cannot make myself do it and if I do, like I'll pay for it. The days following and then those following days, it's like all my energy goes to focusing on not losing my shit and that's kind of like the hardest part of my cycle that I'm now figuring out, but it's sort of like makes me want to scream, like this isn't fair, this is not fair. Like, oh, can't do it that day, like might not be able to resist having a mental breakdown. What and that? Never for me, that never used to be that way. It was like, you know, pound a red bowl and like figure it out, like push through and there's no pushing through yeah, on the days that even celsius doesn't help.
Speaker 2:Thank you for sharing that and for your vulnerability and I think that you know, without necessarily commiserating, but just with that validation and for those of you out there that relate, you know, first, I think, is awareness or, if we're working stages of change, model for those of us that know what that means. Like the first is kind of coming into that pre-contemplation phase of like wait, I think something is happening here or there's something to examine or look at or shift, kind of coming out of that denial piece and it might not be conscious denial, but you know blind spots. So when we were talking before, I was like wait, stop, turn on the mic, we need to record this. So when we were talking before, I was like wait, stop, turn on the mic, we need to record this. We were talking about well, I was mentioning how much women in general tend to impact, because we tend to be the more empathetic and emotional of the genders really can impact a space, a relationship, a vibe in a place, and how that can come, with some some pretty tall orders and some pressure sometimes around, like not always having the bandwidth for that and sometimes just really not feeling it or not being able to, like you said, like, pull it out.
Speaker 2:And I think, recognizing hormonally that sometimes this is just not available, like I'm a happy, awesome, fun, light person. I tend to think of myself as that, except for the days in my luteal phase when I am not and that has been, you know quite honestly and quite vulnerably, has been, you know quite honestly and quite vulnerably that has been a really hard kind of big realization and shift for me. Um, and you know, being able to recognize that and meet that as part of midlife not that it has to stay that way, but I think, honoring, like, like to use your idea of like I just can't, like sometimes we just can't and I think, recognizing that, and that's where we circle back to some of the nervous system care and the hormone support and whatever else we've talked about, the psyche balances to really help support us through these shifts and changes. I'm kind of blabbing because it still feels unclear to me like we're trying to figure this out, like we were figuring out before we turned on our mics, right.
Speaker 1:Yeah, exactly yeah. Thank you for that share, because I think you provide a good sort of baseline for that. As far as being like this is, you know, I've been a certain way, most or all of my life, and you know, have there been ups and downs? Yes, but barring like anything crazy complicated like it's been, I've been smooth sailing, as like this version of myself, and now I'm hitting these walls. Where, like where am I today? Why can I not access me? What is happening?
Speaker 2:That's a really good way to put it, like why can I not access me? Like who is this woman? And that sounds really big. But then when we look at like midlife crisis and, interestingly to you know, google, whatever that means, but when you google, am I having a midlife crisis, which I did, of course, for a friend and um, it will give you like female, male perspectives, and a big one is kind of this. Obviously, we think about midlife crises like in a very typical way. We think of like identity right, and like feeling a shift, and so I think, yeah, this, like our bodies are are guiding us differently, our bandwidth is different, our, I think, a big part of it too. I don't know, I kind of heard you speak to this a little bit maybe before, but is like physically, what we can, what we're capable, like back to toddlerhood, like I need more naps. I can't just power through without a tantrum, like maybe I could, like you said, in my 20s, which is also kind of like, okay, that's freaking inconveniently interesting.
Speaker 1:I don't know yeah, and you know, on the hardest end of it for those of us have like put in a lot of work on ourselves and creating like stability and understanding our nervous system and our emotional scale and all these parts of who we are I think some of this can feel really shocking.
Speaker 1:And on the worst end of it, I'm like am I still going to be lovable if I turn into a toddler for a few years?
Speaker 1:Like, how, how far down this rabbit hole are we going and how much can someone else put up with it on the receiving end of it? And is it really that bad to be on the receiving end of? So like I put in a lot of time and thinking about how I'm going to respond to certain things and if you know, it's an important relationship like I I don't really like hair trigger stuff anymore, like I did probably in my 20s. Like I try to be pretty measured and stable and like think through things and communicate well and and these sort of hormonal shifts like take away some of that bandwidth. And I'm like what is it like to be on the receiving end of a woman going through like hormonal shifts where she really doesn't feel in control of her responses. You know, and, and it's scary, I have an idea of some guests we could invite on for the feedback hey guys, thank you for loving us.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but honestly, no, seriously actually, and I've made this reference before. So I think, um, what was coming to me when you were saying that and I say this with so much respect and tenderness and like honor for our ancestors is like the salem witch trials and all of that, like that kind of. I don't know much about that, I'm speaking out of historical context. I'm sure we'll have somebody actually educate and correct me, because it wasn't even in Salem, it was like wherever it was. But the idea of like that bitch is crazy. I do not feel as far removed from that as I once did.
Speaker 2:So I think we, you know, leaning in with our arms around each other currently, and our arms around our ancestors and our arms around our grandmothers and our arms around our nieces and our daughters, like, I think, starting there of like sometimes it really feels tough and it's interesting and I'm sorry I interrupted you, but I'm so, like lit up by this topic right now. Plus I love interrupting people and talking, so there's that. But this idea of like it's kind of off brand for us, right, like it's on brand because midlife mayhem, it's totally on brand, but it's off brand and like we have all the tools and we do the nervous system stuff and like why the fuck is my toolbox not opening, like what is happening. So I think there's that piece to it too, in full transparency.
Speaker 1:That is very different yeah, and yeah it is rattling. But I love what you said about when we start this, this phase. I don't know if I could encourage women listening or anyone listening, to do one thing it would be just to slow down enough to like embrace what's what's happening. I can't imagine other people not being aware and not taking care of themselves and kind of rushing through this phase of life, because I think a lot of chaos can be born from it. But I think you know, if you're aware of it, like she said, wrapping your arms around all the other women who've been here now and who've been here before, because, yeah, if I wasn't a witch back then I would be running to one to give me the potion to help me through, like my nervoso or whatever the hell they would call it, because everyone was going through it, right, and and they would go to the witches to get their tinctures and those things.
Speaker 1:And I think the witches were the only ones going through, you know, perimenopause, like hang, letting it all hang out like this is where I'm at today. I'm gonna hold my cat and light a fire and like, and that's kind of what we have to do to be able to get through this Because it's you know, even for the ones of us who make a profession out of doing this and practice what we preach, it can be scary and destabilizing, and remembering that we're still lovable is important, remembering that this is temporary and that there's so much support out there that we can. We can leverage this time Like that's. My goal is to do what I can to make this time the best time of my life. I think it's possible, and I'm just learning how to do it. I can to make this time the best time of my life. I think it's possible, and I'm just learning how to do it like one foot in front of the other.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I thank you for reminding us of that and, you know, stay tuned for the next episode, which I won't remember.
Speaker 2:I said this on this episode, so it might not be next, but it is coming around like what's great about midlife and all of the things that like, really, you know, are awesome because they are there and I know people will raise an eyebrow at that sometimes, but we don't see always the forest for the trees or what's right in front of us, right? So there is that piece, but I think, you know, shifting a little bit into, shifting a little bit from what we just spoke to, around holding space, around validating around it being your word, I think, was perfect I'm going to keep using it rattling. I think that's a really good experience, like shifting from that to like okay, so what the fuck are we doing about this, right? So, um, we don't know fully and but we are exploring this together and have maybe some like let's dig into that space a little bit, because I think there is that like okay, fine, I'll lean in, I'll put my arms around, I'll recognize, I'll maybe slow down enough to even notice what's happening or make the connection, but kind of like, then what Dot, dot dot question mark.
Speaker 2:What's your answer, katie? What you got?
Speaker 1:Well, I think, like you said, the first step is that awareness. So if there's a pattern that keeps popping up, if you're having the same fight with your business partner, your you know romantic partner or whatever, and it seems like more intense than ever, and this is like kind of where the cliche of it's slowing down and be like, could it be hormonal? Yes, it could be. If you're 40 and above, it could be hormonal. And whether or not that that issue or that fight needs to be addressed, it probably does. But, like we want to look at what, what has made the patterns in your life intensify more, hitting their peaks. Um, for me, I just woke up one day, kind of, and became terrified of perimenopause. This is true, I really did, like about a year ago. I was like I remember, oh my god true it.
Speaker 1:It that's just sort of how things happened for me, and I became kind of obsessed with the topic and then it started to really make sense, um. So I did a lot of research and then I? Um found a great osteopath in Orlando. I decided I wanted to do what's called a Dutch test, which you test your hormones every single day for a month and that gives you the most accurate picture of where they're actually at. I did that intuitively, but it also ended up being the right thing, because the blood tests that we compared, which are a single blood draw, showed that all of my hormone levels were steady and balanced and where they need to be, and that's not actually the case, and it was the Dutch test that showed differences. So I was really glad that I did that, because my my hormone levels are, quote, like fine, but my progesterone, um is unsettling in my luteal phase and that's something, it's a deficiency that I think I've probably had like my whole life. Just lucky, I guess. Um, or I'm blaming birth control, but that's another story.
Speaker 1:So I'm going to spot treat that um so that I can enter into my when my sex hormones do begin dropping. I can enter into that at a much more stable place, um, overall. And so I'm going to do a dutch test once a year. That's an investment I want to make because I want that accurate picture, um. And so that's where I started lots of research, finding a doctor who was supportive, who basically was like we'll do all the tests, give you the best of the best, and then we'll decide together what you want to do. Here are your options. And so that's my game plan and I'm going to keep working with him. And he basically was like when the time comes and it will when your sex hormones drop, we'll supplement you however you would like.
Speaker 2:And that was like ah, we'll supplement you, however you would like, and that was like ah, thank you for sharing that and I will plug that you can find, like, if that, if you're listening to that and you're like what is this? Wait, what, what, what, what, like everything will be linked for you to kind of dig into and learn more. I don't want to like speak your marketing the wrong way, but I would just say, like Katie has a lot of connections and pieces and more information on this in her different websites and areas. Did I say that right? Like pretty much, Because if I were listening to that, I'd be like wait, what did she just say? Like, don't worry, like it's available for you to dig into in other places. And then I would comment you know to answer the same question in like a very different way, in a very different angle.
Speaker 2:First of all, I do want to go back to like. I think it was like the day that you just started like blowing up my Instagram with like do you know about this? We need to do something. What is perimenopause? Like, how are you? I was like wait, what is happening? Like I thought we did subconscious nervous system work. What are you talking about? Like. So I thank you for that, I honor that and I remember it fondly. So I'm kind of being like, I'm kind of being breadcrumbed along with you because of my own personal experience and because I do think it's an under like, under brought to light, like an underground topic that needs to needs its day in the sun in some way, and so my journey is TBD, dot, dot, dot, question mark, question mark. That's where I am on this.
Speaker 2:So if you're in that place, like I see you, I validate, you know, and for me it looks like it looks very different than what Katie's journey has looked like in some ways, as far as like, well, let me just start by talking to my doctor.
Speaker 2:Let me start by just tracking my cycles and noticing. Let me start by just building some awareness and some compassion and some curiosity around where I'm actually at and what may or may not be happening for me. Let me talk to my friends, let me, you know, kind of just open this door and, like I said, start to bring it out without really knowing exactly what's happening next, and so that feels more like the space that you're in, like I hear that and I see that, and that's why I said you know, what are we doing? We don't know, like, maybe one of us knows and one of us doesn't. Maybe that's more accurate, but even still, it's like a new journey for you on as far as like, how's all this going to feel, and land, and, and, and so I validate that too as this being not so super clear cut. But but not knowing doesn't have to mean not doing anything, I guess is the message I wanted to share there, I think.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, and I think as usual, we kind of present two different sides of the same coin for different kind of approaches. Um, I like to go head in and like try to like make myself an expert as much as I can and then use that to lay out kind of a path forward for myself, um, and that helps me come to a place of like then being curious and moving slowly, and natalie like sees her way in and be open and curious and bring some awareness to things. Um, and then make the moves, like when it's when she decides it's time, when she feels it's right. So we have different approaches, which I think you know provides a wider breadth of support and understanding, because there is no one right way. This is just the same topic into approaches that help both of us feel more comfortable.
Speaker 1:Now that my landscape is kind of drawn, I'm just sitting back and it's time to experiment. So I think, like a lot of things with therapy, we offer some tools, we use them, we see how we feel, we establish that baseline and then we'll add in a certain thing or take something else out. And I think for both of us, I think the common denominator is I think we're both kind of there. We both kind of decided okay, here's an action step I can take, I'm comfortable with it, let's see what happens. But in a lot of ways it's really getting to know a different version of yourself. You know a different body that has different needs. That's going to respond differently, that's going to give you a different emotional response to things that you might not have responded to before. So it's a. I think empathy is so important, but I think for me it's learning and learning how to love and fall in love with a new version of myself, cause that's what we become in this middle-aged place, literally, you know we're giving birth to ourselves.
Speaker 2:Maybe, maybe I need the hormones you have, because you're sounding very gentle and empathetic with yourself and I'm going to give the other side the uglier side to that, because it's what's happening in my face that you guys can't see anyways, which you're like, and you just have to learn to love your new body, quite literally, in your new version.
Speaker 1:I haven't started the hormones yet.
Speaker 2:Oh, so this is just you. That makes me feel even worse. Great See, this is exactly so. This is live example of how this is can be so rattling, right, because typically, for those of us that know me, I'm like an extremely optimistic, positive person for the most part.
Speaker 2:So to be sitting here and being like, ah, but let me tell you about all the sucky parts, like that in and of itself is like well, that's different, right? So I guess I'm just proving what you were saying to be true. But also, you know, I want to just point out that that's that was beautifully said and totally true and I receive it with an open heart, but probably need to do some subconscious balancing and work around being able to really digest that, because I noticed my body as you were saying that constricting and resisting, like this idea, you know, and I think there is a lot of truth to what you're saying and what we resist persists, right, like it just makes it harder. So starting to open and be curious, like I mentioned, and kind of embrace this and like we talked about, like what's great about your 40s in this midlife piece, like I think that would be um reasonable work as a counterpoint of what you're saying too yeah, no, that's totally fair.
Speaker 1:I like, when I got the basically like insight you year ago to be like I need to dive into this, a lot of it. It didn't. I didn't have that same like oh, it was more of it because it represented like such an unknown, variable sense of mental health that the thought that something on my control might randomly start affecting that and rattling it to me was just like what? Oh hell, no, that that was like terrifying and um, and that it was likely going to happen to every woman. And I'm like what is this? So I've gone through a lot of those like ups and downs with fighting against it and being upset about it and knowing it's happening and some of that's tied to, you know, programming around aging, I'm sure. But I've done a lot of subconscious change around hormonal changes, perimenopause, menopause like really creating on a subconscious level new hardwired beliefs about what I want those times to be. Stuff were not great. It was like a time of darkness which you know that can come from generational trauma, can come from all the women before us. Like we inherited a lot of those. It's in our dna, a lot of that programming, and I didn't have, uh like supportive programming around any of this stuff, and so once I changed that, now I'm okay.
Speaker 1:I have a plan in place, I feel secure and supported. I see my landscape. My job now is to like, love the fuck out of myself as much as I can, because that's going to make the hormonal part easier. And if I have a meltdown on the floor of an airport because I'm too hot, like you know, I get it. And now I understand why my mom would do that. Where's the fan? I need ice. I can't do this. I'm like yep, okay.
Speaker 2:Here we are. This is happening, yes, yes, I want to go back to the subconscious piece that we both referenced, and I'm being such a good like marketer or whatever that word is today, which is usually not my skill set, but if that is lighting up your neurons and you're like what is that? I want that. I need that. Tell me more.
Speaker 2:Um, what we are referencing is the subconscious modality that both of us lean into, which is psych k, and it can be linked in the notes and like both of our websites too, if you kind of want to, if you're curious around that piece. I just want to like kind of come back and support that because although there are hormones and there's physicality to this, a lot, there's also still, you know, the, the layer of the belief system and all the pieces that you were speaking to, right, which I think basically you know. The way I would conceptualize it in my anecdotal and somewhat evidence-based statement is that you know, my experience is that the hormonal piece just exacerbates the faulty belief system that's there or removes the ability to kind of soothe and access through some of it. So, like the fault, the, it's like, um, I don't know like the tide goes out and all is exposed type of thing, so it can actually be a great time to do some of this work too, yeah because I I had a hard time.
Speaker 1:I'm like, oh, I need a new mindset about this. You know, because the your mindset is is such a huge part of how you respond to everything and what was happening was sucky, but my mindset around it was sucky too. And I'm like I, I need a new mindset. And our mindset comes from our hardware beliefs, that's our programming, that's in the subconscious and that's what Psych-K works with. And because I could not, under my current mindset, my current beliefs and programming around hormones and perimenopause and all of that stuff I could not get, I couldn't reach a better mindset with what I had. And I was like I gotta change this programming because I I am unable to access a better mindset about it. And it's my mindset and my fears that are really dictating the majority of my experience here. And like dreading when the next bad days were coming, you know, and it's like, oh, I don't want to live in fear of when these harder days hit.
Speaker 2:Yeah, mine, I think mindset is the right word like the mindset around kind of this experience. When you, when you say mindset, what resonates for me is like personally, is how it's created, a mindset of softness and empathy, like I'm not a big I was going to say self-care person, which is not true and completely off brand but really recognizing, like what my needs are and meeting myself with that compassion. A lot of times those needs are more rest related than they used to be. Um, when it comes to some of the physicality and the hormonal pieces around that, but really like how do I feel, what do I need? Kind of those questions all the time, how do I?
Speaker 2:Not all the time, maybe all the time, I don't know, sometimes more than others, but like how do I feel, what do I need? How do I feel what do I need? Time, maybe all the time, I don't know, sometimes more than others, but like how do I feel? What do I need? How do I feel, what do I need? It's okay that I need this, like that peace mindset. You know, just in the way we would treat a toddler, right, like we don't get really get mad at toddlers when they're like hungry and tired or cranky.
Speaker 1:We, you know, reflecting that back towards ourselves at this phase. I mean, the more we talk about it, the more I think midlife mayhem is really about meeting your inner toddler with, like, loving, empathy and compassion. Because that's what we're doing. We're getting to know this kind of new being of ourselves and a lot of those things as they're just coming to life are very sharp, you know. They're very impactful, they hit a hard punch and so we'll get used to dealing with those and those things will soften. But I think at first it's like holy shit, what do I do with this, with this toddler? Like she needs extra snacks now, she needs this extra nap, she needs to cry for seemingly no reason, she needs an extra hug, she needs whatever she needs. We're going to give her and I think we all. We have a kind of a newborn inner toddler vibe going on when we hit this, this phase of life, and just I think maybe treating it that way is key, you know, so we don't get so wound up and overthinking about it that we create a slew of other problems.
Speaker 1:Last week we had, we met, we had a session, and right before that that morning I was really tired but my first response was like what is this? What's wrong? Oh my gosh, Are you feeling anxious? Like, is it this, is it that? And I'm like shook that off and was like, okay, what do we? What do you need? It was like I need some tea and you need to go for a walk and then you need to take a 20 minute nap. I'm like, okay, I did that and I felt much better. But I could have gone down the rabbit hole of overthinking anything that possibly had a slight red flag on it in my life currently and made it a thing and been like oh, it's probably this, but we need to go address X, Y, Z, and I think that happens a lot.
Speaker 1:I think we, if we're overthinkers, or we respond to the way we're feeling and we take it out on whoever's closest to us or whatever topic's closest, we end up with a lot of experience problems that we just really needed a walk you know, or a nap.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think I like that you slid in. Thank you for that share and thank you for that like example, because I think it was very clear and helpful and true, and I like how you slid in at the end, like or those that are closest to us, right. So that's a good one and that's like a whole topic series. But how this impacts our close relationships, I think, is really, really a crucial part of it too, and it can be like oh well, this, you know, target or punching bag right here, and I feel this way, so must be this right, where it could just be like and slash or I'm tired, right. So I think, um, not always, but just having that piece of awareness around it too, um, a lot to just be aware of.
Speaker 2:I think if we are we circling back, is there, is there more to say? Because I was about to circle, like kind of do some touch points, sure, right, because I heard so many pieces, but one of them was, I think, that of the mindset and that of the awareness and the curiosity and like just the big piece of like this is a thing, what it, what is a thing, what is a thing and what the thing is like exactly is yet to be defined. But I think if there's anything for our listeners to kind of latch on to, it's maybe just a little bit of an exhale around like oh okay, we are not alone in this, um, and it is a little sticky and messy but not unsolvable, right, is that what you would say?
Speaker 1:yeah, yeah, there's um. Once we're aware that this is the thing, um, and it's not just us, or we're not just like losing it or getting older and needing higher doses of whatever, but we really like, oh, this is a thing that's happening, there's a lot of different kinds, that that puts so much pressure on us. And so you know, midlife mayhem, perimenopause, hormonal shifts are going to happen to every woman and I think, as with most things, they're best dealt with with support, you know. So acknowledging it, like Natalie said, is the first step, and then finding some support, some resources that can be helpful and make you feel less alone and more guided in the process, I think is really helpful.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I would agree. So thank you for supporting me, katie. Thank you to those of us that are out there supporting each other. Maybe you're looking for support and we have some more information and ideas on how you can access that. Um, I'm all about the links. Today, I'm so proud of myself. See, these are the positive things that happen in your forties you become more savvy and, uh, resourceful.
Speaker 1:I feel anyways for me.
Speaker 2:Um, but yeah, you know again, I think, maybe closing today with this kind of arms around, whatever that looks like for you yourself, arms around your toddler, inner toddler, arms around your ancestors, arms around your community and, like arms around, you know, the women in your life, that's what I would leave us with today.
Speaker 1:I love it. Autumn arms around yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:All right guys. Well, thank you for listening. I hope you stayed to the end. If you have any questions, reference the show notes or reach out to us, and we look forward to taking you on our journey into midlife mayhem.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's big hugs everyone. We mean that.
Speaker 1:I hope you enjoyed today's episode. Follow along in the show notes for details on how to reach out to both of us, and we look forward to showcasing future episodes.
