How to Thrive in Midlife with Dr. Harpreet Gujral

Today’s guest is Harpreet, a nurse practitioner with over 30 years of experience.  In this episode we discuss navigating perimenopause and menopause, emphasizing the importance of self-awareness and listening to one's body. In our interview…She highlights common symptoms like sleeplessness, mood changes, and low energy, stressing the need to slow down and manage stress to avoid the onset of chronic conditions. Harpreet shares a case study of a client who lost weight and found self-love through her six-month coaching program. She introduces a mindfulness meditation exercise and gives us a list of 10 foods to help women thrive in midlife. I love how Harpreet gently encourages self-compassion and gratitude to be expressed regularly for the body's hard work. So Call in Thriving in Midlife with Harpreet! Call IT in With Dar! 

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Transcript

Today’s guest is Harpreet, a nurse practitioner with over 30 years of experience.  In this episode we discuss navigating perimenopause and menopause, emphasizing the importance of self-awareness and listening to one's body. In our interview…She highlights common symptoms like sleeplessness, mood changes, and low energy.   Stressing the need to slow down and manage stress to avoid the onset of chronic conditions. Harpreet shares a case study of a client who lost weight and found self-love through her six-month coaching program. She introduces a mindfulness meditation exercise and gives us a list of 10 foods to help women thrive in midlife. I love how Harpreet gently encourages self-compassion and gratitude to be expressed regularly for the body's hard work. So Call in Thriving in Midlife with Harpreet! Call IT in With Dar! 

Speaker Dar 

Welcome to call it in, I'm so excited to have you with us today, but before we dive into our great topic of how to thrive in midlife, will you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got to this point in your life.

Speaker Harpreet 

Thank you so much, Darla. I'm really excited to be here and also to be here with your audience. I feel like this is an amazing community that has come together. I have been a nurse practitioner for the last 26 years, and when I was going through my own perimenopause journey, I had no idea what was going on. Why was I having sleepless nights? Why was my mood off? My energy was very low. I was tired and exhausted, and just, you know, continued to plow through it. And looking back, I realize, why did I have to navigate my own perimenopause, even though I'm in healthcare alone, like I could have seeked help, and that made me realize, like I need to make this my own calling to be present for other women Navigating perimenopause and menopause. And let me put all of my 26 years of nurse practitioner, 32 years of being in healthcare and as a woman, my own experiences and bring it together so I can help other women navigate this very important aspect of our life, which is the midlife 

Speaker Dar 

Well, I love that it became your calling, because I certainly suffered through all that alone. There was nobody to help navigate at that time. I'm glad that it's becoming a little bit more of an awareness topic among women, and let's just dive in. How about talking about what it is like to navigate? 

Speaker Harpreet 

Yes, symptoms. So how can one navigate? You know, I would like to first say, Darla, what are the symptoms? So the symptoms include, you know, I mentioned sleepless nights. I mentioned having difficulty with mood, low energy, brain fog. People are walking into the room and saying, Why am I here? I have to backtrack my steps and come back again, figuring out why I was here in the first place, even our, you know, with partners, our relationship changes. People can have low libido, vaginal dryness. They can have issues with intimacy, and that can be very uncomfortable, and that can change relationships. So there are so many symptoms that are affecting our quality of life, whether we are a homemaker or a forklift operator or a judge, a doctor, office person, a project manager, a scientist, it can affect us both at work and at home and so you asked me, how might someone navigate? I guess the first point is to pause and know, listen to the body and know what is going on most of us. Wouldn't you say, have just plowed through it without slowing down and realizing what is going on in our body. Wouldn't you say that? Like, was that your experience Darla and that? 

Speaker Dar  

 Oh yeah, you know, a few years ago, yes, and definitely, even proud and strong about it exactly. 

Speaker Harpreet 

That's what I felt, too. Hey, I'm resilient, I'm strong. I can plow through this. No problem. I will just work harder, you know. So one so really important to make sure that we are first present to what the body is doing. Understand that slow down and go with the flow of the body. If the body is tired and I'm still trying to wake up at four in the morning to go to work out that is not going to work, we are going to produce more cortisol, which is going to lead to more inflammation. It's going to make us more tired. I'm going to be irritable. And we know when we have more inflammation, we can actually have a 60 to 70% chance of developing a long term chronic condition like diabetes, high blood pressure, you know, some sort of autoimmune issues. 

Speaker Dar 

What a great point that is. So there's an example of. Pushing through and uh oh, you know that shouldn't happen. What are some other examples of things we do and we don't really realize they're going against our body? 

Speaker Harpreet  

Yes, Darla, we Oh. We are in a society that is very fast paced. We are in a man's world. I have nothing against men. I have many you know amazing men in my life. You know my dad, my you know my partner, my you know brother my son, how my good friends. We are in a man's world. The reason I say this is feminine leadership is very different than male leadership, but we are plowing through that, and we are showing up without break, and we are multitasking, and we're trying to not listen to the body and keep going and show up and show up that we are capable of, you know, standing in the man's world and being able to do things that are required or expected of us, however, feminine leadership is very different. That requires to be in the flow. You know, there are many Goddesses, for example, the mythological goddesses in Hindu religion, they are renowned for their power, strength, energy, Magic by being a woman who leads through different cycles in life, you know, pauses for seasons, not just plow through mindlessly waking up in the morning and just go, go, go and become a human doing versus a human being. So I think it's really important for us as women, understand that there is a lot of inner strength and power, and when we slow down and work in concert and Symphony with our bodies, our bodies show up and allow us to thrive and do great work without overextending ourselves. 

Speaker Dar 

Oh, I love that analogy being in concert and symphony. And of course, we've, we've heard about the element of being and not doing, but boy, that's easier said than done. 

Speaker Harpreet 

And I'm guilty. Darla, You're guilty too. Well, I agree. Guilty. 

Speaker Dar 

Yes. So could you talk to us a little bit about some case studies? We're of course going to keep the names confidential, but some examples of what you've seen in this woman's world rather than the man's world. Let's take a look. 

Speake Harpreet   

Yes, yes. So you know, both as a nurse practitioner and as a women's health coach, I get to see so many women. I mean, I'm definitely close to 1000 so far, and it has been an honor and a privilege, because I learned from these stories, from being with these women, you know, because they are telling my story, they're telling the story. And it is just fabulous to see the commonality and the differences of each woman's story. And one particular woman that comes to mind is an amazing woman, brilliant, you know, has a PhD, is a faculty member doing great work. And when she and I, you know, met, we had a complimentary conversation, and right away she and I both knew that we would make an amazing team together. Obviously, she is in a different state from me. So we met virtually. We had met once in person when I was offering a keynote speech and another state. So we met there, and she was like, Harpreet, I want to work with you. I know that. So we met, and we worked for six months on a coaching program, and she wanted to lose weight, which is totally fine. It's up my alley. I've done weight management for many years at large funk, you know, medicine, medical practices and also organizations. But I showed you the mug that she made me at our you know, at when we can, when we completed the course. Six months later, she made me this beautiful mug. She does pottery, and it's gorgeous. You know, I'm just reminded of my work with her, and I'm just so grateful that she wanted to lose weight. However, over the mug. Months we worked, what she found is, not only did she see the success and learn about how to eat and feed the body appropriately, but also fall in love with her own self. You know, this wasn't our initial plan, but we practiced self-compassion, we use mindfulness. We understood the science of food. We understood how our genes can turn on and turn off with certain foods, certain practices. So we brought in the science, the soul, the strategy to create that personalized path. And at the you know, completion of our six months. She was so pleased with the results. And she said, Harpreet, not only am I so grateful for our work together for six months, I'm also grateful that I have found love everywhere now, like that was so touching Darla, my heart just warms up, you know, looking at that thank you card she sent me along with this beautiful mug she made for me. 

Speaker Dar 

I love that saying, now I can find love everywhere. Now, isn't that the point? 

Speaker Harpreet 

Yes, you know how often we are not kind to ourselves, like the things I might say to myself, if I said it to my best friend, she will never see me again, you know. So I think it's really important for us to come together as women and be the strength and energy and, you know, and the power within ourselves, but also recognizing the critic, the judge that has, you know, over the years, maybe it was helpful at some point, but over the years, we don't need to have that judge or the inner critic to be so loud that it dulls our own light. It stops us from slowing down and recognizing the flow, the you know, rhythm of our day, of our season. And so I invite women to really become more authentic and recognize, you know. And a lot of times, like I have had to coach myself, Darla, I've had several coaches over the years. You know the best of the best athletes have coaches because they know they can strive and thrive and do better when they have someone supporting their journey, versus having to be doing it alone. And I found that it has helped to really notice our blind spots and look at those and be encouraged by our coaches. Likewise, I really feel great when I'm able to show tough love to my clients and really talk about what we are noticing here. Why is this, you know, hindrance? Why am I not able to do it when I've looked at Google and I've looked at Dr Google's, you know, and other sources. I know what to do, but why am I not doing it? So I think it's important to have that support in place. And this is a woman's time, like we are living in a great place where the conversations are happening at the kitchen table, you know, at the doctor's office at a coaching place among us. You know, this is the movement, 

Speaker Dar 

absolutely, and I'm glad we're part of that movement. Yes, indeed. Would you share with us an activity that will kind of bring about awareness in our audience and ourselves. 

Speaker Harpreet   

Here, yes, thank you for asking. So, you know, I'm a mindfulness meditation teacher. I did a two-year course with Dr Tara Brach and Dr Jack Thornfield, who are both PhD psychologists, and we had multiple teachers. So I could, you know, lead through a 45 minute conversation meditation. But I know we have, most women have just two minutes, or maybe 30 seconds or one minute, right? So I have, I use this many times with my patients and clients to ground ourselves, to come into our bodies. So this is how it goes. Okay? So I ask and invite you whether you're seated or standing, to just feel your left foot. Feel all the five toes, feel the heel, the arch of the entire foot present here. Don't think of it just cognitively, but actually sensing, feeling, is there warmth? Are they cold? So just noticing that. And now pay attention to your right foot. So. Feel all your five toes. Feel the entire foot, the arch, the heel, the soul, notice what part of my foot is touching the floor, the surface, just noticing, getting curious about that, and then noticing the seat we are taking in the chair, which is the seat we're taking in this world that is rightfully ours. So just noticing seated, sitting furniture, whatever furniture you're on, and then noticing this whole body present, and taking a deep breath in, so breathe in, feel the abdomen expand and breathe out and feel your belly go back towards the spine. Take one more deep breath in, breathe in, expand the belly and breathe out and bring the belly closer to the spine. Notice this whole body present right here. And I invite you to pay attention to the heart area in the chest and noticing a slight opening, an easing of that heart area as we come home to our bodies, the gratitude that we experience in our heart of being present here with our body, taking deep breath in and out the next breath we take in, noticing the shoulders drop, deep breath in and deep breath out. This whole body is present, heart with gratitude, warmth and open shoulders relaxed and easy, and if you had your eyes closed, you can open your eyes and just say thanks to yourself for taking this short break to relax and be present. Thank you. 

Speaker  Dar 

What a beautiful pause. 

That is really a benefit. Thank you. I'll do that more often, for sure. Now I love, love, love to have you tell us about the gift you have. Oh my goodness, everyone and me being a foodie and a science of food, I'm just kind of Yeah, seeking out on that. So let's get to it. 

Speaker Harpreet  

Thank you, Darla. I am so excited. I love food. You know, when I want to relax and rest, I actually find myself in the kitchen, but I know not all people like to be in the kitchen. Not everybody wants to cook. So I put together this amazing, interesting, fun and powerful 10 foods to help us thrive in midlife. So I'm really excited to share that with fellow women, and we don't necessarily have to cook in the kitchen, but we can incorporate those 10 foods in our, you know, in our lives, we can do really well health wise. So I will be sure to share that with you, 

Speaker Dar  

wow, 10 foods to thrive in midlife, and we'll put that link in the show notes, and you'll be the audience will be able to get that so before we wrap up today, is there anything else you're being called to tell the women out there who are we're going Who are in midlife and just going through the trenches, 

Speaker Harpreet  

you're not alone. You're powerful and strong, you're resilient, and your body is a friend, not a foe. Darla, I hear so many women say, why is my body not listening to me, why is it behaving in this way? Why? What is going on? And I want to remind us that our bodies are our friends. They are working so hard. You know, there are huge books on anatomy and physiology, like 500 pages long. I mean, the body is so complex, nuanced, smart, intelligent, hard working. 24/7, for us, and so I invite us to be so grateful to our bodies and maybe just place a heart hand on our heart and just say thank you. Thank you, buddy. 

Speaker Dar 

Yes, oh, I just feel that Thank you. Thank you for being with us today. I'm so appreciative. 

Speaker Harpreet  

Thank you for this opportunity, Darla. I'm so grateful to be here. Thank you. 

Transcribed by https://otter.ai