Ep. 31 What Is Menopause? And Is This The Reason Why I Feel Like I Am Losing My Mind?

Hot flashes, brain fog, and that hair-trigger mood that makes you want to fight everyone in your house can feel personal, like you’re failing at life. We’re here to say it clearly: a lot of this is hormonal, and there are real, evidence-based ways to make it easier.

We sit down with Dana Lawson, a certified health coach and menopause educator to explain what is really going on.  

Key Topics

• Peri-Menopause
• The misconceptions of menopause
• Men get menopause? 
• Nutrition and menopause
• HRT
• Women of color and menopause 

About Dana

Dana Lawson is a Certified Health Coach and Menopause Educator with over 15 years in the health and wellness industry. Despite her background, when she entered menopause at 51, she experienced severe fatigue, hot flashes, sleep disruption, weight gain, and depression, symptoms that didn’t respond to the strategies that had worked for her before.

Determined to find answers, Dana sought advanced mentorship with a Certified Hormone Specialist and Menopause Expert in Canada. Today, her mission is to help all women, but especially women of color, understand what’s happening to their hormones during the menopause transition and how to support their bodies through evidence-based nutrition, restorative sleep, stress management, intentional movement, and nervous system regulation. Dana helps women reduce symptoms, improve their health, and move through midlife feeling informed, supported, and confident.

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Transcript

Hot Flashes And The Real Talk

SPEAKER_01 0:17

Hot flashes, mood swings, and suddenly wanting to fight everyone in your house. Welcome to the phase of life no one prepared us for. If you ever thought, is this menopause or am I just done with everyone's nonsense? This episode is for you. Today we're talking to a menopause coach who's here to break down what's actually happening to your body, your brain, and yes, your patients. Because apparently it's not just us, it's hormones. We're getting into the real stuff, the symptoms no one warns you about, what actually helps, and how to survive this phase without burning your whole life down or at least minimizing the damage. So if you've cried over nothing, forgotten why you walked into a room, or considered running away to a quiet hotel alone, insane. Let's get into it.

Meet Menopause Coach Dana Lawson

SPEAKER_01 1:09

So today's guest is Dana Lawson. She is a certified health coach and menopause educator with over 15 years in the health and wellness industry. Today, her mission is to help all women, but especially women of color, understand what's happening to their hormones during the menopause transition and how to support their bodies through evidence-based nutrition, restorative sleep, stress management, intentional movement, and nervous system regulation. Welcome, Dana.

SPEAKER_02 1:40

Thank you so much, Lisa. I'm so excited to be with you this afternoon.

SPEAKER_01 1:44

I know. I'm excited to have you on because as we already shared, uh well, I shared about my horrific menopause journey that's still happening. I wanted you to be on this um episode because, you know, obviously we still have questions. We still want to talk about it. And, you know, I always feel like there's more to know. So

Perimenopause Vs Menopause Vs Postmenopause

SPEAKER_01 2:07

let's begin with the first part, which is the definitions, because I don't recall us, well, I don't recall anyone talking about pre-menopause. I didn't know what the hell that was until recently. And I just thought menopause, you go into menopause. That's it. So talk about what is pre-menopause, what's menopause, and then what's postmenopause, and what's the difference between all those three?

SPEAKER_02 2:34

That is a very, very good question. And just a brief definition so that everybody understands. I I think when women refer to pre menopause, they actually mean perimenopause. Perimenopause is that time perioding um around and then. So this is the time before your menstrual period stop altogether. And it's characterized by uh fluctuating hormones, especially, we'll talk more later, but especially estrogen does this wild up and down, you know, it peaks, it it drops, it peaks, it drops, and you know, there's a steady decline of progesterone, and you know, some women even experience testosterone decline. Uh, so it's like the perfect storm. You're, you know, in your late 30s, early 40s, and you have career progression. You may have started your family a little bit later, and now you're experiencing mood swings or um weight gain, brain fog, joint and muscle pain. Out of nowhere, it seems, and you are not sure where it's coming from. And so you attribute it to other things. Hey, I'm stressed out because I've got, you know, two under two at home. You know, I have this new role in my job, and you know, I'm a I'm a senior manager, you know, I'm a director now, or whatever the case may be, and it's just a lot of stress. Or you could be like me and you're taking care of older parents. So it's just a lot going on. But perimenopause is the time before your menstrual cycle ends and is characterized by erratic swings of hormones and uh mood swings, weight gain, brain fog, joint and muscle pain. Also, um, many women experience dryness, uh, vaginal dryness and things like that. Menopause is when you have gone 12 months without a menstrual cycle. That is it, menopause just it's a period in time. It's just that one day, it marks the end of a fertility. Your ovaries have retired, they've done their job your entire life, and now, you know, they're they're done. And so, you know, a woman is no longer able to bear children. And for some women, they're like, yay, and then others are like, ugh. But um, it's just it's just that moment in time. It just marks 12 months without a menstrual cycle. Um, but menopause and peri, as we'll talk later, it's the start of a lot of metabolic change. Like your all of your body systems are affected. It's not just about reproduction. So then postmenopause are those years is is every day after you go 12 months without a menstrual cycle. And that's where you'll be the rest of your life.

SPEAKER_01 5:46

Okay. Well, that explains my divorce.

SPEAKER_02 5:49

But, anyways, um there is such a thing as gray divorce, and and a lot more women um have uh get divorced or are starting to have marital trouble during perimenopause.

SPEAKER_01 6:04

I can sense that. Yeah, that makes sense. Um, okay,

Misconceptions And The Age 35 Shift

SPEAKER_01 6:07

so what is the biggest misconception with menopause? I mean, I can name a few of them for myself because I was still like trying to figure out, well, what the hell is it? Like, what is that? Is it a thing that just happens and boom, I'm in menopause? Like, what is it? So what are the biggest misconceptions that you hear that you've heard from women?

SPEAKER_02 6:31

Well, I I wanna that that's such a good question, Lisa. And I think I want to address the one that you had. It because it does feel like it's so sudden. You know, you feel like everything's fine, and then you wake up and and it's like, what just happened? Rewind to yesterday, last month, last week, last year, you know. But actually, these changes start to take place around 35. 35 years old is when a woman will start to experience a natural decline in progesterone. Now, progesterone is the calming hormone, it um uh it regulates brain activity, and progesterone has so many other functions, including building bone. Uh, so progesterone it which um induces calm and relaxation, it gives us a sense of stability, you know, mental, emotional stability. Once that hormone starts to decline, most women experience a it's their sleep starts to be disrupted, they start to have more anxiety than they've maybe experienced before, or new onset of anxiety, new onset of depression, um, and and very smooth swings, but a lot of sadness, and and it's interesting because, and this is the other misconception. Most most people don't think that menopause is something that happens when you're old, right? Like that's an older woman thing. You gotta be like, you know, and I don't want to say 50 because I'm almost 60, but you know, they think of it at in those terms when you're 60, you're 70, and that's that's menopause. And that is absolutely not true. Those changes start to take place at 35. And because they start to take place at 35, and they're really slow, very gradual, almost imperceptible, easily to be confused with other things, like just regular, you know, everyday stress. Women tend to ignore them or think it's something else, and they either go to the doctor for that, or they just completely ignore it and like, oh, you know, it'll get better. I'm just gonna muscle through. I don't have time to stop and worry about this. I've got too many other things going on. And so they're they're gonna go years experiencing those things. And as time continues and those hormones continue to drop, then you you get deeper into those symptoms. So it doesn't happen overnight, it's happening gradually, starting at around 35. So let's just say Lisa, a woman starts, you know, she's losing her progesterone. So she's not handling stress as well as she did in the past, and she's about 35, 36 years old. By the time she's 42, that's seven years that she's experiencing hormone fluctuation and variability. And she hasn't taken notice until now the hot flashes are starting. Because the estrogen or the the um most potent estrogen, which is estradiol, it goes up, it goes down, it fluctuates really wildly. So sometimes you'll get, you know, you'll get enough uh estrogen to cause the eggs to um ripen, and and you know, uh the ripest egg will be released, you'll ovulate, and then sometimes you don't get enough estrogen and you don't ovulate, or you, you know, so that's gonna affect your emotions, it's going to affect your sleep. Estrogen is is linked to temperature regulation in the body, and so therefore you get the hot flashes during the day, night sweats at night, you know, and it's the the whole discomfort of that. So that's seven years, and so by the time that a woman reaches menopause or goes a full consecutive 12 months without a menstrual cycle, she's around age 51. That's the that's the the the age uh in the US. It's it's around 51. So she's already been experiencing these symptoms for 10 years.

SPEAKER_00 11:13

Wow. That's a crazy that's crazy. Man,

Andropause And Why It Hits Differently

SPEAKER_00 11:17

so do men have menopause?

SPEAKER_02 11:20

Why not? Actually, they do. It's not called manopause. I know I hear a lot of people say, yeah, they have a menopause out there. It's actually called andropause. And so their dominant hormone, now men have progesterone and estrogen as well, but their dominant hormone is testosterone. So when their testosterone starts to decline, it it will bring similar things. They experience weight gain, mood changes, um, and and and other, you know, uh metabolic kind of diseases, high blood pressure, uh, high blood sugar, things like that. The interesting thing though, and the main difference between men and women is that men, it's a really, it's it's it's an even slower and more gradual process. Whereas women, the process is slow, but once she's done ovulating and her ovaries have retired, it's like done. Men don't go through their hormone loss like we do. And so uh we experience it differently than they do, and and their symptoms are not quite as dramatic as ours can be.

SPEAKER_01 12:42

I was gonna say traumatic.

SPEAKER_02 12:44

I was gonna say traumatic, but it's it's pretty much the same thing. That too. Yeah, that too.

SPEAKER_01 12:52

Wow. I okay, so I do remember somebody talking about that, but I didn't know that I didn't know that there was a name for it. So that's actually pretty, yeah. That's that's really interesting. And nobody's not talking, nobody is really talking about that, but we don't need to be talking about them. Okay, so let's go. They get enough attention. Exactly. All

Identity Shifts And Confidence Hits

SPEAKER_01 13:15

right, let's talk about the emotional or identity shifts that women go through during menopause. Because I mean, this is like I mean, if I could think about my my journey, it's like who am I gonna get today? It's like a box of chocolates. So some of you put it in your mouth and you're like, oh, I'm throwing that back in the box. Let's first talk about what that looks like for some women. Because when I say emotional or identity shifts, maybe people don't know really what that means. What does that look like? And I'm sure it looks like looks different for different people, and maybe what can women do about it?

SPEAKER_02 13:54

Yeah. Um, so identity shifts happen because remember, and and I'm just gonna backtrack just a tiny bit um and talk about the hormones again. So when we think of estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, most of us consider those to be sex hormones. Home hormones that are used for reproduction and reproductive purposes only. So for women, that means menstrual cycles, um, pregnancy, and then you know, menopause. But actually, we have estrogen receptors in every single cell, every single organ of our bodies. So when that loss is felt, it is a dramatic, um, it is a dramatic occurrence because now it's going to affect not just your your brain and and the brain fog that we commonly hear and and maybe have experienced ourselves. But now we're talking about our our our low tolerance for certain things. You know, we we we we just don't have the same level of tolerance for foolishness that maybe we had before. If we are meeting deadlines, have have additional stress. We have a hormonal support in our 20s and early 30s to be very resilient and to bounce back. And that's why we can go to bed late or you know, stay up late studying, or or you know, working on a project at work. And, you know, we'll have three, four, five hours of sleep. Jump right up out of bed, throw your hair up in a bun, you know, slap some water on, and you know, you still have you know, fresh face. You grab your cup of coffee and you're you're good to go. But we don't have that same level of hormone to help us to be resilient later on. Because of the decline, because of the fluctuation during perimenopause and the eventual decline, it affects our brains in we we lose who we lose sense of who we are. It it it makes us question our decisions, question, you know, am I doing the right thing? Am I in the right place? There's a lot of insecurity that comes, especially in with the symptoms. So imagine you're giving a presentation at work and you're in front of other executives and you're breaking out in a sweat. I mean, literally drops of sweat are are dripping down the side of your face, perhaps in the middle and your nose, and you forget what you're about to say. Maybe you're making, you're driving home a point, or you're giving financial information and you draw a complete blank. What would that do to your confidence?

SPEAKER_00 17:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 17:05

Right? That's going to really make you question yourself and and and you'll feel bad. It's it's it it could be embarrassing. It doesn't need to be, but it could be embarrassing because you know, here it is, you're you're, you know, trying to present yourself in a certain way and you're having an a moment. Or someone tells you their dog died, and you're in the bathroom and you're having a breakdown. It's not even your dog. You know? So it's those kinds of things that make women question their their identity. Am I really cut out for this? Is this really where I need to be in my life? Um, it's it's a time where, you know, if your relationship with your partner isn't, you know, solid or grounded, then then you question, is this the right person for me? So it's it's all of those things. We we start to lose sense of this person who we were. And and I hear all the time women, you know, when they come to me and and we have our uh a conversation, like, I just want to feel like I did before. I don't feel like myself anymore. Like that sense of self really goes away. And and it's partially due to symptoms, partially due to, you know, the atmosphere around menopause because not enough conversation happens around it. So people in the workplace don't understand how how that manifests in their employees, their female employees, their tenured employees. And, you know, women lose, you know, they they start to leave their jobs because the symptoms are just too much. And so, you know, there is a lot of of identity shifting um when it comes to, you know, that that as you're progressing through perimenopause into menopause.

SPEAKER_01 19:02

Yeah, I'm I'm listening to you and I'm thinking, how many times do I say, can I just go back? Who was that? Who's this woman now? I don't like her. I want to go back. Um, let's

Women Of Color And The SWAN Study

SPEAKER_01 19:12

talk about women of color because I think this is actually really interesting. Because if I don't even know if you if you remember this or you know about this, but you know, I was, you know, in my place of work at the time, uh, a couple years ago, many years ago, most of the women were older than me, and they invited me to go to a play, a musical called, I think it was called Menopause. And I it was called Menopause the Musical, and I was just like, what is it? Like, what is this for old people? Like, what I don't get it. And I'm sitting there and I'm watching and I'm listening, and I'm just like, I didn't get the jokes. I mean, I get them now. I didn't get the jokes, no clue what was happening. The interesting part is that it was mostly Caucasian women. Now, even in the Latin community, if you know, I asked my mother about menopause. Nobody talked about menopause in my family, nobody mentioned it. Um, even asking my mother, she doesn't even like I don't have that. I don't know, I don't know what that was, and she can't even remember what it was. She never warned me, she never had a conversation. I mean, we had the period conversation, but nobody had the menopause conversation, which I'm sure happens to everybody, but it wasn't as prevalent like in my family, and I can only imagine it may not be as prevalent for women of color. So talk a little bit more about this because I'm sure people are like, uh, what do you mean? Why is there a gap with the women of color and Caucasian women and menopause? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 20:52

There was a study, it's called the Swan Study. It's a study of women across the nation. And so they had um African-American women, Latina, Asian, um, Caucasian women, and and they followed these women as they, you know, went through the the um loss of their hormones in you know, perimenopause and menopause. So what they found is that black and Latino women experience this more more severe vasomotor symptoms. That's the hot flashes and night sweats. They have more sleep disruption, and their symptoms start on average a couple of years earlier than a Caucasian, and they last a few years, a couple of years longer. So, what does that tell us? What does that data tell us? That tells us, and and and the other thing about all of those symptoms, we report them. The least. We don't we we don't talk about it. Like other cultures, if they're experiencing those things, they will go and talk to their doctor about it. But we'll sit in the doctor's office, well, how are you doing, Miss So-and-So? And you know, hey, how how long has it been since your last period? Oh, okay. Or you're experiencing anything. I mean, even if you get those questions these days. Um, but you know, we won't, oh no, everything's fine. Yep, we're doing good. So those those statistics show that not only is the suffering more intense, it's longer and starts earlier. We don't talk about it. We just just keep going and we don't mention it. And the sleep disruption is significant because think about what happens if you don't get enough sleep, right? It affects your it affects your brain in addition to already, you know, what's going on, but less sleep equals more insulin resistance. Our cells become less sensitive to the signaling of insulin on our cells. So that means that instead of our body utilizing you know carbohydrates for energy, we get into fat storage mode. If you're not sleeping, then you normally grab for or look for something to give you energy. Usually it's caffeine and sugar. Caffeine is a huge culprit for hot flashes and night sleds. And uh sugar, it gives you a quick boost, but then a sudden drop. So that if if you had your morning coffee and a donut or a bagel in at eight o'clock, by 10 o'clock, you're starting to get that slump again. And your body is looking for energy. Your brain, your, your brain's um your brain runs on glucose. That's its preferred source of energy. So when that energy dips, your brain says, I need some sugar. And that's where we go. And so we're constantly on this blood sugar roller coaster, spike and dip, spike and dip, you know, between breakfast and snack and lunch and another snack, because you're you're you're grabbing things to try to stay awake.

SPEAKER_00 24:34

Right.

SPEAKER_02 24:35

And and because of the lack of insulin sensitivity, sugar stays in the bloodstream longer than it should. It's not pushed out into the cell so that we can use it for energy. So that's where the weight gain comes from. But it's it's it's it's all in your body's effort to make compensation for what the hormones are doing. If if your hormones are fluctuating like this, your body is looking for homeostasis or stability, and it has to find it somewhere. And so, therefore, the cravings and you know, other ways that your body compensates for the hormonal fluctuations.

SPEAKER_01 25:21

Wow. Um, usually I just fall asleep at work. But, anyways, um let's let's let's talk about Dana. I did not know about this study. I you are the first person, and I've had a couple people, yeah, you're the first person. I am in shock because I've had other people come here and talk about menopause, and this is the first time that I've heard anything like this, and I'm just like, that makes sense because I've experienced it and still experiencing it. Um, but I did not know that. So uh give me um when we're done with this, I'd love for you to give me like the link to get to that study just so that people who are listening can learn more about it. But I did not know that, and that is so interesting. And yes, we we don't like I said, nobody in my family ever talked about it, like ever. I mean, I don't nobody. Mine didn't either.

SPEAKER_02 26:19

Mine didn't either. And and you know, I don't remember my mom having outward mess manifestations like you know, the vasomotor symptoms, but I had them terribly. I mean, that was my like hard line in the in the sand. It's like, okay, you know, okay, I I know I'm missing sleep, and but you know, between the the hot flashes during the day and the night sweats at night, throwing on the covers, I mean, throwing off the covers, turning on the fan, then becoming freezing cold, putting on the covers. My husband's like, and he he likes it, you know, a little bit on the fridges side, but he's like, Dana, this is ridiculous.

SPEAKER_01 27:00

Yeah. I mean, I can remember waking up the first time and I said, Did I pee on myself? Like, why? It was like soaked, soaking wet. And I'm like, what is going on? And I remember telling my mother, do you think she said, Oh, maybe it's menopause? No. She said, Oh, maybe you should go to the doctor. Oh, uh obviously we don't talk about it. Let's

Nutrition For Metabolism And Cravings

SPEAKER_01 27:29

talk about the nutrition stuff because you started talking about that. And I think that, you know, everyone talks about the weight. And yes, I feel like it's like menopause is not just, well, the weight gain is because of this or this. It's like all of it, it's like a system, right? Like the no sleep, then the the hot flashes, then the anxiety, then the like all of that is just like wrecking havoc in your body. So with the nutrition and even the fitness, because you mentioned, I love this that you said this in your bio, intentional movement. Okay, so I want to talk about that as well, because what is that? And then as far as the nutrition goes, does that mean that women need to eat differently? Like, what does that really mean when you go through menopause and you're like, okay, let's look at our my nutrition. What does that look like? What needs to happen?

SPEAKER_02 28:29

Yeah, that is that is such such a good question, and it confuses so many people. Um, when now I don't know, there are probably a lot of people like this. I wasn't like this. I've always had to watch what I've eaten. I had a little more latitude in my 20s, but I've always had to be really careful. But um, you know, for the generally speaking, you know, you have a lot more latitude in in your 20s and early 30s to, you know, have the fries and the burger, have ice cream at night, you know, skip breakfast, you know, have a little lunch, do the heavy workouts, lots and lots of cardio. If you wanted to lose weight, you know, you just, you know, basically cut back your calories and did a lot of cardio and the weight just came off. Well, your body's telling a different story now. And so it's time for us when these changes start to happen, even if we don't necessarily see them come in dramatically, they're just slight. If you are in within the ages of 35 to 45, don't ignore them. Like really pay attention to even like sleep, you know, sleep disruption or irritability, you know, weight gain is hanging around a little bit longer, or it's that slow creep weight gain that's almost you don't really notice it until you put on your slacks or your dress. And it's like, oh, that feels a little tight around the waist. Like, don't ignore that. That's not just something you blow off and think, oh, I'll just, you know, skip breakfast and you know, go to the gym and work out like a maniac and it'll come off because we're doing just the opposite. But so when you talk about um nutrition, and we do have to do things differently because we're gonna talk about the hormones again. So, so estro estrogen is responsible, it's like the overarching piece that controls our metabolism. And metabolism is not just how you burn food, it's how you store it, how it mobilizes and and how your your cells utilize it. Uh, so metabolism is is bigger than just how quickly you burn your food. And estrogen is has has a big role in how we utilize the the energy that comes from the food that we eat. So as it's fluctuating in perimenopause, like we talked about earlier, you see weight gain, you lose it, you gain it, you lose it, or you just slow and steady continue to gain because you don't have that that natural um rise and fall of estrogen throughout the month. It's it's very erratic. So it's going to play havoc on your metabolism. The other important thing is that when estrogen starts to fluctuate, we talked about how it affects blood sugar, but estrogen also keeps our blood vessels elastic to accommodate for the blood flowing out from the heart and also returning to the heart. It it we have estrogen receptors in our heart muscles, right? So when we start to lose it, and and in the blood as well. So when we start to decline in estrogen or it fluctuates, then those blood vessels start to get stiff. Our blood gets a little more sticky. So then it's easier for that plaque to build up within the blood vessels and arteries of the heart. So what happens when the plaque starts to build up, then it means it needs more force. The heart has to work harder to pump that blood through those blood vessels. And that creates a rise in blood pressure. So it may not be, you know, that it rises immediately. It's just slow, gradual, right? So if you're not really paying attention, if you're if you're not taking your blood pressure at home or you're going for your annual visits, it could look like, wow, I never had high blood pressure before. What just happened? Well, it's been happening. Let's let's that it's been happening. So uh you have to be concerned about now your cardiovascular health. And as it relates to metabolism, the loss of estrogen uh contributes to muscle loss. And so maybe our diet hasn't changed. Maybe our activity really hasn't changed, but our muscles have changed because now we're losing estrogen. And so um it's important for us to then support the maintenance of muscle because we're going to lose it and and uh our bodies are gonna store more fat when we when we lose um estrogen. So we have to change what we've been doing from a nutritional standpoint and a movement standpoint. Cortisol is an important hormone. We need it, but we don't need chronic stress. We don't need to chronically be in a state of stress. And losing our hormones creates stress. It creates stress on the body. So even if you're you're doing all the right things, your body's gonna naturally be stressed because your brain has sensed, oh man, these the you're she's losing her hormones. We've got to protect her. So we gotta slow the metabolism down. We have to, you know, um, you know, we have to get our source of energy from from sugar and and and things like that. So it's really important that our nutrition, that we're making sure that we're getting protein at every single meal. We get adequate amounts of fiber because fiber helps to the the feeling of satiety as well as protein and keeps us regular, right? And and and that keeps things going in our system. So carbohydrates are necessary. We don't want to demonize those. We need them. Our brain, our body, our muscles use it when we um exercise. So we we should have uh whole food, you know, carbohydrates from whole foods, you know, really try to cut back and eliminate refined sugars, white bread, uh, highly processed foods. Some, some, you know, there is some processing to uh chicken and beef and fish and things like that. But we're talking about highly processed foods. So your box, your canned, you know, those, those kinds of things, your donuts and cakes and pies and ice cream and you know, that kind of thing. So um we have to accommodate for that the loss of hormone with adequate nutrition and really solid nutrition, and that has to include protein at every single meal.

SPEAKER_01 35:45

I know. No more donuts, no more hostess, no more, like it's just very depressing. And you know, it's interesting, you know. I because I did definitely experience that. Like I was working out, I was doing all the things, and it was a slow creep. Like the weights just like, oh it's just five pounds. It's ten pounds, right? Yeah, it's 50 pounds. Okay, where did that come from? You know, and then it's like, you know, I hear how women are trying to like uh overcome that. Like, that's not gonna happen to me. Girl, it's gonna happen to you. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 36:23

It's gonna happen.

SPEAKER_01 36:24

You can't outrun it.

SPEAKER_02 36:26

Um it, you can't out-diet it, you can't out-exercise it, it's going to happen. Here's the great thing though. When you when you have a more balanced plate and you make protein a priority, protein takes a long time for your body to digest. So it keeps you fuller longer, and it really helps with the sugar cravings because maybe your body needs more protein, but the quick source is a carb, a highly refined carb. But if you have the protein that you need to have, then it will keep you satisfied. It will give your cells the the um amino acids that it needs. And and it really does, if you have, if you have enough protein with each, you know, your main meals, it really does combat the sugar cravings. Most times we are craving sugar, again, because our our brain uses that to to function, but if we have enough protein, the craving for sugar is less.

SPEAKER_01 37:36

Yeah. Yeah, I know. It's just, God.

SPEAKER_02 37:40

It's just Jesus. All right. So I'm saying we can't ever have, you know, your your cookie or your ice cream or whatever. I mean, we have to be balanced, right? This there's a there's enough um should and shouldn't've around, you know, what you should do in midlife, but protein is a non-negotiable, like sleep is a non-negotiable.

SPEAKER_01 38:03

Yeah,

Alcohol Tolerance Changes In Midlife

SPEAKER_01 38:04

absolutely. Um on the topic of nutrition, let's talk about alcohol. Um, so I have noticed, well, I've noticed that I have I really don't drink anymore because alcohol does not do well in my body anymore. It's not fun anymore. In fact, I I was at an outing with a bunch of women that were in my age group and were like, remember when we used to enjoy alcohol? And I'm like, oh my God, they too don't feel it. Like it doesn't feel good. It it's it's a hard hit. It's a um, it's almost like I have a glass of wine, and the next day I'm like, I really have a headache. I feel like it doesn't feel good. I have a brain fog. What's up with that? Is that the hormones too? It is.

SPEAKER_02 38:53

So here's how um estrogen plays a role in how uh alcohol affects us in midlife. So, so estrogen helps to bring moisture into the tissues. So it helps to retain fluid. When we lose estrogen, then we also lose fluid. Think about the the the your skin and the collagen and and how perky and dewy and soft, right? And when we start to lose it, those fine lines start to come in. There's more dryness and you have your um your skin, your hair. So that also translates to the fluid volume in your body. And so now you have less fluid in your body, you have less tolerance to alcohol. And so it's easier to get tipsy. You won't feel as good in the morning. Um, you are guaranteed that is a recipe for hot flight for night sweats, yeah. Right? Especially if you pair it with, you know, maybe dessert or something sweet. I mean, you are just setting yourself up for a really, really rough night of sleep. Um so those are those are the stomach upset, you know, that whole thing is is part of it is due to to to the our lowered hormones. So we don't have the same tolerance level for alcohol. So most some women do decide, you know, not to drink or to drink less. Um to have to to if you do drink, then it's important, you know, have have a good solid protein meal. Your protein, your veggies, you know, have a meal and drink water in between because you're already, you know, alcohol dehydrates you anyway. If you're in midlife, you have less body fluid. So it's important to to you know compensate for all that. But when you eat, you will drink less. If you have water in between, you will drink less. And and and that's probably a good thing.

SPEAKER_00 40:58

Right, right.

SPEAKER_02 40:59

I mean, it is a neurotoxin after all. I mean, we can't ignore that. I mean, then don't get mad at me. And folks, when you're listening to this, don't, you know, don't get mad at me. Um, don't shoot the messenger. That is just a fact. It is, it is, it is a neurotoxin.

SPEAKER_01 41:15

Yeah, you know, it's toxic for sure. I mean, we're talking about alcohol being really, you know, toxic for your body.

Intentional Movement For Energy And Mood

SPEAKER_01 41:22

Okay, so let's talk about the intentional uh movement. What does that mean?

SPEAKER_02 41:28

It means instead of exercise or or whatever you do to move and make your body feel good, that it's not just you're checking it off a list. I did it today. Like it is more of, you know, as you're going, you know, preparing yourself, you're thinking about your workout and how it's going to make you feel afterward. You're really plan and focused on what part of the body that you're going to work. Um, even if if you can't get to the gym that day, when you're taking a walk, you're you're you're not just you know looking at your watch and and counting on your steps. Those are important, maybe, but you're also, you know, taking in the fresh air, listening to the birds, feeling the sun on your face or the cool breeze, hearing your feet hit the sidewalk. I mean, it's it's all of those things. So you're having, you know, a whole body experience. And you're intentional, like you're you're doing it because you want to feel good. And and I read an article about exercise and how women who stick with an exercise routine don't do it for weight loss. They do it for the mental, you know, the the mental release and and the how it helps you to adapt to stress better. And also because of how they feel afterwards. They become addicted to that as opposed to, okay, I didn't lose any weight. Because if you don't, then you stop. But movement is important. Our bodies were made to move. So when we don't, our joints hurt, we gain weight, we have more brain fog, we're depressed. And and when we exercise, when we move our bodies, when we when we make it a point, like I want to love on my body today. How am I gonna do that? I'm gonna go out for a vigorous walk. I'm gonna take a bike ride. I'm gonna, you know, work in my garden, I'm gonna, you know, join a class. Those are the things that you know we can do to really love on ourselves during that time. And it combats those feelings of I don't look good, I don't feel good, everything's changing and I don't like it. You know, it it helps to change our brains to make us feel better and give us more energy and and and many. Women suffer with low energy during um perimenopause and menopause. So it's it's an energy boost as well.

SPEAKER_01 44:07

I love that. That's uh I'm all about that. Um

HRT Basics Plus WHI Study Context

SPEAKER_01 44:11

let's talk about finally the hormone replacement therapy, HRT. Um, and what is your stance on it? And when we take HRT, is this gonna help us? Uh, do we take it forever? Like what is this all about?

SPEAKER_02 44:31

So, my stance on HRT, I am a huge fan. I am a huge proponent for hormone replacement therapy. I think that it's another tool in your toolbox. It it's not a magic pill, it's not a quick fix, and it could be a band-aid if you're not doing all the other things. So, so to get the most out of hormone replacement therapy, it's really important to have your sleep dialed in, have your nutrition dialed in, make sure that you're mitigating your stress and and um you know that you're you're getting adequate nutrition. So, like all of those play a huge role in completing the entire picture. And I think when people say hormone therapy, they get afraid um because you know, they they feel very strongly in agreement with the 2002, you know, WHI study.

SPEAKER_01 45:32

One study.

SPEAKER_02 45:32

One study that, you know, just just ruined everyone's opinion of hormones. So just a couple things, I don't want to, you know, spend too much time on this, but in the the the women's health initiative study, the women in that study were old had had been in menopause for 10 years or more. They were smokers, they were already in poor health. So probably already the beginnings of cardiovascular disease and what they were they they they were unhealthy and they were older women starting hormone therapy. The mode or the type of hormones that they were using were not bioidentical. They were horse urine, they they extracted uh estrogen from the urine of a pregnant female horse. So, so you have it's estrogen, yes, but it's not human estrogen. It's from a horse. So molecularly, it is not the same as what we produce in our bodies. And then the progestins are synthetic, so they're not the the same atom for atom, it is not the same molecular structure as the progesterone that is made by our bodies. So now you have older women with high risk and uh for uh other conditions, and then you're giving them synthetic hormones. There's bound to be things that can go wrong with that. And that was only the first arm of the study, so that they had an increase in breast cancer. And it was a really, when they look back at the data, it's a small increase. The second arm of the study, which doesn't get as much press, were women who were younger, who were within 10 years of menopause, were taking estrogen only, even the horses' estrogen, and they saw a slight decrease in breast cancer. So the the data was misinterpreted. So before the women's health initiative study, do you know that hormone therapy was the most prescribed medication in the United States for women?

SPEAKER_00 47:43

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 47:43

Like many women, thousands of women were on hormone therapy.

SPEAKER_00 47:49

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 47:50

So when the the results of the uh uh WHI study came out, I mean, everybody pumped the brakes. But now after they've re-evaluated it, they've seen that there were there were flaws in the interpretation. So the other part to it, and this is not to not to make light of of cancer, cancer is dangerous, cancer is scary, and it does affect many women. But let's be clear in midlife, heart disease is the number one killer of women, period. So, and and what causes that? Low estrogen. We don't have the heart protection for our heart, our blood, and our blood vessels when we lose lose estrogen. Here's the other important thing the hormones that we can that we can use uh in hormotherapy are bioidentical. And those bioidentical hormones are exactly the same, atom for atom, to the ones that we make in our body. So we're not putting anything unnatural or harmful in our bodies, and we're not replacing it to the point of a 25-year-old. So it's for most women, it can be a very safe, effective option, and it is the gold standard for symptom relief. But also, if you optimize and and you go to a provider who really is uh understands the hormones, what they do, how to prescribe them to you and and and and follow you throughout your journey, not just say, here's this prescription, go get it filled, put the patch on and see me in a year. Like if they really like are your partner and they're they're they're really invested in seeing you do well in your overall health, in addition to symptom relief, then they're gonna follow you. They're they're gonna titrate up if you need more, they're gonna titrate down if you need less, and they're they're going to to customize the the hormone therapy to suit you and what your body needs. So what you need is gonna be different from someone else. It's really not a one size fits all. It requires customization, a savvy doctor who really understands how to prescribe and and really care for and watch the woman and and and help manage her so that she can be optimized. And um, it takes us to be open to feeling better and and letting go of outdated incorrect information.

SPEAKER_01 50:38

Thought it was gonna take care of everything, but I hear what you're saying. Um, I thought it was the magic pill, but you're right. And yes, the heart situation is the biggest thing for me as well. Um, so when we take these uh a hormone replacement therapy for hormones, um, does that mean that we have to take it for the rest of our lives? Like, are we trying to, so you know, we're going through menopause, there's a decline in hormones, and then we take HRT to give us the more hormones or to balance us out. Like, where what is this?

SPEAKER_02 51:15

Okay, so um let's I want to just backpedal a little bit when it comes to um like administering hormone therapy. So there

How Long To Stay On HRT

SPEAKER_02 51:28

is an age window where it's most efficacious. It's in and it's the 10 years um from the from your last menstrual period. That is the ideal time to start. Um you can start in perimenopause. Perimenopause is that start of metabolic decline and and health decline. So perimenopause is the is really the best opportunity to get ahead of your health and and and look at you know, starting to replace some of these hormones that that you're starting to lose because it affects so much. And so in in in combination with um, you know, the right timing, the right method of delivery, and you know um all of the other pieces, like the the nutrition, the exercise, the sleep and stress, putting those all together, you can really get the most out of, and of course, using bioidentical hormones, which most are these days. Um, but you can really get the best out of your your hormone therapy. Now, how long should you take them? So the um the Metapolis Society has changed their positioning statement. And so um it used to be where you, you know, you take them for, you know, up until 60, uh, 60-ish, and then you stop. But if women stop, their senses are gonna come back and that they're gonna lose the protection that they've they've been trying to give their bodies, their brains, their bones, you know, cardiovascular system. So now the statement is a woman can continuously take them. So if and so you think, oh my gosh, well, I gotta take this for the rest of my life. Well, if you were a diabetic and you had to take insulin, how long would you have to take it?

SPEAKER_00 53:25

Right. Right?

SPEAKER_02 53:27

If if you had a thyroid issue, if you had an underactive thyroid or an overactive thyroid, if you had to take thyroid hormone, how long would you have to take it?

SPEAKER_00 53:36

Right, right.

SPEAKER_02 53:37

Vitamin D is a hormone. We we we and if you don't, you know, and especially with melanated skin with black and black and brown women, you you have to take a supplement. You're not gonna get enough just being exposed to the sun because of our our skin color. So it only makes sense. Why would hormone therapy be any different?

SPEAKER_01 54:00

Right, right. Okay. That's good to know. Um, so let's talk about working with you. What

Coaching Support And Where To Find Dana

SPEAKER_01 54:08

does that look like? You know, you meet with clients, and you know, is there a process? What does that look like?

SPEAKER_02 54:15

Yeah, so um I have what what I call a menopause success call. It's a 30-minute free call where we go over your goals. What is it that you're you're trying to accomplish? Is it, you know, you want symptom relief, or you know, are you interested in symptom relief and and and getting ahead in your health journey? Maybe you feel a little bit behind because you know, you you went into menopause within, you know, the last few years and you're really struggling, and you're like, okay, I'm done with this, I'm ready to seek some options. And so that 30-minute call is to help me to understand what it is that you need and to see if group coaching is right for you. Uh so my I use a group coaching, one-to-many um process. So we meet as a group, as a community on Zoom. Um, I'm virtual, so uh twice a month we have a coaching call and we we discuss whatever questions, um, any challenges that that women are having. Um, we've done Q ⁇ A's, uh, hormonal QA's before. We have different challenges. So um when before we turn to daylight savings time, we did a few weeks of preparation for that, you know, getting our routine together so that the transition may not be so shocking to the body. We've done um uh movement challenges, step challenges, um, also um detoxification with food, not just like juicing and things, but actually foods that support um detoxification of the liver, support, you know, your gallbladder and you know, um different things like that. So there's a lot of great things that we do. I have guests that come in uh on a on a quarterly basis. So we can ask the guests whatever questions that um the group has. And it's really a supportive community. All the women are really, they're in it to win it, they're in it for the long haul. They're not looking for a quick fix, another diet, you know, another program, but they're really looking for long-term support, long-term um results and sustainable solutions, not just those quick fly by night. This is the time where we need to level out, stabilize, make sure that we're making decisions from a really grounded and solid place of thorough education and decision making, not it's the next trend that I saw or everybody else is doing it, I may as well try it. Like you need to know why. And I think when when in making decisions about hormone therapy, if you're going to say yes, great, but say yes from a place deep inside of you that like I'm I'm ready to try this. I really want to see, you know, how this is gonna work. And if you're saying no, like be grounded in your no. Understand what you're saying no to, and not just say no because, you know, everybody else is saying no or an outdated study or you know, something like that. Like be really solid. And so that's the the the important piece is getting that uh baseline education.

SPEAKER_01 57:39

Right, right. I love that. It's like a that you know, the the the thing you definitely need in this journey is that support and providing that support. I can't, I can only imagine how amazing the women feel you educating them and then other women talking about their experiences, and they're like, okay, it's not me, and I'm not just going crazy. So that's an amazing support group that you have. And we're actually gonna talk about this a little bit more after the podcast. Like, how come Dana's almost 60 and she still has collagen on her face? So we're gonna talk about that because you know, when they said menopause hits, it means collagen is goodbye. And I look at my daughter and I'm like, oh, precious, how lucky you are.

SPEAKER_02 58:23

Your skin is beautiful.

SPEAKER_01 58:24

It looks like all that collagen. I know. And she's looking at me like, what are you talking about? So we'll talk a little bit about that after

Share Your Story And Final Takeaways

SPEAKER_01 58:32

this. So, where can we find you?

SPEAKER_02 58:34

You can find me. My main platform is Instagram. So um I'm at align and shine now. Facebook is the same. If you type in at align and shine now, you'll find me there. Um, my email is info at alignandshineow.com. And my website is alignandshineow.com. So it's pretty much the same everywhere.

SPEAKER_01 58:57

Yeah, that's perfect. And all the links are going to be in the episode notes so you can get a hold of Dana and ask her questions and follow her on her social media. Okay. So if you were sitting there thinking, wait, this is why I've been acting like this, just know you're not crazy. You're just hormonally inconvenienced. Huge thank you to our menopause coach for keeping it real and helping us understand what the hell is actually going on. So if this episode hits home, send it to a friend who's also sweating through her sheets at 2 a.m. or ready to flip a table for no reason because we're not doing this alone. And don't forget, subscribe, follow, leave a review, you know, all the things so more women can find this and feel a little less like they're losing their minds. And if you've got a menopause moment that deserves to be shared, you already know it. Send it in because honestly, some of these stories they belong in a lifetime movie special and they belong here. I'm mom is my emergency contact. All right, I'll see you in the next one. Hopefully, cooler and calmer and dry sheets. Um, we'll see you next time. Until then. Bye, I'm not sure.