Let's Get Curious with Replenishing Soul

Episode #10 -The Day I Cried Over Granola - how HRT helped

• Lori & Dorothy • Episode 10

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In this episode of Let's Get Curious, Lori shares a candid and humorous story about her journey through menopause, which she dubs “The Day I Cried Over Granola.” She recounts how the early signs of menopause appeared gradually, beginning with a lack of motivation, fatigue, and anxiety, which she initially dismissed as stress from moving and dealing with COVID. Over time, more typical menopause symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, and eventually heart palpitations began to emerge.

A pivotal moment came when Lori experienced a particularly intense heart palpitation, prompting her to visit urgent care and eventually a cardiologist. Although the tests came back clear, the doctor subtly suggested her body might be going through “changes.” Lori realized that menopause had truly arrived, sparking her desire to dive deeper into understanding her symptoms and finding relief.

Lori and Dorothy reflect on how these changes impacted Lori’s day-to-day life, from losing interest in big family events to feeling constantly drained.  Throughout the episode, the conversation mixes laughter with the realities of navigating menopause, while also shedding light on how stigmatized and misunderstood the experience can be—even by medical professionals.

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Thank you for your interest!

Show Notes:

Dr. Mary Claire:  https://www.instagram.com/drmaryclaire/?hl=en

Dr.  Lisa Mosconi:  https://www.lisamosconi.com/

Disclaimer:
The information shared on this podcast is for informational purposes only and is based on the opinions and experience of Lori Dorothy and their guests. The content should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or a treatment. Always seek the advice of your healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you heard on this podcast         

Welcome to let's get curious. The podcast for women and mothers seeking connection, support, and inspiration. We are friends, mothers, and therapists. Laurie, a physical therapist and Dorothy, a speech and language therapist. Together. We share our personal stories, including IVF birth experiences and navigating children's learning difficulties. Through our discussions, we uncover profound lessons for personal growth. Join us on this journey of curiosity, compassion and empowerment. Welcome to let's. Get curious

Dorothy:

Welcome back, everyone. It's Lori and Dorothy here with another episode of Let's Get Curious. And today, Lori will be sharing her story of menopause. Take it away, Lori.

Lori:

Oh, my story of menopause, you know, we're going to call this one DeeDee, the day I cried over granola.

Dorothy:

You know, I have heard this story probably three or four times already. It cracks me up every time.

Lori:

Cause that's how it went down. That's when I think I really like realized like, Oh shit, this, yeah, it's here. It is really here. Well, and you know, I honestly had signs before that. Um, Looking back, I think I was starting to go through it two years before I started to even have the symptoms, like true symptoms in terms of like hot flashes and night sweats and stuff like that. And I just chalked it up to being crazy with COVID. And making the move, you know, out of state. And there just came that time where the girls would be like, Hey mom, you know, can we have a birthday party? And you know, me, Didi, I loved throwing birthday parties for my girls. I mean, they were all day affairs and costumes and everything. And I was just finding myself going. No, I think we're just gonna keep it small and, like, how minimal could I go? And I was like, what's wrong with me? Like, why am I feeling so drained, so unmotivated? And now that I know what I know, and I look back, I think my symptoms were starting then, in terms of, the fatigue, um, anxiety. I think I had a lot more anxiety than I even thought that I did. But again, like, right? You're chalking it up to just what's life that's

Dorothy:

And you know, I'm remembering too, now that you're bringing this up, you had just moved into your beautiful new house, you know, where you live now, and you did not want to decorate for Christmas. And you were like the deck, remember you were like, you were like the decorating queen. Like you love your holidays and making it look special. And you're like, you know, I just don't want to decorate. I just have no motive. You had no motivation for anything. Yeah.

Lori:

No, you're right. You're totally right. So that's what I'm saying. When I look back now, I'm like, yes, I think it was starting then. I just chalked it up to a whole bunch of other stuff. And then, you know, fast forward. Two years and then I'm like, starting to get a little like warm spell during the day here and a little warm spell during the day there and it's like, okay, I think I'm starting, um, got to start to do, you know, some research, but again, busy with life. It wasn't anything big and bothersome. So it was one of those, okay, I'll get to it when I get to it. Well, I got to it when I cried, lost my shit over granola. And, um, but even, you know, all this stuff I'm going to be talking about was kind of starting to all happen around the same time. And what really brought my, really got me lit, like with the fire under my tushy. Was I was starting to have heart palpitations and I was sitting one night on the couch with my husband. We were watching TV and I had a heart palpitation that was so strong GD. It like, it made me like gasp and kind of like, take my breath away. We're like, I, I paused for a second and I was like, Ooh, that didn't feel good. And I woke up the next morning and my heart was sore, which makes sense. Cause it's a muscle, right? So if that, if the heart paused for a second, then I had to do like a big kind of, you know, Push out to start again. Of course, it's going to be sore because it's a muscle. But given my family history, I thought, you know what? I'm going to go and just get myself checked. So I took myself to urgent care. They ran an EKG. Everything, of course, came out totally fine. But they said, with your family history, you know, make an appointment with a cardiologist. So I did. So that was like maybe another month or two by the time I could see him. I'm waiting for this appointment, yes, I'm getting a little bit more warm during the day. I'm starting to have night sweats every night, but we're starting to wake me up, like, every hour. So, Yeah, every single hour, sometimes probably even like every half hour, I try not to look at the clock so that I wouldn't, you know, get myself into that whole anxiety cycle, but, um, yeah, and then of course I'm waking up multiple times throughout the night and, which is just adding to poor sleep, which adds then to more anxiety, crappy mood, more tired. And then, you know, losing my, my shit. Um, and so when I finally got in to go see the cardiologist, he did a full exam and everything on me and, um, he said, and it was all clear. And he says to me, he goes, could you, could your body be going through some changes? I'm like, Oh, he was, he already knew he was just trying to be polite and not be like, you know, you're in menopause

Dorothy:

But what, wait though, but what

Lori:

and I was like,

Dorothy:

does that say though that a physician, a medical doctor is uncomfortable with the word menopause? Like, come on.

Lori:

I think he might have been, I think he might have been. And yeah, so that's literally how he read it to me. It's like, could your body be going through some stuff? I'm like, well, I am, you know, I'm getting close to 50. So I, I could be starting some menopause stuff. And so for the heart palpitations though, he said, start taking some magnesium and see how that helps you. And it did. The, the heart palpitations, went away. So, okay. I'm clear. I know I'm not going to go into any, Urgent cardiac arrest or anything. So I clear all that. And, and, um, I was just like, okay, it is serious time now to start doing my research. And I had an appointment, that was already too on the books for my general physical with my, primary doctor. And so I started just mentioning to her, I get caught her up on the, on the cardiologist. And then again, went through my list of symptoms. Um, and she's like, yeah, you are definitely starting this. And she had said that, uh, Well, and I had asked her if I could go and get, you know, some blood work and everything done. And she said, you could, she goes, but we already know like what's starting with you. So I can even write you a prescription today for estrogen. And I was like, well, trust me. Like I want relief, but I also, I'm a, I'm a, I'm a let's get curious girl. Right. I wanted to dive deeper and really be like, but what's out of balance.

Dorothy:

and by how much I would think too, right? I mean, that's what I would be wondering. Like how much estrogen do I need? Right. So you're not taking too much or too little. Yeah. Yeah.

Lori:

and same thing from all the research that I had done, because I still have a uterus, I should also be on progesterone. And so, I spoke about that. I even questioned testosterone, and she did refer me out to a hormone clinic. Um, so I, you know, took that name and, and number down, but I was just like, I'm just gonna pass on the estrogen right now. And I knew that there was lots of Of other options out there. So there's the transdermal skin patches. There are creams, there are pellets, there's vaginal suppositories. I mean, there's so many amazing things out there. And so I just wanted to take my time. And even though I was desperate to feel better, I. I'm like, I need this, I need to be confident and solid in the choice that I choose and not just go down a quick fix that, you know, could potentially hurt me later. So, um, at that point I then continued my research and I was like, you know what? I was interested between pellets or working with a natural path and just going like the cream route. And I decided to go with the cream route. And the reason that I, I decided that for myself was because. With the pellets, they do a little slit, like right around like your hip area and that like fatty adipose tissue. And they insert this pellet that will have, um, estrogen, testosterone, and in the amounts that they need. You know, deem safe and necessary for you, but the problem with that is, let's just say, because in the beginning you're kind of all over the place. You don't know what's going to work. And so let's say they put in too little or they put in too much. Then I would have to wait that pellet out until The next time when it like fully dissolves, which is, I think it was like around three or four months and then you would get another one. And so I didn't like that, like kind of waxing and waning idea. Plus even, you know, if when we found the right amount for me, I'm like, I already feel up and down, up and down. I don't want to feel up and down, up and down as this pellet is working for me, but then starting to wane off. And I just didn't want that rollercoaster. That was. Um, what resonated with me. So I decided to work with a naturopath who was very well trained and versed in hormones, because I think that's something important I need to say is that, not all healthcare practitioners are trained in hormones specifically. It's almost like its own specialty. So you have to really be careful looking for that healthcare professional who's done that extra training. Um, and so I found the naturopath who I wanted to work with, and we started, we did blood work, got a baseline of where we should be starting me out on, estrogen, so I did estriol, testosterone, as well as progesterone. And all of those were in cream form. And the goal with the progesterone was to get up to a hundred milligrams. Because once you are at a hundred milligrams of progesterone, then you can start taking that bioidentical, pill orally that you can then, yeah, just pop it night. And let me tell you, the progesterone is amazing. I'm not going to lie. It's like a natural Xanax. It helps to just calm this, the nervous system, of course, it works, you know, in, in balance with, with estrogen. Um, and so, yeah, I mean, With adding in those three that I just said, the estriol, the testosterone, and the progesterone. Progesterone was at nighttime, the estrogen and the testosterone were in the morning. I apply clicks, like one or two clicks, onto my forearm. It could be inner thigh, rub it together, and off I go. And I like that because If, as we were trying to figure out what was that right amount for me, um, I could just do it within a click. I didn't have to wait. Right. Like, as I mentioned, for that pellet to come out. So I just had more control over how my body was responding and what felt good. So yeah, I went on and did that for three or four months and I should mention, yes, I was having the hot flashes and the night sweats, the heart palpitations, but, um, I You know, even vaginal dryness was a huge one for me. And then sex was starting to get painful. And, oh my god, I mean, Dee Dee, I see why now, like, our moms or our grandmothers, when they went through menopause, like, it was kind of like the shop is closed. Because, It was, it became super painful. And then, so, you know, you're, you're there trying to do something enjoyable. And then I started to notice like a little bit of blood afterwards because of course the tissues are thinning, right? And they're getting irritated, they're dry, and then they start to bleed. Well, that doesn't feel good. And so then there comes this apprehension the next time. So you're like, well, I want to do this, but I also like, don't want to be in pain. And so I can see how women can go down these spirals of where they're like, no, like, no, thank you. Thank you. But no, thank you.

Dorothy:

Obviously.

Lori:

The vagina door is shut today. Or I should say out of business. Just hang the

Dorothy:

Well, and you know, um, that's interesting that you say that because I. always thought that when you went through menopause, you just didn't want to have sex anymore. Like, the hormones are gone and then so is your sex drive. And then when I went to my OB, because I have a prolapse that I was trying to figure out what to do with, she had told me that a viable option, not right now since I'm in my 40s, but when I get older, like after menopause, is just to sew everything up down there. And you should have seen how by mouth dropped.

Lori:

Yeah.

Dorothy:

like, people do that. And she says, Oh yeah, nobody wants to have sex after menopause. When you get older, like when you're in like in your, you know, late sixties, seventies, nobody wants to have sex. We just sew everything right up so nothing can fall out. Yeah. Uh huh.

Lori:

Oh my god. Well, and again, this is why we're talking, because we have to change that narrative. And it's like, no, you, mainly you don't want to have sex because it's painful. And yes, my libido did, did drop some, for sure. So it was like this combination. Um, but I can tell you when I started back doing the um, starting the, all the hormones, game changer. game changer. Yes, lube still needs to be used, you know, and that's, I mean, any healthcare professional will tell you, yeah, menopause lube is going to be your best friend, but the tissues though have become a lot more pliable and viable as well with doing, the hormone supplementation. So, yeah, within three, four months, I was feeling great. She ran more blood work on me at that point. So again, let's just see where you are, what your levels. And my estrogen was a little bit high. And so she said, okay, rather than two clicks, let's take you down to one click. And I think a click for me was like 0. 25 milligrams. Um, and so we did that for a while. And then what started to happen was I was like, Ooh, I'm starting to get a little warm again during the day or a little hot at night. And so that was for like another three or four months, um, that had gone on. And then again, I had another office visit. And at that point, she's like, you know what, Lori? She goes, we have enough information. I don't need to run blood work on you. For the way she likes to practice and how she's been trained is. Yeah, you get some lab work, have an idea, you know, what might be too low, too high, and then also just start treating, making your treatment, I should say, based off of your symptoms.

Dorothy:

Makes sense.

Lori:

And so that's what I was. And so she's like, yeah. She's like, you know what? Go back up a click. So do two clicks of your estrogen. Let's see how you feel. And it, again, it put me in control. And then what was really amazing is, uh, I was on that hundred milligram, um, pill orally for progesterone at night and she said, same thing. If you feel like you need a little bit more, um, for sleep anxiety or whatnot, you can still do. A click of progesterone and do that on the skin at night. So, um, yeah, I'm kind of around like a hundred milligram pill by mouth that I take before bed with my, still my magnesium. And then I'll do a click of progesterone and, Oh God, I sleep like

Dorothy:

sounds amazing. I, I want

Lori:

It is

Dorothy:

My doctor says I don't need any, but I'm going to go back and say, please give me some. No, but, but,

Lori:

Xanax,

Dorothy:

but I love, I love that you have control on a daily basis because you know, if you're fluctuating with your symptoms, I love how you have control over your, your supplements and how you can just change it and customize it based on what your body needs. That makes so much sense. Wonderful.

Lori:

Well, and that's just how I like to roll in general, right? I mean, we all know how much of a control freak I am.

Dorothy:

What the things that are, that need to be controlled though.

Lori:

True, true. But yeah, I just, I want that. I want that control so that I can, yeah, adapt and see, you know, how I feel. And, um, And even the testosterone has made a huge difference for me, I feel like I'm in the gym, you know, and I'm doing some weight training, like I have like good strength behind me, it's helping me keep my muscle tone, um, and again, it's super, super low, super low dose, um. I think I just do like one click of that in the morning and for my protocol, my doctor also has me take five days off during each month. Yep. Just to, give my body a break from, from all of that stuff as well. And so, yeah, so far so good, but you know, as I was diving deep into research for myself and listening, to, well, reading books and listening also to podcasts, I came across two. Amazing doctors that I just need to share. And I'll put this in the show notes. One of them, her name is Dr. Lisa Moscone and she was on, the rich role podcast. And I'll put again, this in the show notes, but she is a neuroscientist. So get this Deedee, she's a neuroscientist. I think she now lives in, uh, New York she's like, there has been, as we know, there's no research on women's health, right? It's starting to pick up and people are starting to take an interest in it from the pelvic floor world that I live in. And now, of course, the menopause world that I live in. And what is so fascinating is, you know, back in the day, they, and this is as, and you can listen to the, her say this on the podcast. Back in the day, they always thought that women ended up having Alzheimer's more than men because we lived longer than

Dorothy:

I've heard that too.

Lori:

And that's not, yeah, it's not the case. We have Alzheimer's because of the drop. We have an higher incidence, I should say, of Alzheimer's because of our drop through menopause and our hormones, our brain. But these are the two that she kind of, you know, honed in on the, the podcast, they have estrogen and progesterone receptors on them. So when our hormones drop, our heart doesn't get what it needs. Our brain doesn't get what it needs. And this is why Alzheimer's and heart disease are the two top killers with women. It's because of the drop. Yeah. So she's doing this amazing research. Dr. Lisa Mosconi. She's doing this amazing research out of New York and she is literally running brain scans, blood work, everything on women, starting through perimenopause, menopause, and postmenopause, and just seeing like, yeah, seeing what happens from a hormonal level, um, what happens with changes in the brain there with all the brain scans that she does and just again, gathering. This information and she does say in, in the podcast too, like there is a, there is a window of starting hormone replacement therapy. So yeah, you have to do your research and, you know, find the doctors out there who are studying this because, um, it's cutting edge and there's, you know, It's, I think, I think we're going to start seeing and hearing more, you know, talk than we already do, because we're finally, women are finally being researched.

Dorothy:

Well, it's about time.

Lori:

So I mean, there is a reason why we become

Dorothy:

Yes, exactly. It's not our fault. Yeah.

Lori:

It's not our fault. No. And then the other, doctor who I love to follow too, she's great on Instagram and her name is Dr. Mary Claire and same thing. Her yeah, she's coming up with again, research and her information is just amazing out there. So I will put her too in the show notes, but, yeah, it's nothing to be afraid of the HRT, um, got to find the right doctor who is versed in hormones.

Dorothy:

Makes sense. And I think another good point is to be proactive with your health care providers and asking for the blood work, even when you're in your 30s. You know, I have a friend who in her late 20s was going into menopause. Yes. She had low ovarian reserve in her late 20s and You know was having trouble conceiving because she got married and what you know wanted to have a baby shortly thereafter I think it was like, you know, she was 28 or 29 and she couldn't get pregnant and they did the labs and she was pretty much, you know at menopause and she was

Lori:

Which really was, I mean, that was my situation. That's why I had to do the IVF.

Dorothy:

so

Lori:

Yeah. So I was in that perimenopause phase, you know, way sooner than I thought I was going to be. Um, so yeah, I mean, I would be amazing if they could just make this, you know, routine blood

Dorothy:

Well, we do, the thing is, and we do routine blood work anyway. I know for me every year when I get my, my annual

Lori:

Mm hmm.

Dorothy:

I get blood work done. My physical, I mean, I get blood work done. So why aren't we testing for all the hormones? I don't know,

Lori:

I know. Um, fight for it, people ask for it, I mean, a big one is, yeah. I did the blood work for like the IVF and my FSH was normal, but within that year it dropped. A lot. Mm hmm. Mm hmm. So that's the thing. I mean, it could happen fast, you know? And then again, we start to just chalk things up to, busy working, busy with the kids, stressed about this, stressed about that. Um, and that would be my, my, one of my biggest takeaways is if you start to feel not like yourself in terms of like, right, like I love decorating. I loved having birthday parties. I know it was like a full one 80. I was like, I couldn't even, the thought of it exhausted

Dorothy:

Yeah. I remember.

Lori:

a change.

Dorothy:

I would have never thought.

Lori:

a change. So pay,

Dorothy:

I would have never thought that was, that was menopause, but yeah. So can you run us through the symptoms one more time? I want to make sure that. I got them all. So,

Lori:

Well, for me, like again, looking back, I think it was that just lack of motivation was a big one. Lack of motivation, fatigue, anxiety. Those would be the things that I would classify for people where we all have that to some degree in life as

Dorothy:

Mm hmm.

Lori:

But when you start to feel like you're not yourself with that, or it's happening more often to you. Um, so yeah, decreased motivation. Fatigue and anxiety, and then it was for myself, heart palpitations. I even had really bad, um, hormonal headaches that were starting. Mm hmm. I had hormonal headaches. I'm telling you, like, when I looked up like, Oh, I'm feeling this today. And I would, you know, Google it. Yep. There it is. There's a symptom. I mean, there are so many itchy ears. Did you know itchy ears? Is a sign of a hormone imbalance? Yes, because, makes sense, when we start to deplete in estrogen, things dry up.

Dorothy:

That makes sense. Mm

Lori:

So, the tissues in our nose, the tissues in our ears, all of that start to dry up, and yeah, so itchy ears, which I was having, night sweats, heart palpitations, hot flashes during the day, even noticing like just changes in my skin, the skin turgor, right? The, uh, like the, the elasticity. Thank you. The elasticity in my skin. And then, yes, pain with sex, and then the, the dryness, the dryness with the sex, and, and the change in the libido. So, I mean, I kind of had a little bit of everything that was, it was compounding, right? It didn't all come in at once, but it was like, oh, now this, oh, and now this, oh, and now this. And so, um, yeah, but like I said, if you are walking around feeling just not yourself, mentally, emotionally, and physically, Get some blood work done. Regardless of even if it's hormones, right? Just, yeah, get yourself checked. Mm hmm. Be an advocate for yourself because and you and I have seen this a ton, Deedee, working with clients and doing nutrition, you know, and stuff like that and so many times too you hear like, oh, well, you're, you're too young for that. That, no, it can't be

Dorothy:

Mm hmm.

Lori:

Well, but it can't be, but it can be right. And so that's the thing. If you don't feel like yourself, just go and be an advocate and you have a right. You have a right to ask for these things.

Dorothy:

And if you see someone and they are telling you that, go see someone else. It's a whole other podcast, but I cannot tell you how many second and third and fourth and fifth opinions I have gotten, even in the last decade, with my kiddo. And I ended up being right in the end, you know, what I was looking for.

Lori:

Well, it's following that gut instinct, right? That, that gut instinct. Mm hmm. I know. So, yeah, like I said, when I, you know, lost my shit over

Dorothy:

ha ha. Ha ha ha ha

Lori:

was just, it was really time to be like, okay, this is serious stuff now because this is just not making any sense. Yeah. Any

Dorothy:

I'm so glad you're better and you got the answers and the help and yeah, and so quickly too. Yeah.

Lori:

Well, yeah, that was the thing. I mean, when you start, you know, when you do start the HRT, it's a pretty quick turnaround. Um. But yeah, just don't, just don't dive into something just to dive into it because you want to feel quick, you know, better quickly. Um, and there's so many just natural supplementations out there. Um, that is awesome. So do your research, everybody get curious and, You know, don't, don't have a breakdown over granola. And if you are, get in and see your doctor.

Dorothy:

Get labs pronto.

Lori:

Yes. All right, everybody.

Dorothy:

Alright,

Lori:

Oh, my pleasure. Always have to share.

Dorothy:

next time.

/The information shared on this podcast is for informational purposes only and is based on the opinions and experience of Lori Dorothy and their guests. The content should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice. Diagnosis or a treatment. Always seek the advice of your healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you heard on this podcast