September 26, 2025 • 47 mins
Hey lady! The weather’s cooling down but for some of us that doesn’t necessarily mean that your body is lowering the temperature. Why? Because perimenopause is a thing and it’s time we talk about it and why it’s impacting Black women more and earlier than other women.
Friend of the podcast and all-around boss babe, Dr. Janet Williams, a Los Angeles-based OB/GYN and author of Why Don’t I Like Sex Anymore? The Grown Woman’s Guide to Getting Your Groove Back and Claiming Your Truth joins Dr. Dom and Terri to get real about a natural station in life for every cis-gendered woman. You may remember the many jewels she dropped in season 25, episode 5 urging women to take more ownership in their intimate pleasure. She’s now back to arm Black women with the information they need during one of the most significant changes in life. Once considered the marker of old age it is now a signifier of the strength and beauty that exists in aging. But, before you rise in your feminine power there are some things to know to make the journey smoother…and less sweaty.
Dr. Janet not only provides a clear definition of what menopause, perimenopause and post-menopause are but also break down what is happening in the body and provide specific markers you can use as a guide to help you inform yourself about where you are on the journey. Dr. Janet uses her expertise to offer guidance on treatments like hormone replacement therapy, demystifies the sometimes-inexplicable changes happening in the body, and clears up myths and confusion around proper supplementation to ease some of the uncomfortable symptoms that occur during each phase.
Lady, you already know where to go to get your level-up journal (Patreon), but there’s more on Patreon as well. Get behind-the-scenes dialogue and maybe even a few bloopers so you can see the real side of Terri and Dr. Dom. And, if you want to hear all of Dr. Janet’s gems without interruption, consider becoming a subscriber on Apple Podcasts for an ad-free listening experience. Lady, we want to hear from you! Holla at us in Patreon and let us know what stood out to you in this episode.
Quote of the Day:
"You're not superwoman. Stop powering through."
– Dr. Janet Williams
Goal Map Like a Pro Workbook
Cultivating H.E.R. Space Sanctuary
Where to find Dr. Janet Williams:
Website: Good Groove Coach
Book: Why Don't I Like Sex Anymore?: The Grown Woman’s Guide to Getting Your Groove Back and Claiming Your Truth
Instagram: @goodgrooveco
Facebook: Good Groove Company
Resources:
Dr. Dom’s Therapy Practice
Branding with Terri
Melanin and Mental Health
Therapy for Black Girls
Psychology Today
Therapy for QPOC
Where to find us:
Twitter: @HERspacepodcast
Instagram: @herspacepodcast
Facebook: @herspacepodcast
Website: cultivatingherspace.com
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/cultivating-h-e-r-space-uplifting-conversations-fo
Friend of the podcast and all-around boss babe, Dr. Janet Williams, a Los Angeles-based OB/GYN and author of Why Don’t I Like Sex Anymore? The Grown Woman’s Guide to Getting Your Groove Back and Claiming Your Truth joins Dr. Dom and Terri to get real about a natural station in life for every cis-gendered woman. You may remember the many jewels she dropped in season 25, episode 5 urging women to take more ownership in their intimate pleasure. She’s now back to arm Black women with the information they need during one of the most significant changes in life. Once considered the marker of old age it is now a signifier of the strength and beauty that exists in aging. But, before you rise in your feminine power there are some things to know to make the journey smoother…and less sweaty.
Dr. Janet not only provides a clear definition of what menopause, perimenopause and post-menopause are but also break down what is happening in the body and provide specific markers you can use as a guide to help you inform yourself about where you are on the journey. Dr. Janet uses her expertise to offer guidance on treatments like hormone replacement therapy, demystifies the sometimes-inexplicable changes happening in the body, and clears up myths and confusion around proper supplementation to ease some of the uncomfortable symptoms that occur during each phase.
Lady, you already know where to go to get your level-up journal (Patreon), but there’s more on Patreon as well. Get behind-the-scenes dialogue and maybe even a few bloopers so you can see the real side of Terri and Dr. Dom. And, if you want to hear all of Dr. Janet’s gems without interruption, consider becoming a subscriber on Apple Podcasts for an ad-free listening experience. Lady, we want to hear from you! Holla at us in Patreon and let us know what stood out to you in this episode.
Quote of the Day:
"You're not superwoman. Stop powering through."
– Dr. Janet Williams
Goal Map Like a Pro Workbook
Cultivating H.E.R. Space Sanctuary
Where to find Dr. Janet Williams:
Website: Good Groove Coach
Book: Why Don't I Like Sex Anymore?: The Grown Woman’s Guide to Getting Your Groove Back and Claiming Your Truth
Instagram: @goodgrooveco
Facebook: Good Groove Company
Resources:
Dr. Dom’s Therapy Practice
Branding with Terri
Melanin and Mental Health
Therapy for Black Girls
Psychology Today
Therapy for QPOC
Where to find us:
Twitter: @HERspacepodcast
Instagram: @herspacepodcast
Facebook: @herspacepodcast
Website: cultivatingherspace.com
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/cultivating-h-e-r-space-uplifting-conversations-fo
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
On this week's episode of Cultivating Her Space, and the analogy.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
That I like to use is perimenopause can be like
getting into your car and the car goes crazy and
it puts you on a roller coaster.
Speaker 3 (00:13):
So you're in a car and it just goes nuts.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
You're supposed to be driving and doing what it's supposed
to do, but instead it's going all over, up, down, around,
flipping over. That would be terrifying. Can you imagine?
Speaker 4 (00:28):
Hey, lady, have you ever felt like the world just
doesn't get you? Well?
Speaker 5 (00:35):
We do.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
Welcome to Cultivating her Space, the podcast dedicated to uplifting
and empowering women like you.
Speaker 4 (00:43):
We're your hosts, doctor Dominique Brussard and educator and psychologists.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
And Terry Lomax, a techie and transformational speaker.
Speaker 4 (00:52):
Join us every week for authentic conversations about everything from
fibroids to fake friends as we create space for black
women to just.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
B Before we dive in, make sure you hit that
follow button and leave us a quick five star review. Lady,
We are black founded and black owned, and your support
will help us reach even more women like you.
Speaker 4 (01:15):
Now, let's get into this week's episode of Cultivating her space.
Speaker 5 (01:22):
It's doctor dom here from the Cultivating her Space podcast.
Are you currently a resident of the state of California
and contemplating starting your therapy journey? Well, if so, please
reach out to me at doctor Dominique Brusard dot com.
That's d R D O M I N I q
(01:44):
U E b R O U ss ar D dot
com to schedule a free fifteen minute consultation. I look
forward to hearing from you.
Speaker 3 (01:57):
All right, lady.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Today's guest is no stranger to the show. You may
remember her from season twenty five, episode five, where we
talked about reclaiming intimacy and sexual health. Doctor Janet Williams,
MD is a licensed physician and surgeon practicing in Los Angeles, California.
She's a Board certified specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, a
(02:20):
member of the International Society for the Study of Women's
Sexual Health, and a member of the Menopause Society. Doctor
Janet has helping women find solutions to their reproductive and
sexual health concerns since two thousand and one. Okay she
ain't new, it is she true?
Speaker 4 (02:36):
It is.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
In addition to her medical practice, she is an intimate
life coach, a hypnotherapist and the creator of the Confident
Pleasure Course, a coaching and hypnosis experience that helps women
master their intimate health, find pleasure and passion and their
body so they can make a confident sexual. Comeback, and lady,
(02:57):
there's more. You're going to love this. You can find
doctor Janet's Amazon bestseller Why Don't I Like Sex Anymore?
The Grown Woman's Guide to Getting your Groove Back and
Claiming Your Truth, Doctor Janet, Welcome to Cultivating her Space.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
It's so great to be back. How are you guys doing.
It's been a little while. It's been a minute, huh.
Speaker 3 (03:20):
It, yes, it has quite a year.
Speaker 1 (03:23):
Yes, oh my goodness, yes, yes, yes, okay, lord, yes.
Speaker 4 (03:32):
Well we we are definitely excited to have you back
with us today for this very important conversation that not
a lot of people really know much about. Yeah, so
we're gonna do I'm going to dive into the quote
of the day and then we're going to jump right
into this conversation.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Okay, let's do it, all right.
Speaker 4 (03:54):
Our quote of the day, Doctor Janet.
Speaker 5 (03:56):
This quote comes from you from your.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Social media account.
Speaker 4 (04:00):
Yes, ma'am, you're not superwoman about powering through. All Right,
I'm going to say it one more time for the
folks in the back to make sure that they heard it,
because as black women, we need to hear this multiple times.
(04:21):
You're not super woman. Stop powering through, doctor Janet. When
when you think about this, your quote and this conversation
that that we're having today about perimenopause and menopause, tell us,
(04:44):
tell us what what comes up for you?
Speaker 3 (04:49):
Woo so much?
Speaker 2 (04:51):
Okay, The thing is, as you know, doctor domind you
probably don't have all the research behind this, but you know,
we are socialized in a way that we are doing
the most, Like from day one, we're doing the most.
We're trained that we have to find our worth externally,
(05:16):
and so we go to college, we get the good job,
we have the nice family, We have the.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Kids in school, we take.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Them to all of their you know, soccer practice, blah
blah blah, all of the things. We're taking care of family,
we're involved in the church, we're you know, handling our careers.
We're doing all of the things, and we often neglect
our own needs.
Speaker 3 (05:44):
You know.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
And there is a bit of a like a traumatic
experience that happens for black girls. I think it happened
to me, you know, from well intentioned parents who are
telling those girls, like, you've got to be twice as good,
you've got to work twice as hard, you know, and
then you've got like patriarchy put on top of that.
(06:07):
So there's this burden that is on young women, and
as we become adults, like, we never get rid of
the burden, and so we get accustomed to running and
being that superwoman because there is this ideal that we're
trying to live up to, which is an ideal that
(06:27):
is a false ideal that we have to learn how
to like basically retrain that little child inside of us,
you know, how to live, you know. And so that's
what comes up when I think about that power through
It's a very deep and encompassing, you know, thing that
it impacts so many different parts of our lives, but
(06:48):
we don't even we're not even aware of it because
it's like just in there and it's what we've been
doing for so long. And then when perimenopause and menopause
roll around, you now have a biologic physiologic aspect that
is thrown on top of that is like a stress
factor that you know, makes it really difficult and things
(07:09):
like become a bigger challenge, you know, so that Superwoman
I call it the Superwoman syndrome, Like.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
We got to figure out ways to get rid of it.
Speaker 1 (07:23):
That is so good, doctor Janet, And as you said that,
it made me think of a couple of things. So
we're gonna we're gonna adopt into the interview on the topic.
But I have to ask a follow up question, speaking
of relearning and like sort of reparenting ourselves around that
narrative of powering through, what should we be telling our
inner child or our children, because I have a four
year old daughter now, and I think sometimes our parents
(07:45):
they would tell us that out of safety, like to
you know, thinking they were protecting us, like you said,
well intentioned adults. But what should we tell them? Because
I'm going to take some notes on what you share
because I did this in real life.
Speaker 2 (07:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (07:57):
So, and then you're it's so great, You're you have
a four year old. This this is the.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
Time where they're imprinted, right, This is the time where
they your our subconscious minds are like imprinted on what
our belief about the world is. So you can really
help your child at this stage by letting them know
that they're worthy.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
That's it.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
Boom done, that's it, Like there's no you don't have
to do anything. You don't have to We want you
to go to school, right, we want you to get
good grades, but you don't have to do that to
have worth.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
You're already inherently worthy.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
And so I know for me, I remember, you know,
at being a child, thinking that that my worth was
external where I have to you know, whether it's you know,
follow the Ten Commandments or you know what I mean,
follow the word of God or whatever the external thing was.
Speaker 3 (08:52):
But that worth is actually internal. It's already there.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
We don't we're born with it, like there's nothing that
we have to do. And I think that is big
difference between our white counterparts and us.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
They are kind of it's privileged, right, Like it's the
idea that.
Speaker 2 (09:08):
You are, you're good, right, Like in a white I
don't want to get into all of that, but like
in a white supremacist world, you know, the white person
feels like, Okay, I'm good, you know.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
And that's there's actually nothing wrong with that.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Like that's how we all should feel about ourselves, right,
that that worth is inherently there and there's nothing that
you have to do. You just wake up, you're born,
and you're already worthy. And the rest of it is like,
you know, it's iceiner on the cake, it's gravy.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Yes, okay, okay, yes, come on.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (09:47):
So when we when we think about this, this worthiness
and needing to put down this superwoman cape and thinking
about all the messaging and import seeing that we've received,
particularly as Black women, how does that show up in
(10:10):
terms of like thinking about this conversation today about perimenopause
and menopause, how does that show up for Black women
who are navigating perimenopause and menopause.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
Yeah, it's such a big piece of it. You know,
managing pretty much any like health issue.
Speaker 2 (10:28):
Wellness issue is something we call biopsychosocial. So there's biology involved,
there's psychology involved, and there is social impact community involved.
And so when we talk about these like navigating this
from the standpoint of our worth, the social part of
(10:51):
it is a really big piece of it. So if
the community, if the community at large, if you're a
culture society looks at women who are older over a
certain age and maybe disregards them, it's almost like it's
almost like we disappear, you know, like youth is like valued,
(11:15):
reproduction is valued, and so there's this idea that like
once that is gone, you're you know, basically menopause is
when you have a cessation of you know, menstrual cycles.
Speaker 3 (11:27):
That's what it is.
Speaker 2 (11:28):
So you're not reproducing anymore after menopause. And so the
whole idea there is like my worth is tied into
you know, being a mother or you know, having these
cycles or being sexual or appearing sexual what is like
considered sexual, right, and so when we make that transition
(11:49):
and we're living in a society that doesn't value us
in that way, it can be very difficult on your worth.
Speaker 3 (11:57):
Like people don't know what to do, you know.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
Because it's like all of your life you've been operating
under this one operating system, and now it's like there's
this silence, there's a void, there's void of help, there's
void of acknowledging you know that you're so beautiful, And
especially in our society, I know there are societies that
value elderly and people who are over a certain age,
but in our society and our culture, that's not the case.
(12:22):
And that's why it is so difficult to navigate from
that like social aspect of things.
Speaker 1 (12:30):
Thank you for sharing that, and I just kind of
want to take a step back to one define perimenopause
and even menopause in general, because I think when I
was younger, it was something I heard my like mom
or grandmother, maybe my grandmother more so talk about, and
from that perspective at a young age, was like, oh,
that something happens to older women. Well, now I'm a
problem knocking on the door to that today. So we
(12:52):
could define that and also let women who are in
their twenties and thirties know why it's important to have
the conversation.
Speaker 2 (12:58):
Yeah, So menopause is basically a day. Menopause is the
day that you've gone one year without a menstrual period.
So perimenopause is, you know, the years before that day,
and then postmenopause is any time after that day. Now
we don't know, you don't know when your menopause is
(13:19):
if you're still having cycles, because you know if that's
your last cycle or if you're going to have another
one the following month. And then for most women in perimenopause,
the cycles usually kind of like space out, like you
might have a very light one and then you know,
maybe you'll have a period that comes back again normal speed.
Speaker 3 (13:39):
But for most women, we don't know.
Speaker 2 (13:41):
Until like you're like, hey, it's been a year and
I haven't had a period.
Speaker 3 (13:45):
Now.
Speaker 2 (13:46):
What happens in perimenopause is the hormones, especially where and
there's a lot of hormones that have fluctuations, but the
main one that we're thinking about is estrogen, and so
over time that estrogen declines, but it also goes up
and down, so like every time you have a menstrual cycle,
sometimes it's going way high. And so this is why
(14:07):
we see women at this time having problems with like heavy.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
Periods or irregular periods.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
We might see fibroids growing because fibroids are under the
influence of estrogen. So if there's lots of estrogen floating
around doing crazy things, that can cause those fibroids to grow.
An analogy that I like to use is that perimenopause
can be like getting into your car and the car
like goes crazy, and it's like it puts you on
(14:35):
a roller coaster.
Speaker 3 (14:36):
So you're in a car and it just goes nuts.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
You're supposed to be driving and doing what it's supposed
to do, but instead it's going all over, up, down, around,
flipping over. That would be terrifying, can you imagine. Okay,
so if you don't have any understanding of what perimenopause
can be, it's like getting in your car and being.
Speaker 3 (14:58):
In a roller coaster. Whoever, if you went to six Flags.
Speaker 2 (15:04):
And you stood in line and you're like, I'm getting
on this roller coaster, it can be scary, yes, but
at least you have the understanding that you're getting on
a roller coaster and you're like, okay, maybe it's a
little fun. Okay, now we're going up, we're going to Okay, yeah,
they told me about this curve.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
You know, so it can.
Speaker 2 (15:23):
Be not as frightening as terrifying when you know what's
going on and what's happening in the body. And so,
like I said, perimenopause is the time period before and
for most people that happens after forty you know, from
forty to forty five anywhere in there is when people
tend to enter into perimenopause, and then you know, it varies.
(15:47):
But like that's kind of like the the basic definition.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
Thank you.
Speaker 4 (15:52):
Okay, now that's opened up way that's opened up way
more questions, right, Okay, So what we've been seeing online
is that women are talking about being going through menopause. Now,
you just said menopause is that one day, right, like
when you're period sees exists? Yea. And we've also seen
(16:16):
I've seen online women talking about experiencing peri menopause in
their thirties. How And you said it's a roller coaster, right,
And we don't know a lot of things, we don't
know what to expect. Yeah, how does one know when
they truly are entering into perry menopause? Like what might
(16:41):
be Like let's say that I am Let's say I'm
thirty eight, generally healthy, haven't have been one of the
very few black women that didn't have fibroids, pcos, endometriosis,
none of those things?
Speaker 5 (17:00):
Right?
Speaker 4 (17:01):
And my parients have been regular, I'm not on birth control.
How do I know what are the things that I
need to look out for to let me know that
I might be answering perimenopause.
Speaker 2 (17:17):
Well, I would just say, like, here's the thing. It's
a little tricky because there are nearly a hundred different
symptoms of menopause and perimenopause. Okay, the most common ones
are going to be like menstrual irregularities, hot flashes, sometimes
sleep disturbances, people waking up in the middle of the
(17:39):
night to sleep, and then vaginal dryness or pain. Suddenly
you're having pain with intercourse. All of these are tied
into estrogen levels. Now, for some people who aren't even
close to menopause, they might have hot flashes. There's some
people who will have hot flashes when they're on their period.
(18:00):
It's like, I don't know if anyone, if anyone listening
has experienced that, but it's really related to the hormone estrogen, Okay,
And so what happens with estrogen. There are thousands or
I don't know, probably trillions of estrogen receptors in our bodies.
And the estrogen receptors are where the estrogen molecule binds
(18:23):
in the body to do various functions in the body.
So we know that the estrogen receptor is very involved
in the thermoregulatory centers in our brain or meaning the
thermostat in our brain.
Speaker 3 (18:37):
And this is the reason why.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
People have hot flashes, because when the estrogen levels go down,
that thermostat is not working. Properly, and it falsely tells
the body that it's hot and it tries to cool
you down. So that's just one example of where that
estrogen receptor works. The estrogen receptor is in our skin,
so people will have dry skin. It is in our collagen,
(19:01):
so people will often have a decrease in collagen in
their bodies. Also in connective tissues, so a lot of
people will have suddenly frozen shoulder. Like the list of
symptoms just goes on and on. But again, the most
common things that we see are menstrual irregularities, hot flashes,
(19:23):
mood changes as well, because the reason for that is
that the same part of our brain that kind of
manages the anxiety and depression interacts with the same sleep
centers in our brain, the same and thermal regulatory center
in our brain. There's something called and I'm getting a
little nerdy here, but there's something called a candy neuron.
(19:44):
It's KNDy neuron that is very integral to all of
these things that connects with this estrogen receptor. So there's
a lot of biology that's involved with the symptoms that
might you might present with, and it makes it difficult
because those estrogen receptors are in all parts of our
body and are involved with so many functions, so it's
(20:07):
tough to say. The short answer is it's tough to say,
but I would say that if your periods are changing,
if you're missing periods.
Speaker 3 (20:15):
That might be a sign.
Speaker 2 (20:19):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (20:20):
This is mind blowing. And it's so interesting that you know,
Dom and I were talking about this before we started
the conversation. I didn't we didn't learn about this growing up,
perimenopaus especially, and it's something that feels trendy these days,
like people are talking about it, were on social media,
and so I can imagine if you start having these symptoms.
I love the analogies used. By the way, if you
start having these symptoms, you get into your car right
(20:43):
going back to the analogy, and it starts performing like
a roller coaster. You're like, what the WTF?
Speaker 3 (20:48):
Like?
Speaker 1 (20:49):
It can be devastating. And so let's talk about community
and also just resources for women who are experiencing this.
We know that you've created a wellness community for women
that are navigating nepause and menopause. Tell us about what
inspired you to create that group, and you also share
with us something really interesting. Before we started let's see.
What was the name of your It was Hot Flash
(21:11):
Chill System. So tell us all about this.
Speaker 2 (21:13):
Okay, So, I, you know, when I was going through perimenopause.
By the way, I'm fifty one. I went through menopause
last year.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
Okay, and look good, Okay, come on, you won't where
I'm trying.
Speaker 3 (21:25):
Okay. But yeah, so I went through menopause last year.
Speaker 2 (21:30):
But when I was in my forties, I, you know,
went through a really difficult time. I you know, went
through fertility treatments that didn't work. In the fertility I
found out that the embryos. So when you go through
fertility treatments, you take your egg, you take the sperm,
your partner sperm. They put it together and then they
(21:51):
you know, create basically embryos. And if those embryos are healthy,
then they can implant them.
Speaker 3 (21:56):
You can get pregnant, and you can have a baby.
Speaker 2 (21:58):
So I went through the process of you know, getting
embryos and create, you know, to create these embryos, and
then I found out that all of the embryos were
not compatible with life. They were not healthy embryos, and
so that was a very devastating, you know thing for me.
Having gone through surgeries and injections and you know, all
(22:19):
kinds of ultrasounds probing my body, you know, to try
to have a baby, and it didn't work. And so
after that experience, I was like in the middle. I
was in my forties, in the middle of like some
really tough, you know stuff I was going through, and
I was also in perimenopause, and I was looking for
someone like me, you know, that had some medical understanding,
(22:44):
had some like reference like personal understanding of what it
was that I was going through. I wanted a black
doctor that understood the the implications of being a black woman,
a professional woman, you know, who had just lost you know,
the dream of having a family, all of that, and
(23:05):
I couldn't find it right.
Speaker 3 (23:06):
Like I kind of pieced it together, like I had
a life coach. I got a life coach.
Speaker 2 (23:11):
I had a therapist, you know, I had and then
I did hypnosis. So these are the these are like
the elements of the program that I have. But I
kind of pieced that together and that was the thing
that worked for me. But I was actively looking for
someone like older than me that had the experience that
you know, could speak to it. And I just didn't
find it and maybe she was out there, but I
(23:34):
couldn't find her. And so that's why I created the community,
because it's just something that is needed, and even though
doctors want to help, we're not trained on this stuff.
You know, there's a study that came out on medical residents,
so people who were in training, who were asked about
(23:55):
their comfort level with, you know, managing menopause and sexual health,
and there was about six point eight percent that said,
we're comfortable with that.
Speaker 3 (24:08):
That's it.
Speaker 1 (24:09):
Wow, that's it.
Speaker 4 (24:11):
That's it. That's all.
Speaker 2 (24:12):
And even as an obgyn, there's no there was not
like a there was no training on menopause, like literally
maybe like a chapter, like a short chapter.
Speaker 3 (24:22):
There was nothing.
Speaker 4 (24:25):
That is wild.
Speaker 1 (24:27):
It really is.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
It's wild.
Speaker 2 (24:30):
Yeah, but you remember, for like sexual health is even
sexual medicine, and sexual health is even smaller, like people
are not comfortable with it. And actually, when I came
at a residency, somebody asked me, was like, oh girl,
you're an obgy, tell me what about sexual positions?
Speaker 3 (24:48):
And I was on anything about that.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
I had to learn it, you know, something that I
was interested in and I had to learn it. And
so same thing with the menopause and now because it's
like menopause, like you said, is kind of trending. Now
people are paying attention to it because patients are demanding it,
you know, and so that is something that's changing thankfully.
Speaker 3 (25:09):
But you know, long story short.
Speaker 2 (25:11):
That is the reason why I started this community because
there was a need for it.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
There's something that I needed.
Speaker 1 (25:18):
And tell us about the hot Flashed Chill system. That
was so yeah, that was so good too.
Speaker 3 (25:22):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
So the hot Flash Chill System is a kind of
program that you can use to cool down hot flashes
to get better sleep, which can eventually improve your libido
as well, and then also to improve improve your mood. Right,
And so it uses some education, so digital video courses
(25:47):
with yours truly to educate you on all of the
the number one the reason why hot flashes happen and
kind of the science behind it, as well as the.
Speaker 3 (25:58):
Treatment options that are available.
Speaker 2 (26:00):
All of the treatment options from hormones to supplements into
my favorite hypnosis and so hypnosis clinical hypnosis is a
proven treatment for hot flashes and it's actually rivals, you know,
hormone therapy. It's like kind of right up there with
its effectiveness and the reason the reason Why is because
(26:21):
we're basically utilizing our our mind body connection, because you know,
there's three centers of the mind. So you've got the
conscious mind, and that's part of our mind where we're
kind of talking now, we're thinking about what we're gonna have. Well,
you guys, I don't know what you guys are east
coast right?
Speaker 4 (26:39):
Are you not here? We're here, Yeah, we're here in
California with yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
Yeah, you might be thinking about what's for dinner, you
know what I mean. So, so that's our conscious mind.
The subconscious mind, like I mentioned before, is where our
memories are held, where are where our emotions are processed,
where our beliefs about the world are. And then it
also so communicates with the unconscious mind. And the unconscious
(27:04):
mind is our autonomic nervous system, So the part of
our mind that controls the systems that are going underneath
the surface. So like if we figure out in our
conscious mind what we're going to have for dinner, and
I say, okay, I'm going to have a solid so
I then eat the salad. I start eating the salad,
I swallow it. After I swallow it, the autonomic nervous
(27:26):
system takes over rest and digest more fight or flight,
And so I swallow that salad and then my body
takes over, it starts breaking it down, putting the enzymes
in there, you know. But I don't have to think
about those enzymes. I don't direct my stomach to release
those enzymes.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
It just does it. But as we know, like we
can't control our blood pressure, for example, we can calm
our nervous system down by thinking right, and so that
is how hypnosis works. It works to get into that
subconscious mind and basically change the body chemistry and communicate
(28:06):
with the autonomic nervous system so that that center in
our brain that controls the temperature doesn't think it's cold,
it doesn't think it's hot. Right, so now it's like
falsely like setting off the alarm. We can kind of
retrain that center of the brain to like turn their
thermostat back down and not like cause us to get hot.
(28:28):
And so it's really a powerful tool. It's low risk,
there's no pharmaceuticals involved. Pretty much everybody can be hypnotized.
Speaker 2 (28:36):
Like if you have a normal level of intelligence, you're
able to be hypnotized and you're able to follow directions.
Speaker 3 (28:45):
So it's a.
Speaker 2 (28:46):
Great tool that and another reason why I created it
was because you know, black folks, we're often scared of stuff.
We're often scared of things that can help us. And
my hope is that when people realize that this is
not you know, it's not witchcraft, it's not like mind control,
(29:07):
you know, like people.
Speaker 3 (29:08):
Are like hypnosis.
Speaker 2 (29:09):
We had a plate claim the lett of Jesus, like, yes,
it's not it's not that. It's literally like a way
for us to you know, use what's in our body,
what God created in our bodies, to you know, help
us feel better.
Speaker 4 (29:28):
Thank you so much for answering that and telling us
about the power of hypnosis related specifically related to navigating
symptoms of menopause and perimenopause. And so I'm curious in
your work, particularly with black women. Mm hmm, what are
(29:51):
you seeing in terms of how like, because you said
that they're like one hundred symptoms that tend to show
up right for black women in particular, what are the
things that you're seeing that we might be ignoring as
(30:14):
signs of perimental Paulis.
Speaker 3 (30:18):
Hmmm. I think that there is a.
Speaker 2 (30:23):
Emotional piece to this, the mental health piece to it,
that we often are ignoring so it's again that like
pushing through kind of superwoman syndrome.
Speaker 3 (30:38):
So that's that's one piece of it.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
And then there's there's fear, like we've got fear in
medicine as it is, right, Like, you know, so much
has happened in medical racism, and we're afraid of the treatments,
we're afraid of the doctors, we don't know who to trust.
Speaker 3 (30:54):
Like, so there's that piece of it, and then.
Speaker 2 (30:58):
Kind of almost like putting your head in the sand,
like I'm just not going to deal with this, right,
And the truth is it's not.
Speaker 3 (31:05):
It's it doesn't need.
Speaker 2 (31:06):
To be scary, right. It feels scary, but it doesn't
need to be scary. And I think for black women
because we have a different type of chronic stress on
us that manifests as a physical manifestation. Right, So if
your your stress is higher, your cortisol levels are higher.
(31:27):
And this is another little nerd fact for you, but
the our cortisol is produced in the adrenal glands, which
are two little organs that sit on the top of
our kidneys and the back area. So the primary place
that our body produces estrogen is in the ovaries. The
(31:48):
secondary place that the body produces estrogen is in the
adrenal glands, and if your levels of cortisol are high,
that means your adrenal glands are pushing out more stress
hormone and they can't push out estrogen if your stress
hormone is being pushed out from the adrenal glands. So
(32:10):
it's a small thing, but it's another reason why stress
might be making your menopause worse because the other source
of estrogen in your body is not being you know,
it's not being produced there. So I my belief is
that you know, the symptoms that black women experience more
are related to stress. Belly fat when we see the
(32:33):
changes in our bodies and we're you know, one of
another one of the complaints that women have.
Speaker 3 (32:39):
Is belly fat.
Speaker 2 (32:41):
Belly fat is inflammatory fat. So when our cortisole levels
are high, we can't sleep, or if we're not sleeping,
we're not getting we're having more cortisol levels. That cortisol
level causes our body to try to protect us, right
so in the protection it's depositing fat for storage. It's like, Okay,
(33:04):
we're in survival mode. We need to save this fat
for you know, the winter, right, and so instead of
you know, depositing the fat in places that it normally
will go, it begins to go into what we call
visceral fat. And that visceral fat is kind of a
dangerous fat. And it's that's the thing that you know,
hits that menopause belly that we see. And so to summarize,
(33:29):
I believe that for women Black women, the reason why
we're struggling more is because of our stress levels. And
it's all I mean, it's all tied in. It's that biopsychosocially,
it all is tied in.
Speaker 1 (33:46):
This is so fascinating. Oh my goodness, will you when
you I love when you nerd out by the way,
when you die? The details? Oh, I got to go research.
This is amazing. When you I'm thinking about something you
said earlier around I think it was like defining either
all womanhood or sess by like potentially the attention we
get our sexual prowess or childbearing ability. And so I'm
(34:07):
thinking about the connotations associated with menopause in the past,
and I think that a lot of people that I
heard talk about menopause kind of made it sound like
it's the end of a woman's vitality. How would you
reframe that narrative.
Speaker 3 (34:22):
Well, I just think that it's the beginning, right, because
it's a time where you now, we don't have to
worry about the you know, complications that come with being
a mother, you know, or getting pregnant, right, like that
part is gone. You don't have to worry about pads
and tampons and all of that, right, No, that's right.
And then once we realize that our sexuality is not
(34:45):
over like people think that's the end, right, and our
illness doesn't have to take over like it doesn't. So
you know, we can actually be healthier, you know now
because there's a little bit more time. And then if
you have an understanding.
Speaker 2 (35:02):
My thing is always this, if you have an understanding
of what's going on, what's actually going on in the body, right,
then you can connect the mind to the body and
like you can do what you can't your part that
you can do to bring the body into alignment, you know,
for the parts that don't work.
Speaker 3 (35:18):
You know, we're not in a perfect.
Speaker 2 (35:19):
Utopia, so there's we're not going to be perfect. So
sometimes we need medications. Like I use medication. I have
a patch on my on my body right now for
hormone therapy, Like hormone therapy is not for everybody, but
it can't be helpful. But so you've got to figure
out what is the right formula for you, because everyone
(35:39):
has their own formula. But I you know, once we
realize that there is a way to have pleasure, to
have peace, to have passion, all of those things are
available and are you know possible, Like it's that reframe.
That's it like reframing and knowing that that is a
(36:00):
possibility and then just figuring out what your particular you
know formula is.
Speaker 1 (36:08):
So good.
Speaker 4 (36:09):
Thank you so speaking of figuring out our own individual
like formula, as I'm listening to this conversation, like I'm
thinking about questions that I'm going my next doctor's appointment,
Like I've got a question that I'm going to be asking,
and and so for our listeners when they get ready
(36:31):
to go and speak with their healthcare provider, what are
the things that they need to be asking like is
there a test that can determine where their estrogen levels are? Like?
Are so what are what questions should our audience be
asking of their healthcare providers?
Speaker 2 (36:53):
Well, I'll say this, Unfortunately, a lot of healthcare providers
aren't dialed in, right, And so part of the reason
why I created the community that change community is to
help people be armed with the right information to be
able to ask the right questions and then know what
the treatments are so that they can actually help their doctor,
(37:17):
like help them, you know, because the thing is, it's like,
you guys have.
Speaker 3 (37:21):
Been to the doctor. What do you have like twenty
minutes with the doctor?
Speaker 1 (37:26):
Right?
Speaker 2 (37:27):
If that yeah, and then that doctor has probably got
like twenty other people that they're seeing that day. They've
got like really probably about ten minutes because they're probably
running behind. Sometimes they double book art appointments, right, So
it's like it's not really the fault of the doctor
because they didn't get training. And then most of them,
(37:50):
you know, if you're in like corporate medicine, like you,
there's a bottom line that they're having to reach. So
I the reason that I created these programs is so
that people could go through the program, know what's going
on with themselves, and then be able to navigate the
current system that we have.
Speaker 3 (38:09):
It's not changed yet, right, Okay, So that's that's the
first part.
Speaker 2 (38:14):
To get into specifics in terms of the test that
you would want to check.
Speaker 3 (38:18):
You can check estrogen. You can check.
Speaker 2 (38:22):
A FSH level, a follicle stimulating hormone level. Those are
two things that we can check. But really more importantly
is what are you feeling and what are you experiencing?
Speaker 3 (38:36):
Because if you remember that, it's a roller coaster.
Speaker 2 (38:38):
So if I check your if I check your levels
and they're high, tomorrow they might be low, right, So
it doesn't really help us, like your impaimenopause, right, and
you're over authority in your impairimenopause, so they can check
those levels, and you know, it will help to just
give us some more information, but it doesn't really change
(38:59):
what we need to do. Right, So what we need
to do is based on what you're feeling and what
your particular symptoms are.
Speaker 3 (39:08):
Does that make sense?
Speaker 1 (39:10):
Yeah, that does make it.
Speaker 2 (39:11):
And that's part of the difficulty because like, let's say
your symptom is the shoulder pain, then you're going to
go see your primary care doctor and they're like, oh,
let's refer you to ORTHO, right.
Speaker 3 (39:22):
And then the ORTHO.
Speaker 2 (39:23):
You know, the medical society is not clued into some
of this already, right, So unless you're dealing with the
menopause specialists, like they may not be aware.
Speaker 1 (39:37):
This is such a needed conversation, And I love your
approach to the topic because it's so empowering and it
sounds like I mean, I think many black women we've
had to do this where we do our own research
find like you said, you had to kind of piecemeal
your support and then we go to the doctor with
we come with notes and questions and you know, our
proposals and whatnot. But I'm thinking about what you mentioned
(39:57):
around the formula and creating a formula that works for
you because it varies from person to person. So it
sounds like understanding what you're feeling, but also your patterns
because it can change so much. Join one of your
wellness communities for sure, hypnosis you mentioned checking your estrogen
or FHS level, and then also hormone therapy. Are there
(40:18):
any other potential options that for women that are in
that phase of the journey they're trying to figure out
what they want to kind of add to their toolkit
or their formula.
Speaker 2 (40:27):
I think, to kind of broadly, I talk about a
couple supplements that are probably good for everyone to take.
For vitamin D, A lot of Black women in particular,
most people have vitamin D deficiency, and vitamin D is
very important for a lot of the metabolic processes that
happen in our body, and we can have, you know,
(40:49):
things like fatigue that we can feel if we are
vitamin D deficient, and then if you're im paerimentopause, that
sort of like gets amplified. So vitamin D is a
good supplement you might want to have your levels checked
on that.
Speaker 3 (41:03):
A lot of most of us are deficient.
Speaker 2 (41:06):
So another one of the major problems that people experience
in menopause and perimenopause is sleep problems like waking up
in the middle of the night three o'clock in the morning,
four o'clock in the morning. This is a common you
know thing, and again this is related to those neurons
and that portion of the brain that control your level
(41:27):
of sleep. So there's some some hormones and neurotransmitters or
brain chemicals that like tell your body to stay asleep
and then tell your body to wake up, and so
that you know, that balance gets thrown off, and so
we can use certain supplements to help with that. One
of my favorites is magnesium supplement and that can help
(41:50):
aid sleep. It can help restlessness, and it's a great
thing for anxiety as well around around bedtime. So that's
another their supplement that I recommend across the board. Omega
three fatty assets are really important to have supplement, and
like you can get that in walnuts and salmon. So
(42:10):
those are just a couple of things that you can
eat and take to improve some of the perimenopause and
menopause symptoms.
Speaker 4 (42:22):
You so much for that. Now, as you're saying, as
you were sharing the particularly around like the supplements, I
was like, oh, yeah, like this is this is sounding
familiar because I've seen advertisements on social media for this supplement,
that supplement, and and so what came up for me
(42:42):
as you were sharing all that is because the conversation
around perimenopause and menopause is trending. That increases the likelihood
for like scams and false advertising and people trying to
take advantage of folks who need legitimate information. So how
(43:07):
can we how can we determine whether a particular vitamin
or supplement or any resource is actually legitimate and would
be could potentially be beneficial to us.
Speaker 2 (43:23):
Yeah, It's it's tough because there's so much stuff out there,
and people are all trying.
Speaker 3 (43:27):
To make a book.
Speaker 2 (43:29):
So I would see if the person that you're talking
you know with, or you know following on Instagram influencer,
if they're like a member of the Menopause Society, for example,
because they sort of set the rules and they do
their things based on research. And I understand that not
everybody falls within the research, but like it's our best guests,
(43:52):
so to speakers, our best scientific guest right is to
use the research that's out there to guide what we do.
And so I would, you know, try to work with
a menopause somebody who follows the tenets of the Menopause Society,
and the Menopause Society actually has like patient information as well,
(44:13):
so you can use them as a you know, reputable resource.
Speaker 1 (44:20):
This was so informoucy of doctor Janney. Thank you so
much for your time, but also thank you for being
the person that you wish you had when you were
going through, you know, that phase of your journey. This
is so valuable. I'm literally typing away taking notes like
all right, I need to make sure I have this
vitamin and this vitamin just to get you know, get
myself ready. Is there anything that we haven't talked about
or cover that you think we should before we.
Speaker 3 (44:42):
I mean, girls, ladies, there's so many things.
Speaker 2 (44:46):
I mean, I could go on from friends, but I
mean that is part of the reason why I also
have a YouTube channel, so I you know, periodically, will
try to weekly get on there and gives drop some
more nuggets. So there's lots, there's so much, right, you know,
we've got a hundred symptoms and then there's one hundred
and you know, maybe three hundred solutions for you know,
(45:07):
various things. So we can't cover it all obviously in
an hour. But yeah, so definitely tap into that resource.
Speaker 1 (45:15):
So lady, you can go to her YouTube channel, buy
the books, join the community, share her work, because we
need to highlight black women, especially who are in this
field doing this work. It's so important. So doctor Jannet,
we appreciate you so much. Thank you for the conversation
and we look forward to having you on in the future.
Get into another topic.
Speaker 3 (45:34):
Thanks so much for having me. It's been fun.
Speaker 1 (45:37):
Thank you. If you're feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or unsure of
your next steps, this is for you. Hey, lady is
Tea here and I just want to invite you to
my free goal map like a pro coaching workshop, where
I'll share the five proven steps to get unstuck and
achieve your goals. Whether you're feeling overwhelmed by all your ideas,
(45:58):
juggling scattered ideas, or maybe you just need confidence to start,
this workshot will give you the clarity, tools and the
motivation to take back control. Reserve your spot for free
by visiting her spacepodcast dot com and clicking on the
goal map like a pro webinar link. Lady, don't miss
this chance to build a roadmap that fits your life
(46:19):
and set you up for success. I hope to see
you there.
Speaker 4 (46:24):
Thanks for tuning into Cultivating her Space. Remember that while
this podcast is all about healing, empowerment, and resilience, it's
not a substitute for therapy. If you or someone you
know needs support, check out resources like Therapy for Black
Girls or Psychology Today. If you love today's episode, do
(46:46):
us a favor and share it with a friend who
needs some inspiration, or leave us a quick five star review.
Your support means the world to us and helps keep
this space thriving.
Speaker 1 (46:58):
And before we meet again, repete after me, I honor
my journey by balancing effort and rest to achieve my goals.
Cheap Thriving Lady and tune in next Friday for more
inspiration from cultivating her space. In the meantime, be sure
to connect with us on Instagram at her Space Podcast
On this week's episode of Cultivating Her Space, and the analogy.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
That I like to use is perimenopause can be like
getting into your car and the car goes crazy and
it puts you on a roller coaster.
Speaker 3 (00:13):
So you're in a car and it just goes nuts.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
You're supposed to be driving and doing what it's supposed
to do, but instead it's going all over, up, down, around,
flipping over. That would be terrifying. Can you imagine?
Speaker 4 (00:28):
Hey, lady, have you ever felt like the world just
doesn't get you? Well?
Speaker 5 (00:35):
We do.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
Welcome to Cultivating her Space, the podcast dedicated to uplifting
and empowering women like you.
Speaker 4 (00:43):
We're your hosts, doctor Dominique Brussard and educator and psychologists.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
And Terry Lomax, a techie and transformational speaker.
Speaker 4 (00:52):
Join us every week for authentic conversations about everything from
fibroids to fake friends as we create space for black
women to just.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
B Before we dive in, make sure you hit that
follow button and leave us a quick five star review. Lady,
We are black founded and black owned, and your support
will help us reach even more women like you.
Speaker 4 (01:15):
Now, let's get into this week's episode of Cultivating her space.
Speaker 5 (01:22):
It's doctor dom here from the Cultivating her Space podcast.
Are you currently a resident of the state of California
and contemplating starting your therapy journey? Well, if so, please
reach out to me at doctor Dominique Brusard dot com.
That's d R D O M I N I q
(01:44):
U E b R O U ss ar D dot
com to schedule a free fifteen minute consultation. I look
forward to hearing from you.
Speaker 3 (01:57):
All right, lady.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Today's guest is no stranger to the show. You may
remember her from season twenty five, episode five, where we
talked about reclaiming intimacy and sexual health. Doctor Janet Williams,
MD is a licensed physician and surgeon practicing in Los Angeles, California.
She's a Board certified specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, a
(02:20):
member of the International Society for the Study of Women's
Sexual Health, and a member of the Menopause Society. Doctor
Janet has helping women find solutions to their reproductive and
sexual health concerns since two thousand and one. Okay she
ain't new, it is she true?
Speaker 4 (02:36):
It is.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
In addition to her medical practice, she is an intimate
life coach, a hypnotherapist and the creator of the Confident
Pleasure Course, a coaching and hypnosis experience that helps women
master their intimate health, find pleasure and passion and their
body so they can make a confident sexual. Comeback, and lady,
(02:57):
there's more. You're going to love this. You can find
doctor Janet's Amazon bestseller Why Don't I Like Sex Anymore?
The Grown Woman's Guide to Getting your Groove Back and
Claiming Your Truth, Doctor Janet, Welcome to Cultivating her Space.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
It's so great to be back. How are you guys doing.
It's been a little while. It's been a minute, huh.
Speaker 3 (03:20):
It, yes, it has quite a year.
Speaker 1 (03:23):
Yes, oh my goodness, yes, yes, yes, okay, lord, yes.
Speaker 4 (03:32):
Well we we are definitely excited to have you back
with us today for this very important conversation that not
a lot of people really know much about. Yeah, so
we're gonna do I'm going to dive into the quote
of the day and then we're going to jump right
into this conversation.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Okay, let's do it, all right.
Speaker 4 (03:54):
Our quote of the day, Doctor Janet.
Speaker 5 (03:56):
This quote comes from you from your.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Social media account.
Speaker 4 (04:00):
Yes, ma'am, you're not superwoman about powering through. All Right,
I'm going to say it one more time for the
folks in the back to make sure that they heard it,
because as black women, we need to hear this multiple times.
(04:21):
You're not super woman. Stop powering through, doctor Janet. When
when you think about this, your quote and this conversation
that that we're having today about perimenopause and menopause, tell us,
(04:44):
tell us what what comes up for you?
Speaker 3 (04:49):
Woo so much?
Speaker 2 (04:51):
Okay, The thing is, as you know, doctor domind you
probably don't have all the research behind this, but you know,
we are socialized in a way that we are doing
the most, Like from day one, we're doing the most.
We're trained that we have to find our worth externally,
(05:16):
and so we go to college, we get the good job,
we have the nice family, We have the.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Kids in school, we take.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Them to all of their you know, soccer practice, blah
blah blah, all of the things. We're taking care of family,
we're involved in the church, we're you know, handling our careers.
We're doing all of the things, and we often neglect
our own needs.
Speaker 3 (05:44):
You know.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
And there is a bit of a like a traumatic
experience that happens for black girls. I think it happened
to me, you know, from well intentioned parents who are
telling those girls, like, you've got to be twice as good,
you've got to work twice as hard, you know, and
then you've got like patriarchy put on top of that.
(06:07):
So there's this burden that is on young women, and
as we become adults, like, we never get rid of
the burden, and so we get accustomed to running and
being that superwoman because there is this ideal that we're
trying to live up to, which is an ideal that
(06:27):
is a false ideal that we have to learn how
to like basically retrain that little child inside of us,
you know, how to live, you know. And so that's
what comes up when I think about that power through
It's a very deep and encompassing, you know, thing that
it impacts so many different parts of our lives, but
(06:48):
we don't even we're not even aware of it because
it's like just in there and it's what we've been
doing for so long. And then when perimenopause and menopause
roll around, you now have a biologic physiologic aspect that
is thrown on top of that is like a stress
factor that you know, makes it really difficult and things
(07:09):
like become a bigger challenge, you know, so that Superwoman
I call it the Superwoman syndrome, Like.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
We got to figure out ways to get rid of it.
Speaker 1 (07:23):
That is so good, doctor Janet, And as you said that,
it made me think of a couple of things. So
we're gonna we're gonna adopt into the interview on the topic.
But I have to ask a follow up question, speaking
of relearning and like sort of reparenting ourselves around that
narrative of powering through, what should we be telling our
inner child or our children, because I have a four
year old daughter now, and I think sometimes our parents
(07:45):
they would tell us that out of safety, like to
you know, thinking they were protecting us, like you said,
well intentioned adults. But what should we tell them? Because
I'm going to take some notes on what you share
because I did this in real life.
Speaker 2 (07:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (07:57):
So, and then you're it's so great, You're you have
a four year old. This this is the.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
Time where they're imprinted, right, This is the time where
they your our subconscious minds are like imprinted on what
our belief about the world is. So you can really
help your child at this stage by letting them know
that they're worthy.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
That's it.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
Boom done, that's it, Like there's no you don't have
to do anything. You don't have to We want you
to go to school, right, we want you to get
good grades, but you don't have to do that to
have worth.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
You're already inherently worthy.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
And so I know for me, I remember, you know,
at being a child, thinking that that my worth was
external where I have to you know, whether it's you know,
follow the Ten Commandments or you know what I mean,
follow the word of God or whatever the external thing was.
Speaker 3 (08:52):
But that worth is actually internal. It's already there.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
We don't we're born with it, like there's nothing that
we have to do. And I think that is big
difference between our white counterparts and us.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
They are kind of it's privileged, right, Like it's the
idea that.
Speaker 2 (09:08):
You are, you're good, right, Like in a white I
don't want to get into all of that, but like
in a white supremacist world, you know, the white person
feels like, Okay, I'm good, you know.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
And that's there's actually nothing wrong with that.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Like that's how we all should feel about ourselves, right,
that that worth is inherently there and there's nothing that
you have to do. You just wake up, you're born,
and you're already worthy. And the rest of it is like,
you know, it's iceiner on the cake, it's gravy.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Yes, okay, okay, yes, come on.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (09:47):
So when we when we think about this, this worthiness
and needing to put down this superwoman cape and thinking
about all the messaging and import seeing that we've received,
particularly as Black women, how does that show up in
(10:10):
terms of like thinking about this conversation today about perimenopause
and menopause, how does that show up for Black women
who are navigating perimenopause and menopause.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
Yeah, it's such a big piece of it. You know,
managing pretty much any like health issue.
Speaker 2 (10:28):
Wellness issue is something we call biopsychosocial. So there's biology involved,
there's psychology involved, and there is social impact community involved.
And so when we talk about these like navigating this
from the standpoint of our worth, the social part of
(10:51):
it is a really big piece of it. So if
the community, if the community at large, if you're a
culture society looks at women who are older over a
certain age and maybe disregards them, it's almost like it's
almost like we disappear, you know, like youth is like valued,
(11:15):
reproduction is valued, and so there's this idea that like
once that is gone, you're you know, basically menopause is
when you have a cessation of you know, menstrual cycles.
Speaker 3 (11:27):
That's what it is.
Speaker 2 (11:28):
So you're not reproducing anymore after menopause. And so the
whole idea there is like my worth is tied into
you know, being a mother or you know, having these
cycles or being sexual or appearing sexual what is like
considered sexual, right, and so when we make that transition
(11:49):
and we're living in a society that doesn't value us
in that way, it can be very difficult on your worth.
Speaker 3 (11:57):
Like people don't know what to do, you know.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
Because it's like all of your life you've been operating
under this one operating system, and now it's like there's
this silence, there's a void, there's void of help, there's
void of acknowledging you know that you're so beautiful, And
especially in our society, I know there are societies that
value elderly and people who are over a certain age,
but in our society and our culture, that's not the case.
(12:22):
And that's why it is so difficult to navigate from
that like social aspect of things.
Speaker 1 (12:30):
Thank you for sharing that, and I just kind of
want to take a step back to one define perimenopause
and even menopause in general, because I think when I
was younger, it was something I heard my like mom
or grandmother, maybe my grandmother more so talk about, and
from that perspective at a young age, was like, oh,
that something happens to older women. Well, now I'm a
problem knocking on the door to that today. So we
(12:52):
could define that and also let women who are in
their twenties and thirties know why it's important to have
the conversation.
Speaker 2 (12:58):
Yeah, So menopause is basically a day. Menopause is the
day that you've gone one year without a menstrual period.
So perimenopause is, you know, the years before that day,
and then postmenopause is any time after that day. Now
we don't know, you don't know when your menopause is
(13:19):
if you're still having cycles, because you know if that's
your last cycle or if you're going to have another
one the following month. And then for most women in perimenopause,
the cycles usually kind of like space out, like you
might have a very light one and then you know,
maybe you'll have a period that comes back again normal speed.
Speaker 3 (13:39):
But for most women, we don't know.
Speaker 2 (13:41):
Until like you're like, hey, it's been a year and
I haven't had a period.
Speaker 3 (13:45):
Now.
Speaker 2 (13:46):
What happens in perimenopause is the hormones, especially where and
there's a lot of hormones that have fluctuations, but the
main one that we're thinking about is estrogen, and so
over time that estrogen declines, but it also goes up
and down, so like every time you have a menstrual cycle,
sometimes it's going way high. And so this is why
(14:07):
we see women at this time having problems with like heavy.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
Periods or irregular periods.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
We might see fibroids growing because fibroids are under the
influence of estrogen. So if there's lots of estrogen floating
around doing crazy things, that can cause those fibroids to grow.
An analogy that I like to use is that perimenopause
can be like getting into your car and the car
like goes crazy, and it's like it puts you on
(14:35):
a roller coaster.
Speaker 3 (14:36):
So you're in a car and it just goes nuts.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
You're supposed to be driving and doing what it's supposed
to do, but instead it's going all over, up, down, around,
flipping over. That would be terrifying, can you imagine. Okay,
so if you don't have any understanding of what perimenopause
can be, it's like getting in your car and being.
Speaker 3 (14:58):
In a roller coaster. Whoever, if you went to six Flags.
Speaker 2 (15:04):
And you stood in line and you're like, I'm getting
on this roller coaster, it can be scary, yes, but
at least you have the understanding that you're getting on
a roller coaster and you're like, okay, maybe it's a
little fun. Okay, now we're going up, we're going to Okay, yeah,
they told me about this curve.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
You know, so it can.
Speaker 2 (15:23):
Be not as frightening as terrifying when you know what's
going on and what's happening in the body. And so,
like I said, perimenopause is the time period before and
for most people that happens after forty you know, from
forty to forty five anywhere in there is when people
tend to enter into perimenopause, and then you know, it varies.
(15:47):
But like that's kind of like the the basic definition.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
Thank you.
Speaker 4 (15:52):
Okay, now that's opened up way that's opened up way
more questions, right, Okay, So what we've been seeing online
is that women are talking about being going through menopause. Now,
you just said menopause is that one day, right, like
when you're period sees exists? Yea. And we've also seen
(16:16):
I've seen online women talking about experiencing peri menopause in
their thirties. How And you said it's a roller coaster, right,
And we don't know a lot of things, we don't
know what to expect. Yeah, how does one know when
they truly are entering into perry menopause? Like what might
(16:41):
be Like let's say that I am Let's say I'm
thirty eight, generally healthy, haven't have been one of the
very few black women that didn't have fibroids, pcos, endometriosis,
none of those things?
Speaker 5 (17:00):
Right?
Speaker 4 (17:01):
And my parients have been regular, I'm not on birth control.
How do I know what are the things that I
need to look out for to let me know that
I might be answering perimenopause.
Speaker 2 (17:17):
Well, I would just say, like, here's the thing. It's
a little tricky because there are nearly a hundred different
symptoms of menopause and perimenopause. Okay, the most common ones
are going to be like menstrual irregularities, hot flashes, sometimes
sleep disturbances, people waking up in the middle of the
(17:39):
night to sleep, and then vaginal dryness or pain. Suddenly
you're having pain with intercourse. All of these are tied
into estrogen levels. Now, for some people who aren't even
close to menopause, they might have hot flashes. There's some
people who will have hot flashes when they're on their period.
(18:00):
It's like, I don't know if anyone, if anyone listening
has experienced that, but it's really related to the hormone estrogen, Okay,
And so what happens with estrogen. There are thousands or
I don't know, probably trillions of estrogen receptors in our bodies.
And the estrogen receptors are where the estrogen molecule binds
(18:23):
in the body to do various functions in the body.
So we know that the estrogen receptor is very involved
in the thermoregulatory centers in our brain or meaning the
thermostat in our brain.
Speaker 3 (18:37):
And this is the reason why.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
People have hot flashes, because when the estrogen levels go down,
that thermostat is not working. Properly, and it falsely tells
the body that it's hot and it tries to cool
you down. So that's just one example of where that
estrogen receptor works. The estrogen receptor is in our skin,
so people will have dry skin. It is in our collagen,
(19:01):
so people will often have a decrease in collagen in
their bodies. Also in connective tissues, so a lot of
people will have suddenly frozen shoulder. Like the list of
symptoms just goes on and on. But again, the most
common things that we see are menstrual irregularities, hot flashes,
(19:23):
mood changes as well, because the reason for that is
that the same part of our brain that kind of
manages the anxiety and depression interacts with the same sleep
centers in our brain, the same and thermal regulatory center
in our brain. There's something called and I'm getting a
little nerdy here, but there's something called a candy neuron.
(19:44):
It's KNDy neuron that is very integral to all of
these things that connects with this estrogen receptor. So there's
a lot of biology that's involved with the symptoms that
might you might present with, and it makes it difficult
because those estrogen receptors are in all parts of our
body and are involved with so many functions, so it's
(20:07):
tough to say. The short answer is it's tough to say,
but I would say that if your periods are changing,
if you're missing periods.
Speaker 3 (20:15):
That might be a sign.
Speaker 2 (20:19):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (20:20):
This is mind blowing. And it's so interesting that you know,
Dom and I were talking about this before we started
the conversation. I didn't we didn't learn about this growing up,
perimenopaus especially, and it's something that feels trendy these days,
like people are talking about it, were on social media,
and so I can imagine if you start having these symptoms.
I love the analogies used. By the way, if you
start having these symptoms, you get into your car right
(20:43):
going back to the analogy, and it starts performing like
a roller coaster. You're like, what the WTF?
Speaker 3 (20:48):
Like?
Speaker 1 (20:49):
It can be devastating. And so let's talk about community
and also just resources for women who are experiencing this.
We know that you've created a wellness community for women
that are navigating nepause and menopause. Tell us about what
inspired you to create that group, and you also share
with us something really interesting. Before we started let's see.
What was the name of your It was Hot Flash
(21:11):
Chill System. So tell us all about this.
Speaker 2 (21:13):
Okay, So, I, you know, when I was going through perimenopause.
By the way, I'm fifty one. I went through menopause
last year.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
Okay, and look good, Okay, come on, you won't where
I'm trying.
Speaker 3 (21:25):
Okay. But yeah, so I went through menopause last year.
Speaker 2 (21:30):
But when I was in my forties, I, you know,
went through a really difficult time. I you know, went
through fertility treatments that didn't work. In the fertility I
found out that the embryos. So when you go through
fertility treatments, you take your egg, you take the sperm,
your partner sperm. They put it together and then they
(21:51):
you know, create basically embryos. And if those embryos are healthy,
then they can implant them.
Speaker 3 (21:56):
You can get pregnant, and you can have a baby.
Speaker 2 (21:58):
So I went through the process of you know, getting
embryos and create, you know, to create these embryos, and
then I found out that all of the embryos were
not compatible with life. They were not healthy embryos, and
so that was a very devastating, you know thing for me.
Having gone through surgeries and injections and you know, all
(22:19):
kinds of ultrasounds probing my body, you know, to try
to have a baby, and it didn't work. And so
after that experience, I was like in the middle. I
was in my forties, in the middle of like some
really tough, you know stuff I was going through, and
I was also in perimenopause, and I was looking for
someone like me, you know, that had some medical understanding,
(22:44):
had some like reference like personal understanding of what it
was that I was going through. I wanted a black
doctor that understood the the implications of being a black woman,
a professional woman, you know, who had just lost you know,
the dream of having a family, all of that, and
(23:05):
I couldn't find it right.
Speaker 3 (23:06):
Like I kind of pieced it together, like I had
a life coach. I got a life coach.
Speaker 2 (23:11):
I had a therapist, you know, I had and then
I did hypnosis. So these are the these are like
the elements of the program that I have. But I
kind of pieced that together and that was the thing
that worked for me. But I was actively looking for
someone like older than me that had the experience that
you know, could speak to it. And I just didn't
find it and maybe she was out there, but I
(23:34):
couldn't find her. And so that's why I created the community,
because it's just something that is needed, and even though
doctors want to help, we're not trained on this stuff.
You know, there's a study that came out on medical residents,
so people who were in training, who were asked about
(23:55):
their comfort level with, you know, managing menopause and sexual health,
and there was about six point eight percent that said,
we're comfortable with that.
Speaker 3 (24:08):
That's it.
Speaker 1 (24:09):
Wow, that's it.
Speaker 4 (24:11):
That's it. That's all.
Speaker 2 (24:12):
And even as an obgyn, there's no there was not
like a there was no training on menopause, like literally
maybe like a chapter, like a short chapter.
Speaker 3 (24:22):
There was nothing.
Speaker 4 (24:25):
That is wild.
Speaker 1 (24:27):
It really is.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
It's wild.
Speaker 2 (24:30):
Yeah, but you remember, for like sexual health is even
sexual medicine, and sexual health is even smaller, like people
are not comfortable with it. And actually, when I came
at a residency, somebody asked me, was like, oh girl,
you're an obgy, tell me what about sexual positions?
Speaker 3 (24:48):
And I was on anything about that.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
I had to learn it, you know, something that I
was interested in and I had to learn it. And
so same thing with the menopause and now because it's
like menopause, like you said, is kind of trending. Now
people are paying attention to it because patients are demanding it,
you know, and so that is something that's changing thankfully.
Speaker 3 (25:09):
But you know, long story short.
Speaker 2 (25:11):
That is the reason why I started this community because
there was a need for it.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
There's something that I needed.
Speaker 1 (25:18):
And tell us about the hot Flashed Chill system. That
was so yeah, that was so good too.
Speaker 3 (25:22):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
So the hot Flash Chill System is a kind of
program that you can use to cool down hot flashes
to get better sleep, which can eventually improve your libido
as well, and then also to improve improve your mood. Right,
And so it uses some education, so digital video courses
(25:47):
with yours truly to educate you on all of the
the number one the reason why hot flashes happen and
kind of the science behind it, as well as the.
Speaker 3 (25:58):
Treatment options that are available.
Speaker 2 (26:00):
All of the treatment options from hormones to supplements into
my favorite hypnosis and so hypnosis clinical hypnosis is a
proven treatment for hot flashes and it's actually rivals, you know,
hormone therapy. It's like kind of right up there with
its effectiveness and the reason the reason Why is because
(26:21):
we're basically utilizing our our mind body connection, because you know,
there's three centers of the mind. So you've got the
conscious mind, and that's part of our mind where we're
kind of talking now, we're thinking about what we're gonna have. Well,
you guys, I don't know what you guys are east
coast right?
Speaker 4 (26:39):
Are you not here? We're here, Yeah, we're here in
California with yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
Yeah, you might be thinking about what's for dinner, you
know what I mean. So, so that's our conscious mind.
The subconscious mind, like I mentioned before, is where our
memories are held, where are where our emotions are processed,
where our beliefs about the world are. And then it
also so communicates with the unconscious mind. And the unconscious
(27:04):
mind is our autonomic nervous system, So the part of
our mind that controls the systems that are going underneath
the surface. So like if we figure out in our
conscious mind what we're going to have for dinner, and
I say, okay, I'm going to have a solid so
I then eat the salad. I start eating the salad,
I swallow it. After I swallow it, the autonomic nervous
(27:26):
system takes over rest and digest more fight or flight,
And so I swallow that salad and then my body
takes over, it starts breaking it down, putting the enzymes
in there, you know. But I don't have to think
about those enzymes. I don't direct my stomach to release
those enzymes.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
It just does it. But as we know, like we
can't control our blood pressure, for example, we can calm
our nervous system down by thinking right, and so that
is how hypnosis works. It works to get into that
subconscious mind and basically change the body chemistry and communicate
(28:06):
with the autonomic nervous system so that that center in
our brain that controls the temperature doesn't think it's cold,
it doesn't think it's hot. Right, so now it's like
falsely like setting off the alarm. We can kind of
retrain that center of the brain to like turn their
thermostat back down and not like cause us to get hot.
(28:28):
And so it's really a powerful tool. It's low risk,
there's no pharmaceuticals involved. Pretty much everybody can be hypnotized.
Speaker 2 (28:36):
Like if you have a normal level of intelligence, you're
able to be hypnotized and you're able to follow directions.
Speaker 3 (28:45):
So it's a.
Speaker 2 (28:46):
Great tool that and another reason why I created it
was because you know, black folks, we're often scared of stuff.
We're often scared of things that can help us. And
my hope is that when people realize that this is
not you know, it's not witchcraft, it's not like mind control,
(29:07):
you know, like people.
Speaker 3 (29:08):
Are like hypnosis.
Speaker 2 (29:09):
We had a plate claim the lett of Jesus, like, yes,
it's not it's not that. It's literally like a way
for us to you know, use what's in our body,
what God created in our bodies, to you know, help
us feel better.
Speaker 4 (29:28):
Thank you so much for answering that and telling us
about the power of hypnosis related specifically related to navigating
symptoms of menopause and perimenopause. And so I'm curious in
your work, particularly with black women. Mm hmm, what are
(29:51):
you seeing in terms of how like, because you said
that they're like one hundred symptoms that tend to show
up right for black women in particular, what are the
things that you're seeing that we might be ignoring as
(30:14):
signs of perimental Paulis.
Speaker 3 (30:18):
Hmmm. I think that there is a.
Speaker 2 (30:23):
Emotional piece to this, the mental health piece to it,
that we often are ignoring so it's again that like
pushing through kind of superwoman syndrome.
Speaker 3 (30:38):
So that's that's one piece of it.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
And then there's there's fear, like we've got fear in
medicine as it is, right, Like, you know, so much
has happened in medical racism, and we're afraid of the treatments,
we're afraid of the doctors, we don't know who to trust.
Speaker 3 (30:54):
Like, so there's that piece of it, and then.
Speaker 2 (30:58):
Kind of almost like putting your head in the sand,
like I'm just not going to deal with this, right,
And the truth is it's not.
Speaker 3 (31:05):
It's it doesn't need.
Speaker 2 (31:06):
To be scary, right. It feels scary, but it doesn't
need to be scary. And I think for black women
because we have a different type of chronic stress on
us that manifests as a physical manifestation. Right, So if
your your stress is higher, your cortisol levels are higher.
(31:27):
And this is another little nerd fact for you, but
the our cortisol is produced in the adrenal glands, which
are two little organs that sit on the top of
our kidneys and the back area. So the primary place
that our body produces estrogen is in the ovaries. The
(31:48):
secondary place that the body produces estrogen is in the
adrenal glands, and if your levels of cortisol are high,
that means your adrenal glands are pushing out more stress
hormone and they can't push out estrogen if your stress
hormone is being pushed out from the adrenal glands. So
(32:10):
it's a small thing, but it's another reason why stress
might be making your menopause worse because the other source
of estrogen in your body is not being you know,
it's not being produced there. So I my belief is
that you know, the symptoms that black women experience more
are related to stress. Belly fat when we see the
(32:33):
changes in our bodies and we're you know, one of
another one of the complaints that women have.
Speaker 3 (32:39):
Is belly fat.
Speaker 2 (32:41):
Belly fat is inflammatory fat. So when our cortisole levels
are high, we can't sleep, or if we're not sleeping,
we're not getting we're having more cortisol levels. That cortisol
level causes our body to try to protect us, right
so in the protection it's depositing fat for storage. It's like, Okay,
(33:04):
we're in survival mode. We need to save this fat
for you know, the winter, right, and so instead of
you know, depositing the fat in places that it normally
will go, it begins to go into what we call
visceral fat. And that visceral fat is kind of a
dangerous fat. And it's that's the thing that you know,
hits that menopause belly that we see. And so to summarize,
(33:29):
I believe that for women Black women, the reason why
we're struggling more is because of our stress levels. And
it's all I mean, it's all tied in. It's that biopsychosocially,
it all is tied in.
Speaker 1 (33:46):
This is so fascinating. Oh my goodness, will you when
you I love when you nerd out by the way,
when you die? The details? Oh, I got to go research.
This is amazing. When you I'm thinking about something you
said earlier around I think it was like defining either
all womanhood or sess by like potentially the attention we
get our sexual prowess or childbearing ability. And so I'm
(34:07):
thinking about the connotations associated with menopause in the past,
and I think that a lot of people that I
heard talk about menopause kind of made it sound like
it's the end of a woman's vitality. How would you
reframe that narrative.
Speaker 3 (34:22):
Well, I just think that it's the beginning, right, because
it's a time where you now, we don't have to
worry about the you know, complications that come with being
a mother, you know, or getting pregnant, right, like that
part is gone. You don't have to worry about pads
and tampons and all of that, right, No, that's right.
And then once we realize that our sexuality is not
(34:45):
over like people think that's the end, right, and our
illness doesn't have to take over like it doesn't. So
you know, we can actually be healthier, you know now
because there's a little bit more time. And then if
you have an understanding.
Speaker 2 (35:02):
My thing is always this, if you have an understanding
of what's going on, what's actually going on in the body, right,
then you can connect the mind to the body and
like you can do what you can't your part that
you can do to bring the body into alignment, you know,
for the parts that don't work.
Speaker 3 (35:18):
You know, we're not in a perfect.
Speaker 2 (35:19):
Utopia, so there's we're not going to be perfect. So
sometimes we need medications. Like I use medication. I have
a patch on my on my body right now for
hormone therapy, Like hormone therapy is not for everybody, but
it can't be helpful. But so you've got to figure
out what is the right formula for you, because everyone
(35:39):
has their own formula. But I you know, once we
realize that there is a way to have pleasure, to
have peace, to have passion, all of those things are
available and are you know possible, Like it's that reframe.
That's it like reframing and knowing that that is a
(36:00):
possibility and then just figuring out what your particular you
know formula is.
Speaker 1 (36:08):
So good.
Speaker 4 (36:09):
Thank you so speaking of figuring out our own individual
like formula, as I'm listening to this conversation, like I'm
thinking about questions that I'm going my next doctor's appointment,
Like I've got a question that I'm going to be asking,
and and so for our listeners when they get ready
(36:31):
to go and speak with their healthcare provider, what are
the things that they need to be asking like is
there a test that can determine where their estrogen levels are? Like?
Are so what are what questions should our audience be
asking of their healthcare providers?
Speaker 2 (36:53):
Well, I'll say this, Unfortunately, a lot of healthcare providers
aren't dialed in, right, And so part of the reason
why I created the community that change community is to
help people be armed with the right information to be
able to ask the right questions and then know what
the treatments are so that they can actually help their doctor,
(37:17):
like help them, you know, because the thing is, it's like,
you guys have.
Speaker 3 (37:21):
Been to the doctor. What do you have like twenty
minutes with the doctor?
Speaker 1 (37:26):
Right?
Speaker 2 (37:27):
If that yeah, and then that doctor has probably got
like twenty other people that they're seeing that day. They've
got like really probably about ten minutes because they're probably
running behind. Sometimes they double book art appointments, right, So
it's like it's not really the fault of the doctor
because they didn't get training. And then most of them,
(37:50):
you know, if you're in like corporate medicine, like you,
there's a bottom line that they're having to reach. So
I the reason that I created these programs is so
that people could go through the program, know what's going
on with themselves, and then be able to navigate the
current system that we have.
Speaker 3 (38:09):
It's not changed yet, right, Okay, So that's that's the
first part.
Speaker 2 (38:14):
To get into specifics in terms of the test that
you would want to check.
Speaker 3 (38:18):
You can check estrogen. You can check.
Speaker 2 (38:22):
A FSH level, a follicle stimulating hormone level. Those are
two things that we can check. But really more importantly
is what are you feeling and what are you experiencing?
Speaker 3 (38:36):
Because if you remember that, it's a roller coaster.
Speaker 2 (38:38):
So if I check your if I check your levels
and they're high, tomorrow they might be low, right, So
it doesn't really help us, like your impaimenopause, right, and
you're over authority in your impairimenopause, so they can check
those levels, and you know, it will help to just
give us some more information, but it doesn't really change
(38:59):
what we need to do. Right, So what we need
to do is based on what you're feeling and what
your particular symptoms are.
Speaker 3 (39:08):
Does that make sense?
Speaker 1 (39:10):
Yeah, that does make it.
Speaker 2 (39:11):
And that's part of the difficulty because like, let's say
your symptom is the shoulder pain, then you're going to
go see your primary care doctor and they're like, oh,
let's refer you to ORTHO, right.
Speaker 3 (39:22):
And then the ORTHO.
Speaker 2 (39:23):
You know, the medical society is not clued into some
of this already, right, So unless you're dealing with the
menopause specialists, like they may not be aware.
Speaker 1 (39:37):
This is such a needed conversation, And I love your
approach to the topic because it's so empowering and it
sounds like I mean, I think many black women we've
had to do this where we do our own research
find like you said, you had to kind of piecemeal
your support and then we go to the doctor with
we come with notes and questions and you know, our
proposals and whatnot. But I'm thinking about what you mentioned
(39:57):
around the formula and creating a formula that works for
you because it varies from person to person. So it
sounds like understanding what you're feeling, but also your patterns
because it can change so much. Join one of your
wellness communities for sure, hypnosis you mentioned checking your estrogen
or FHS level, and then also hormone therapy. Are there
(40:18):
any other potential options that for women that are in
that phase of the journey they're trying to figure out
what they want to kind of add to their toolkit
or their formula.
Speaker 2 (40:27):
I think, to kind of broadly, I talk about a
couple supplements that are probably good for everyone to take.
For vitamin D, A lot of Black women in particular,
most people have vitamin D deficiency, and vitamin D is
very important for a lot of the metabolic processes that
happen in our body, and we can have, you know,
(40:49):
things like fatigue that we can feel if we are
vitamin D deficient, and then if you're im paerimentopause, that
sort of like gets amplified. So vitamin D is a
good supplement you might want to have your levels checked
on that.
Speaker 3 (41:03):
A lot of most of us are deficient.
Speaker 2 (41:06):
So another one of the major problems that people experience
in menopause and perimenopause is sleep problems like waking up
in the middle of the night three o'clock in the morning,
four o'clock in the morning. This is a common you
know thing, and again this is related to those neurons
and that portion of the brain that control your level
(41:27):
of sleep. So there's some some hormones and neurotransmitters or
brain chemicals that like tell your body to stay asleep
and then tell your body to wake up, and so
that you know, that balance gets thrown off, and so
we can use certain supplements to help with that. One
of my favorites is magnesium supplement and that can help
(41:50):
aid sleep. It can help restlessness, and it's a great
thing for anxiety as well around around bedtime. So that's
another their supplement that I recommend across the board. Omega
three fatty assets are really important to have supplement, and
like you can get that in walnuts and salmon. So
(42:10):
those are just a couple of things that you can
eat and take to improve some of the perimenopause and
menopause symptoms.
Speaker 4 (42:22):
You so much for that. Now, as you're saying, as
you were sharing the particularly around like the supplements, I
was like, oh, yeah, like this is this is sounding
familiar because I've seen advertisements on social media for this supplement,
that supplement, and and so what came up for me
(42:42):
as you were sharing all that is because the conversation
around perimenopause and menopause is trending. That increases the likelihood
for like scams and false advertising and people trying to
take advantage of folks who need legitimate information. So how
(43:07):
can we how can we determine whether a particular vitamin
or supplement or any resource is actually legitimate and would
be could potentially be beneficial to us.
Speaker 2 (43:23):
Yeah, It's it's tough because there's so much stuff out there,
and people are all trying.
Speaker 3 (43:27):
To make a book.
Speaker 2 (43:29):
So I would see if the person that you're talking
you know with, or you know following on Instagram influencer,
if they're like a member of the Menopause Society, for example,
because they sort of set the rules and they do
their things based on research. And I understand that not
everybody falls within the research, but like it's our best guests,
(43:52):
so to speakers, our best scientific guest right is to
use the research that's out there to guide what we do.
And so I would, you know, try to work with
a menopause somebody who follows the tenets of the Menopause Society,
and the Menopause Society actually has like patient information as well,
(44:13):
so you can use them as a you know, reputable resource.
Speaker 1 (44:20):
This was so informoucy of doctor Janney. Thank you so
much for your time, but also thank you for being
the person that you wish you had when you were
going through, you know, that phase of your journey. This
is so valuable. I'm literally typing away taking notes like
all right, I need to make sure I have this
vitamin and this vitamin just to get you know, get
myself ready. Is there anything that we haven't talked about
or cover that you think we should before we.
Speaker 3 (44:42):
I mean, girls, ladies, there's so many things.
Speaker 2 (44:46):
I mean, I could go on from friends, but I
mean that is part of the reason why I also
have a YouTube channel, so I you know, periodically, will
try to weekly get on there and gives drop some
more nuggets. So there's lots, there's so much, right, you know,
we've got a hundred symptoms and then there's one hundred
and you know, maybe three hundred solutions for you know,
(45:07):
various things. So we can't cover it all obviously in
an hour. But yeah, so definitely tap into that resource.
Speaker 1 (45:15):
So lady, you can go to her YouTube channel, buy
the books, join the community, share her work, because we
need to highlight black women, especially who are in this
field doing this work. It's so important. So doctor Jannet,
we appreciate you so much. Thank you for the conversation
and we look forward to having you on in the future.
Get into another topic.
Speaker 3 (45:34):
Thanks so much for having me. It's been fun.
Speaker 1 (45:37):
Thank you. If you're feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or unsure of
your next steps, this is for you. Hey, lady is
Tea here and I just want to invite you to
my free goal map like a pro coaching workshop, where
I'll share the five proven steps to get unstuck and
achieve your goals. Whether you're feeling overwhelmed by all your ideas,
(45:58):
juggling scattered ideas, or maybe you just need confidence to start,
this workshot will give you the clarity, tools and the
motivation to take back control. Reserve your spot for free
by visiting her spacepodcast dot com and clicking on the
goal map like a pro webinar link. Lady, don't miss
this chance to build a roadmap that fits your life
(46:19):
and set you up for success. I hope to see
you there.
Speaker 4 (46:24):
Thanks for tuning into Cultivating her Space. Remember that while
this podcast is all about healing, empowerment, and resilience, it's
not a substitute for therapy. If you or someone you
know needs support, check out resources like Therapy for Black
Girls or Psychology Today. If you love today's episode, do
(46:46):
us a favor and share it with a friend who
needs some inspiration, or leave us a quick five star review.
Your support means the world to us and helps keep
this space thriving.
Speaker 1 (46:58):
And before we meet again, repete after me, I honor
my journey by balancing effort and rest to achieve my goals.
Cheap Thriving Lady and tune in next Friday for more
inspiration from cultivating her space. In the meantime, be sure
to connect with us on Instagram at her Space Podcast
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