Changing Seasons: Ayurveda, Women’s Health, Menopause & Food as Medicine

In today's episode Jody touches on the common physical and emotional symptoms she sees in Perimenopause from an Ayurvedic perspective.

Weight gain, anxiety, hot flashes, anger, forgetfulness, waking up between 1-3am are all ways that our bodies are trying to communicate with us to stay something is not right, something is out of balance, something needs to change and it is up to us whether we choose to listen or medicate the me...

Today Jody talks about the qualities of each of the Ayurvedic Doshas and how they show up in the body, mind and emotions.

She explains how Ayurveda balances disturbances in the qualities of the Doshas by treating with the opposite quality in another Dosha. For example, if your Vata is out of balance and your skin is dry you start incorporating ghee into your diet to balance the dryness.

This is part one of a three part series with Jo...

*Caution this conversation contains references to sexual assault.

Today pelvic floor and sexual therapist Lisa Fitzpatrick returns to Changing Seasons podcast to speak to Jody about Sexy Menopause. Lisa believes it is possible for every woman to enjoy sex throughout perimenopause and beyond and describes the blocks standing in the way of women doing so.

We discuss how women store tension and past trauma in the pelvic and how if it is...

Today on the podcast Jody speaks with Lucette Romy about the death of her baby boy Dash. Lucette birthed Dash at home and the birth was beautiful and without complications. However, six hours after his birth Dash's colour had not improved and after checking with their birth keeper and then their GP they finally made the decision to call paramedics. Unfortunately Dash did not survive. His body was sent away for an autopsy and L...

Today Jody speaks to Trauma Therapist Paula Rastrick about how the nervous system impacts our hormones. Paula shares her story of being prescribed HRT and the complications that arose from being over prescribed estrogen. 

Following this she embarked upon a journey of trying to understand how trauma and a disregulated nervous system can play havoc with a womens hormones in puberty, pregnancy and perimenopause. Paula believes that we ...

Today Jody speaks to Shonali Sabherwal Macrobiotic Nutritionist & Chef about the Macrobiotic and Ayurvedic approach to gut health. Shonali shares that she has attended a Panchakarma (an Ayurvedic detox protocol) once a year since she was in her 20's. She discusses what the 3 week protocol involves in Panchakarma and why anything shorter than 21 days is not recommended.

We discuss how gut health can impact the skin, the hair...

Nicole Lange is an acupuncturist who has a Masters in Chinese Medicine, she has spent her entire career focused on working with women. Today she chats with Jody about her wholistic approach to supporting women through their fertility journey. We speak about the impact trauma can have on women's fertility and how the process of trying to fall pregnant can be a traumatic experience for some women.

Nicole believes that it is essen...

Today Sarah Megginson returns to the podcast to speak with Jody about her decision to be a surrogate for her friend Lisa Messenger. 

Sarah had given birth to three healthy children of her own and at the same time had watched Lisa and her partner go through many years of failed IVF attempts.

One day she asked LIsa if she would be open to her being a surrogate. That was nearly two years ago and Lisa and her partner now have a healthy l...

In today's episode Jody explores how the changing seasons of the year impact each of the different Doshas. 

Ayurveda says that we need to protect our bodies around the junctions of the seasons and we discuss how Vata types need to take extra care in the transition from Summer to Autumn. Kapha from Winter into Spring and pitta from Spring into Summer.

Jody then discusses the different seasons of life - Kapha 0-18yrs, Pitta 18-45 ...

Today Dr Jimi Wollumbin returns to chat with Jody about the distressing state of male fertility across the globe. Jimi shares disturbing research figures on the declining rates of male fertility across all age groups of men.

We speak about the negative impact that increased exposure to toxic substances in our environment is having on male sperm count, sperm motility and testosterone levels.

A man with low testerone will struggle with...

Today Jody is speaking about the psychological characteristics of the Ayurvedic constitutions (doshas) Vata, Pitta, Kapha. 

The intention of this episode is to help listeners understand why they behave in the way they do. Jody talks about how the different elements - air, space, fire, water and earth can impact how we live our lives, make the choices we make and find it difficult to break out of unhealthy patterns.

Each constitution ...

Today Jody speaks about her personal failed fertility journey. 

After realising in her mid-forties that she may not meet the man of her dreams and have a family she embarked on a solo mission to have a child. 

She chose to start with sperm donorship. Approaching male friends first to see if they may be open to donation, after coming to a dead end there she moved onto the internet and interviewed many doctors before finding an anaesth...

Today Jody talks to nutritionist, actor and presenter Lola Berry about her and her partner Matt's decision to freeze her embryos instead of eggs. Their choice to delay having a family came after Lola chose to leave her life in Australia to pursue her dream career in acting and presenting in Los Angeles.

Lola is honest and totally open about the IVF process, the harvesting of the egg and the agonising days after the eggs are fer...

Today Catie Gett returns to discuss her ongoing experience with HRT. Catie speaks about how HRT is not a fix all and that women need to monitor its efficacy and communicate their symptoms with their doctor. Up until now Catie has been using patches and she is considering changing to a hormone cream or Mirena as she is starting to experience a return in her anxiety.

We cover plenty of ground in this conversation, revisiting how essen...

Today Jody speaks with Myra Lewin, founder of Hale Pule about the power of Agni (digestive fire) and how by healing our digestion we can bring our hormones into balance and also change our bodies.

We cover many topics in this episode starting with our dosha and the difference between our Prakriti (constitution) and Vikriti (imbalance) and how important it is to be aware of how our bodies are feeling everyday, after we eat, move and ...

Today Jody speaks to Ayurvedic Practitioner Christina Covington about how we can use Ayurveda to find beauty in the menopausal journey. We discuss the importance and value in having a regular self care routine (Dinacharya) and how the practice of Abyhanga (self-massage) can bring calming and softening to the body and spirit.

Christina describes a gentle morning practice that women can do to welcome in the elements and emphasizes the...

Today Jody speaks with Brooke McPoyle about the body's scaffolding system - the fascia.

We talk about what it is, it's role in the body and why keeping it hydrated is so important as we age. Brooke describes her experience with Plantar Fasciitis and how often prescribed treatments are not working on the problem area. Emotions are stored in the fascia and we highlight how breath and song can help greatly in relieving the bo...

Today Jody interviews Libby Munro, a nutritionist who specialises in the auto immune disease Hashimoto’s, thyroid and gut health. 

Libby describes the symptoms of Hashi’s – hair loss, moon face, brain fog, temperature regulation, insomnia, muscle and bone loss and talks about the crossover with symptoms of perimenopause.

We speak about the treatment options for women living with Hashi’s and how stress needs to be addressed as cortiso...

Today Jody speaks with Sarah Megginson, personal finance expert and Simone Clarke from UN CEO United Nations Women Australia. Sarah and Simone are two of the authors of the State of Women's Wealth Report 2025.

They report the menopause can mean an average hit of $40,000 to a women's superannuation balance. We discuss ways that women can reduce this impact by contributing more to superannuation in the years leading up to me...