109. Has Perimenopause Become Too Loud? Cutting Through the Noise

Welcome to Perry Menopause simplified podcast. I'm your host, Claudia Petrili, Functional Health Coach, Integrative Nutrition Coach, and creator of the Perry Menopause Method. This podcast is dedicated to women 35 and over, tackling those hormone roller coasters. While Perry Menopause may seem complicated, it doesn't have to be. My goal is to break it down so you understand what's going on in your body, motivate you to be proactive about your help, empower you to self-advocate, and make you laugh along the way. Because you deserve to feel and look your best in your peri years and beyond. Now hit subscribe so you never miss an episode and throw in a rating and review to help spread the word about Perry Menopause. Hey there, last week I was on vacation in Florida with Mike and whenever I'm away it gives me space to think. So while I was laying on the beach trying to relax, instead I was thinking about how the conversation around Perry Menopause has exploded in the last couple of years. And honestly it's gotten very loud. There's more awareness which is great. It's why I do what I do. But there's also much more noise, more opinions, and a lot more people trying to sell you something that you probably don't need. So today I want to dive into that and give you a more realistic perspective on what's going on and what actually matters. Quick side note, I've been talking about Perry Menopause for several years before it was all over social media because I started to experience symptoms myself in my late 30s. I like to think I'm ahead of the curve. And at the time there wasn't much information. There was a lot more info on Menopause actually. Not this, oh so fun transition. You know most women were being dismissed, told their labs are normal, handed in antidepressant or other medication, or given a long list of supplements to support every symptom. That's kind of where I was. I was taking a ton of supplements trying to address every Perry Menopause symptom that I was dealing with and the list was long. So the increased awareness that we're seeing now it's a good thing. Don't get me wrong. But like anything that gets attention, it's been taken in a lot of different directions. So let's just zoom out for a second around 80 to 90% of women experience symptoms during Perry Menopause. And the most common ones are mood swings, anxiety, poor sleep, weight gain, especially around the midsection, and brain fog. And on average, women have to see multiple providers often three to five before getting real support. Luckily that is changing. I'll be it slowly. But what I'm seeing now is two very loud camps. One camp says it's all about your hormones, right? Everything gets blamed on estrogen, progesterone, testosterone. You feel off. It's your hormones. You gain weight. It's your hormones. You're anxious. It's your hormones. And then the solution becomes take HRT, take this supplement stack or do this hormone reset. And while I love to simplify things around here, that's way oversimplified. And then there's the other camp that pushes back pretty hard saying things like your metabolism isn't slowing down. This is a natural phase just accept it. You don't need hormone therapy. Just change your lifestyle or go get some sunshine as if it was that easy. And while yes, Perry Menopause is a natural phase. We all go through it at some point. That doesn't mean that you should feel terrible and just push through it. You know, both of these extremes miss the bigger picture. Do your hormones change in Perry Menopause? Yes, yes, they do. Do those changes. In fact, how you feel? Absolutely. But they are not the only thing driving your symptoms, your blood sugar, your stress levels, your sleep quality, your muscle mass, your nutrient status, all influence how those hormonal shifts show up in your body and the severity of your symptoms. So when somebody has black and white thinking, it's this or that. That should be your cue to take a step back. And a big part of this is social media. Oh my goodness. nuance does not perform well there. A balanced take or a balanced approach doesn't go viral. What does strong opinions, bold claims and controversy? So we end up seeing things like everyone should be on HRT or HRT is dangerous. Stay away from it or your metabolism isn't slowing down at all. You've been lied to or everything leads back to cortisol. And it creates this constant back and forth that leaves you thinking, all right, what the hell am I supposed to do? And the other thing that's happening is a lot of personal stories are being shared, which can be helpful, but not all of it is coming from a clinical or educational background. So you'll see somebody often with hundreds of thousands of followers share what worked for them. And suddenly it becomes advice. But let me remind you somebody's personal experience is not the same thing as expertise. Ideally, they would have a combination of the two. And then there's the marketing. Oh my gosh. As soon as something becomes a thing, products follow. Now we have perimenopause supplements, hormone balancing powders, perimenopause specific skin care. And listen, some of these tools can be helpful. Maybe I bought one or two myself, but a lot of it is just basic help support, repackaged with a new label and a higher price tag. You don't need a $75 supplement just because it says it's for perimenopause on the front. We're also seeing a big rise in things like GLP1 medications, semaglutide, tersepatide, being talked about a lot in the perimenopause space. I didn't episode on this a couple of weeks ago. I will link it in the show notes in case you missed it. Again, these can be helpful tools for the right person, but they're rarely addressing the full picture. If your sleep is off, your stress is high, your nutrition isn't dialed in. Taking something to suppress your appetite doesn't fix those underlying patterns. And quite frankly, you're not going to reap the benefits. You'll end up wasting money, spinning your wheels, and back at square one. So if somebody is saying how much a GLP1 changed their life, use caution there. Okay? The truth is what actually works isn't flashy or sexy. Things like eating enough protein and stabilizing your blood sugar, strength training to support muscle and metabolism, getting better sleep, even if that means improving your habits, managing stress in a realistic way, and supporting your body with the right nutrients for you. These things are not trendy. They're not anything new, but they make a massive difference in how you feel now and as you age. And that's what we focus on with clients and have been for years. You know, the real problem isn't that there's too much information. It's that there's too much conflicting information and it's not personalized to you. So you're left second guessing everything. Do I need HRT or not? Is this my hormones or is it my lifestyle? Am I doing too much or not enough? Should I try a GLP one? And that's where so many women get stuck. So if you're feeling overwhelmed, it makes complete sense. And as somebody who's in this space and understands hormones, physiology, and perimenopause, it's quite frankly frustrating to me. And at the end of the day, you're likely not lacking discipline or missing some magic supplement. You're trying to make decisions in a space that has gotten very noisy. And what most women need isn't more content. It's clarity, a clear plan based on your body, your symptoms, and what's actually going on under the surface. That's what we help women do inside the perimenopause method. We look at your full picture, not just one piece of it. And we create a plan that works for real life. If this episode resonated with you, check out my free training in the show notes to learn more. And please do share this episode with the friend who's also trying to make sense of all this chaos. Make sure you leave us a rating and review. It really helps us. And I will talk to you next week. Hey, before you go, if you're resonating with this podcast and realize that your symptoms are anything but normal, my comprehensive program, the perimenopause method may be a great fit for you. My team and I help women in their mid-30s to early fifties improve symptoms such as fatigue, disrupted sleep, anxiety, erratic moods, bloating, and much more. We do this by utilizing advanced testing, a personalized plan tailored to you, women's health and hormones education, and ongoing support so you never feel alone and you get results. If you're ready to commit to your health and feel like yourself again, but even better, check out the link in the show notes to learn more about the perimenopause method. The information provided is for educational and informational purposes only. I am not nor do I act as a doctor or any other medical professional. I am not providing health care, medical services, or attempting to diagnose, treat, prevent, or cure any physical, mental, or emotional disease or condition. The information shared is not intended to be a substitute for the professional medical advice provided by your own medical or mental health provider. [Music]