Thriving In Menopause

Professor Sharon Naismith is a clinical neuropsychologist from the Brain and Mind Centre and Charles Perkins Centre, who is leading a world-first project looking at the focus of sleep disruption in accelerating cognitive decline, which can lead to dementia. On today's podcast episode, Professor Naismith helps us understand why sleep problems are so rife during menopause and how we can ensure our sleep issues are put to bed before they go on to cause serious health issues later in life. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When we're feeling fatigued, stressed and burned out - not to mention grappling with menopausal symptoms - carving out time for ourselves can seem like an impossible task. But as life coach Danielle Colley explains in this episode, ensuring that we are allowing ourselves the necessary amount of work, rest and play in our lives, is absolutely crucial for our health and wellbeing, and can even make our menopause journey smoother. She explains how we can go about it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In November 2023, an inquiry on Issues related to menopause and perimenopause was referred to the Senate Community Affairs Committee. Co-sponsored by Labor Senator Marielle Smith and Greens Senator Larissa Waters, the motion hoped to shine a light on menopause and the physical, social, economic, mental and wellbeing impacts for women. Lasting nine months and following 266 written submissions as well as public hearings in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra, Adelaide and Perth, the Committee reported its findings in September of this year. Today on the podcast, Senator Marielle Smith joins us to share the recommendations and what they could mean for women's health in the future. To see the full list of recommendations, visit www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Community_Affairs/Menopause/Report  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this podcast episode, we welcome back Michelle Bridges, fitness icon and mastermind of the 12WBT program and her new menopause-specific program, The Menopause Method. Today, we explore the many ways that exercise supports our bodies through the menopausal journey and focus on the kinds of exercise we should be doing to best support our health and wellbeing as we enter into this phase of our lives and beyond. If you need some motivation to kickstart you into moving more, you've come to the right place! 12wbt.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sexologist Christine Rafe is a sex and relationships expert for Womanizer, a brand dedicated to supporting women's sexual health and pleasure. Womanizer recently teamed up with the Kinsey Institute, world renowned for its research on human sexuality, to conduct a fascinating new study that looks at the importance of both masturbation and sex as effective tools for helping to manage menopausal symptoms. In this podcast, Christine shares details about the study and how we can go about enjoying the benefits for ourselves. womanizer.com/auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Accredited practising dietitian and bestselling author Jaime Rose Chambers has now written a new book, The Peri Diet. In this podcast episode, Jaime shares her best tips for eating for a happy and healthy perimenopause and beyond. Learn which foods can help to minimise your symptoms, control menopausal weight gain, combat the key hormonal changes that occur at this time of life and set you up to for a long, healthy future.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Jayashri Kulkarni AM is a psychiatrist and researcher at Monash University, internationally acknowledged as a leader and expert in the field of women’s mental health, in particular, for her innovative work on reproductive hormones and mental illness. In this episode of the podcast, Professor Kulkarni will be discussing mental ill health during menopause, particularly depression and anxiety, and shares what needs to be done to help women experiencing these symptoms.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

'Menopause mouth' is a term that reflects the many changes and symptoms that can affect our mouths throughout the menopause transition, from dry mouth to 'burning tongue', to gum issues and bad breath. To talk us through how we can best combat these symptoms, we're joined in this episode by dentist to the stars, Dr Gamer Verdian, Chief Executive Officer at D-Group, which encompasses both the luxurious Dental Lounge in Sydney’s Double Bay, as well as Dental 99, which offers essential dental treatments for as little as $99. @DrGamerVerdian @DentalLoungeSydney www.dentallounge.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Gemma Munro is an internationally recognised, award-winning speaker and presenter with a PhD in performance psychology. Through her talks with global audiences (including Google, Amazon and Paypal), as well as her online coaching program, she's a catalyst for immediate and sustained shifts in mindset, behaviours and results.  Dr Gemma sees perimenopause and menopause as a portal of transformation, encouraging women to harness the amazing power that comes with this stage of midlife to transform it into a catalyst for positive change, rather than a stage of life we need to "get through". In this podcast, she shares how we can tap into this power and embrace a new way of living, no longer bound by the influence of others or society in general and able to embrace our own desires and dreams. drgemmamunro.com  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Rodney Baber is Clinical Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of Sydney, and Past President of the International Menopause Society and Australasian Menopause Society. In this episode, Professor Baber explains what really happens inside our bodies when we experience hot flushes and night sweats, and the latest treatments available to minimise their impact on our lives. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Judy Craig is a GP, Cosmetic Physician and the medical director and founder of Natural Looks Cosmetic Medicine in WA (naturallooks.com.au). In this podcast episode, Dr Craig shares how women can overcome the changes and challenges presented by menopause, to continue enjoying a fulfilling sex life. This includes addressing a range of menopausal symptoms including vaginal dryness, painful intercourse, incontinence, delayed or impaired orgasm and reduced libido, all part of Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause (GSM).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bridget Foliaki-Davis is a Sydney-based/Auckland-raised award-winning chef, qualified nutritionist, and author of six cookbooks, who has cooked on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Faced with her own significant health challenges, including obesity, fatty liver disease and pre-diabetes, she learnt about the importance of gut health to assist her in managing her conditions. Not only did she lose weight and transform her health, she also vastly improved her debilitating perimenopausal symptoms.  In this podcast, she explains the importance of good gut health during menopause, and shares her unique no-exercise, food-based approach to weight management, gut health and mental stability, which thousands of people worldwide have followed to help them lose weight and gain health sustainably, via the Bridget’s Healthy Kitchen digital recipe books and ingredients and her 28 Day Boost Camp online gut health boot camp. Check out www.bridgets.shop for moreSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Can the way we think about the menopause transition have an impact on our experience of it as a whole? And if so, how do we go about changing our attitude towards menopause to make this life change more successful? In this episode, clinical psychologist Dr Emmanuella Noble shares helpful tips on how to reframe your perspective on menopause and, in doing so, make your menopausal experience both easier and more positive.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Increasingly popular as a weight management tool, intermittent fasting is also an effective way to harness our bodies' own healing abilities to achieve optimum health, slow ageing and help manage our menopause symptoms. Dr Mindy Pelz, author of best-selling books Fast like a Girl and The Menopause Reset, explains the most effective methods for women to follow a fasting lifestyle while working in harmony with their hormones. She also outlines how intermittent fasting, nutrition and lifestyle changes to help conquer our menopause symptoms, prevent disease and combat the dreaded menopausal weight gain. A world-renowned women’s health expert on a mission to empower women, Dr Mindy's YouTube channel has garnered over 60 million lifetime views.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the changes in body composition that can often come about during midlife and menopause, dressing to accommodate and flatter our unfamiliar body shapes can require a change in strategy. Sally Manhire, a personal stylist specialising in midlife women, guides us through the steps we need to take to learn to love our wardrobes again and feel comfortable and stylish in our fashion choices, even in the midst of a hot flush.  Sally is a Gold Coast-based personal stylist and the co-founder of @HowTwoStyle_Midlife, who thrives on empowering women in their 40s and 50s to look and feel their best.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There is undoubtedly a great deal of confusion and misunderstanding about menopause... starting with the simple matter of how the various stages of menopause are classified. Menopause expert Dr Kelly Teagle talks us through the different hormonal changes and symptoms of each menopausal stage and explains why it's so important to be vigilant with our medical screenings during these transitions. She also discusses the various menopause treatments. A GP in Canberra specialising in menopause, at age 42 Dr Kelly Teagle experienced the severe symptoms of an early menopause, prompting her to create the WellFemme Telehealth Menopause clinic. WellFemme now has 17 doctors and thousands of grateful clients around Australia. Kelly recently launched the Next Phase Women’s Wellness program for women in the menopausal transition; she also writes blog articles and is a women’s health speaker. Kelly has created a discount code for Thriving in Menopause listeners for $50 off the Next Phase women’s wellness program: simply use the code THRIVE at checkout. https://www.nextphasewellness.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When menopause starts affecting our ability to perform our jobs, many of us feel we need to suffer in silence - or worse yet, leave our positions or take a lesser role. Talking about menopause within the workplace often seems like a taboo subject, but things are starting to shift. Recruitment expert Sarah Piper is a champion of flexible and inclusive workplaces. She explains our workplace rights and details what forward-thinking companies need to do to support menopausal women at work.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We often don't think about the health of our bones until it's too late. Health expert Michelle Bridges explains why menopause is a critical time for bone health and how we can make sure our skeleton is as strong as it can be in later life. The mastermind behind the hugely successful 12 Week Body Transformation (12WBT) program, Michelle has now launched The Menopause Method, a diet, fitness and mindset program to assist women through this phase of their lives.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Psycho-sexologist, scientist, and sex and relationship expert Chantelle Otten joins us on the podcast to discuss the reasons our sex lives and libido can be challenged during the perimenopause years, as well as advising on the options available to help us navigate this transition to achieve greater intimacy and satisfaction.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Ginni Mansberg has been a GP for over 30 years, specialising in women's health and menopause. In this episode, she shares her wealth of knowledge on how we can deal with one of menopause's more irritating symptoms, itchy and dry skin, in every imaginable part of our bodies!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.