MenoShine With Me

Learn more about natural hormone balance with Courtney’s “Hormones + The Nervous System” free workshop download here.  Learn more about working with Courtney through her Radiant Living Coaching Group here.  Learn more about Ayurveda, Somatic Experiencing, Courtney and her work here: website: www.courtneylacava.com Instagram: @courtneylacava_ayurveda Tik Tok: @courtneylacava_ayurveda In this episode, we dive into the world of Ayurveda and its profound impact on women's health during midlife, particularly in navigating the challenging phases of perimenopause and menopause. My guest, Courtney LaCava, is an Ayurvedic Practitioner, a Certified Health Coach and a dedicated mama to two. Courtney's journey into Ayurveda began with her own health crisis with chronic fatigue, in 2005. Her healing experience led her to delve deeper into Ayurvedic principles, which allowed her to address the root causes of her health challenges and ultimately empowered her to lead a more vibrant and fulfilling life. As a practitioner of Ayurveda and Somatic Experiencing, Courtney specializes in guiding women to rediscover their innate connection to their bodies and nature. She helps them tap into the abundant vitality that is their birthright. During this enlightening conversation, Courtney shares her insights into how Ayurveda can be a transformative tool for women in midlife. She discusses the importance of reconnecting with our bodies, understanding our unique constitution, and finding harmony with nature's rhythms, all of which are key components of Ayurvedic wisdom. Key Takeaways: The story of Courtney's personal healing journey with Ayurveda. How Ayurveda addresses the root causes of health challenges. The significance of reconnecting with your body during midlife transitions. Understanding Ayurvedic doshas and their role in health and balance. Practical tips and practices to incorporate Ayurveda into daily life. Courtney's mission to empower women to live deeply satisfying lives through Ayurveda and Somatic Experiencing. Connect with Courtney: If you're interested in exploring Ayurveda further or working with Courtney, you can schedule a free Discovery Session with her at this link. You can also learn more about Courtney and her work on her website: www.courtneylacava.com and follow her on Instagram at @courtneylacava_ayurveda.

This week on "Dear Peri & Meno Pause," we're diving into Chapter 2 of "Atomic Habits" by James Clear. It's all about embracing your identity and making small changes that align with the person you want to be. 💡 Shift Your Focus, Transform Your Habits 💡 James Clear's wisdom teaches us that real change starts with aligning with the identity we aspire to. We'll discuss how this shift in perspective leads to lasting habits that stick. 🔑 Small Wins, Big Impact 🔑 Discover the power of those little victories and how they build the foundation for the transformation you seek. 🌱 Visualize Who You Want to Be 🌱 Imagine a confident, vibrant version of yourself. I'll explain how this mental image drives change, giving you an example of how I do it. Tune in and let's explore Chapter 2 together! Don't miss this chance to dive into habits that align with your highest self! If you'd like to work with me 1:1, I'm opening up some coaching sessions in September through until the end of the year. Book a 15-minute Discovery session with me and let's chat! I'd love to help you discover that inner sparkle that's dying to come out!

Introduction: Jo's personal journey of rediscovering her sparkle Importance of pausing and recharging Overview: Introduction to the book "Atomic Habits" by James Clear The principle of tiny, consistent actions leading to monumental shifts Jo's personal experiences with the book's teachings Highlights: The power of compounding habits The impact of a 1% daily improvement The difference between goals and systems How Jo applied the lessons to her fitness journey with Peloton Real-life examples to initiate small changes in fitness, mindfulness, and nutrition Closing: The promise of the next 20 weeks Jo's personal invitation to her listeners The vision for January 1st, 2024 Jo's message of hope and encouragement Mentioned Links: Atomic Habits by James Clear

Hello and thanks for listening! Today's episode is a solo chat about the mental health awareness challenge that I've been practicing for the month of May and what I've learnt along the way. I tribute a big part of my own healing journey to Mel Robbins. Her books, podcast and courses are AMAZING. What I love about Mel is that she's authentic. There's no BS with Mel. She'll tell you like it is, she'll tell you to stop with the excuses, but she'll also tell you how much she loves you. I feel like I know Mel personally and that's a tribute to how she nutures and values her community. Check out Mel's podcast, books and courses here: Mel Robbins Also in this episode today, I share some information about my newfound love - TANGLING! It's SOOOO cool and I'm obsessed! You can check out Zentangle here and stay tuned to my stories in IG. I can say without a shadow of doubt that my early 'tangles' will look NOTHING like what you see on Zentangle, but I can also assure you that while I'm creating them I'll have a massive smile on my face and will be relaxed - and THAT is what it's all about! After today, I'm taking a much-needed break for vacation. I'll be back with more episodes starting on June 19th. And get ready - I'm going to be launching my own MenoShine 90-day challenge and would LOVE some company along the way. It's GO-TIME once I'm back from vacation. Who's with me?! x

A brief minisode today as I have so much going on, but wanted to share how affirmations have really helped me move through some tough times in the past few months. Whether you're in perimenopause or menopause, feeling slugglish or feeling blue, daily affirmations can be a great tool to help redirect your thoughts and raise your mood. My favorite is "every day, and in every way, I'm getting better and better." My lovely friend Erin Ramsey (@youresuchacatch) posts daily affirmations on Instagram - check them out if you want to be inspired. Her 'go-to' is "everything always works out for me" which I have used recently to reframe my thoughts when I can feel doubt, worry and anxiety creeping in. Do you use daily affirmations? What works for you?

This week on the podcast, perfectly timed for Mother's Day in the US, Jo has a conversation with the amazing Kate Kripke! If you've recently been frustrated with feeling lost and low and not knowing what you really want to do in life, THIS is the episode for you. Whether you're a mom or not, this episode covers so much ground for women in midlife who are facing challenges like never before. On the fly, Kate comes up with a 3-step process to help you resolve the question of "What do I want to do with my life?!" Be willing to PAUSE - really get still, grounded and maybe even a little uncomfortable and acknowledge the feelings that are present. Be willing to NOT KNOW the answer! This is a big one - we often get so frustrated that we don't know, but what if we gave ourselves permission to not know and to get curious instead? Ask the very specific question: How do I want to feel? And from there ask "What are some connected actions that I can take to lead me towards that feeling?" Let us know how you enjoyed the episode and what was your biggest learning? Kate Kripke a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and Perinatal Mental Health Counselor (PMH-C) in the state of Colorado. For over 20 years, Kate has focused her work on supporting the mental health of mothers as a therapist, coach, consultant, author, and speaker.  She is the Founding Director of the Postpartum Wellness Center of Boulder, the author of the book Reinventing Supermom: Support Encouragement, and Strategies For New Moms Who Feel Lost, and a co-host on the podcast Motherhood Uncut. She is also the mom of two teenaged daughters. She offers group and individual mental health coaching to mothers everywhere. You can find Kate at: www.katekripke.com Book: https://www.amazon.com/Reinventing-Supermom-Support-Encouragement-Strategies/dp/1736021001/ Podcast: https://anchor.fm/motherhood-uncut Kate is launching a six-month mastermind program for mothers who are committed to practices in self-care, mindfulness, and personal growth and who are ready to invest time and resources into their health and wellness on behalf of their children. For more information, check out: https://www.katekripke.com/thrive

In this week's episode, Jo shares about the 31-day challenge she has set herself to honor the month of May which is mental health awareness month. Jo silently struggled with depression and anxiety for many years and is now passionate about helping other women learn about processes and resources to help build their own mental health toolkits. Jo will be posting a poem every day in the month of May with a tool or resource that has helped her in some way over the past 3 years. This week, she shared about mindfulness and nature walks and yes, even hugging (well, touching at least!) trees! :) For anyone struggling with mental health, within the US www.betterhelp.com is a great place to start. Outside of the US, we'd recommend talking with your doctor and asking for recommendations. To anyone that struggles with mental health - you are not alone, you are loved. x

Dr. Mary Claire Haver is a wife, mom, physician, and entrepreneur who has devoted her adult life to women's health. As a Board Certified OBGYN near Houston, Dr. Haver delivered thousands of babies, completed thousands of well-woman exams, counseled patients, taught residents, and did everything an academic professor and OBGYN could do. As her patient population aged, Dr. Haver was overwhelmed with the number of complaints and concerns her patients had with weight gain while going through menopause. For years, she told her patients to eat less and exercise more. It wasn't until she, too, experienced the changes of menopause and mid-life weight gain that she realized this advice didn't work and ultimately led to her creating and developing her online program, The Galveston Diet, which currently has over 100,000 students. The book version of The Galveston Diet was released by Penguin Random House in January 2023. The Galveston Diet helps women reach their health and wellness goals through an anti-inflammatory approach to nutrition. Dr. Haver believes in the power of nutrition and anti-inflammatory foods to combat midlife inflammation and highly recommends the unique benefits of intermittent fasting. As part of her ongoing research, she became certified in Culinary Medicine in 2019, specializing in medical nutrition. In 2021, Dr. Haver opened Mary Claire Wellness; the clinic was born out of repeated requests from the Galveston Diet students and Dr. Haver's social media followers for personal guidance and a potential patient relationship. Mary Claire Wellness is a unique practice that integrates a patient's medical history, symptomatology, the Galveston Diet nutrition program, exercise, supplements, and possibly hormone replacement therapy. Dr. Haver is a leading voice on social media in the realm of menopause education. She has over 2 million followers on TikTok, and is very engaged on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. Dr. Haver lives with her husband and two daughters in Galveston, Texas. This episode is FULL of fantastic information and resources from Dr. Mary Claire - we'd love to hear your biggest takeaway! You can share it with us by leaving a review for this episode (take a screen shot and send to Jo - jo@livinginjotopia.com) or share it on social media and tag Jo (@livinginjotopia) and Dr. Mary Claire Haver (@drmaryclaire). Jo will pull one lucky winner on Friday, April 21st and will send them a copy of The Galveston Diet!

In this week's solo-episode, Jo shares where she's at in her MenoShine journey with complete and utter honesty. It's not all sunshine, lollipops and rainbows, but it's about taking small steps every day to move in the right direction. She also shares not one, but two, sweary little poems to bring a smile and announces the FREE ecards that are available on her website - check them out at www.MenoShine.com Be a sunshine spreader - share a sweary little poem with your friends today! If you want access to the MenoShine course that Jo's building, click here and you can get weeks 1-4. Week 5 will be released on April 16th.

This is the first of (hopefully) many, MenoChats where Jo and another listener, Sarah Davis, discuss all things peri/menopause! Sarah is a mother, writer, artist, and podcaster. She holds tightly to a practice of radical imperfection, honesty, and creativity as the antidote to being a miserable person. She is about to leave Los Angeles, traveling to Minnesota, in her RV with her two kids, a fancy cat, and one small irritating but lovable white dog. Follow along on the Finding What's True adventure in Substack! and Finding What's True on IG In this episode, Sarah and Jo have a deep and meaningful conversation around how they're personally coping with various symptoms of perimenopause, AND also have several laughs along the way - especially the discussion of MenoMoustaches and chin hairs! It's a must-listen! The more we share our stories, the more we normalize what we're going through to help and encourage each other to find what's right for us! If you would like to come on the podcast and have a MenoChat with Jo - send her an email at ⁠jo@livinginjotopia.com ⁠ Make sure you check out Jo's newly updated website www.menoshine.com and stay tuned for some exciting news on the Sweary Little Poems - you'll be able to send them to your friends for a laugh as an eCard in the very near future!

In this episode, Jo gets straight to the point with brutal honesty that she's having a week where she feels like sh*t, but instead of succumbing to those feelings, she's finding a way to shine. She shares her recent wins with The Galveston Diet and has a reminder that Dr. Mary Claire Haver is coming on the podcast on April 7th! (Send Jo any questions you'd like her to ask!) She also shares information about her new, free (for now!) course - MenoShine! As Jo is making final edits and tweaks, she's releasing the content to her new and growing community as a special gift for free! In return, she'd LOVE your feedback and a testimonial to share with the official launch. Jo ends this week's episode with one of her lovely sweary little poems - for anyone listening who is feeling a little down, this one might just crack a smile! Of course it has an f-bomb at the end, so you might want to have your headphones in when you listen! If you'd like to join Jo's private MenoShine Facebook community, click here If you're not on Facebook and would like the content to MenoShine, send Jo an email at jo@livinginjotopia.com

Polly Warren is a certified Health and Life coach with a strong passion for empowering women to take control of their health and wellness. In her early forties, Polly experienced intense worrying, low moods, painful joints, digestive issues, and forgetfulness, which she later discovered were symptoms of perimenopause and other health challenges. It took her four years to understand and manage her condition, and she was motivated to help other women avoid the same suffering. Polly pursued extensive training in menopause, health, and wellness, becoming a certified Health and Life coach, an EFT Practitioner, an Advanced Dietary Supplements Practitioner, and a meditation and mindfulness teacher. Polly's mission is to help women understand and manage their health challenges, rekindle their love for life, and achieve their full potential. You can follow Polly on IG and follow her podcast via the website below. Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/pollywarrencoaching/ Website - https://www.pollywarren.com/

Car tweezers anyone?! IYKYK! ;) If you have a symptom of perimenopause or menopause that you'd like Jo to write a poem about, send her an email to jo@livinginjotopia.com - she'd love to hear from you! If your symptom is chosen, Jo will send you a little treat! To learn more about Jo, her books, coaching and speaking opportunities, visit www.livinginjotopia.com

On this week's episode, Jo shares her latest update with incorporating The Galeveston Diet into her life. She's had some small wins and is feeling a difference already!  Takeaways from this episode: Having a big vision (goal) is crucial to success. Revisiting that goal and imagining how it feels when accomplished is the key to success! Breaking the big vision down into small individual goals is a great way to gain momentum. Jo has done this with intermittent fasting and it feels great! Ask yourself, "Am I a goal setter, or a goal ACHIEVER?" - this has been a game changer for Jo in the past 2 weeks.  ACT NOW! If you'd like to join the first ever MenoSHINE cohort, we are starting on March 21st and it's FREE! It won't ever be free again, Jo is offering this 6-week course in return for honest feedback and a review that can be shared within her community. Send Jo an email if you're interested to learn more.   Mentioned in this episode: Dr. Mary Claire Haver (@drmaryclaire on IG) - fantastic doctor and author/creator of The Galveston Diet Susie Moore (@Susie.moore on IG) Let It Be Easy book Dr. Steph Smith (@Aimchirofit on IG) - Jo's phenomenal chiropractor and fitness guru! Cara Metz (@carametz_ on IG) - Jo's lovely friend and incredibly inspiring perimenopause & menopause fitness coach! To join Jo's community and receive weekly "Dear Peri and Meno Pause" poems, sign-up via Jo's website. She would LOVE to hear from you - please subscribe, rate & review the podcast, and if you have questions for Jo, please send them to jo@livinginjotopia.com

This week on the podcast, Jo talks with Brenda Winkle about her own menopause story, followed by a discussion around simple steps to reduce high stress moments, which can often be intense during perimenopause and menopause.  Brenda is a coach and healer that helps highly sensitive people, over-achievers, perfectionists, people pleasers, and empaths set boundaries, protect their energy, and heal their nervous systems. She is the host and creator of the Waves of Joy Podcast, which is globally rated in the top 10% of all podcasts.  Her mission is simple; to help people feel better! Brenda is a trauma-informed Reiki Master, an Advanced ThetaHealing® Practitioner, a trauma-informed breathwork facilitator, an empath, a highly sensitive person, and an intuitive. She was a music educator for 26 years and has a Masters's Degree in Educational Leadership. You can contact Brenda at brenda@brendawinkle.com, and find her at the following places: Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/brendawinkle/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brenda.winkle111 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brenda-winkle-empowerment/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brendawinkle111 During the podcast, Jo and Brenda discuss her Feel Better Fast Cheatsheet and worksheet  which is available as a gift for you today!

In this episode, Jo dives into the mindset work she has done within the past few years to become aware of, and then strategically divert, the ANTs (automatic negative thoughts) as they arise.  She shares her initial thoughts on The Galveston Diet along with one of her fitness goals for the year and discusses embracing her inner tortoise! Mentioned in this podcast are: Daniel G. Amen, M.D. (@doc_amen on IG) - the doctor who taught Jo the concept of ANTs Dr. Mary Claire Haver (@drmaryclaire on IG) - fantastic doctor and author/creator of The Galveston Diet Dr. Steph Smith (@Aimchirofit on IG) - Jo's phenomenal chiropractor and fitness guru! Cara Metz (@carametz_ on IG) - Jo's lovely friend and incredibly inspiring perimenopause & menopause fitness coach! To join Jo's email list and receive weekly "Dear Peri and Meno Pause" poems, sign-up via Jo's website. She would LOVE to hear from you - please subscribe, rate & review the podcast, and if you have questions for Jo, please send them to jo@livinginjotopia.com

Dry eye. Did you know that's a relatively common symptom of perimenopause? Jo had no idea until one of her friends brought it up.  If you have a symptom of perimenopause or menopause that you'd like Jo to write a poem about, send her an email to jo@livinginjotopia.com - she'd love to hear from you! If your symptom is chosen, Jo will send you a little treat! To learn more about Jo, her books, coaching and speaking opportunities, visit www.livinginjotopia.com

Yes, you read that right! This poem is about the lovely topic that NO ONE wants to talk about - dry vagina! Jo refuses to shy away from topics that are 'taboo.' If it's a symptom of perimenopause or menopause that warrants a conversation, you can bet your parched privates, she'll write a poem about it and lead the way to an open, enlightening discussion!  If you have a symptom of perimenopause or menopause that you'd like Jo to write a poem about, send her an email to jo@livinginjotopia.com - she'd love to hear from you! If your symptom is chosen, Jo will send you a little treat! To learn more about Jo, her books, coaching and speaking opportunities, visit www.livinginjotopia.com

In the UK, I grew up saying "I need a wee" over here in the US, I now say "I have to pee" - either way, the need has become FAR more frequent since entering into perimenopause! If you have a symptom of perimenopause or menopause that you'd like Jo to write a poem about, send her an email to jo@livinginjotopia.com - she'd love to hear from you! If your symptom is chosen, Jo will send you a little treat! To learn more about Jo, her books, coaching and speaking opportunities, visit www.livinginjotopia.com

Itchy Skin?!?! Did you know that was a symptom of perimenopause? Me either, until recently! All I know is that it's bloody annoying! In future episodes, I'll talk with experts who can help us understand what causes this and how to alleviate symptoms. For now, here's a sweary little poem to make you laugh whilst scratching! ;)  If you have a symptom of perimenopause or menopause that you'd like Jo to write a poem about, send her an email to jo@livinginjotopia.com - she'd love to hear from you! If your symptom is chosen, Jo will send you a little treat! To learn more about Jo, her books, coaching and speaking opportunities, visit www.livinginjotopia.com