Dr Alicia Jackson is an American scientist, health-tech entrepreneur and CEO and founder of Evernow — a next-generation telemedicine startup that is completely focused on menopause and provides FDA-approved treatment from specialists. Evernow also recently announced a very significant round of funding, with some very influential donors. We speak all about how Alicia went from MIT to menopause, how and why Evernow attracted A-list celebrity funding, modern menopause hormone therapy and what she sees as most important moving forward.

Ann Marie speaks to Martha Hickey, professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at the University of Melbourne and co-director of the Gynaecology Research Centre at the Royal Women’s Hospital. Prof Hickey is a leader in developing national guidelines for menopause management in Australia and New Zealand and also in developing a new model of care for managing menopausal symptoms after breast cancer.

I'm Ann Marie McQueen, a Canadian-born, Middle East-residing, perimenopausing journalist. I'm also founder of Hotflash Inc, a platform to inform, entertain and encourage the global perimenoposse. I'm here reminding you that while nothing about this peri/menopause transition is easy, it is going somewhere good.

Ann Marie talks about some of the cool things that are happening – including season 2 of the podcast starting Friday, September 9 2022 – before moving on to why perimenopause is all about figuring out how to exist in the middle. Then a few words about something that is definitely not our friend at this time, and that is A-L-C-O-H-O-L.

Debbie Baisden is a popular British menopause campaigner, comedian and Pub Landlady (which, if you are not from the UK, is quite different from a bartender. Ann Marie speaks to Debbie while she is in Scotland, spending a week performing and promoting her one-woman show Menopause Party at the annual Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

"The minute you get that good night sleep, everything changes." That's from Lilach Mazor Power. Find out how cannabis leader and co-founder of Phoenix-based menopause-focused Revelry Cannabis is helping women sleep better and longer than they ever could – as well as alleviating a bunch of other symptoms, too.

Get inspired by Ann Marie's conversation with Amy Schmidt, who is all the things a woman can be at this time of our lives and more. She inspired women through more than 100 episodes of her Fearlessly Facing Fifty podcast before pivoting and launching her Better Than Gossip project. Her journals turned into a book, Cannonball: Fearlessly Facing Midlife and Beyond, a Ted Talk, major television appearances and a big new project. But it wasn’t always this way. Amy lost herself in her 40s – as so many of us do – and she describes how she found her confidence again, and you can too.

Ann Marie speaks to Rebecca Ann Simmons, a PhD researcher at the Department of Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Leeds, whose research aims to uncover the multiplicity of experiences among LGBTQ+ people who are or have experienced menopause

Ann Marie speaks to Irene Ndagire, a physiotherapist based in Kampala, Uganda who runs the Women’s Health Foundation and recently launched Menopause Uganda.

Ann Marie is back with another solo episode, talking about all the individual conversations and lovely moments she had with people out of the Menopause Shift Summit.

A short example of why sleep hygiene is important, yet it's the first thing to go when things start to get tough.

That time I called myself an ambulance in the middle of the night and waited for it like you would for a taxi.

Menopause Talk podcast. She asks: "How did DHEA change your life and are you still taking it?" Ann Marie talks about how, in the early stages of perimenopause she experienced symptoms of adrenal exhaustion that were ultimately successfully treated with a course of DHEA (for several months) and an entire lifestyle overhaul. And she references some of the latest research on the use of DHEA, and the potential of DHEA for treating the symptoms of perimenopause and menopause.

Almost 7,000 people signed up for the Menopause Shift Summit, a project nine months in the making. Ann Marie runs down some of what she and partner Andrea Donsky learned from interviewing 40+ expert speakers over three days.

Ann Marie talks about the parallel effort involved in tackling two very different things: her first hiking trip in Turkey and the Menopause Shift Summit (June 21-23), and all the growth and euphoria that comes with making things new things happen, even if you have to go through the same fear, anger and inner resistance every time.

Ann Marie speaks to I Support the Girls founder Dana Marlowe about menopause, Flash Kits, being homeless and in poverty and devoting all your time to doing something you love.

Season Two is coming July 1! But first... Emma Hartley is a British journalist and co-founder of 24hourlondon who conducted an investigation into the UK’s HRT shortages for a publication called Tortoise… in 2018. Emma’s story touched on everything from Donald Trump’s trade war with China to manufacturing facilities in India, but in the end, the problem then and the problem now is much, much closer to home.

As we ramp up to the launch of Hotflash Inc, the podcast Season Two, Ann Marie talks about why she choose "this is going somewhere good" as one of the tag lines for Hotflash Inc; why she's not having the deficiency narrative, weighing menopause hormone therapy for current (and future) health, magic bullets and some vagina stuff.

Today Ann Marie is speaking to Rachel Lankester, author of the book Magnificent Midlife and the blog The Mutton Club, host of the Magnificent Midlife podcast and Facebook page The Flock. Rachel has done some deep work deconstructing some of the negative narratives and stereotypes in the UK, which exist all over the rest of the world, too.

Ann Marie talks about the upcoming Channel 4 Davina McCall documentary, The Menopause Brain Drain; her own personal – and very expensive – brain drain, and why watching a 5-hour free seminar on TikTok changed everything this week for her (and maybe for you too).

Today on the podcast Ann Marie talks about why she’s happy she didn’t go on HRT – yet – and is still deeply considering it. She talks about being diagnosed with SIBO, which for the better part of a year was causing three very common perimenopause symptoms. Plus a story about a very nice women and some words about the three experts on social media who have earned their followings with wisdom, experience, forward-thinking and humility.

Ann Marie gives an update on the British "hormone deficiency" situation, complete with mansplaining, talks about Sweden's new HRT recommendations and new British women and dementia study, and explains why American actress and businesswoman Tracee Ellis Ross is a member of the perimenoposse. And she has a surprise interview with Cindy Barshop, former Real Housewife of New York and founder of VSPOT Medi-Spa Medi Spa in NYC, where they have a top medical team and every non-surgical measure you need to boost sexual pleasure and wellness no matter what's going on with your hormones.

This week Ann Marie talks all about the biggest news to hit menopause since... since... there hasn't been news this big, ever; how a simple memory test ruined my day, and an HRT story you don't hear every day.

This week Ann Marie talks all about her own Perimenopause symptoms before veering into the thorny topic of vaginas and vulvas, and what can be done to help them. (Hint: lots)

Ann Marie talks about the horrible week that resulted from her bad decision to celebrate seeing old friends with new drinks.... and much more.

Ann Marie talks about perimenopause depression, "female hormone deficiency syndrome with health risks"; taking Hotflash Inc to the streets and a weird dream where her cat Ninja Jr changed colour.

TRIGGER WARNING: Suicide and suicide ideation. If you are feeling suicidal, please tell someone, reach out to your local suicide hotline or contact a licensed therapist. This podcast talks about a story I came across in a Norwich, England paper called the Eastern Daily Press Victoria Metcalf-Smith, a solicitor and mother of three who took her own life in April 2021.

I'm journalist and Hotflash Inc founder Ann Marie McQueen and this is my first solo episode. Think of it like MTV Unplugged (GenX, I see you)... stripped down, bell-and-whistle-less. Just me in a hotel room in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE, overstaying my late checkout and wondering about the world and our perimenoposse place in it.

Amy Schmidt lost herself in her 40s – as so many of us do – and if she can find her confidence again, you can too.

MK Czerwiec is a nurse and graphic artist (hence her handle, Comic Nurse) who edited 2020’s Menopause: A Comic Treatment. The book went on to be named on the New York Times’ year-end list of the best graphic novels and won two Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, including one for best anthology. MK talks all about Graphic Medicine, an emerging field that uses comics to enhance medical education and patient care and help people process trauma and painful experiences. MK is also going through menopause, and she's very interested in finding ways to deal with hot flashes and some of the other symptoms we experience. And stay tuned, because near the end of the podcast she offers one of the best tips I’ve heard for creatively making a plan that we can turn to in our hardest, darkest times.

Dr Suzanne Gilberg-Lenz is an obstetrician-gynecologist practicing in Beverly Hills, California who is passionate about integrative women’s health and has a book on menopause coming out in October.

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: seed oils, nutrition, hot flashes, supplements, perimenopause, menopause, processed foods, nutrition, insulin resistance Summary: Andrea Donsky is a registered holistic nutritionist, entrepreneur and television personality based in Toronto; co-founder of naturallysavvy.com and new company called Morphus, which is all about menopause supplements. We talk about how to approach menopause via diet, lifestyle and supplements, what her menopause experience was like, and how much better life can be when you do some work on yourself through this transition. Highlights: • her own menopause experience (4.45) • how she dealt with horrid hot flashes without HRT (8.45) • why you need to be careful with menopause supplements (11.10) • why you need a trusted wellness team - even if it's online (15.30) • how exactly to switch up nutrition to lesson symptoms (17.45) • the problem with seed oils (22.00) • what foods can help and hinder during perimenopause (27.20) • insulin resistance + menopausal weight gain (28.30) • see a doctor even if it’s a known perimenopause symptom (31.25) • the weirdest perimenopause symptoms (33.00) • signs you are deficient in this important mineral (33.45) • why this is so much more than a physical transition (47.45) Where to find Andrea: TikTok: @Andrea Donsky Instagram: @wearemorphus @naturallysavvy Web: Naturallysavvy.com Podcast: Morphus for Menopause; Naturally Savvy SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: Hotflashinc See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: Progesterone, perimenopause, hot flashes, anxiety, sore breasts, sleep, estrogen, HRT Summary: Dr Jerilynn Prior is a professor of Endocrinology and Metabolism at the University of British Columbia. She also runs CEMCOR, the Center For Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research. Dr Prior has been prescribing progesterone for postmenopausal women and perimenopausal women to treat hot flashes, night sweats, heavy flow, and sore breasts for over 25 years. She has conducted and published research showing that progesterone is an effective treatment for menopausal hot flashes and night sweats. She also wrote a novel to help illuminate some of her findings called Estrogen’s Storm Season. You are going to hear a completely different set of views in this interview, so buckle up. Everything she says is deeply rooted in research, clinical practice and personal experience. Highlights: Why Google’s explanation of the menstrual cycle is wrong (7.45) What everyone gets wrong about our menstrual cycle (11.00) How and why she came to focus on progesterone (15.58) Why wildly swinging estrogen is the quintessential characteristic of perimenopause (18.20) Why the narrow focus on estrogen and not progesterone is like “looking at the world through a straw” (23.00) The data backing progesterone for severe hot flashes and night sweats and sleep in menopause (25.00) Estrogen is addictive; progesterone is not (29.00) The relationship between marketing, menopause and academia (30.50) How to talk to your doctor about progesterone (32.30) One way to figure out if your estrogen levels are high (34.50) Is HRT safe… and do we need it regardless of symptoms? (41.25) Does HRT prevent osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease and dementia? (43.00) Why the resistance to progesterone isn’t scientific (45.45) Where to find Dr Prior’s work: Web: CeMCOR Youtube: CeMCOR Facebook: Cemcor.research SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: bcast See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information.

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: FDA, HRT, toxins, menopause, perimenopause Summary: Carmen Stansberry is a nurse practitioner living in San Francisco, California posting to Instagram under the handle Wits and Wellness. I wanted to speak to Carmen because she is so knowledgeable about so many things that impact our care and our health during perimenopause – and not just in the US. She talks a lot about how the for-profit, insurance-based model of health care in the US impacts everything from the FDA approval process to what clinical studies are done to the guidelines doctors use to the screening tests your insurance covers. As a nurse practitioner, Carmen prescribes HRT and she shares her expertise on using bioidentical versions and other advice she gives her patients. She’s also a huge advocate of awareness about the amount of toxins in our environment, whether it’s everyday plastics or the skincare products we use. Highlights: • How the for-profit system impacts health care and why we need to ask questions (4.30) • Why compounding pharmacies are demonized (9.30) • Why you need to pay attention to your Vitamin D (14.00) • How the turf war between conventional and functional medicine impacts women (15.30) • The underlying problems we need to watch out for in perimenopause (25.45) • Her mode of prescribing HRT (28.30) • Back to compounding pharmacies! (36.00) • How hormone-mimicking toxins in our products are making peri/menopause worse (40.00) • Life changes you might need to make to ease your peri/menopause transition (43.00) Where to find Carmen: Instagram: @witsandwellness Web: The Advanced Practice SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: Hotflashinc See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: soy, menopause, HRT, insulin resistance, fat, diet, hot flashes Summary: Dr Neal Barnard is an adjunct professor of medicine at the George Washington University School of Medicine and president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. He has led an array of important research into the effects of diet on diabetes, body weight, and chronic pain, including work on dietary interventions for Type 2 diabetes. He’s written 100 scientific publications as well as 20 books, including his most recent, Your Body in Balance. He also led a study that was published last year in Menopause, the Journal of the North American Medical Society, which found that eating a soy-rich, all-vegetable diet dramatically cut down on hot flashes and several other menopause symptoms. He is currently replicating that study, which is a big part of the process of scientific inquiry. Dr Barnard explains why diet plays such a major role in the peri/menopause transition, how to make the right changes to go vegan, the problem with fat, as well as provides insight into HRT, genetics, Alzheimer’s and dementia and more. Highlights: • Why we can manipulate hormones by how we eat (3.45) • How menopause is different in Japan (4.45) • The research-driven truth about soy (6.10) • The inside scoop on his “soybean salad” study (9.20) • Reaction to the findings (12.15) • Assessing HRT risks and how to mitigate them (17.30) • There’s a reason we have menopause (20.45) • Dr Barnard’s recipe for plant-based eating (24.24) • Why menopause doesn’t really cause weight gain (26.44) • Fat and insulin resistance (27.55) • Why does everyone push good fats? (31.45) • HRT, diet, genetics, Alzheimer’s + dementia (33.00) • What about vegan-ish? (35.00) • Help for other symptoms (37.00) Where to find Dr Barnard: Website: PCRM.org Instagram: @physicianscommittee Twitter: @PCRM SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: Hotflashinc See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: pelvic floor, GSM, vaginal health, core strength, spiritual Summary: Today on the podcast is Kim Vopni, better known as The Vagina Coach and author of Your Pelvic Floor. As I say to her, I’ve been a fan of Kim and her approach since I launched Hotflash. We talk about it all here: her number one piece of advice, why taking care of your pelvic floor actually makes your whole life better, and why there is just no excuse to feel uncomfortable or be in pain or just have the sense that something isn’t right. We talk about gadgets, about jade eggs and why there is never a justification to put up with an unsatisfying sex life. Highlights: • The main problems she sees in perimenopause (8.30) • Why we may have difficulty achieving orgasm (11.30) • Her #1 tip for pelvic floor health (13.29) • How the pelvic floor impacts your whole life (25.25) • The two gadgets she likes (33.52) • What to do about the pelvic floor issue you’re ignoring (41.00) • The next step for her Buff Muff Challenge (44.25) Where to find Kim Vopni: Web: VaginaCoach.com Instagram: @VaginaCoach Twitter: @VaginaCoach SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: Hotflashinc See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: Perimenopause, humanity, upgrades, wisdom, HRT, lifestyle, relationships, patriarchy, periods Summary: Dr Christiane Northrup is the author of the New York Times bestselling book The Wisdom of Menopause, which was first published in 2012, has gone on to sell more than 1.6 million copies, revised and updated for the fourth time in 2021. In her 30-year-career as a board certified OB/GYN, Dr Northrup focused on empowerment, on accepting that mainstream medicine has a role, and that the natural world does as well. And it was that approach that drew in none other than Oprah Winfrey, who reached out when menopause threw her for a loop. Since giving up her medical license, and particularly since Covid hit, Dr Northrup has become a vocal advocate for informed consent and medical freedom. And that makes her an anti-vaxxer and a controversial figure that many people believe should be silenced.. But Hotflash Inc is all about having the freedom to ask questions and explore different perspectives, and provide access to different experts – without endorsing what they say or believe. That part is up to you, so take what resonates from Dr Northrup and leave the rest. And as always, remember that Hotflash Inc does not provide medical advice. Highlights: Why I chose to speak to such a controversial figure (2.18) Why she thinks the planet is going through perimenopause (5.15) How your beliefs about menopause are everything and how we are programmed to believe the opposite (6.35) How she sees women evolving into their power (8.45) Learning to listen to our bodies – and ask for more the feminine way (10.00) Alzheimer’s is Type 3 diabetes and the role of prescription drugs in women’s health (15.00) Looking at perimenopause as a portal to understanding the dictates of your soul and a wakeup call for what you’ve been putting up with (16.14) Dr Northrup’s take on HRT – and pharmaceutical companies – over the years (20.16) Why some women do better on hormones – especially if they reach perimenopause in body burnout (23.00) The industry shift to bioidentical hormones away from synthetics (24.00) Her insight into the pharmaceutical industry (30.00) Progesterone for migraines and chest pain (38.45) Why people think she’s wacky (41.48) Her view of the medical field and how it’s evolved (49.00) Where to find Mona: Web: DrNorthrup.com Twitter: DrChrisNorthrup Facebook: Dr Christiane Northrup Telegram: Christiane Northrup SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: bcast See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information.

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: menopause, symptoms, anxiety, sleep issues, psychedelics, legislation Summary: Lilach Mazor Power and Stef Swiergol are co-founders of a new cannabis wellness collection for perimenopause and menopause symptoms called Revelry based in Phoenix, Arizona. Lilach is an industry leader: she is the only female owned licensee in the state of Arizona, she’s been in this business for a long time. Both she and Stef have great insight and intel into where this business is right now, where it’s going, how you can tip your toe into the cannabis waters if you are curious, which studies show between one and four and one and three of us are doing, and what the best way to go about it is. Highlights: • A rundown on Revelry’s cannabis in a capsule (4.49) • Why microdosing (low and slow) is the way to start (6.15) • How cannabis can help you sleep – and change everything (8.00) • Why so many of us are scared to try (12.00) • How women are using cannabis for their menopause symptoms (19.45) • Why cannabis years are like dog years (21.06) • How people are using their cannabis (22.45) • How cannabis actually works with your bodies own cannabinoid receptors (24.00) • Addressing concerns about cannabis and the brain (27.05) • The sustainability issue (35.00) • The future of plant medicine (41.00) • The importance of women in this field (45.00) Where to find Revelry: Web: Revelry Cannabis Instagram: @revelrycann Twitter: @revelrycann SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: Hotflashinc See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: Menopause, support, HRT, friendship, marriage, relationships Summary: Lynette Sheppard is an OG in the menopause space. This former nurse/manager, artist, speaker, advocate has been, for 16 years now, the author of The Menopause Goddess Blog. As she says on the blog, The Change really whooped her upside the head. Lynette straddles the space between allopathic and naturopathic worlds, and she’s on the other side of this transition, telling us to hang in there. Highlights: Why you should never feel bad about taking HRT The difference in approaches between allopathic and naturopathic medicine Why the medical establishment is so stubborn Whe perimenopause is no time to make any sudden moves What happens when you get past the horror of the symptoms Why you need your own a group of goddessess How men seem to change as they get older Why she thinks lifestyle changes might matter most Links: Menopause Goddess Blog A big thank you to my sponsors: • Become | Visit become.com to receive 20% off all products with the code HOTFLASHINC • Ritual | Visit JointheRitual.co and use code HOTFLASH to get your first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse here: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: bcast See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information.

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: Perimenopause, HRT, lifestyle, relationships, poverty, inclusion Summary: Today I am going to the US, Chicago specifically, to interview Heather Corinna, author of this year’s awesomely titled book What Fresh Hell is This? Perimenopause, menopause, other indignities and you. Heather is a long-time queer feminist, activist author and educator, founder and director of Scarleteen, the sex, bodies and relationships information clearinghouse. Highlights: Why it took us so long to realise we were in perimenopause (5.40) Why we need to look for the older women and find new friends (12.30) Trans menopause, economics and employment (19.10) Being able to just have a hard time (28.00) Dealing with stress + our “stuff” (36.26) Being vulnerable (42.28) Where to find Heather: Web: Scarleteen Instagram: @heather.corinna Twitter: @heathercorinna SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: bcast See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information.

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: Perimenopause, HRT, lifestyle, relationships Summary: Dr Annice Mukherjee is a British endocrinologist author of The Complete Guide to Menopause. She talks about making lifestyle improvements to cope with the transition of perimenopause, all about HRT, including when to take it, when not to take it, how to weigh the risks of taking it, what happens when you take it for a long time and why Dr Mukherjee believes it should be used as an accessory, not a cure-all. Highlights: The problems with menopause and social media (7.58) Why HRT is an accessory, not a quick fix (15.58) Why we must all find out own menopause management path (20.38) Every single woman has a different menopause (21.25) Coming off HRT (23.35) Why GPs are the best doctors to manage menopause if they can just get the training (28.36) Her experience going through menopause after breast cancer treatment (30.44) Why you have to treat yourself like a bank account in perimenopause (36.53) Why your relationships are related to your perimenopause (41.56) Reducing our risk of the Big 3: cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and dementia (46.17) Progesterone: benefits and risks (57.00) Why we should stop trying to count menopause symptoms (1.03.32) Where to find Dr Mukherjee: Web: hormonewise.co.uk Instagram: @the.hormone.doc Twitter: @annicemukherjee SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: bcast See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information.

This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: Perimenopause, HRT, lifestyle, relationships, patriarchy, periods Summary: Warning: there are no fewer than 48 F-bombs in this podcast. And that’s just as it should be, because as Mona Eltahawy explains often, profanity is absolutely required when it comes to taking down the patriarchy. Mona is an Egyptian-American writer and social commentator based in Montreal, Canada. She is the author of several books including Headscarves and Hymens: Why the Middle East Needs a Sexual Revolution and The Seven Necessary Sins for Women and Girls. For the last year or so she has also written the very necessary newsletter Feminist Giant. She is angry and profane and lighthearted and funny; and she’s that way as much about injustice and inequality as she is about menopause kicking her ass. You’ll hear all about it, as well as some of what made her who she is today, what she thinks of the current peri/menopause conversation – and what she thinks needs to change. Highlights: Why I named my courage after her (4.20) Getting her period when she thought she was done with periods (15.20) Having no idea she was in perimenopause (19.35) Viewing this stage of life as one of emerging (21.57) Why billionaires wish they could have hot flashes (24.00) Cutting your hair off (29.00) White women talking about menopause (32.20) The problem with the “I feel invisible” essay (40.40) Why we need to have compassion for our past selves (48.40) Where to find Mona: Web: Feminist Giant Instagram: @monaeltahawy Twitter: @monaeltahawy SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: bcast See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information.

Hotflash Inc is a global platform launched by Ann Marie McQueen, a journalist with 25 years of international experience covering health and wellness. It is designed to inform, entertain and encourage the perimenoposse about all things peri/menopause. This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: HRT, insulin resistance, cognition, evolution, supplements, stress response, new research Summary: Lara Briden is a Canadian naturopath living and practicing in New Zealand. She’s also the author of two books: the bestselling period repair manual and 2021’s hormone repair manual. With 25 years in clinical practice, Lara is used to being ahead of the curve scientifically. She explains how what is controversial now often ends up being evidence-based standard practice down the road. She provides insightful, nuanced and scientifically detailed dissections of the many intersecting issues involved in the peri/menopause transition. That includes the ever-present and critical impact of insulin resistance, which is impacting one in two of us. Lara talks about the various forms of menopause hormone therapy that are available and how to use them, and why you really might want to explore the role of progesterone in managing your perimenopause and menopause symptoms. Lara also talks about her own experiments with taking HRT; takes on the host’s questions about cognitive challenges and why they might be happening, talks about the all-important role of our body’s stress-response system, and highlights some important supplements to look at. Lara also tackles some of misconceptions surrounding the current peri/menopause conversation and addresses the theory that “evolutionary mismatch” is making many of our symptoms worse. Highlights: • How and why the naturopathic and integrative doctors are often ahead of the curve in terms of research (3.20) • How to decipher what’s going on with bioidentical, body identical, commercial and compounded menopause hormone therapy (9:15) • Progesterone: what’s out there, what’s emerging, and why you may want to consider it for your menopause symptoms (18.30) • Insulin resistance and cognition (32.38) • Why she is trying out menopause hormone therapy and how it’s going (41.17) • Proceeding carefully with testosterone (43.45) • The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis (52) • The impact of “evolutionary mismatch” on menopause symptoms (57.53) • Why sugar can cause the brain to self-cannibalize (1.02.12) • Go-to supplements (1.04.07) Where to find Lara Briden: Web: LaraBriden.com Instagram: @larabriden Twitter: @larabriden SPONSORS: Become anti-flush cooling clothing | Use code HOTFLASHINC to get a 20 percent discount. The Ritual by Pure | Use code HOTFLASH to get the first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: Hotflashinc See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Hotflash Inc is a global platform launched by Ann Marie McQueen, a journalist with 25 years of international experience covering health and wellness. It is designed to inform, entertain and encourage the perimenoposse about all things peri/menopause. This episode and all of season 1 is sponsored by Become clothing. Themes: Midlife, menopause, second acts, emotions, courage Summary: The very first guest of the very episode of Season 1 of the Hotflash Inc podcast is Stacy London, “your favourite CEO” of State of Menopause, a company that sells skin care and supplements, provides some really great content and has a really hopeful tone. Stacy is now becoming as well-known in the menopause space as she was for her work as a stylist, including the TLC show she co-hosted with the equally delightful Clinton Kelly, What Not to Wear. We talked about: • navigating this challenging transition • pivoting in your career • how hard it is to do new things • hot flashes and other menopause symptoms • why second acts are important • losing agency and finding it again • teaching old dogs new tricks • why it's okay to cry every day • acknowledging there are no somedays anymore Links: Instagram @stateofmenopause Instagram @stacylondonreal Website: State of Menopause A big thank you to my sponsors: • Become | Visit become.com to receive 20% off all products with the code HOTFLASHINC • Ritual | Visit JointheRitual.co and use code HOTFLASH to get your first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc perimenoposse here: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: bcast See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

I'm Ann Marie McQueen, a Canadian-born, Middle East-residing, perimenopausing journalist. I'm also founder of Hotflash Inc, which is my one-woman platform to inform, entertain and encourage the global perimenoposse. And I'm here reminding you that while nothing about this peri/menopause transition is easy, it is going somewhere good. My aim is to give you the best information, in the most objective, balanced manner I can muster. I'll give you access to some remarkable people, cutting-edge information and research, new ideas, viewpoints you may not be used to hearing, a global view, some serious talk, and lots and lots of silliness. I'll always trust that you can use your own open, inquiring mind, unique experience, education, experience and perspective to decide what's right for you. Make sure to subscribe so you don't miss an episode, and if you like it, leave a review. A big thank you to our sponsors: • Become | Visit becomeclothing.com to receive 20% off all products with the code HOTFLASHINC • Ritual | Visit JointheRitual.co and use code HOTFLASH to get your first month free. Join the Hotflash Inc global perimenoposse here: Web: hotflashinc.com TikTok: @hotflashinc Instagram: @hotflashinc Twitter: @hotflashinc Episode website: https://podcasts.bcast.fm/trailer-welcome-to-the-hotflash-inc-podcast