Do you know the 5 stages of grief? Chances are that if you are going through menopause you are also experiencing the stages of grief; denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Calm down, not everyone feels grief but a lot of us do. Just like other transitions, rites of passage, they are best navigated with a guide, whether an Auntie, a community, or a doula.
Grace Veras Sealy is one of those guides. Grace is a Women's Holistic Health Coach (IIN), Perinatal Consultant, Doula, and Educator. She is a Menopause Health Guide at Elektra Health, a digital health company that provides evidence-based virtual care, education, and peer support for women navigating the 10-year menopause transition and beyond.
Grace helps people figure out how to take the pressure off in the best ways for you.
**Stigma Around Menopause:**
- Discussion about menopause in certain cultures, like the Dominican Republic, is taboo due to societal stigma around aging and women's health.
- Openly discussing menopause and age is considered uncommon and often met with surprise or discomfort.
**Misinformation and Varying Perceptions:**
- Within families, experiences with menopause differ; some members don't remember much about their menopausal phase, while others deny being in perimenopause despite experiencing classic symptoms.
- Limited reliance on hormone panels is noted, as they provide only a current hormonal snapshot and may not accurately reflect past or future menopausal changes.
**Debunking Misconceptions:**
- Grace aims to educate individuals that various symptoms experienced, like sleep disturbances, mood swings, weight changes, and hair loss, could be interconnected and indicative of menopause, regardless of age or current hormonal status.
- Encourages a shift in perception about menopause, advocating for open discussion and education to dispel misconceptions and promote better understanding.
- **Menopause Doula:** Grace highlights the role of a menopause doula, offering holistic, non-medical support through personalized guidance, supplement recommendations, lifestyle adjustments, and emotional support during the menopausal transition.
- **Electra Health Services:** Electra Health provides a membership-based platform offering learning modules, continuous information updates, community interaction, and guidance from menopause guides. The service includes consultations with clinicians (currently out-of-pocket cost, aiming for insurance coverage in the future).
**Cultural Stigma and Menopause:**
- **Dominican Perspective:** Grace, being Dominican, acknowledges the cultural stigma surrounding menopause specifically in DR. She emphasizes the importance of addressing this stigma within Latin American and Spanish-speaking cultures.
Have an experience with a menopause doula, or online menopause platform share it with me via my DMs or email at [email protected].
Check out Elektra Health’s- Guide to Menopause gives you the low down on everything from stages of menopause to symptoms and what you can do about them.
For a copy of Grace’s guide, you can contact her at [email protected], join
Elektra Health or send me a DM @agelust.co on IG.
