What if the reason so many women are told they're fine when they aren't is not an accident but a result of structure?

In this episode of the Wellness and Growth Journeys Podcast, host Mialisa Garnes sits down with Dr. Kemi Doll, MD, gynecologic oncologist and uterine cancer scientist, to name the architecture behind that dismissal and what practitioners in the perimenopause and menopause space need to understand about it.

Dr. Doll walks us through the history most clinicians were never taught, the difference between common and normal, why the uterus is not treated like a vital organ, and what a redirected "terrible strength" looks like when women stop accepting suffering as inheritance.

In this episode:

→ Why the book tour taught Kemi that this crisis was hiding in plain sight

→ The history of gynecology and why it still shapes care today

→ Fibroids, endometriosis, and why "common" is not the same as "normal"

→ The kidney metaphor: why we wait until things are severe in gynecology

→ The uterus is not treated like a vital organ, and what that costs

→ Superwoman as a burden, not a badge

→ The "inappropriate inheritance" and how to break the cycle

→ What Black women in perimenopause and menopause deserve to demand

Connect with Dr. Kemi Doll

Purchase link for A Terrible Strength: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/775526/a-terrible-strength-by-kemi-doll-md-mscr/

Website: www.kemidoll.com

Instagram: @kemidoll

TikTok: @drkemidoll

LinkedIn: @kemidoll

Facebook: @kemidollcoach

The GRACE Center: https://www.thedolllabgroup.com/

Work with Mia

Free Patient Experience Gap Report for clinic owners: https://wellnessgrowthagency.com/gap-report

Instagram: @Itsmialisa

Website: https://wellnessgrowthagency.com/

Most clinicians treat menopause like a clinical problem with a clinical solution. Hot flashes, prescription, see you in a year. Dr. Heather Bartos, the OB GYN Cosmopolitan once called a supremely badass gyno, is one of the women rewriting that script. She has spent the last four years stepping out of delivering babies, over five thousand of them, and into the work almost no one wanted to do, which is sitting in the actual story of women in midlife.

In this episode of the Wellness and Growth Journeys podcast, Mialisa Garnes talks with Dr. Bartos about why menopause is the disruption Gen X was raised for, the sixty-year-old patient who walked out of an annual exam having never known what an orgasm was, why hormones are not the cure-all social media promises, and the one point eight billion dollar problem of midlife women quietly leaving the workforce because nobody told them how to handle a hot flash in a board meeting.

About Dr. Heather Bartos

Acclaimed author, OB GYN, and nationally recognized menopause specialist named by Oprah and Maria Shriver as a top five expert in midlife care. Her latest book is Quickies: One Hundred Little Lessons for Living Sexily Ever After in Midlife. Her debut novel, Are You There God? It's Me, Menopause, comes out September 2026 under her maiden name, Heather Robertson. She is also the founder of Empress Editions, a publishing imprint for midlife women's fiction.

Connect with Dr. Heather Bartos

Website: DrHeatherBartos.com

LinkedIn: Dr. Heather Bartos

Connect with Mialisa

Wellness Growth Agency: wellnessgrowthagency.com

#Menopause #Perimenopause #HormoneReplacementTherapy #WomensHealth #MidlifeWomen #MenopauseSupport #HRT #SexilyEverAfter #ReversePuberty #SupremelyBadassGyno

Have you ever looked at your life and wondered, "Who am I beyond my job, my family, or my responsibilities?"

In this inspiring episode of Wellness & Growth Journeys, I sit down with speaker, coach, and author Jill White to explore what it really means to reinvent yourself after 40.

After decades in education leadership, Jill discovered that her true calling wasn't managing schools; it was helping women navigate life's biggest transitions with clarity, confidence, and purpose.

About Jill White

Jill White is a speaker, coach, and author dedicated to helping women over 40 rediscover their purpose and embrace life's transitions with confidence and clarity. Drawing on decades of experience in education leadership, she empowers women to move beyond the roles they've held and reconnect with who they were created to be. Through her coaching and storytelling, Jill inspires women to see every new chapter as an opportunity for growth, purpose, and lasting fulfillment.

Together, we discuss:

✔️ Why so many women feel lost after 40

✔️ How to overcome the fear of starting over

✔️ The difference between living as a victim vs. a victor

✔️ Why your past experiences are preparing you for your next chapter

✔️ Practical ways to rediscover your purpose

✔️ The mindset shifts that make change possible

✔️ How gratitude and generosity create a life of overflow

Whether you're experiencing career changes, an empty nest, divorce, burnout, or simply asking yourself "What's next?", this conversation will remind you that your best chapter may still be ahead.

Connect with Jill White LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillwhitecoaching/

Connect with Wellness Growth Agency Website: https://wellnessgrowthagency.com

#WomenOver40 #PersonalGrowth #Purpose #StartingOverAfter40 #ReinventYourself #CareerChangeAfter40

What if the biggest problem with women's midlife healthcare isn't menopause itself, but the outdated information many women are still receiving?

In this episode of the Wellness Growth Journeys Podcast, host Mialisa Garnes sits down with Dana Culp, Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP), Nurse Practitioner, Certified Menopause Expert, and founder of Thrive Midlife Medicine, for an honest conversation about why so many women leave appointments feeling unheard.

Despite working in healthcare for more than 25 years, Dana found herself dismissed during her own perimenopause journey. That experience led her to build a practice centered on evidence-based, personalized care for women navigating midlife.

Together, they explore what has changed in menopause care, what outdated approaches still exist, and how women can advocate for the care they deserve.

✔ Why many women feel dismissed during perimenopause

✔ What's outdated about traditional midlife care

✔ Why treating symptoms one by one often misses the bigger picture

✔ Common misconceptions about hormone therapy

✔ How menopause care has evolved over the last 25 years

✔ Questions to ask when choosing a menopause provider

✔ Why individualized care matters

✔ The benefits of evidence-based telemedicine

✔ What thriving in midlife can actually look like

Whether you're beginning to notice changes in your body or want to better understand midlife health, this conversation offers practical guidance and reassurance that you don't have to navigate this stage alone.

Connect with Dana Culp

🌐 Thrive Midlife Medicine: https://www.thrivemidlifemed.com/

(Take Dana's Perimenopause Quiz through her website.)

What if the brain fog, forgetfulness, overwhelm, and loss of focus you've been experiencing in your 40s isn't "just stress" or burnout?

In this episode of the Wellness & Growth Journeys Podcast, Mialisa Garnes sits down with board-certified OB-GYN and Perimenopause Rebirth Coach, Dr. Agena Renee, to explore the surprising connection between perimenopause and ADHD in women.

Dr. Agena shares her own journey from academic medicine to receiving a late ADHD diagnosis during perimenopause, and explains why so many high-achieving women suddenly struggle with focus, memory, organization, and executive function during midlife.

In this conversation, you'll learn:

✔️ How declining estrogen affects dopamine and executive function ✔️ Why ADHD often goes undiagnosed in women for decades ✔️ The difference between brain fog and ADHD symptoms ✔️ Why Black women are diagnosed later, if at all ✔️ How perimenopause can "unmask" ADHD that was always there ✔️ Practical lifestyle strategies to improve focus and mental clarity ✔️ The role of self-compassion during hormonal transitions

If you've ever wondered why tasks feel harder, your memory feels different, or you're struggling to keep up in ways you never did before, this episode may provide the answers you've been looking for.

Dr. Agena Renee is a board-certified OB-GYN, certified life coach, and Perimenopause Rebirth Coach who helps high-achieving women navigate perimenopause, ADHD, and midlife transitions with greater clarity and confidence. Drawing from both her medical expertise and personal experience with a late ADHD diagnosis, she empowers women to understand their symptoms, embrace their strengths, and thrive in their next chapter.

What happens when a doctor goes through menopause and doesn't recognise her own symptoms? That's exactly where today's conversation begins.

Dr. Angela Sharma is a GP with 22 years of experience, a BMS Accredited Advanced Menopause Specialist, a Clinical Sexologist, and a Fellow of the European Committee of Sexual Medicine. She's also the co-founder of Spiced Pear Health. This private online clinic does something rare: it treats menopause and sexual health as one integrated conversation, not two separate appointments.

In this episode, we go deep on the part of menopause that almost nobody talks about – sex, desire, intimacy, and what actually happens to women's bodies and relationships during perimenopause and menopause.

We cover:

✅ How Dr. Sharma went through menopause at 47 and didn't recognise her own symptoms – until her husband did

✅ Why sexual health is rarely properly addressed in menopause consultations, and what should be asked

✅ The hormonal, psychological, and relational causes of sexual changes in midlife, and why treating just one misses the full picture

✅ Why "your testosterone isn't working" might not be about testosterone at all

✅ What women over 65 who are thriving have in common and what that means for the decisions you make NOW

✅ Why perimenopause is your "pit stop" for self-care and the four types of movement every woman needs

✅ What wraparound care really looks like when a clinic actually supports women between appointments

✅ Why your tolerance to nonsense going out the window might be the best thing about menopause 😄

Dr. Sharma also shares what she wishes every woman who has quietly stopped feeling like herself – sexually, hormonally, emotionally – would hear today.

This one is honest, warm, clinical, and a little bit funny. Share it with someone who needs it.

🎙️ ABOUT DR. ANGELA SHARMA Dr. Angela Sharma is a GP Partner, BMS Accredited Advanced Menopause Specialist and Clinical Sexologist based in London, UK. She is the co-founder and director of Spiced Pear Health, a private online menopause and sexology clinic offering bespoke, patient-led care that goes beyond just HRT.

🔗 Find Dr. Angela Sharma & Spiced Pear Health: 🌐 Website: www.spicedpearhealth.co.uk 📸 Instagram: @spicedpearhealth 👥 Facebook: Spiced Pear Health

Most clinicians were trained in the years after the 2002 WHI study and were taught that hormone therapy was dangerous, so they stopped offering it. Generations of women have paid the price. Dr. Deepti Gandhi is one of the physicians who refused to leave her patients without answers. She trained herself, got the certification, and became the specialist she could not find for the women she was treating.

In this episode of the Wellness and Growth Journeys podcast, Mialisa Garnes talks with Dr. Gandhi about why a generation of doctors lost menopause knowledge, the silent risks hidden behind hot flashes, the blueprint of acceptance, non-resistance, and problem-solving she teaches her patients, why no one is coming to give us medals for suffering through it, and how to redesign the second half of your life on your own terms.

About Dr. Deepti Gandhi

Board-certified family medicine physician with over 22 years of experience, Menopause Society Certified Practitioner (MSCP), and personal development coach. She blends holistic care with evidence-based medicine, coaches fellow physicians on preventing burnout, and teaches future doctors how to build joyful careers.

The biggest health risk facing women in midlife isn't breast cancer but cardiovascular disease.

In this eye-opening conversation, menopause specialist Dr. Carys Sonnenberg joins me to discuss why menopause should be viewed not only as a hormonal transition but also as a major cardiovascular event. Together, we explore the surprising statistics linking menopause, heart disease, stroke risk, cholesterol changes, blood pressure, metabolic syndrome, early menopause, and hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

Dr. Sonnenberg explains how declining estrogen affects the heart and blood vessels, why women in perimenopause and menopause may experience symptoms like heart palpitations, and what every woman should know about protecting her long-term health. The discussion also tackles common misconceptions about HRT, cardiovascular risk, and why women under 40 experiencing menopause symptoms are often overlooked.

Dr. Carys Sonnenberg is an NHS General Practitioner, British Menopause Society Registered Menopause Specialist, co-author of Women's Health Made Easy, and Founder of Rowena Health, an online menopause clinic supporting women across the UK.

If you're in your late 30s, 40s, 50s, or beyond, this conversation could change how you think about menopause and healthy aging.

✔ Why cardiovascular disease is the leading health threat for many women in midlife ✔ The connection between menopause, cholesterol, blood pressure, and diabetes ✔ Early menopause and cardiovascular risk ✔ Heart palpitations during perimenopause ✔ What the evidence says about HRT and heart health ✔ Why sleep matters for cardiovascular protection ✔ Lifestyle changes that support long-term health ✔ Questions every woman should ask her doctor

For years, women struggling with menopause symptoms, low libido, brain fog, urinary issues, and hormonal changes were told there wasn't enough research, enough data, or enough solutions.

Dr. Somi Javaid refused to accept that answer.

In this episode of the Wellness & Growth Journeys Podcast, Dr. Somi shares how she left academic medicine, built HerMD from the ground up, collected the real-world data the industry said didn't exist, and created a healthcare model that attracted women from 35 states and 3 countries.

Dr. Somi is a board-certified OB-GYN with nearly 20 years of clinical experience. She's also the founder of HerMD, the host of the Webby-winning Disrupt Her podcast, and one of the most respected voices in sexual health care.

We discuss the menopause care gap, sexual health stigma, women's health research, medical education, patient experience, entrepreneurship, and what it really takes to build a healthcare practice that changes lives.

Whether you're navigating perimenopause, menopause, running a women's health practice, or advocating for better healthcare, this conversation is packed with insights.

✔ Why Dr. Somi left academic medicine ✔ The shocking gaps in menopause and sexual health care ✔ Why women are still being underserved by healthcare systems ✔ The real reason women's health data is lacking ✔ How HerMD grew into a nationally recognized women's health company ✔ What clinic owners can learn about patient experience and retention ✔ The future of menopause care and FemTech ✔ Why women need to stop suffering in silence

Instagram: @drsomijavaid

If you're a women's health practitioner or clinic owner wondering where patients may be slipping through the cracks in your practice, download the free Patient Experience Gap Report:

WellnessGrowthAgency.com/gap-report

Your hair is thinning, your part is widening, and your hairdresser keeps telling you it's "just stress" — but something feels off. This conversation is for every woman in perimenopause and menopause who's been quietly losing her hair and not knowing where to turn.

In this episode of the Wellness & Growth Journeys Podcast, host Mialisa Garnes sits down with Dr. Rachael Causon, UK-based GP, hair restoration surgeon, and founder of The Hair Restoration Doctor, to unpack what's actually happening to women's hair in midlife and what to do about it.

Hair loss in perimenopause and menopause is one of the most common, most distressing, and most dismissed symptoms women experience. Dr. Causon brings clinical precision and a deeply human approach to a topic that's usually buried under product ads and Facebook group guesses.