Women's Health: menopause: unmuted

In this episode, Darlene and Ben share their unconventional love story, which was challenged and strengthened by Darlene’s menopause experience. Although Ben is 20 years younger than Darlene, he has proven to be an exemplary partner and source of support for Darlene as she struggled with menopause symptoms. In addition to the broader impact of menopause symptoms on her daily life, Darlene also shares how her symptoms affected her work and how she felt unsupported in her workplace. This experience eventually led her to take time off work, however, it also inspired her to become an advocate to help educate, bring awareness, and support others going through menopause in the workplace. Ben has extended his committed support for Darlene by joining her in these advocacy efforts. The couple also talks about their shared passion for fitness and powerlifting, which has brought joy and confidence to Darlene in her midlife years. 

Content warning: this episode mentions the topic of suicidal ideation.  

Useful Links: 

• If you are in need of immediate support, you can call, text, or chat the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 (available free of charge in the United States 24/7)
• Learn more about strength training and menopause in one of our previous episodes A Strong Menopause with Susan Niebergall.
• Are you interested in sharing your menopause story on the podcast? You can pass your contact details to the production team for further consideration by filling out this form. 

This episode shares the stories of Stephanie and Karen, two friends based in the north of England. In addition to both experiencing menopause, Stephanie and Karen both battled with breast cancer. The two have supported each other through “the really big stuff” and underscore the importance of strong friendships in midlife. This episode demonstrates that it is never too late to form deep friendships and how valuable it can be to connect with others who are going through similar experiences.

Useful Links: Listen to more episodes featuring the experience of fibroids (Kathie’s Story and Sateria’s Story), hysterectomy (Deborah’s Story), and cancer (Rebecca’s Story), during midlife.

Are you interested in sharing your menopause story on the podcast? You can pass your contact details to the production team for further consideration by filling out this form.

Disclaimer: menopause: unmuted is designed to raise awareness, encourage communication, and share information. It is not designed to provide medical advice or promote or recommend any treatment option.

This episode features sisters Suzanne and Becky, as they reflect on their menopause journeys. Although they have similar outlooks on this stage of life, Suzanne entered perimenopause after undergoing surgery to manage symptoms due to uterine fibroids. In the episode, Becky and Suzanne recount their mother’s avoidant approach to menopause and more broadly, on differing attitudes to menopause across generations. Both sisters shared experiences of challenge and change in their working lives through midlife, and how they persevered through these times of turbulence. Their stories give an optimistic and grounded perspective on the menopause experience, with both women expressing a newfound sense of freedom they have both discovered in this life stage. 

Useful Links: 

• You can hear more about the experience of uterine fibroids and menopause by listening to Sateria’s Story from last season.
• Learn more about strength training and menopause in one of our previous bonus episodes  A Strong Menopause with Susan Niebergall.
• Are you interested in sharing your menopause story on the podcast? You can pass your contact details to the production team for further consideration by filling out this form.

Disclaimer: menopause: unmuted is designed to raise awareness, encourage communication, and share information. It is not designed to provide medical advice or promote or recommend any treatment option.

The debut episode of this season features couple Karen and Mark, who got married in the midst of Karen’s menopause journey. Tender, uplifting, and honest: their story captures how good communication through the menopause experience can help strengthen a relationship. Karen has used her own experiences to help other women, and Mark adds an invaluable perspective, as the first male voice of the podcast. Their story is about getting second chances in midlife and exemplifies how important patience and good communication are for supporting a partner through menopause. 

Useful Links: 

• You can learn more about brain fog and how to help have a calm menopause in our previous bonus episode A Calm Menopause with Dr. Pauline Maki
• Are you interested in sharing your menopause story on the podcast? You can pass your contact details to the production team for further consideration by filling out this form.

Disclaimer: menopause: unmuted is designed to raise awareness, encourage communication, and share information. It is not designed to provide medical advice or promote or recommend any treatment option.

Do you have a menopause experience that you’d like to share? Go to https://bit.ly/menopauseunmuted to share your contact details with our production team, who may be in touch. 

Seeking guests for our next season of menopause: unmuted! And this season, we’re giving guests the opportunity to invite a loved one, to help share their menopause story. This could be a husband or partner, a friend, sister, mother or daughter – anyone in your life who played a key role in your menopause experience.

menopause: unmuted is designed to raise awareness, encourage communication, and share information. It is not designed to provide medical advice or promote or recommend any treatment option.

Dr. Kathryn Clancy—feminist scientist and author of Period, The Real Story of Menstruation—and Dr. Barbara Riegel—professor of nursing and co-director for the International Center for Self-Care Research—join host Dr. Charis Chambers to explore why women deprioritize their own health while being the primary caregivers for their families, and the importance of implementing health-focused self care into daily life.​

Tanika Gray Valburn, founder of the White Dress Project, and board-certified OB-GYN ​Dr. Veronica Gillespie-Bell join host Dr. Charis Chambers for a forthright and honest conversation about uterine fibroids in Black women and the disparities in medical care that they face.​

Social worker and endometriosis patient advocate Casey Berna joins host Dr. Charis Chambers to discuss how women with period health issues often cope with their symptoms rather than seeking help, and how you can break the coping cycle.​

Anita Diamant—journalist and author of 12 books including The Red Tent and Period. End Of Sentence—and Rebecca Dimyan—author of Chronic, a novel about her experience with endometriosis—join host Dr. Charis Chambers for a candid and emotional conversation about period stigma, its negative effects, and what you can do to challenge and/or overcome it.​

Tales from the Uterus is a podcast series exploring the stigma associated with women’s health issues. Forthright, emotional, and sometimes gritty, this series explores issues of stigmatized conversations, normalized pain and heavy bleeding, and the stories of women standing up and seeking help. This podcast is a must for all women, menstruators, and those who care for them. Moderated by leading women’s health expert Dr. Charis Chambers, this series provides real stories and offers a fresh perspective on the reasons we still can’t talk about uterine health openly. This podcast is not designed to provide medical advice or promote or recommend any treatment option.