Hi Holly! I’d like to know if perimenopause truly reveals previously masked ADHD in women or if perimenopause symptoms are just very similar to ADHD symptoms? Thank you for your work
First of all, the idea that HRT is out of alignment with sobriety is very strange to me. Although I am no stranger to purity culture and the deeply oppressive experience I have about it. It’s been part of my journey around sobriety to face my ego and self righteous ideas of being able to do anything without help. Ugh. I’m curious about the ways estrogen supports a more balanced approach to (anything) but particularly to habits/goals/intentions. I tend to fall into the impulsive camp of folks who feel very determined and focused for a time and then collapse off a cliff. This has been such a familiar pattern I have just assumed it’s “just me” but am now wondering if it has to do with hormone spikes and drops over the past decade-ish.
This is a sideways question: Has Dr. Schmidt struggled with addiction as part of her life experience? I'm asking because I've realized, through therapy with various professionals, that someone who truly grasps the dynamics of addiction can only be someone who has been there and back. Not that professionals can't offer valued advice and wisdom, based on clinical trials, anecdotal evidence and a wide raft of reference materials -- either way, I welcome her input. As a medical researcher, I did look into HRT and decided against it, so I am curious to hear what other options there are for general problems like hot flashes and sleeplessness. Thanks for asking for input from the community, that's brilliantly collaborative.
Hi Holly, thanks for requesting questions. I am well into perimenopause but my symptoms have been manageable and I don't take HRT. Will this be detrimental to my future health? Should I be taking it like an insurance policy to protect my heart, brain etc. in later life? Thanks Holly, I'll look forward to the episode :)
I recently started HRT and felt happy with my choice but then I went to a women’s health talk and the nurse practitioner said women who are still having monthly periods should not be on HRT yet. I feel like I got very conflicting views and now I’m
Who in the actual F**K would assert that HRT is in conflict with "real" sobriety?!?!?!?! Probably the same people that say antidepressants are in conflict with sobriety?? Oh man, I am offended by that idea.
Anyway, my only questions around menopause that would really help me, is how being PAST menopause might impact sobriety. I had a surgical menopause years ago, no HRT, and am now past the age anyway where I would be going through it, but I just wonder if there is any helpful info on that stage of things as it relates to sobriety.
Thank you for all the research and distilling you do, that benefits so so so many other people. You are a gift to the world.
I’m well past perimenopause and I’ve never used HRT because I used to smoke. I know they’ve removed the black box warning but even so I don’t want it. Does everyone really need HRT. I’m 64
Hormone therapy... what is her take on is effectiveness in terms of taming the inevitable beast? My hair's falling out, my middle is expanding, my periods are more painful, my mood is declining -- and I was told by my GYN that until I was experiencing 'real' symptoms--like an irregular cycle and hot flashes--hormone therapy wouldn't really do anything.
Thank you so much for this thread! I discovered I had terrible PMDD when I quit drinking at 35yo my doctor put me on SSRIs but it barely helped. She then thought about Ritalin due to my absolute lack of motivation during my luteal phases, which was debilitating to the point I could barely motivate myself to get up and go to the toilets. Ritalin helped immediately and I then started to realize that Ive had ADHD all my life but never noticed before. I read that approx. 60% of menstruating people with adhd have pmdd. I would like to know more about that. What are the correlations between adhd, hormones, mental health and substance abuse ?
I’m currently in the throes of perimenopause and I’m doing HRT. Before it, I was a hot mess; I was depressed, lethargic and foggy. Now, I feel a bit more like myself… I can see the link between depression and addiction, as well as anxiety and addiction. My anxiety has fluctuated with my hormones and I am curious as to how others have managed their emotional and physical health while also managing their addictions.
I am 5 years into menopause (I’m 55 years old) and have been alcohol-free for 5 years. I was a smoker (20-year pack history) so the risks outweighed the benefits in my personal calculations and I’ve avoided oral birth control and HRT. Alcohol was my coping mechanism for decades - I started self-medicating as a teen - so the emotional transition into menopause and sobriety was dicey on a good day and full of suffering otherwise. I am not an angry person and the rage I felt at times scared the *#!? out of me! Several times I legit thought I was losing my mind. I was stuck in an existential crisis for a solid 4 years. My question is - would being on HRT have lessoned my emotional suffering from the double whammy of transitioning into meno and getting sober simultaneously in a meaningful way?
fantastic to see this and I'd love to add to your great footnote: for some women, HRT is literally life-saving. I wondered if you will be speaking about early menopause and premature ovarian insufficiency/failure (POI/POF)? These are conditions with similar symptoms to perimenopause and menopause but happen to women before the age of 40-45 (I'm one of them, I was diagnosed with POI leading to an early menopause when I was 37 but had symptoms that went undiagnosed for years, its a rare condition and affects about 1 in 100 women). Without HRT, studies show that women with POI/early menopause can be at a higher risk for cognitive decline, heart issues, bone loss, and increased morbidity overall. HRT is akin to a vitamin supplementation for women with POI, replacing the massively imbalanced and declining estrogen and progesterone levels that are not being produced at normal levels for their age (which tends to make the perimenopausal and menopause symptoms much more severe when they occur earlier in POI rather than later/more normal age range - in short, our hormones are responsible for so many of our body systems to function in a basic homeostasis). Of course, everyones choice for HRT is different; it took me years to consider starting HRT while I came out of my denial about my diagnosis (in part confusion caused by medical doctors who 'didnt know what to do with me' and referred me to a specialist who properly diagnosed me). Now looking back, I was wish I had started HRT supplementation way sooner. I wouldn't be able to function without it. From my experience, I am baffled why some people would think HRT is in conflict with sobriety and hope my post conveys this compassionately from a biological perspective. Love the comments here and Julianna's - I can see how I've shifted myself from a 'purity' mindset from this experience too, realizing I couldn't 'fix' or 'fight' POI on my own without actual help and medical support and listening to what the doctors were eventually telling me to do re: HRT. Anyhow, sorry for the rant, its become a bit of a passion of mine to bring POI to the peri/meno/HRT conversation (I work with this as a massage therapist and yoga teacher too). This post popped up on my Substack and I was so happy to see this conversation was happening! Thank you x
62 yrs old and 3 months sober. I used to rely on cannibas for a good night's sleep, but now I'm taking magnesium and all the things and have yet had a restful night's sleep.
Hi Anne, I’ve been using cannabis as well until I started tracking my sleep. On it I wake up 10 times a night, without it just 2 or 3! I was so surprised!
What do you do about the issues of perimenopause/menopause if HRT is contraindicated? I had hormone sensitive breast cancer in my 20s so will never be able to take hormone replacement and have in fact been in chemical induced menopause for most of the last decade.
Hi Holly! I’d like to know if perimenopause truly reveals previously masked ADHD in women or if perimenopause symptoms are just very similar to ADHD symptoms? Thank you for your work
First of all, the idea that HRT is out of alignment with sobriety is very strange to me. Although I am no stranger to purity culture and the deeply oppressive experience I have about it. It’s been part of my journey around sobriety to face my ego and self righteous ideas of being able to do anything without help. Ugh. I’m curious about the ways estrogen supports a more balanced approach to (anything) but particularly to habits/goals/intentions. I tend to fall into the impulsive camp of folks who feel very determined and focused for a time and then collapse off a cliff. This has been such a familiar pattern I have just assumed it’s “just me” but am now wondering if it has to do with hormone spikes and drops over the past decade-ish.
This is a sideways question: Has Dr. Schmidt struggled with addiction as part of her life experience? I'm asking because I've realized, through therapy with various professionals, that someone who truly grasps the dynamics of addiction can only be someone who has been there and back. Not that professionals can't offer valued advice and wisdom, based on clinical trials, anecdotal evidence and a wide raft of reference materials -- either way, I welcome her input. As a medical researcher, I did look into HRT and decided against it, so I am curious to hear what other options there are for general problems like hot flashes and sleeplessness. Thanks for asking for input from the community, that's brilliantly collaborative.
I’m curious about the links, if any, between and premature menopause (eg entering menopause before 40) and alcohol abuse.
I’m curious about premature menopause and links to trauma, egg freezing. Is premature menopause something that can be prevented?
Hi Holly, thanks for requesting questions. I am well into perimenopause but my symptoms have been manageable and I don't take HRT. Will this be detrimental to my future health? Should I be taking it like an insurance policy to protect my heart, brain etc. in later life? Thanks Holly, I'll look forward to the episode :)
I recently started HRT and felt happy with my choice but then I went to a women’s health talk and the nurse practitioner said women who are still having monthly periods should not be on HRT yet. I feel like I got very conflicting views and now I’m
More confused .
Who in the actual F**K would assert that HRT is in conflict with "real" sobriety?!?!?!?! Probably the same people that say antidepressants are in conflict with sobriety?? Oh man, I am offended by that idea.
Anyway, my only questions around menopause that would really help me, is how being PAST menopause might impact sobriety. I had a surgical menopause years ago, no HRT, and am now past the age anyway where I would be going through it, but I just wonder if there is any helpful info on that stage of things as it relates to sobriety.
Thank you for all the research and distilling you do, that benefits so so so many other people. You are a gift to the world.
I’m well past perimenopause and I’ve never used HRT because I used to smoke. I know they’ve removed the black box warning but even so I don’t want it. Does everyone really need HRT. I’m 64
I think it is only recommended during the 10 years since your last period. I know plenty of women who have not used it and are fine.
Hormone therapy... what is her take on is effectiveness in terms of taming the inevitable beast? My hair's falling out, my middle is expanding, my periods are more painful, my mood is declining -- and I was told by my GYN that until I was experiencing 'real' symptoms--like an irregular cycle and hot flashes--hormone therapy wouldn't really do anything.
-Sincerely, 41-Year-Old Frustrated
Thank you so much for this thread! I discovered I had terrible PMDD when I quit drinking at 35yo my doctor put me on SSRIs but it barely helped. She then thought about Ritalin due to my absolute lack of motivation during my luteal phases, which was debilitating to the point I could barely motivate myself to get up and go to the toilets. Ritalin helped immediately and I then started to realize that Ive had ADHD all my life but never noticed before. I read that approx. 60% of menstruating people with adhd have pmdd. I would like to know more about that. What are the correlations between adhd, hormones, mental health and substance abuse ?
Similar to some of the Qs above, how do we know when it’s the right time to go on HRT?
I’m currently in the throes of perimenopause and I’m doing HRT. Before it, I was a hot mess; I was depressed, lethargic and foggy. Now, I feel a bit more like myself… I can see the link between depression and addiction, as well as anxiety and addiction. My anxiety has fluctuated with my hormones and I am curious as to how others have managed their emotional and physical health while also managing their addictions.
I am 5 years into menopause (I’m 55 years old) and have been alcohol-free for 5 years. I was a smoker (20-year pack history) so the risks outweighed the benefits in my personal calculations and I’ve avoided oral birth control and HRT. Alcohol was my coping mechanism for decades - I started self-medicating as a teen - so the emotional transition into menopause and sobriety was dicey on a good day and full of suffering otherwise. I am not an angry person and the rage I felt at times scared the *#!? out of me! Several times I legit thought I was losing my mind. I was stuck in an existential crisis for a solid 4 years. My question is - would being on HRT have lessoned my emotional suffering from the double whammy of transitioning into meno and getting sober simultaneously in a meaningful way?
fantastic to see this and I'd love to add to your great footnote: for some women, HRT is literally life-saving. I wondered if you will be speaking about early menopause and premature ovarian insufficiency/failure (POI/POF)? These are conditions with similar symptoms to perimenopause and menopause but happen to women before the age of 40-45 (I'm one of them, I was diagnosed with POI leading to an early menopause when I was 37 but had symptoms that went undiagnosed for years, its a rare condition and affects about 1 in 100 women). Without HRT, studies show that women with POI/early menopause can be at a higher risk for cognitive decline, heart issues, bone loss, and increased morbidity overall. HRT is akin to a vitamin supplementation for women with POI, replacing the massively imbalanced and declining estrogen and progesterone levels that are not being produced at normal levels for their age (which tends to make the perimenopausal and menopause symptoms much more severe when they occur earlier in POI rather than later/more normal age range - in short, our hormones are responsible for so many of our body systems to function in a basic homeostasis). Of course, everyones choice for HRT is different; it took me years to consider starting HRT while I came out of my denial about my diagnosis (in part confusion caused by medical doctors who 'didnt know what to do with me' and referred me to a specialist who properly diagnosed me). Now looking back, I was wish I had started HRT supplementation way sooner. I wouldn't be able to function without it. From my experience, I am baffled why some people would think HRT is in conflict with sobriety and hope my post conveys this compassionately from a biological perspective. Love the comments here and Julianna's - I can see how I've shifted myself from a 'purity' mindset from this experience too, realizing I couldn't 'fix' or 'fight' POI on my own without actual help and medical support and listening to what the doctors were eventually telling me to do re: HRT. Anyhow, sorry for the rant, its become a bit of a passion of mine to bring POI to the peri/meno/HRT conversation (I work with this as a massage therapist and yoga teacher too). This post popped up on my Substack and I was so happy to see this conversation was happening! Thank you x
62 yrs old and 3 months sober. I used to rely on cannibas for a good night's sleep, but now I'm taking magnesium and all the things and have yet had a restful night's sleep.
Hi Anne, I’ve been using cannabis as well until I started tracking my sleep. On it I wake up 10 times a night, without it just 2 or 3! I was so surprised!
What do you do about the issues of perimenopause/menopause if HRT is contraindicated? I had hormone sensitive breast cancer in my 20s so will never be able to take hormone replacement and have in fact been in chemical induced menopause for most of the last decade.