I've been thinking about the gifts of menopause...

And I want you to know they are real.

Google the word menopause and you’ll get an avalanche words: hot flashes, mood swings, night sweats, brain fog… the works.

Nowhere in that list does it say: power, clarity, confidence, or freedom.

And yet, that’s exactly what this chapter can bring.

Sure, I’ve had my moments. Crying over commercials. Forgetting simple words mid-sentence. (Yes, I blanked on the word subpoena on live TV.) But I’ve also discovered a version of myself I didn’t even know I was missing.

Let me be real with you, this stage of life isn’t just about what’s ending, it more about about what’s beginning.

Goodbye, Periods. Hello, Peace.

Let’s start with the obvious win: no. more. periods.

No more cramps. No more timing vacations around your cycle. No more “do I have a tampon in this bag?” moments. Whether they were heavy, irregular, or just inconvenient, your monthly visitor is gone for good. And that? That’s liberation.

And while we’re being honest…how about sex without the stress of pregnancy? That’s a different kind of liberation. P.S. if you’re still in perimenopause, stay cautious, your ovaries may still surprise you

Most people don’t talk about the calm after the storm. The hormonal turbulence of your 20s, 30s, and 40s starts to ease. You stop riding the emotional hormonal roller coaster. And once you get support for the physical symptoms, whether that’s through HRT, lifestyle changes, or other solutions, you get to reclaim your life in so many ways.

Oh yes, this is why I started my book, How To Menopause with this quote. Margaret Mead called it “post-menopausal zest.” And she wasn’t wrong. There is power, tangible, electric power, in reaching a phase where you stop living for everyone else and start living for you.

More than that? Neuroscience backs it up. Dr. Lisa Mosconi’s research shows that postmenopausal women are often happier, yes, happier, than they were before. Why? Because when you’re not consumed by physical symptoms or hormonal chaos, you can finally think clearly and live intentionally.

This chapter is a chance to rewrite the rules. Not society’s version of midlife. Yours. Ours.

This is where you get to step into your power, let go of the should’s, and ask: What do I want now? I mean, what do I REALLY want.

More women are starting businesses, ending toxic relationships, falling in love (sometimes again, sometimes for the first time), and discovering a sense of self that’s been buried under to-do lists and expectations for years.

Yes, there are symptoms. Yes, they can be hard. But no, you do not have to suffer through them in silence. You deserve support. You deserve answers. And you deserve to know that this is not the end of your story.

In fact, this could be the part where everything finally makes sense.

Let’s stop whispering about menopause like it’s something shameful. Let’s talk about it out loud, boldly, and truthfully.

Because when you own this chapter, you don’t just survive it. You rise. You thrive.

Here’s to the woman you’re becoming.

xo
Tamsen