Could Your Brain Fog, Sleeplessness, and Emotional Swings Be Perimenopause? A 20-Year Expert Answers.

She was mid-sentence in a business meeting when her brain froze. It kept happening. She stopped speaking in meetings. She couldn't sleep. She was convinced she had early dementia. A retired gynecologist at a dinner party changed everything: you're in perimenopause, Ellen. That moment became a 20-year mission.IN THIS EPISODE:The brain freeze, insomnia, and emotional chaos nobody warned Ellen about — and what was actually happeningThe three stages: perimenopause (6–10 years of symptoms), menopause (one single day), and post-menopauseThe 2002 WHI study that scared women off hormone therapy — and the 2024 study of 10 million Medicare women that reversed everythingWhy heart disease kills more women than cancer — and how estrogen therapy reduces that riskUTIs and vaginal health after 60: why this becomes a life-threatening issue and how to prevent itHow to find a certified menopause specialist at menopause.org — step by stepWhy only one-third of gynecologists have menopause trainingEllen's free symptom tracker, Menopause Mondays blog, and Fearless Vagina courseEPISODE SUMMARY:Ellen didn't plan this career. She hand-wrote a book on her living room floor, her son put it on a Word doc, menopause specialists vetted it, and a Disney ABC imprint bought it after Rachael Ray's producer found it first. Her Menopause Mondays blog has run every Monday for 20 years. Now her Fearless Vagina course delivers five 20-minute modules on everything women need to know — from perimenopause to post-menopause, hormones to heart health.The medical facts she shares are backed by two decades of interviewing the top scientists: the 2024 study of 10 million Medicare women proved that women who stayed on hormones had better outcomes in heart, bone, brain, and cancer protection. The conversation women deserved for decades is here. Ellen has been leading it the whole time.ABOUT ELLEN:Menopause advocate, bestselling author, and creator of Menopause Mondays and the Fearless Vagina course. Featured on CBS Sunday Morning, Today, Rachel Ray, NPR, and Oprah Radio.CONNECT: ellendolgen.com | menopause.org for a specialist near youCOMMUNITY: WeCanDoItWomen.comIf this episode gave you something you didn't know you needed, share it with every woman in your life. Then join us at WeCanDoItWomen.com. A 5-star Apple Podcasts review helps more women find this show.