Navigating Menopause: A Conversation with Nurse Practitioner Kristen Nawyn

Hormone Testing During Menopause: What Every Woman Should Know

Women often hear conflicting information online about estrogen, progesterone, and hormone testing. Jamie explains why hormone levels fluctuate dramatically during perimenopause, why a single blood test rarely tells the full story, and why symptoms often provide more useful information than lab values alone. This episode also covers stopping birth control pills in midlife, hormone testing after pregnancy, when hormone testing is appropriate, and why some women may still benefit from lab work in specific situations. If you've ever wondered whether hormone testing can confirm perimenopause or menopause, this episode will help you understand what hormone tests can, and can't, tell you. 00:00 – Welcome back to Perimenopause the Podcast 00:25 – Listener questions about hormone testing 00:55 – Should women routinely check hormone levels? 01:15 – Why hormone levels fluctuate so dramatically 01:40 – Understanding hormone changes during perimenopause 02:00 – Why symptoms matter more than a single lab test 02:15 – Stopping birth control in your 40s: what to expect 02:40 – How birth control affects hormone testing 02:55 – Could birth control be masking menopause? 03:10 – Hormone testing after pregnancy and childbirth 03:35 – When hormone testing may be appropriate 03:50 – Testosterone monitoring and hormone therapy 04:10 – New research on estrogen and bone health 04:35 – Why hormone testing is trending online 04:50 – The better question to ask about your symptoms 05:15 – Final thoughts and listener questions

Surgical Menopause: The Missing Piece Many Women Never Hear About

In this Ask Us Anything episode of Perimenopause the Podcast, Jamie Gallagher answers a heartfelt question from Tammy, a woman struggling to feel like herself after a total hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (removal of the ovaries and fallopian tubes). One and a half years after surgery, Tammy describes feeling like her hormones and body are "a wreck." Jamie explains the difference between natural menopause and surgical menopause, the health impacts of ovary removal, and why many women continue to struggle when the right hormone therapy has not been explored. This conversation covers estrogen therapy, long-term health risks, surgical menopause recovery, and practical ways women in rural communities can access menopause specialists through telehealth and professional networks. If you've experienced ovary removal, hysterectomy, surgical menopause, or persistent hormone symptoms, this episode offers education, validation, and hope. 00:00 – Welcome to Ask Us Anything 00:30 – Tammy's question: "My hormones are a wreck" 01:15 – What is a bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy? 01:50 – Why the reason for ovary removal matters 02:30 – Understanding surgical menopause 03:00 – Long-term health effects of ovary removal 03:45 – Heart health, bone health, brain health, and libido 04:15 – Why estrogen therapy matters 04:45 – The hormone Tammy didn't mention 05:00 – Why you don't have to accept feeling miserable 05:20 – Finding menopause specialists through telehealth 05:40 – How to use Menopause.org to find care 05:55 – Why it's not too late to feel better 06:15 – Final encouragement and closing thoughts

From Military to Menopause: A Partner's Perspective

In Part 2 of the Meet the Founder series on Peri & Pause, Jamie is joined by her husband and co-founder, Stu, to discuss his background in international business and a 26-year military career, his transition into civilian life, and how mission, purpose, and service shape his leadership. They explore what Stu saw in Peri & Pause early on, the parallels between military mission-focus and building a menopause care company, and the persistent midlife women’s health care gap he witnessed through his mother’s experience and Jamie’s own perimenopause. Stu describes how perimenopause can strain relationships when symptoms are misunderstood, emphasizes addressing root causes rather than just symptoms, and encourages partners to show patience, seek help, and support women through care that can improve families, work, and overall quality of life. 00:00 Meet Stu Intro 01:33 Military Roots 03:17 Leaving Service 04:47 Vision For Peri Pause 06:10 Mission Parallels 07:47 Care Gap Reality 09:32 Partner Perspective 13:40 Mom And Family Impact 17:39 Advice For Partners 18:31 Thick Skin and Support 18:55 Men Asking for Help 20:39 Building Together Talk 22:51 Napkin to Launch 23:58 Balancing Risk and Caution 26:17 Mission Bigger Than Us 28:06 Scaling the Impact 30:11 Gratitude and Outro ------ This podcast exists to normalize, explain, and elevate the midlife healthcare conversation—so women feel informed, believed, and empowered to demand better care for their bodies and lives. Visit https://periandpause.com for more info

Empowering Midlife Health: The Origin of Peri and Pause

Kristen wraps the nurse practitioner series and launches the founder series with Peri & Pause founder Jamie Gallagher, who shares what drew her into nursing, her critical care background, and why she became a nurse practitioner and later earned her DNP. Jamie explains how time limits, metrics, and fragmented, symptom-by-symptom care pushed her to rethink how midlife women are treated, especially after her own perimenopause experience revealed a major healthcare gap. She describes Peri & Pause’s model as relationship-driven, evidence-based whole-woman care through the perimenopause/menopause lens, including proactive prevention, collaboration with other clinicians, and referrals when needed. Jamie discusses misinformation and clinician shaming around hormones, the need for better clinician education, core values like integrity and humility, and her vision for continued growth to meet ongoing demand. 00:00 Podcast Welcome 01:09 Jamie Nursing Origins 02:47 Becoming Nurse Practitioner 04:46 Healthcare System Friction 08:27 Perimenopause Wake Up Call 11:13 Seeing the Bigger Pattern 13:11 Biggest Care Gap 14:20 Founding Peri and Pause 18:25 Building Patient First Practice 19:21 Whole Woman Care Approach 20:20 Coordinated Care Promise 20:46 Preventive Deep Dives 21:56 Proactive Treatment Mindset 22:19 Patient Wins That Matter 23:12 Word of Mouth Growth 24:12 Building a Mission Business 25:41 Imposter Syndrome and Connection 26:57 Misinformation and Clinician Shame 30:00 Why Education Still Lags 31:13 Values Purpose and The Future 36:45 Closing Thoughts and Wrap Up

Breaking the Silence: Women's Healthcare Insights with Jaime Davis

In this Meet the Nurse Practitioner episode of Per and Pause, nurse practitioner Jaime Davis shares how her background in primary care and labor and delivery shaped her patient-centered approach and her focus on midlife women’s care. She discusses how perimenopause is often missed because symptoms can look like stress or anxiety, and highlights early signs such as brain fog, insomnia, word-finding difficulty, and menstrual changes influenced by hormone fluctuations like declining progesterone. Jaime recounts her own experience of years of severe pain after a traumatic C-section that was initially dismissed, later diagnosed as subcutaneous endometriosis and resolved with a short surgery, underscoring the importance of trusting your body and finding providers who listen. She explains her commitment to connecting symptoms, tailoring plans to patient goals, and helping women feel heard, supported, and empowered. 00:00 Meet Jaime Davis 00:54 Labor and Delivery Lessons 02:24 Path to Midlife Care 03:50 Why Perimenopause Gets Missed 06:47 Dismissed Pain Story 11:08 Finding the Real Cause 13:29 What Listening Really Means 15:27 Beyond Rigid Guidelines 16:56 Early Perimenopause Clues 17:06 Brain Fog Sleep Anxiety 19:46 Symptoms Are Connected 21:29 Menopause Education Gaps 23:45 Care After Dismissal 25:10 The Peri Pause Experience 26:15 Closing Thanks Farewell ------ This podcast exists to normalize, explain, and elevate the midlife healthcare conversation—so women feel informed, believed, and empowered to demand better care for their bodies and lives. Visit https://periandpause.com for more info