Curt and Katie interview Dr. Sharon Malone, MD, author of Grown Woman Talk, about menopause and perimenopause. We explore the mental health impacts as well as the differential diagnosis when assessing a woman over 40 who might be experiencing this phase of life. We also talk about what good treatment can look like, including discussing the debate about hormone therapies.
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An Interview with Dr. Sharon Malone, author of Grown Woman Talk
Dr. Sharon Malone is a nationally known expert in women’s health and the author of Grown Woman Talk. She is the Chief Medical Advisor at Alloy Women’s Health, a telehealth company that focuses on women over 40. Before joining Alloy, Dr. Malone was a partner at one of the oldest and most successful OB/GYN medical practices in Washington, D.C. She is board-certified by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and certified by the North American Menopause Society as a Certified National Menopause Practitioner. Throughout her professional career, she has been active in advocating for reproductive rights, reducing teen pregnancy, and eliminating health care disparities.
Dr. Malone is the youngest of eight children. During World War II, her parents, both of whom were raised in the rural south, moved to Mobile, Alabama, during the migration from farms to cities. She has seen health care from both sides- as a physician and a child of parents who negotiated health care for themselves and their families in the Jim Crow South. Despite living next door to two hospitals, preventative health care was never a part of her family’s life. As a result, Dr. Malone’s mother would lose her life to colon cancer, diagnosed too late for treatment. This searing life experience has informed how Dr. Malone has chosen to practice medicine and brought focus to the healthcare issues she has chosen to pursue.
In addition to her interest in women’s health, Dr. Malone is an avid reader, an amateur genealogist, and a lover of music. She is married to former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. and lives in Washington, D.C. They are the parents of Maya, Brooke, and Eric III.
In this podcast episode, we talk about mental health impacts of (peri)menopause
After Katie was diagnosed with perimenopause, she began looking for sources of information on this seldom-talked-about phase of women’s lives. She found Dr. Sharon Malone’s work and was so excited that she agreed to come on to talk about menopause and perimenopause as well as her new book, Grown Woman Talk!
What is perimenopause and menopause?
Life stages for women in midlife and beyond
Hormonal shifts (not just dropping, but inconsistent through
Remodeling of the brain
Perimenopause is not short, it can be up to a decade
Too often women think they can power through, but it can and should be treated
What are the psychological impacts of perimenopause and menopause?
Feeling different or more emotional due to hormonal shifts during up to a decade prior to menopause (when hormones drop)
During perimenopause there is an uptick in depression, anxiety, sleeplessness, late onset ADHD, rage, brain fog
Perimenopausal mood and psychological changes may be better treated by hormones than by typical psychotropics
The differential diagnosis should start with ruling out perimenopause for any woman 40+
What does good perimenopause treatment look like?
The most effective treatment of perimenopausal symptoms is estrogen or menopause hormone treatment
Too often, women get individual symptoms treated by individual specialists rather than a more global impact of hormone imbalances
Hormone treatments can potentiate antidepressant (synergistic effect) for mood concerns
We also address the concerns related to hormone treatment (the study was misrepresented)
Women should be armed with the questions to ask and collaborate and agree on treatment with their doctors
Who we are:
Curt Widhalm, LMFT
www.curtwidhalm.com
Katie Vernoy, LMFT
www.katievernoy.com
A Quick Note:
Our opinions are our own. We are only speaking for ourselves - except when we speak for each other, or over each other. We’re working on it.
Our guests are also only speaking for themselves and have their own opinions. We aren’t trying to take their voice, and no one speaks for us either. Mostly because they don’t want to, but hey.