Today on the podcast, we have one of our most loved returning guests; naturopathic doctor and best-selling author Lara Briden. If you have had the pleasure of listening to Lara on one of our previous podcasts, you know she is an absolute wealth of knowledge for all things women's reproductive, menstrual, and hormonal health. As a woman, listening to her illustrate the inextricable relationship between female reproductive health, mental health, and hormone systems, there is a sense of belonging and reclamation for the natural cycles that have been medically interrupted.   Over the years, we've had Lara on the podcast talking about period repair, PCOS, Hypothalamic Amenorrhea, and all they encompass; Today, Lara is joining us to talk about the transitions into perimenopause and menopause. Lara's enlightened wisdom reminds us that menopause is not something to dread or treat as a medical 'condition' to be corrected; but rather a gateway and rite of passage to be honoured and exalted.    In this beautiful conversation with Tahnee, Lara dispels menopausal fallacies replacing them with profound knowledge and biological facts about what this sacred transition within the female body/psyche represents. Lara reframes the metabolic/hormonal shifts between the reproductive years and perimenopause,  details the best diet/herbal medicines for menopause, and offers a beautiful evolutionary perspective of menopause across time and cultures. "How the perimenopause transition is going for a woman depends on a lot of factors. Your stress, your adrenal system, your stress support system, how stable it is, how strong your circadian rhythm is, how well-nourished you are, how your immune system is. All of those things, including, unfortunately, how many environmental toxins you have been exposed to. Any of those negative things can increase the symptoms of the perimenopause transition".    - Lara Briden    Tahnee and Lara discuss: -Menopause. -Perimenopause. -Contraceptive drugs -The reproductive years. -Pill bleeds are not periods. -The phases of perimenopause. -The transition into menopause. -Herbal medicine for menopause. -Hormone therapy for menopause. -Why alcohol and menopause don't mix. -The difference between progesterone and progestin. -Bone density loss with perimenopause/menopause. -The hormonal shifts during perimenopause/menopause. -At what age do women start getting symptoms of menopause?   Who Lara Briden? Lara Briden is a naturopathic doctor and author of the bestselling books Period Repair Manual andHormone Repair Manual. With a strong science background, Lara sits on several advisory boards and is the lead author of a 2020 paper published in a peer-reviewed medical journal. She has 25 years’ experience in women’s health and currently has consulting rooms in Christchurch, New Zealand, where she treats women with PCOS, PMS, endometriosis, perimenopause, and many other hormone- and period-related health problems.   If you're wanting to enrich your knowledge and dive deeper into Lara's work, make sure you check out the resources below linking to Lara's websites, books and previous podcasts.      Resources: Dr. Lara's website Dr. Lara's Instagram Dr. Lara's Facebook Lara Briden Forum The Period Repair Manual-Lara Briden Period Repair with Lara Briden (EP#21) The Power of Menopause with Jane Hardwick Collings (EP#77) Is It PCOS or Hypothalamic Amenorrhea with Lara Briden (EP#99)   Resources Mentioned In The Podcast:   The Power of Eating Enough - Lara Briden Blog Post The Difference Between Progesterone and Progestin - Lara Briden Blog Post The Slow Moon Climbs - The Science, History, and Meaning of Menopause (book mentioned by Lara in podcast)   Check Out The Transcript Here: https://www.superfeast.com.au/blogs/articles/lara-briden-ep-154