There’s a narrative out there about menopause, one that’s often whispered in hushed tones or portrayed in media with a sigh and an eye-roll. It’s a story of decline, of loss, of a body suddenly becoming unruly and unpredictable. Hot flashes are the headline act, but the undercurrent often speaks of inevitable weight gain, mood swings that rival a tempest, and a general sense that the best years are now firmly in the rear view mirror. As a holistic doctor with many years supporting women through this profound transition, I’ve witnessed the unnecessary suffering that occurs when we accept limiting narratives about this natural life phase.
Myth #1: Menopause is Primarily a Hormone Deficiency Disease
Walk into most conventional medical offices with menopause-related concerns, and you’re likely to encounter a singular narrative: your ovaries are failing to produce sufficient hormones, creating a “deficiency state” that requires pharmaceutical correction.
This framing – menopause as essentially a disease of deficiency – has dominated Western medicine’s approach for decades. It reduces a complex, multidimensional life transition to a simple hormone production problem, with hormone replacement as the obvious solution.
Truth:
Menopause is not a disease – it’s a natural transition with an evolutionary purpose. The hormonal shifts of menopause aren’t a failure of your body but rather an intentional recalibration that serves important biological and energetic functions.
Research in evolutionary biology suggests that the postmenopausal phase of life likely evolved specifically to benefit both individual women and their communities. The “grandmother hypothesis” proposes that the wisdom, leadership, and support that postmenopausal women provide significantly enhance survival rates for their descendants.
From an energetic perspective, many wisdom traditions recognize menopause as a powerful shift in women’s creative energy – from the outward-focused energy of reproduction to the inward-focused energy of wisdom cultivation and community leadership.
This doesn’t mean the physical symptoms accompanying this transition aren’t real or significant. Hot flashes, sleep disruptions, mood changes – these experiences deserve genuine support. But framing them as mere symptoms of deficiency misses the deeper opportunity of menopause: the invitation to recalibrate your relationship with your body, your energy, and your purpose.
Practical Wisdom:
- Approach menopause as a transition rather than a disease state.
- Recognize that while hormone support may be helpful for some women, it’s not addressing a “deficiency” but rather supporting a natural shift.
- Explore practices that honour both the physical and energetic dimensions of this transition, such as specific breathing techniques for hot flashes that work with your changing energy rather than just suppressing symptoms.
- Consider how this transition might be inviting you into a new relationship with your body’s wisdom and your life’s purpose.
Myth #2: The Physical Changes of Menopause Are Inevitable and Irreversible
“This is just what happens at your age.”
How many women have heard some version of this dismissive statement when seeking support for menopause-related concerns? The prevailing narrative suggests that weight gain, fatigue, brain fog, joint pain, and other physical changes are simply inevitable aspects of female aging that must be endured.
Truth:
While hormonal shifts do create real physiological changes, how these manifest in your body is profoundly influenced by factors within your control. The latest research in epigenetics and psychoneuroimmunology reveals that lifestyle factors, stress management, nutritional status, and even thought patterns significantly impact how your body navigates the menopausal transition.
For instance, emerging research on mitochondrial function (the energy-producing structures in our cells) shows that many symptoms attributed to “just getting older” actually reflect mitochondrial stress that can be significantly improved through specific nutritional and lifestyle approaches.
Similarly, the brain fog many women experience isn’t simply “the new normal” but often reflects the brain’s adaptation to changing estrogen levels – a process that can be supported through targeted nutrition, movement practices, and cognitive approaches.
Most importantly, this transition offers a powerful opportunity to reclaim your relationship with your body’s innate intelligence. Many women I’ve worked with discover that menopause becomes the catalyst for finally prioritizing their wellbeing after decades of caring for others – and they emerge with greater vitality than they experienced in their younger years.
Practical Wisdom:
- Question any healthcare provider who dismisses your concerns as “normal aging” without offering meaningful support.
- Explore evidence-based approaches that support mitochondrial health, such as specific nutrients (CoQ10, magnesium, B vitamins), intermittent fasting adapted for women’s hormones, and strength training.
- Recognize that your body is not betraying you but adapting to new conditions, and provide it with the support it needs for optimal adaptation.
- Consider how indigenous and traditional cultures supported women through this transition long before pharmaceutical interventions existed.
Myth #3: The “Crone” Phase is About Decline and Irrelevance
Perhaps the most insidious myth about menopause is the cultural narrative that postmenopausal women are somehow “past their prime” – that this phase represents a decline in relevance, vitality, and purpose.
This narrative is reflected in everything from anti-aging marketing that preys on women’s fears to the subtle (and sometimes not-so-subtle) invisibility that many women report experiencing as they age.
Truth:
Across many traditional cultures, postmenopausal women were not marginalized but elevated – recognized as wisdom keepers, healers, and essential leaders. The “Crone” archetype, before it was diminished by societal reframing, represented not a withered, irrelevant woman but a powerful elder whose insight and perspective were vital to community wellbeing.
From both biological and energetic perspectives, this phase of life offers unique advantages. The hormonal shifts of menopause actually enhance certain cognitive functions, particularly those related to perspective-taking and pattern recognition – precisely the qualities needed for wisdom and leadership.
Energetically, many women report a profound clarity and sense of purpose emerging after menopause – as if the energy previously directed toward caring for others becomes available for creative expression, community leadership, and spiritual development.
Practical Wisdom:
- Consciously examine and release cultural narratives about aging that don’t serve your highest expression.
- Connect with traditions and communities that honour the wisdom of elder women.
- Explore practices that support the integration of life experience into wisdom, such as reflective writing, meditation, or wisdom circles with other women.
- Consider how your unique gifts and perspective might serve your community in ways that weren’t possible in earlier life phases.
- Recognize that your value has never been primarily in your reproductive capacity or physical appearance, but in your essential nature and contribution.
Embracing the Truth of Menopause
When we move beyond these limiting myths, menopause becomes not something to dread or merely endure, but a profound opportunity for recalibration and renewal. This doesn’t minimize the very real challenges that can accompany this transition – rather, it places them in a context that honours both your immediate experience and the larger significance of this life phase.
The women I’ve seen navigate menopause most gracefully aren’t those who experience no symptoms or who find the perfect hormone protocol (though appropriate medical support can be helpful ). They’re the women who approach this transition with curiosity rather than fear, gather both scientific information and traditional wisdom, listen deeply to their changing bodies, and recognize this phase as a doorway to their most authentic expression.
The Journey Forward: Embracing Your Queendom
If you’re navigating this transition and wondering what comes next – how to reconnect with your identity, passions, and purpose beyond caregiving – this reflection on the midlife homecoming may offer further inspiration. It’s not just about redefining midlife; it’s about reclaiming yourself.
The journey through menopause is ultimately a sacred initiation – one that women have navigated for millennia, often with profound wisdom that our modern culture has temporarily forgotten.
I’ve witnessed countless women emerge from this passage not diminished but expanded – more authentic, more powerful, and more aligned with their deepest purpose than ever before. They discover that the very symptoms once viewed as inconveniences were actually doorways to deeper self-knowledge and transformation.
This is your time to claim your Queendom – to gather the scattered pieces of yourself that may have been set aside during years of caring for others, integrate your hard-won wisdom, and step fully into your authentic power. The world desperately needs the unique medicine that only women in this life phase can offer: the courage to speak truth, the discernment to see beyond appearances, and the embodied wisdom that comes from living fully through life’s seasons.
Whatever stage of this journey you find yourself in today, know that you’re not alone. You stand in a lineage of powerful women who have crossed this threshold before you, alongside a growing community of women reclaiming the true meaning and potential of this profound life transition.
If you’re navigating the menopausal transition and seeking support that honours both the physical and energetic dimensions of this journey, my free Energy Elevation Blueprint offers practical approaches specifically designed for women at all stages of life.
