by Dr. Dana Stallings
Menopause.
We all know it’s coming. But at age 39, I wasn’t quite prepared to hear it. My mom told me she went through early menopause, so I knew that – genetically – I had it coming. I assumed mid-40s. But maybe not.
Around age 37 or 38 (2021-2022), I started to lose my hair. I had thick hair, and it started coming out in my hands. I blamed it on stress. I had so little energy, that my previous life as a triathlete and marathon runner was shot. I blamed it on stress. I began to battle my weight, especially in my midsection. As an athlete, this had never been a problem. I blamed it on stress. I was cold all day, then started having night sweats. I blamed it on the fact that I was always cold, and piled too many blankets on myself to sleep. Never mind the fact that I had never been cold before. Stress, right?
But the anxiety… good god, the anxiety. If you know me, you know that I’m a “force” (not my word, but it fits). I am confident, self-assured, do what I want, and care little what other people think. So when I started having anxiety – yep, I blamed it on stress. I was in a toxic work environment and thought this was the reason. I didn’t want to take medication, but felt so out-of-control that I let my then-provider prescribe venlafaxine (Effexor XR). Game changer.
Let me pause here to say that I fought medication. I struggled with my symptoms because I didn’t want to take mental health medications. I didn’t want to be labeled. That is such a bullshit idea now. The medication didn’t change me. It let ME be ME again. It didn’t change my personality. Instead, I was back in control of ME – not the other way around. Don’t wait. Don’t be stubborn. Don’t worry about a pill. Check out Mental Health at SSD for more information and help.
In October 2022, I was diagnosed with Lyme Disease. I thought this was my answer. The was the explanation for all my problems! Except that I completed the treatment and felt better, but I was not back to my old self. By now I had started seeing a new primary care nurse practitioner (who found the Lyme), so I told her the initial improvements I felt had waned. My hair was falling out again, I had insomnia so bad that I sometimes found myself unable to function during the day, and I couldn’t remember anything. I pride myself in articulation, so this was most frustrating. And the mood shifts. Oh, the mood shifts.
Then, I received a gift: the Marine Corps Marathon. I was registered to run in October 2020 when the race was cancelled by COVID-19. I deferred entry in 2021 and again in 2022. Deferment ended in 2023: run or lose your entry. So I returned to Run to the Finish, joined the Virtual Run Club, and started the Half Marathon Training Plans and Tips: For All Types of Runners (runtothefinish.com). This plan would rebuild my baseline fitness, then I could transition to the Marathon 2 training plan, and end at the Marine Corps Marathon in October 2023.
When I rejoined RTTF, I was reintroduced to the Maffetone Method – Dr. Phil Maffetone training plan by Dr. Stacey Sims and RTTF. I started listening to the audiobook on the way to and from work. When she hit Chapter 3 about Menopause, it SCREAMED at me. Plus, I was watching Virtual Run Club videos about perimenopause, and that SCREAMED to me. I told my NP about my suspicions, and she ordered a barrage of lab tests that confirmed it. At age 39, I was in perimenopause, and had been for over a year.
I wasn’t disenchanted. I felt empowered. This. This. Explained my symptoms. Lyme Disease was an unrelated issue with bad timing. I was in friggin perimenopause. Time to change trajectory. I stayed on all my Thorne supplements and added Biotin to help my hair regrow and Rhodiola for stress to control the amount of cortisol my body produces.
I don’t have time for extra shit. I have a practice to run and people who depend on me. I fully support a natural and wholistic approach to hormone management, but I can’t plan every single meal and I am not a candidate for hormone replacement therapy. My have an extensive history of osteopenia and heart disease on both sides of my family, and hormone replacement therapy would only increase these risks for me. I needed a more natural way to deal with this crap.
I am transitioning to a plant-based diet per the perimenopausal protocol Menopause 2.0 (drstacysims.com). This does NOT mean I will not eat meat. My last meal is Ree Drummond’s Lighter Fried Pork Chop Recipe | Ree Drummond | Food Network, without the flour. I’m not sure about a world without chicken, I love shrimp (even though they hate me #allergies), and I LOVE seafood. That’s the beauty of plant-based – these things aren’t off limits. I feel confident that I can manage this without hormone replacement therapy.
I will update the blog as I go along. Don’t suffer. Ask questions. Be your own advocate.