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Are you one of those women who think menopause is ruining their lives? Most women think that way. You start to experience menopause weight gain, and your age starts to show physically. But menopause can be the second shot at life you never knew you needed if you approach it differently. In this episode, I am interviewed by Dr. Lourdes Viado about my work on menopause and weight gain. I outline ways to reframe menopause as a time of transformation instead of the grim milestone as many women see it. I stress the importance of self-compassion and maintaining a positive body image without relying on food as a coping mechanism. Lastly, I share tips on how women can tune in to the whispers of their bodies and age more gracefully. Listen to the full episode to learn how you can reclaim your health during menopause by rewiring your thoughts and practicing self-compassionate habits. Here are three reasons why you should listen to the full episode: Discover how to embrace your menopause as a second chance at life. Unlearn self-sabotaging thoughts and behaviors that keep you from becoming your best self. Learn how to listen closely to your body’s inner rhythms or whispers. Links Mentioned in the Episode Dr. Lourdes Viado’s website Dr. Lourdes Viado on Facebook and Twitter Women In-Depth Ep. 93: Menopause: Catalyst for a Healthier Lifestyle Women In-Depth on Facebook and YouTube Free Resources to Download to Learn More Apply the lessons you learn from this episode as you listen! Enter your email below and I’ll send the dedicated workbook right away! Episode Highlights How I Began Working on Menopause I struggled with weight problems my whole life. Menopause weight gain made the problems worse. Even though I was a nutrition expert, I could not control myself around food. Pre-menopause, I would go to Weight Watchers to lose the extra weight before gaining it again, but this hack didn’t work when I hit menopause. I realized that weight loss had nothing to do with food but everything about how you felt and thought about yourself. You shouldn't use food to numb or congratulate yourself. Menopause as a Catalyst The most basic connection that we have as human beings is our connection to our bodies, but we lose that connection at an early age. I didn't eat when I was hungry nor did I stopped eating when I was full because, like most women, I lost that connection. Why Are Women Disconnected from Their Bodies? As a chiropractor, I worked with clients who went to the hospital only when their bodies were at their breaking point and not when their symptoms were mild. Our bodies are begging for us to understand what it's trying to say, but we don’t listen. Women have always been taught to put others first. Women’s Self-Destructive Thoughts Women are mean to themselves, always hustling and striving for more. Many women only know how to be kind to others but don’t know how to be kind to themselves. Instead of applauding all that they have done so far, women repeatedly berate themselves for not doing more. We think that our feelings come from outside, but they originate from our minds. The biggest aha moment is to recognize that these destructive thoughts are thoughts that have solidified into our beliefs but are not necessarily true. Common Struggles of My Clients Most clients were coming to me with weight and menopause issues. Menopause does not make life more challenging but only reflects the damage women have self-inflicted by not listening to their bodies. Once you start tuning into your body's basic needs, which I call being a body whisperer, you can have a better menopause experience and a fuller life. Being a body whisperer means taking care of your body while the pain is at level three, instead of waiting for it to hit level ten. Aspire to be childlike in the sense that you attune to your body and listen to it without waiting for your body to scream for help. Debunking the “Dreaded Menopause†Myth You have a choice to keep going and refuse to listen to your body, which will only make you more miserable during your menopause. Your body won't do what you want if you continue unhealthy habits. Menopause is a beautiful window to transform and start listening to your body. The second half of my life is significantly better because I had the previous experience to guide myself through this journey. The Brain Science Behind Menopause & Diet The brain is wired by how we think. Women tend to cultivate unhealthy body patterns that are not in their best interest. Women should carve out new neural pathways by changing their thoughts, being kinder to themselves, and practicing self-compassion daily. Self-compassion should become a reflex. It’s an ongoing project for women to be aware, self-compassionate, and forgive themselves for their mistakes. The menopause weight gain and food habits are symptoms of a larger problem. 5 Powerful Quotes From This Episode “I think we know how to be compassionate towards other people but I don't think we know how to use compassion on ourselves, how to be kind to ourselves.†“It's not that menopause is making it harder. It's just letting them see that what they've been doing their whole life that really wasn't in their best interest.†“Our bodies were not meant to be screamers. They're whisperers.†“If we want to proactively age, we better take full responsibility for it now and the only way to do it is to listen to your body.†“...the best gift that you could ever give yourself for the rest of your life is that awareness of your own mind.†About Dr. Lourdes Dr. Lourdes Viado is a depth psychotherapist with over 15 years of experience helping patients live more meaningful and intentional lives. Her podcast, Women In-Depth, is dedicated to hosting conversations about the inner lives of women and the struggles, fears, hopes, and dreams that characterize their stories. To know more about her and her work, you may visit her website or listen to her podcast. You can reach her through email or connect with her on Facebook and Twitter. Enjoy the Podcast? If you do, then like and share this episode and subscribe to the podcast! Are you now excited to start your journey to thinner peace in menopause? If you are, we'd love it if you give us five stars and write a review! You can also provide suggestions on future topics you would like us to talk about on the podcast. Do you want to learn more about losing weight in menopause? Tune in for more episodes at The Thinner Peace in Menopause. You can also help others by sharing what you've learned from this episode on social media. Mini-sessions for you! If you want to find out if you'd be a good fit for my weight loss program, apply for a mini-session here. You can contact me through my email at drdeb@drdebbutler.com. Thanks for listening! To transforming your life for good, Dr. Deb Read the full transcript here! Dr. Deb Butler: Welcome to Thinner Peace in Menopause and Beyond. This is Dr. Deb Butler, master life and weight coach, and as always, your coach. Today is episode number 136. And I want to talk to you about the best thing that could ever happen to you. It’s probably happening to you, and it's called menopause. Stay tuned. Hello, all my dear friends, how are you today? It's still beautiful fall here in St. Louis, Missouri, and I just love looking at it. Today I've got something a little different to share with you. I was interviewed by Dr. Lourdes Viado, oh, maybe a couple months ago, and she has a podcast that's called Women In-Depth, and it's conversations about the inner lives of women. And guess who got to be on that show? It's yours truly, me. And I thought it was such a good interview because she asked some really tough questions and really made me go deep into my own experiences. And after I listened to it, I thought it could be really helpful for you too because Dr. Viado is very, very good at getting to the heart of things. She's a psychotherapist. So I thought it was really good, and between my blend of coaching and brain science and her approach, I think we really came up with a great interview. So for this episode, I'm going to stop in a few seconds and just let you listen to the interview. But before I get off, I do want to say one thing to all of you. Many, many of you are signing up for mini-sessions, and I think that is so fantastic and so brave, but here's something I want you to think about. Please do not wait to January 1st to decide now is the time to work. I guarantee you that the time to work is now during the holiday season, and I am not kidding you. If you want to get this work done fast, do it now. Don't wait. Don't wait till you put on more weight and feel worse about yourself. Start doing it while all the stuff comes up. And I'll tell you what will happen is you'll actually have a much more joyous holiday season where you feel like you're the one in control. And then come January 1st, hey, guess whatâ€"It's a piece of cake. Pardon the pun. So if you're thinking about doing a mini-session with me, do not do what one person just did, which gave me the idea. I just saw somebody rescheduled from November 29th to January 3rd, and I know what that means. So if any of you have ideas like that, don't do it. Don't listen to that crazy mind of yours. Start now. And I think this interview that I do with Dr. Viado is going to help you decide now is the timeâ€"now in terms of the time of year, and now in terms of where you're at in your own body cycle. Menopause is absolutelyâ€"if you don't think so after you hear this interviewâ€"it is really the best time to search within yourself. Your body is talking to you. It is the best time to get to know yourself. In reality, you really do already know yourself, and you already have the wisdom to know what works for you and what doesn't work for you. But this, when you listen to this interview, I think it's going to help you decide what you want to do with the next half of your life and use it for all of the things that you've dreamed about, be it the kind of body you want, the kind of life you want, the kind of work you want, whatever it is that you want. Use this time to get it. So, without further ado, enjoy the interview. The information found in this podcast is not a substitute for help from a licensed mental health professional. Dr. Lourdes Viado: Hi, and welcome to the Women In-Depth Podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Lourdes Viado. Join me as we explore the inner lives of women, their struggles, fears, hopes, and dreams. We'll go beneath the surface and take a deeper look at what is hidden, unknown, uncertain, and uncomfortable. Hi, and welcome back to the podcast. Today, I am really excited about the topic that we're going to be exploring, and it has to do with an experience that we women struggle with, and I think we also tend to view with dread, and that is the experience of menopause. So today, my guest is Dr. Deb Butler, who is a board-certified chiropractor and acupuncturist as well as a certified nutritionist and master weight loss and life coach. She helps women who are going through menopauseâ€"but not just menopauseâ€"in general, struggling with and perhaps having difficulty embracing various life experiences. And these are women who come from all walks of life, from overstressed executives to stay at home moms, to those experiencing menopause and a lot more in between. Dr. Deb utilizes a blend of brain science, nutrition, physiology, life coaching, and life lessons, teaching that meaningful change starts from the inside out. Hi, Dr. Deb, and welcome to the podcast. Dr. Deb: Thank you. It's so good to be here. It's taken a while for us to get together, and I'm so excited to be here. Dr. Lourdes: Yes, it has taken a while, but I think that's also, you know, it can be a metaphor for a lot of the things that we take on or we say yes to, and there's a bit of a struggle. It doesn't quite go the way we planned or expected. So, I see a parallel between the process of us getting right now to where we are to even, you know, with the work that you do, and I think the work that a lot of those who are in the helping professions try to do with the people they're serving. Dr. Deb: Yes, and I also believe in perfect timing, and I think this is the perfect time that we're supposed to be talking together right now. Dr. Lourdes: Absolutely. So I'd like to start off with, can you share how you found yourself to be working in this very specific area of menopause? Dr. Deb: Well, I guess what many, many people probably will say is sometimes the thing that you struggle with the most is what you want to help other people with the most. For me, going through menopause and also having a weight issue for my whole life, putting the two of them together was like a bomb because I've always had this huge problem with going up and down the same 20 to 30 pounds for 30 years. Even though I was a specialist in nutrition, and I knew everything about the body, I absolutely could not control myself around keeping my weight where it needed to be. I was constantly using food for all kinds of reasons. And once I started going through menopause, all my little tricks that I always use, and my biggest trick was being a lifetime Weight Watcher member, which means that every single time I gained my same 20 to 30 pounds, I went to Weight Watchers to lose it. And then I left once I lost it, and then I went back to my old ways, and then once I gained it, I would go back. And when I hit menopause, that stopped working too. And my weight was so important to me, as I know it is to so many women, and we put so much emphasis on it. And once I realized, and this was also at the same time that I started transitioning into life coaching, so I was learning all these tools about the mind. And as I was becoming a life coach, I realized what I needed to help people with the most was the struggle that I was having, which was how in the world do you stay at a weight without having to use food to either numb yourself or to congratulate yourself. And once I figured that out, that is what I wanted to share with the world, but especially with women who are going through menopause. Because if you've been struggling your whole life in your mind and about food and thinking there's something wrong with you, because here I was, I knew so much, and I knew, I thought, “There's got to be something wrong with me that I can't do this,†and it was all locked up in my mind. And so once I got that figured out, I knew what I had to help women with was number one, realizing the weight loss has nothing to do with food; it has everything to do with how you think and feel about yourself. And number two, menopause is like a transformation time; it is time to do what you always knew you needed to do that you hadn't done. And then I kind of look at it like adolescence, only you've got like 30 or 40 years much more experience to really use that wisdom to decide how you want to live the next half of your life. Dr. Lourdes: Right? Because like what you were saying, all the things that used to work no longer work as well, like you were describing, you know, the Weight Watchers trick. Dr. Deb: Yes. Dr. Lourdes: And then you come to this place where you have to figure something out, and I remember reading on your website, I don’t know if it was a blog post, you wrote about you know menopause actually being a time that can be very catalyzing, that it can really propel you forward in terms of your overall health and well-being. Dr. Deb: Yes. And it's because, like I think that we have all this wisdom now. Like we really…
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