Dr Ula: Menopause: Stop suffering in silence.
- Dr Ula Heywood
- Sep 29
- 3 min read
It’s time to focus on you.
You’ve spent decades looking after everyone else. Kids, partners, work, parents, friends—you’ve been the rock, the fixer, the one everyone counts on. And now? Menopause arrives, and your body starts changing—often silently—while you keep powering through. Hot flashes, mood swings, brain fog, restless nights… these are the symptoms you see. But the hidden changes? They’re happening inside your bones, heart, metabolism, and brain.
Menopause is the wake-up call that demands your attention. MHT (Menopausal Hormone Therapy) can be a game-changer. It’s the modern, safer evolution of what used to be called HRT. By replacing the oestrogen and progesterone your body has lost, MHT eases symptoms and protects your bones and brain. But it can’t do everything on its own. It won’t rebuild your muscles, reset your metabolism, or lower your stress hormones without lifestyle support. This is your moment to prioritise you—your health, your energy, your future.
The hidden changes you can’t afford to ignore
Menopause usually hits between 45 and 55. Oestrogen and progesterone—hormones that quietly kept your body in balance—drop sharply. These shifts reshape your body from the inside out:
Bones are your scaffolding. Without oestrogen, up to 20% of bone mass can be lost in the first 5–7 years after menopause, leaving you vulnerable to fractures you don’t see coming.
Your heart is your engine. Cholesterol, blood pressure, and vessel health change, quietly raising your lifetime risk of heart disease—the leading cause of death for women.
Muscle is your metabolic armour. With hormones falling, metabolism slows, fat redistributes, and insulin sensitivity drops. Weight gain becomes a health warning, not just a nuisance.
Your brain is your command centre. Brain fog, memory lapses, and slower processing aren’t “just aging”—they’re hormone-driven changes affecting focus, clarity, and mental energy.
Ignoring these shifts doesn’t make them disappear—it stacks the odds against your future self.
MHT: A foundation, not a standalone solution
Menopausal Hormone Therapy is powerful. It can stop hot flashes, ease night sweats, support mood, protect bones, and help your heart and brain. But MHT alone isn’t enough.
Think of MHT as the foundation of a house. Without the walls and roof—nutrition, strength, sleep, and stress mastery—the foundation alone won’t keep you safe. To thrive, you have to build on it.
Menopause takes a new approach
What might have worked in the past may no longer be effective. Menopause requires a new approach.
Eat strategically. Fuel with lean protein, vegetables, healthy fats, and fibre. Cut processed foods that spike insulin and accelerate fat storage.
Train intentionally. Bones need load. Muscles need resistance. Without strength training, your metabolic armour weakens. Cardio still matters—but resistance is non-negotiable.
Sleep like it matters. Menopause disrupts rest, but poor sleep drives hormone imbalance, appetite changes, and energy crashes.
Manage stress like a pro. Cortisol spikes accelerate aging, belly fat, and insulin resistance. Meditation, breathwork, yoga, or simply saying “no” protects your bones, heart, and metabolism.
Avoid the traps. Smoking, excess alcohol, poor diet—MHT can’t counteract poor choices. Hormones work best when your lifestyle works with them.
Menopause and chronic disease: The risks are real
This stage of life is a pivot point. Without action, your risks climb:
Osteoporosis: silent bone loss accelerates.
Heart disease: risk rises sharply post-menopause.
Type 2 diabetes: insulin resistance increases.
Cognitive decline: brain fog today can be the early warning sign of dementia decades later.
MHT helps—but lifestyle is what locks in protection.
Stop suffering. Start building your future
Menopause isn’t a punishment. It’s an invitation to step into control.
Detect the silent shifts.
Act strategically.
Pair MHT with lifestyle medicine: strength, nutrition, sleep, stress mastery.
This isn’t about vanity—it’s about vitality. It’s about building your health pension plan, so your bones, muscles, and brain keep paying you dividends for decades.
Take ownership: Your health, your future
Menopause is inevitable. Suffering in silence is optional. The choice is yours:
Measure the hidden changes: bone density, cholesterol, insulin, metabolic labs.
Act strategically: MHT as the foundation, lifestyle as the framework.
Commit for the long term: Invest now so your 70-year-old self thanks you.
Stop waiting. Stop giving away your energy while your body slips quietly into decline. Your future self is counting on the choices you make now.
Bottom line
Menopause reshapes your body and your future. MHT is powerful, but it’s only the beginning. Build on it with strength, movement, nutrition, sleep, and stress mastery. This is your launchpad. Focus on you. Build resilience. And feel like you again.
Take your first step
Book your Discovery Consultation today and let’s take a deeper look at your menopause journey, metabolic health, and how to bring your body back into balance.
Dr. Ula Co-Founder and Lead Physician, Autonomy
