05 - Talking to my daughter: understanding hormones, contraception, PMS & the gaps in sex ed

The Dr Louise Newson Podcast

Dr Louise Newson

Health & Fitness, Mental Health, Medicine

4.8 • 798 Ratings

🗓️ 29 April 2025

⏱️ 33 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

"I remember saying to you, do people actually go to work like this? Do they just carry on with normal life? Surely you take two days off and just lie in bed. I just couldn’t comprehend that this was normal, and that women are expected to just live like this." This week, Dr. Louise Newson is joined by her daughter, Sophie Anderson, a student at King’s College London, for an honest and insightful conversation about contraception, hormones, and the significant gaps in sex education. Sophie shares both her own experiences and those of her peers, highlighting how many young women use birth control not just to prevent pregnancy but also to manage symptoms of PMS, heavy periods, and acne. Dr Newson discusses the lack of education around the differences between natural and synthetic hormones, explaining how this knowledge gap leaves many young people feeling frustrated and unsupported. Together, they examine how PMS is so widely normalised that many young women come to expect low moods, fatigue, and pain as simply part of life. This candid mother-daughter conversation calls for a more personalised and informed approach to hormonal health. If sex education only teaches how to avoid pregnancy but fails to explain how hormones actually work, are we truly preparing young people to make informed choices? Available to watch on YouTube We hope you're loving the new series! Share your thoughts with us on the feedback form here and if you enjoyed today's episode, don't forget to leave a 5-star ⭐️ rating on your podcast platform. DISCLAIMER: The information provided in this podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Dr Louise Newson or the Newson Health Group. LET'S CONNECT Website: Dr Louise Newson Instagram: @drlouisenewsonpodcast LinkedIn: Louise Newson | LinkedIn Spotify: The Dr Louise Newson Podcast YouTube: Dr Louise Newson - YouTube Email [email protected] for any media enquiries. LEARN MORE Sign up to my Menopause Masterclass here Sign up for my Confidence in Menopause course here Sign up to my Upcoming Webinar for healthcare professionals here Check out the new edition of Dr Louise Newson’s Definitive Guide to the Perimenopause and Menopause

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, I'm Dr Louise Newsom and welcome to my podcast. I'm a GP, menopause specialist and founder of the free balance app.
0:12.0	My mission, to break the taboos around women's health and hormones, shining a light on the issues we've been too afraid to talk about.
0:20.6	From contraception, sex and testosterone to menopause-related addictions and beyond, we're covering it all.
0:28.5	I'll also be joined by experts and inspiring guests, sharing insights and real stories,
0:33.8	as well as answering your questions and tackling the topics that matter to you the most.
0:41.7	So what a privilege today on my podcast to have my middle daughter, Sophie, who's a student at
0:47.6	King's College London, sitting with me to talk about contraception. Who'd have thought, Sophie?
0:58.6	So thanks so much for coming. Cont contraception. Who'd have thought, Sophie? So thanks so much for coming. Contraception is something that means different things to different people actually, because so much is just
1:04.5	not getting pregnant. But as a doctor who specialises in hormones, I think a lot about the type of hormones that are used for contraception.
1:13.7	So I'm really keen to talk to you a bit about not just your contraception, but in general what people think your age.
1:21.9	You're 20. You've got lots of friends, lots of people presumably either thinking about contraception or using contraception.
1:28.8	So just talk to me a bit about what it is.
1:31.8	Yeah, okay. Well, a lot of my friends, including myself, have been on some form of birth control
1:36.6	for a really long time. And for the most part, it is not for the reason to stop getting
1:42.1	pregnant. Most of my friends I know have been on it because they
1:45.3	were having really heavy period or really bad cramps or it was to improve acne or their low mood.
1:52.6	So when I do think of birth control, 90% of the time it is not the case of it actually being
1:58.1	used for birth control. It's for the case for being to control
2:01.0	external things. So that's really interesting actually because as a doctor, I did a lot of family
2:07.1	planning, all about planning your family. It seems so old fashioned, doesn't it, even using those
2:12.0	words, but actually it's all about stopping that person getting pregnant. Whereas you've already
2:17.4	said it's not even about that. getting pregnant, whereas you've already said it's not
	...

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