18 - Hayley and Jay: a 30-year battle for the right diagnosis
The Dr Louise Newson Podcast
Dr Louise Newson
4.8 • 798 Ratings
🗓️ 29 July 2025
⏱️ 32 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In what Dr Louise Newson calls ‘the most impactful podcast I've ever recorded’, this powerful episode shares the extraordinary story of Hayley and her son, Jay.
Hayley spent nearly 30 years in and out of psychiatric hospitals. She was diagnosed with postnatal psychosis, premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), depression and treatment-resistant mental illness. She was prescribed antipsychotics, antidepressants and even received electroconvulsive therapy. At one point, she was told she might have dementia.
After years of watching his mum, Hayley, struggle with severe mental illness, hospital stays, and treatments that never truly helped, her son Jay came across an episode of the Dr Louise Newson discussing the impact of hormones on mental health. For the first time, things started to make sense.
It led him to question whether hormones could have been the missing piece all along. With persistence and care, he pushed for Hayley to be given HRT, and the results were life changing. Together, Jay and Hayley share their emotional story of misdiagnosis, misunderstanding, and the powerful difference hormone treatment made after decades of suffering.
This episode is not just a story: it's a call to action. It highlights the often-ignored link between hormones and mental health, the systemic failures in women's healthcare, and the critical need for change.
Please listen, reflect and share. Because not everyone has a son like Jay.
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Disclaimer:
Please note: This episode contains discussions around suicide, self-harm, and severe mental health struggles, which some listeners may find distressing. If you or someone you know is struggling, please know that help is available.
In the UK, you can contact Samaritans 24/7 at 116 123 or visit samaritans.org. If you're outside the UK, please reach out to a local crisis support service or emergency medical help.
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.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is the most impactful podcast I've done. I want you to listen to it, but I also want you to |
| 0:06.5 | share it with as many people as possible. I interviewed Jay and Haley. So Jay is Haley's son. Haley has |
| 0:14.6 | been in and out of psychiatric hospitals for 27 years. She's had postnatal psychosis. She's had PMDD premenstrual dysphoric disorder. |
| 0:26.5 | She's had awful depression, treatment resistant depression. She's had various antidepressants, |
| 0:34.3 | numerous antipsychotics. She's had ECT electroconvulsive therapy. She's also been told |
| 0:42.6 | she might have dementia and she's taken to alcohol for many, many years. But because she was also |
| 0:50.0 | menopausal, I managed to persuade the psychiatrist to prescribe some hormones for her, |
| 0:55.3 | and you will see and hear the difference. We need to get this story out more and I'm really grateful |
| 1:00.5 | that they came today, but I want you to not just listen to it, but reflect on it and think about |
| 1:07.4 | the injustice of women who aren't so lucky as Haley because they don't have a son like Jay. |
| 1:13.6 | Enjoy it. |
| 1:14.6 | Haley, Jay, both of you. I've not done a double podcast before. |
| 1:19.6 | Like I feel like you're almost interviewing me, but it's great. |
| 1:22.6 | I am really excited about this podcast. |
| 1:25.6 | I don't want to put pressure on you, but I've been thinking about this for a long time and the timing feels right. And like there's quite a few patients that are really memorable. But I am never ever going to forget both of you and I'm never going to forget that email that I got from you. |
| 1:45.1 | So I'm just really grateful that you're here to share your experience because, well, lots of |
| 1:51.5 | reasons, but the big thing that's going to change health of women going forward is women helping |
| 1:57.1 | women and women talking and men talking and others talking. |
| 2:01.2 | It's not about me. |
| 2:02.6 | It's not about what I think. |
| 2:04.4 | It's not about what I've read. |
| 2:06.5 | It's about real people. |
... |
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