Herbal Medicine For Menopause

Well Beyond 40

JJ Virgin

Nutrition, Fitness, Health & Fitness

4.5 • 1K Ratings

🗓️ 3 July 2026

⏱️ 13 minutes

🔗️ Recording | Apple Podcasts | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

I’m talking with Suzanne Gilberg Lenz about how women can use botanicals, hormones, and smarter lifestyle strategies to navigate perimenopause and menopause with more support. Suzanne brings her experience as a physician and menopause expert to explain which herbs may help with sleep, mood, blood sugar, hot flashes, and nervous system regulation. We also dig into why symptoms like severe hot flashes should not be brushed off, and why the right support can make a real difference for your health now and in the years ahead. (00:11) Why combining conventional medicine like hormone replacement therapy with natural plant botanicals can offer a more holistic approach to midlife care. (00:51) The incredible preventative health advantages of addressing perimenopause symptoms in your late 30s rather than waiting until your late 50s. (01:43) How selective estrogen receptor modulators like Siberian rhubarb safely target the brain and bones without causing unwanted proliferation in the breast or uterus. (03:16) The optimal timing and unique mechanisms of adaptogens, like using sedating ashwagandha at night and activating rhodiola earlier in the day. (04:34) Why a history of hormone-mediated mood disorders during puberty or pregnancy predicts a higher likelihood of experiencing anxiety in perimenopause. (05:10) How to choose the right botanicals for sleep, including passionflower and saffron, while understanding the negative impacts of alcohol and late-day cortisol spikes. (06:34) The potential of metabolic supports like berberine and specialized hop extract to combat rising insulin resistance and blood sugar issues. (07:49) Why tracking your fiber intake is a critical midlife baseline and why fruits and vegetables alone might not provide the 25 to 30 grams you truly need. Watch full episode: https://youtu.be/Gqic-qZ8br8?si=al3HemjB5Yqvjdea Full show notes (including all links mentioned): https://jjvirgin.com/askdrsuzanne Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Busy routines can make it hard to focus on your health goals, but MedExpress offers a simple way to explore weight management treatment online.
0:08.0	Complete our short eligibility consultation with no need for face-to-face appointments or travel.
0:13.0	If eligible, treatment is delivered discreetly, with UK registered clinicians offering support along the way.
0:19.1	VisitMedexpress.co.com.uk slash podcast to get started today.
0:23.2	So someone listening to this who's like, all right, this is interesting or is someone coming to you as a
0:27.3	patient. How do you integrate in the plant piece of this, the herbal medicine into what they're doing?
0:34.1	It's listening to the patient. I think because I have this reputation in my community for being
0:38.7	open-minded and for doing these kinds of things while still practicing in a totally conventional
0:44.0	manner and using, you know, hormone replacement therapy, which I may, I take hormones, okay? I love
0:49.0	to. You have the plan from me. Right? Exactly. So it depends on the person, and I think that's really what the therapeutic alliance is, right?
0:56.3	Where are they?
0:57.3	A lot of my patients, and especially now where people are much more educated and learning about
1:01.2	perimenopause and how this all starts, a lot of them are not, they are curious and they
1:05.4	want to prevent chronic disease, which I'm so excited about.
1:10.1	What an opportunity to work with somebody at 37
1:12.2	who's thinking about this rather than 57 when they're in it. When you're unfriing the egg. Right. Exactly. Exactly.
1:17.4	You can't, which you cannot do. So sometimes we start with herbal and botanicals first because they're not
1:23.9	quite ready or they're curious or they have a symptom that is actually
1:28.2	maybe going to respond better to the herb. A lot of our nervous system issues, you know, respond
1:35.1	really, really well to things like aschwaganda or rhodiola adaptogens. They're just, they're
1:40.7	really powerful. The sleep issues that people are starting to have, sometimes the botanicals are a more gentle entrance point for them.
1:47.8	And the thing is that a lot of these, most of these are actually very amenable to work with the hormones.
	...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in 4 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from JJ Virgin, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of JJ Virgin and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.