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Hello and welcome to The Excerpt.

I'm Dana Taylor.

Today is Sunday, December 1st, 2024.

Yeah. Can we talk about the change? Former First Lady Michelle Obama recently joined talk show host Gail King and comedian Samantha

B in speaking publicly about the hormonal and physical changes that come with perimenopause and

menopause, a natural part of the aging process that up until now has rarely been discussed

openly. The question is, why not? As millennials age into perimenopause, how is their activism

changing the conversation? Here to discuss the pause is Dr. Judith Joseph, a psychiatrist and

chair of the Women in Medicine Initiative for Columbia University, an author of high functioning,

a book about breaking the cycle of depression coming out next April. Thanks for joining me,

Dr. Judith. Thank you for having me today.

Let's talk about perimenopause and menopause.

Every woman will have her own journey.

But before we discuss symptoms, give us an overview of perimenopause.

When does it start?

How long does it last?

And what's going on inside of a woman's body at that time?

Every woman who ovulates will go through a period when they stop ovulating and they stop having their period and then they're considered menopausal or postmenopausal.

The leading years up until your last period can last anywhere between five to 10 years

in which you experience hormonal fluctuations in progesterone and estrogen.

...