Dear Friends,

How've you been?

For me, the other week was topsy-turvy.
Can we please talk about perimenopause?

Perimenopause is NOT a disease, not just hot flashes, and not something most doctors -- nor most workplaces -- understand.

EVEN THOUGH NEARLY ALL WOMEN GO THROUGH IT -- at the peak of our careers.

At the ripe, young age of 42, I'm somewhere in the middle of it, which happens 7-10 years before menopause (BTW, did you know menopause is only one day after 12 months of no periods?).

Image of Jamie Lee in a hospital setting wearing a mask and glasses.

Here's me last Wednesday night, looking dissheveled at the Mt. Sinai ER on West 59th Street in Manhattan, waiting to hear from the doctor that both my blood test and chest x-ray came out TOTALLY NORMAL.

The well-intentioned and kind ER doctor is uninformed on all things menopausal, because the world is uninformed, starting with medical schools.

When I tell him I believe my symptoms -- palpitations and shortness of breath -- are related to my cycles, he gives me a doubtful look and says, "Maybe... but you're not too young to see a cardiologist, so let me make you a referral."

I make the cardiologist appointment, but I also book an Gynecology appointment, and download these podcasts:

Perimenopause by Maisie Hill, best-selling author of three books all womb-havers should read: Period Power, Perimenopause Power, and Powerful. BTW, this is not an affiliate link. I'm a fan and former coachee of Maisie -- who's an acupuncturist, birth doula, reflexologist, and certified master life coach. Just the free perimenopause symptoms tracker in the link above is already giving me tremendous relief and a sense of power over an issue that took me to the ER.
How to Navigate Menopause with Dr. Mary Claire Haver on the Huberman Lab podcast. Some of my girlfriends are shirking away from Andrew Huberman, but by god, the information that Dr. Mary Claire Haver shares on the interview is eye-opening, mind-blowing, and life-changing.

Talking about and learning as much as we can about menopause is a feminist issue. It is a career and life issue.

I'm yearning to have more conversations with real women about this, and I want to have these conversations with you.

And if you have even an iota of an idea of what I'm talking about, here's what you should know:

You're not crazy for wanting to flip the metaphorical table or feeling tempted to quit your demanding or high-powered job and walk away from it all when the lowest of the low mood swings hit you (perhaps along with nausea, mystery pain, headaches, etc.).

😲 A study done in the UK found that one in five women quit their jobs due to menopause issues.

It absolutely can be WAY TOO MUCH when you're already juggling multiple roles and doing unpaid and/or emotional labor as a mother, partner, wife, sister, daughter, AND someone who's starting to hit her professional stride.

But here's the thing.

Menopause and having a career are manageable. Doable.

Especially when being kind to yourself is met with a strategic brain.

So here's one more takeaway: Plan your negotiations, high-stakes conversations, any big presentations AROUND your cycles.

Don't schedule events when you know your hormones will be out of whack and all you'll really want to do is curl up on the couch with a hot water bottle.

And tell that itty bitty sh*tty committee to shut it, if it whispers riveting stories in your ear like, "You're not doing enough, and this is how you fail."

Say NO to that garbage nonsense.

You are a walking miracle of life, and you've done MORE than enough by simply existing today.

And finally, please don't worry about me.

After some downtime and much-needed facetime with friends and family, I'm feeling good enough to hike 5 miles in the Palisades Interstate Park trails and make new friends.

This photo was taken 48 hours after the ER trip. Big smiles.