Riding the Waves of Change

Let’s be honest — perimenopause and menopause aren’t for the faint of heart. One day you’re feeling like yourself, and the next, it’s as if someone swapped your body for a stranger’s. The mood swings, the night sweats, the sudden “why won’t my jeans fit?” moments… it’s a wild ride. But you know what? You’re not losing yourself — you’re evolving. This is the season where we get to rediscover what balance really means — body, mind, and spirit.

My Story

After my hysterectomy in 2024, my hormones felt like they had packed up and left town without notice. I was tired, moody, and watching my body change in ways I didn’t recognize. But instead of giving up, I started learning — about estrogen, progesterone, cortisol, and all those behind-the-scenes players that can make or break how we feel. I began experimenting (safely) with supplements, exercise, and nutrition to find what helped me feel like me again.  

It’s been trial and error — some wins, some flops, and a few “I should’ve taken a nap instead” moments — but I’ve learned so much about how powerful small daily changes can be.  I am still learning, still trying to get back to "me".  

What You’ll Find Here

This corner of My Clever Living is for real talk about midlife hormones — from what’s worked for me to the things I wish someone had told me sooner. We’ll cover supplements, natural supports, emotional health, and the everyday lifestyle shifts that actually make a difference. No judgment, no shame, just honesty and a bit of humor — because if we can’t laugh about hot flashes, what can we do?

We can cry.  Yep.  That was me, crying to my OBGYN nine months later after surgery, as soon as she walked into the room.  Which surprised me too, but as soon as I saw her, i guess i just broke down because i thought I have been literally suffering these past months and this person, well....she must have all my answers i need. It was far from the truth sadly.  :(   

I will start from the beginning.  I had a full hysterectomy back in December of 2024.   Surgery went good, my husband was an amazing caregiver for me while i mended.  He helped me shower, made my dinners and anything else he could do so i could concentrate on healing.  I also had my 2 pups for cuddles, my spare room set up for a relaxing healing journey.  I planned it all down:  books to read, comfy pillows, everything I would need within reach. I did not realize it at the time, but my journey would be starting after my healing.   What i thought i had all prepared for was not even close to what would soon be happening to my body.  

I am going to continue my story, but first I want to share links to products that have actually helped me.   I can write a book just from my last 10 months struggle, and I know some of you have been doing this for years.  So let's get right to what i find helpful as I just know something is going to work for you too!   Just in case any of you are like i was in the Dr offce and thinking "get to the help me part!!" LOL.   

Magnesium Glycinate  -  This i take before bed.  It helps with insomnia and for my muscles to relax and to get a good nights rest.  I do not miss taking this one.  I went and had carpel tunnel testing done and the Dr. suggested this one at 400mg for my nerves.  Little did i know frozen shoulder was happening and i was feeling my fingers going tingling and numb.  

Thorne - B Complex  -  This B vitamin was my energy that i lost.  I could cry, and i will not ever give this up.  I felt it on day 3 ladies.  Mind you, it is Oct 2025 and I have only been on this for 5 days.  And since day 3 I have felt my energy coming back.  (Happy tears) I even cleaned out my wood shed at our cabin, and the next day i tackled painting my entire pantry and i did not even plan that project.  Just asked my hubby, "do we have any paint" and got to work on it!  My husband asked me "Wow that B vitamin must be kicking in?".   Yes it is.  So much so that i told my mom, i told my sisters, i told my co-worker, i told my bestie and now i am telling you.   Get this , I am huge on saving money and will recommend less cost brands and items all the time but not on this one ladies.  Get the Throne brand, try it and if you want to go to a more cost effective later you can try.  But we are serious business about getting 'ourselves' back, so I am all about this brand.  Take this early in day and with food, and do not take with caffeine.  I got a headache first 2 days by not using correctly.  Make sure to check with your dr about how much to take, have your bloodwork done and bring bottle for them to approve usage and help you with dosing.  I started out taking daily for a week, but now only do 2-3 times a week. If you don't want to take this, ask Dr. about at least B-12, maybe even a b-12 shot instead.  Make sure you check with Dr, as this has B6 in it, and you don't want to take too much of B6. Make sure you are not getting your B vitamins from multiple sources.  Such as if you take protein drinks, or use other things with B vitamins.  Negative info I found: Nerve issues (tingling, burning, numbness) — excessive intake of vitamin B6 (pyridoxine) over time can cause neuropathy. Thorne’s dose is generally safe, but long-term high intake from multiple supplements can increase risk. So talk to your dr, and look at other things you drink/eat that might have b vitamins in it too.  This brand causes my urine to be bright yellow, which is said to be normal and is from the B2 in it.  Ask Dr. if daily is ok to start and then maybe taper down to couple times a week for maintenance, per Dr's instructions on what should be best for your body and your bloodwork results. I absolutely love my B vitamins but also am a worry wort over negative effects on taking new things, so i always try to share that too so you can make informed decisions and do what is best for yourself.  This vitamin has been so helpful for me personally and I use along with my Dr. advise and awareness of other b vitamins I might be intaking with drinks/food because i do drink protein drinks. So always be aware vitamins are not ALWAYS just take what it says on bottle and have no worries about them as you need to look at bigger picture and not do toxic levels of anything you take.   

Medicine below is with Dr. prescription only.  This is just what I started to help me personally and is not medical advice.   Talk to your Doctor!

Metformin - This is Dr prescribed, but my A1C creeped up and I asked my Dr for it to help with insulin resistance and to help with weight loss as I feel like I am stuck in my weight, and insulin resistance is such a large topic with menopause.  I was gaining weight like it was my full time job.  

Lexapro - This is what I take for Anxiety.  5mg. Prescribed by my Dr.  There is SO many good products that I feel could help me besides a medication.  Personally if i was not on this, i would take a saffron supplement. (I have taken that one with good results, always check with dr and see if any meds you take interfere with it as this one has st. johns wart in it which can interfer with other things like lexapro type meds or ) But I have a lot to take care of first before i try a more natural route when it comes to being anxious, as i personally was starting to have panic attacks and this helped that.  So i don't want to mess with that right now and can't take certain things that might mess with my low dose blood pressure med as well.   

Other things I do that I feel are VERY important.  Of course you don't have to do the exact same things I am doing but to definitely find your "inner peace" things to do. 

Other natural things I do to help me with cortisol, relaxation, stress, and to just feel good

I joined a gym -  Look into your insurance and see if you are eligible for discounted gym membership.  I got one for $28 a month at https://www.activeandfitdirect.com/.  I did not join the gym to use the machines yet. I logged into my insurance and there was a link in there to sign up!  Right now I use the pool, the jacuzzi, the dry sauna and join yoga classes.  So i walk in and pass all the machines up and go right into the women's locker room.   It is my couple hours of swimming and relaxing time.  Eventually i will try adding some machines to my routine, but i am about my mind right now, and the pool gets me to the gym, not the treadmill.  lol.  I do have a walking pad at home as well that I use.  I live in Michigan, so this will be handy during winter months when i am not outside gardening and being more active.

I joined a self help book club - The books we read are all about self help, inner thinking ,helpful guides and insights about life.  Yes, i love a good romance novel or thriller, but this is different and we talk about some serious things that feels good to get off your chest. I joined an in person book club, but you can find some online as well.  I think in person has been very helpful though to have a nice woman chat session and I always leave feeling good after.  

I get facials and back facials -  This does NOT have to be expensive.  I am a thift store, penny pincher at heart.  Ladies, i literally found a teaching school near me and my facials and back facials cost $30 for 1 hour! (Back facial = basically cleaning your back and giving you an hr back/neck light touch massage, hot towels, soft music, etc...aka AMAZING and RELAXING.   My first time, i gave the young woman a big hug and thanked her for how good it made me actually feel to pamper myself for just an hour.  Now I go as much as I can!   And it made me realize i never pamper myself.  I don't get my nails done because i love digging in my garden, etc.  So at 49 years old, i got my first facial and back massage.   And I love it!   I feel good about helping students learn, it feels great, nice quiet dark room with soft yoga like music playing and it's just awesome.  Highly recommend if you have have a beauty school near you to find one!  I also found a massage school.    Pampering does not have to be expensive.  But if you can afford it, do that too, because you are worth it girl!  I am just stuck in my 'single broke mom' life and even though i can afford a "regular" massage, i can't help trying to save money, it's just a habit of mine to shop around, find deals, go thrifting. lol.  

I joined a Meditation Class & Sound Therapy - My city happens to have a center that they offer free mental health classes and these two things are apart of it and free to those of us whom sign up, so I did!  It's usually offered like once a month something for just adults to join and this is also where i found my self help book club.   It was all free, and I just joined it all to give it a try!  And i love it, and hope they are around a long time!   But also this has helped me want to explore other places, such as looking into a Reiki class or other type of classes that sound fun.   I am having fun with doing this and always feel better when leaving.   Check into things your area might be offering, or check local library or facebook group for your area that will keep you up to date on things going on around you. 

This year, i am all about ME, ME, ME!!  My husband is all about it and very supportive.  He might tease me because I am not up in morning making his lunches like I usually have always done each work morning, but he is understanding that sometimes I am up at 2 or 3 am wide awake with insomnia, and need an extra half hour in morning now.   I want to be the wife and woman I was that loves getting up early with my hubby and having morning coffee (decaf now) and making my husband's lunch.   That's my thing, that's me, that's what I am missing.  You can explore my site and see that my husband and I are always up to projects and doing stuff.  I want to keep up again and have my energy back.  A part of myself is gone, and i am trying very hard to get it back.  I am giving myself grace as I find my way back to my 'normal' where even if i don't ever feel completely back to my old self, i want to make sure I am at least comfortable in my body again and still loving my life and things that I do.  

Hormone Replacement Therapy

I am on facebook support groups, and some ladies say HRT can be life changing.  Well, back to my doctor visit as I wanted some of this life changing stuff. My Dr. would only test my estrogen and said no to testing progesterone, testosterone or cortisol and everything else I had on a little cheat sheet to talk to her about.  One thing right away is I was a no for HRT because of breast cancer in the family, even my father this past year has been diagnosed with it.  So I did ask for genetic testing while I was there, but even that has not been easy.  It's something my insurance covers, but they work with another company for genetic testing and they don't take it.  Sure, i could just pay the $250 and just do it, but I am still trying find out where I can just go get it done with my insurance.  So I will be following up on that.  

I also read that the whole cancer / HRT is not true information and there is not enough research to say that is causes breast cancer, so i am conflicted so much, as my own Dr. just told me it does and she basically told me go back to my primary care doctor for following up on all this that she was just an OBGYN.  Ugh.  On her notes after visit she put 'mildly depressed" i noticed in my chart.  Really, my crying and asking for help was chalked up to "depression".  So I left my female Dr. feeling pretty deflated.  I still remember how bummed I was sitting in my car after that visit because now it seemed like even a professional could not help me. All of my supplements I mention above are because now I was left on my own to literally help myself.   I researched, and read and joined facebook groups and I'm out here literally getting facials and massages, which i have never gotten before, just so i can try to relax and find peace again with myself.  

I have been in physical therapy twice a week for rotator cuff / frozen shoulder that started in April, it's now Oct. and I still don't have full range of motion in my arm, it wakes me up at night.  In physical therapy, one of the therapist suggested that I go get a breast reduction to help with neck/shoulder pain.  So, since I have been told that before from my Dr. due to a neck injury I had years ago, i decided to do that and now have an upcoming surgery again in December this year for that.  I went to the Dr i saw years ago and he rewrote his recommendation for a reduction and I met the plastic surgeon and moving forward on that all. I am hoping it will help me with posture, neck and shoulder pain and help with Yoga moves where I am not leaning over and spilling out of my tops and overall give me a better quality of life.  Something I was too scared to get done years ago, that i decided if I am "fixing" me, i am going to fix inside and outside issues I have and I hope it helps me be a more active person.     

So my best advice is to make yourself a check list and start doing things to improve you that let's you be your best self.  Join a book club, go get a massage, pamper yourself through this, try some vitamins (safely with Dr. ok) , up your protein intake, do a little strength training and see if you can't help find yourself again as I have been doing. 

You are not alone!

(Hugs) 

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*this page is not medical advice, please talk to your Dr before taking anything to insure proper dosing and to see with bloodwork if you are missing anything that might be helpful to you.   Living in Michigan, we tend to be low in vitamin D, but that is not the same for someone whom might live in Florida getting plenty of sunshine, so always ask Dr. before taking supplements.  Check your protein drinks/protein bars, and other foods to see if they will interfere or take you above the daily recommended dosages as well.  (hugs)