All Episodes

Have you been told to just “power through” your midlife transitions, only to find yourself stuck and feeling hopeless? Meet Angela Raspass, a dedicated coach, mentor, and speaker with a passion for empowering women to embrace their potential. Her expertise lies in self-leadership and a strength-based approach honed through 25 years of experience and education in positive psychology and neuroscience. Angela is also an author and podcast host, sharing her insights with a wider audience. Her own ...

"You can't be what you can't see, and so representation matters." Sandy Lowres is a fierce advocate of women's rights and empowerment and is determined to bring the often-ignored voices of women over 40 to the forefront while challenging hypocrisy and taboos. Sandy is the innovative founder of Women Beyond 40 (WB40), a platform dedicated to uplifting and empowering women through community and storytelling. As the host of The Good Girl Confessional podcast, Sandy interviews inspiring women who ...

Are you tired of going through peri and menopausal symptoms without getting the support you need? Have you heard that increased awareness and advocacy of menopause support is the key to getting the help you need? My special guest in this episode is Zali Steggall MP. Zali is an influential figure in the Australian political landscape, serving as the independent member for Warringah in New South Wales. With a background in athletics and a strong focus on her own health, fitness, and wellness, Z...

Are you tired of the same old ineffective and unrelatable advice for improving your health and well-being in midlife? Roma van der Walt, an entrepreneurial women's health expert and exercise professional, seeks to establish a common-sense approach to healthy living for midlife women by challenging the extremes of highly qualified but unrelatable doctors and influential celebrities to find the balance between metabolic health and health span advice. The goal should really be to live those extra...

Get the most out of appointments with your doctor or GP by following these great tips from Dr Marita Long. In our chat, Marita was open to answering all of my questions and was honest about gender bias and education gaps that exist in the field of primary care. And then gives brilliant tips for every woman to consider when talking to her GP or doctor about perimenopause and menopause. Dr Marita Long is a GP based in Victoria, Australia, specialising in women's health and medical education. Mar...

How can we measure the true impact of perimenopause and menopause? By giving women a voice. Dr Linda Dear crafted and launched the most extensive online survey for women to share the impact of menopause on their lives with data being collected across both NZ and Australia. And the results of these surveys will be shared with the respective governments and health and employment sectors to craft much-needed change. In her own words, Dr Dear is a doctor, menopause specialist, perimenopausal wom...

How would you cope if your career and life's purpose rely on a strong, healthy functioning body and seemingly overnight menopause threatened to take all of that away from you? Allie Pepper is an Australian mountaineer with 23 years of climbing experience. Mountaineering is not only Allie's passion but also her business; Allie Pepper Adventures. In 2021, amongst the chaos of COVID and a relationship breakdown, Allie was 45 and had no idea that she was perimenopausal. Then seemingly overnight sh...

Where can you learn everything you need to know about changes to your vulva and vagina during menopause, in one place? Right here!! Sitting down to record an episode with Dr Ardelle Piper was an absolute blast. Ardelle is generous with her time and her knowledge as we touched on topics including vulva and vaginal care during perimenopause and into post-menopause. No area of this topic is left untouched including maintaining a healthy sex life, managing internal and external dryness and discom...

Professor Jayashri Kulkarni is one of Australia's leaders in the research and treatment of menopausal depression. I believe this episode, is the most important episode I have been able to bring to my Dear Menopause audience. Professor Kulkarni speaks about mental health and the part women's hormones play in this area, in a way that makes the topic easy to understand and relatable. We discuss why the fluctuation of hormones during the menopausal transition has such a significant impact on menta...

Imagine having not just one but two extraordinary women on a mission to fire other women up for their lives post-menopause cheering you on. That's precisely what you got when Lisa Kiebzak and Adrienne Kramer teamed up, not only as life partners but as business partners in Age Like A Renegade. Chatting with Lisa and Adrienne was such fun and I know you'll enjoy hearing all about their crazy challenges, their individual menopause experiences and the difference that they make in the lives of the ...

Do you know the signs of histamine intolerance? Joanne Kennedy is a Naturopath and specialist in MTHFR, histamine intolerance, gut health (SIBO), and women’s hormones. Joanne runs a successful clinical practice in Sydney, Australia and sees patients online worldwide. Joanne’s approach is to identify the root cause of illness. This is done by using functional pathology testing, assessing each patient's biochemical individuality, environmental exposures, and individual genetic testing if require...

How cool would it be if this was a radio show and you could call in and ask me questions?! Unfortunately, that's not an option, although I hope it might be something we can play with soon. In today's episode of Let's Chat, I'm experimenting with a new way to connect with you and bring you a broader range of topics and info. In this episode you'll learn: Why I've started the Let's Chat episodes and what you can expect in the future How you can help the Australasian Menopause Society shape it...

"I think that there's a great missed opportunity for trainers, professionals, nutritionists, and coaches to step down off of Mount Olympus and mingle with the mortals." Ren Jones was raised in a multi-generational female household and heard all the conversations that young men don't usually get exposed to. He learned that there was a cloud of shame associated with menopause and how it was seen historically. He experienced a powerful reminder of his own mortality when he lost his brother, siste...

"Break the stigma, take a stand - join the movement to normalise being human in the workforce!" "Share from the scar, not from the wound" - Lou Johnson (not the original source) Lou Johnson is an almost 55-year-old publishing professional with over 30 years of experience. She is a feminist and advocates for normalising conversations around menopause, menstruation, motherhood and more in the workplace. Lou wrote an article about menopause, menstruation, life, and work to process her own feelin...

“If you think adventure is dangerous, try routine. It’s lethal.” – Paul Coelho Have you always wanted to travel to Morocco, but not yet had the chance? Well, you are invited to join a group of extraordinary humans and me on an active retreat in Morocco in November 2023. I have partnered with Natasha from The Voyagiste Travel to bring this trip to Magical Morocco to life. In this bonus episode, you will meet Natasha, hear why we choose Morocco as our destination and what you can expect before ...

"We want to give women the power and the agency to understand their health - wholly." In this episode of the Dear Menopause podcast, Roma van der Walt, founder of Vitelle, chats with Sonya Lovell about why it's important for women to understand and manage their metabolic health to improve their life span. Through science-backed tools and technology, women have the agency to improve their health and longevity and with her company Vitelle, Roma is making this possible. Roma is a sport scientist ...

"When women come together, magic happens." In this episode of the Dear Menopause podcast, Faith Agugu, a psychotherapist and empowered aging expert, chats with Sonya Lovell about the global positive ageing movement. Faith is a psychotherapist and empowered aging expert. She founded Silver Sirens, a community of women over 50 seeking to change the narrative around women and aging. Through her psychotherapy practice, Faith witnessed women's distress around ageing and the loss of their value. Thi...

Find out why I'm chatting with a middle-aged man with a passion for perimenopause and menopause. "I think that the constant challenge for people working in science and medicine in particular is the way that that evidence gets translated. And I think that what you've mentioned before is a classic example of research not being communicated well that has such profound implications for women everywhere of that age." Phil Hayes-St Clair is a business leader and advocates for women's health. He is t...

Discover the power of female voices to create a better future for the next generation. "I just took it on as my job, to go and do the research for them, connect them with the people that I knew, research who was a good person to talk to, who wasn't." In this episode, I invite my friend Yvette Meyer to chat with me and to help share more about my experience with menopause and my mission to help other women navigate this time with more knowledge and support. In this episode, you will learn: 1....

Who will take the honour of the most downloaded episode in 2022? In this episode, we revisit the top 5 episodes you chose to listen to. Join me as I count them down, from five to one, and share a short extract from each. I loved pulling this episode together. With such diverse topics and guests brought to you throughout the year, reviewing what resonated with you the most was fascinating. Enjoy! Where to find Sonya: Instagram Take the Midlife Quiz Stellar Women Website You're invited to joi...

How do we change the narrative around menopause in the workplace? Professor Rebecca Mitchell, of Macquarie Business School, is leading a study that draws together Macquarie Business School’s Health & Wellbeing Research Unit and Psychological Sciences researchers of the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, to answer that question. The project explores the intersection of menopause and women’s careers through a positive psychology lens. Professor Mitchell says... "women are to some e...

Has menopause led to you shutting up shop on your sexuality? A few years ago, Susan Jarvis (in her own words) went from being a very horny, lustful ‘wench’ to someone who had virtually shut up shop on their sexuality. She once thrived on being a hot-blooded woman, it gave her confidence and energy knowing that she had a lust for life and lived a life with passion. Wearing red lipstick every day with pride, Susan went from feeling euphoric about going to work wearing the smile on her face from ...

Want to hear the unusual way that Kath Berry became interested in understanding menopause better while treating her female clients in Ibiza? Then you'll love this episode! Kath Berry is an Aussie, living in Ibiza. She's also a world-class Acupuncturist, Author and Educator with over 25 years of clinical experience. Having gained her bachelor's degree in Traditional Chinese Medicine in 2000, Kath spent time working in several hospitals in China. She then returned to Australia and completed her ...

Have you started feeling self-conscious at the beach? Are you covering up in a baggy old T-Shirt or worse, stopped going to the beach? Lyndal Sterenburg did too and one summer's day had a spark of an idea that would go on to change women's lives. Today Lyndal has a simple mission - for all women to enjoy summer. And through her business Es Una, she's doing exactly that. Through conversations with friends and other women, Lyndal realised that we all have the same concerns, especially as we get ...