[00:00:00] Adam Walker: From Susan G. Komen, this is Real Pink, a podcast exploring real stories, struggles, and triumphs related to breast cancer. We’re taking the conversation from the doctor’s office to your living room.
[00:00:17] This is Real Talk, a podcast conversation where we’re digging deep into breast cancer and the realities patients and survivors face every day. We’re talking openly and honestly about just how difficult breast cancer can be, from being diagnosed to selecting the right treatment plan, to living day to day with metastatic breast cancer and life after treatment ends.
[00:00:37] Menopause, it may be the most unwanted time in a woman’s life. It arrives with a vengeance, forcing all kinds of emotional, hormonal, and bodily changes onto women as they approach their 50s. But for women going through breast cancer treatment, it can arrive even earlier and be even more unwanted. The good news is no one has to suffer in silence.
[00:01:00] It’s my pleasure to welcome today’s podcast guests, Dr. Makeba Williams, the incoming president of the Menopause Society, and Claudia McConnell, a breast cancer survivor who was forced into menopause during breast cancer treatment at age 37. Ladies, thank you for being here today. I know so many listeners are looking forward to hearing this discussion and getting the guidance they need to manage their own health.
[00:01:24] So, Dr. Williams, let’s start with you and your background and your story and then Claudia, over to you.
[00:01:29] Dr. Makeba Williams: Thank you so much for having me. Again, my name is Dr. Makeba Williams, and I’m a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago and Peoria.
[00:01:44] And in that role, I serve as the clinical director of the Center for Health Awareness and Research on Menopause. And as Adam mentioned, I am the president-elect of the Menopause Society. And I have the pleasure of meeting women at one of the most consequential times in their lives, and that is when they are trying to navigate menopause, and it is my goal to make sure that my patients don’t navigate this transition alone or without the information they need.
[00:02:22] I am a proud member and representative of the Menopause Society, which was founded in 1989 with a mission that is really the heart of why I do this work, and that is to empower healthcare professionals to improve the health of women during menopause, the menopause transition, and beyond. We at the Menopause Society serve as the definitive, independent, and evidence-based resource for clinicians, for researchers, for the media, and the public alike.
[00:02:58] Claudia McConnell: Hey, everyone.
[00:02:59] My name’s Claudia. I’m 40. I am a wife and a mom of two girls. I am a healthcare professional myself. I’ve been a respiratory therapist for almost 20 years, and I’m a breast cancer survivor. I was diagnosed at 37. You’re going to wonder why I already had my mammogram at 37 when insurance typically says 40. I like to say that I’m a healthcare hypochondriac, but it is so true because I’ve worked in critical care the 20 years in the hospital setting, and I have seen so many cases, you know, so many things.
[00:03:36] And so I’ve been very proactive in just doing early detection, early, early testing and just staying on top of my PCP visits and my OB visits. And I just, I know that things happen. Things can happen, and there’s no age, you know, on that. And so I had my first mammogram at 35, and it was clear. I have zero history, family history.
[00:04:05] I have a paternal aunt, but that was it, that had breast cancer. And so then, and it was clear at 35, then at 37, I’m like, “You know, I need to go get another one, I guess. Insurance doesn’t say, but might as well.” And there was change there, so that was so important to have that baseline and then to go into a change two years later.
[00:04:29] And they were hesitant to biopsy it. They were like, “It doesn’t even really look bad, but let’s just do it. We’re going to err on the side of caution.” Sure enough, three days later, got the call that it was breast cancer. Just getting that diagnosis I was not mentally prepared. I had my child in the car with us when we got the call, and it was on speaker.
[00:04:54] I just was, like, so oblivious. And so it was really hard to walk through that. Then fast-forward finding out that I’m BRCA2, mine’s genetic. So that was interesting when I don’t have a strong family history. Then also knowing that mine was estrogen, progesterone-driven. They immediately started me on Lupron injections, which is a shot in my stomach.
[00:05:22] I literally went to bed and woke up in total menopause. So here we are, almost three years later.
[00:05:30] Dr. Makeba Williams: Well, Claudia, I’m so glad that you and I are having this conversation because I see a lot of women like you who come to my office, and often they are caught surprised by the diagnosis of breast cancer, and then they survive, right?
[00:05:51] They survive the diagnosis, they survive treatment, and so many of them wake up Like you, menopausal. So it’s as if they’ve gone through one of the most difficult times in their lives that, and then on top of that, they have to deal with being thrust into menopause suddenly, severely, and often, like you, they’re caught by surprise without warning and without support.
[00:06:21] And then the symptoms come, right? It’s the hot flashes, the sleep disruption, the brain fog, joint pain, and the impact that it can have on your relationship with your husband, your children. So it can be a lot, and I want to acknowledge that for you.
[00:06:41] Claudia McConnell: Thanks. Yeah. All of the above. So something interesting, when I was diagnosed, my PCP put me on Effexor, which is an antidepressant, a- anti-anxiety medicine, and she said, “It’s one that will also help with hot flashes.
[00:06:57] So it’s going to, it’s going to be good for you.” And she… I stayed on the lowest dose. I stayed on it actually until about a month ago. I decided, okay I want to be completely… I don’t think that it dulled my personality or anything like that. Maybe a, it, a little bit of my emotions. I’m not a big crier anyway, but I definitely couldn’t cry.
[00:07:24] So I came off of that, and let me tell you, the hot flashes are insane. Full-blown. And I didn’t realize the Effexor was helping that much, and so then I was, like, second-guessing, oh my goodness, do I need to go back on it? Because the night sweats mainly. It’s insane. It’s hard to explain to someone unless they’ve been through it, but the night sweats are horrible for me.
[00:07:49] The brain fog, yes, because I am like I said, I’ve talked about being in healthcare, but you have to be on your A-game because we have people that are, their lives are in our hands, you know? And so I’ve always felt like I was very proficient. I have to sometimes think a little bit more now, Or I forget things, you know?
[00:08:07] And so that’s hard for me when I’ve always been very type A and very In charge.
[00:08:15] Dr. Makeba Williams: Well, why don’t we talk a little bit about what menopause is, and it’s really fortuitous that your physician was proactive and offered you Effexor, which is one of the many treatments that we can use in breast cancer survivors to treat those symptoms.
[00:08:33] But then I think it would be helpful for our listeners today to learn a little bit about what menopause is, and important to have this conversation because it is in these conversations that we can move towards healing, we can dispel some of the silencing that happens. I have spoken with many survivors who say, “I’m just going to grin and bear it because I’m so thankful to be alive.
[00:09:03] I am so thankful to be cancer-free,” that they minimize those hot flashes, night sweats, the brain fog, and many other symptoms that come. So if you will indulge me, let’s break it down. What is menopause, and why do you experience it so suddenly? In the real sense, menopause represents the end of ovarian function, so the ovaries they stop working regularly.
[00:09:33] The estrogen and progesterone levels decline, the menstrual periods stop, and along the way, those symptoms that we’ve talked about can develop. Hot flashes, night sweats, the mood changes, sleep disruption. And it can be quite significant because the entire body can be impacted. And so for a woman like you, who at thirty-seven suddenly has treatment or Leuprolide that induces menopause, that can be shocking.
[00:10:09] So the typical age at which a woman experiences natural menopause is about fifty-one or fifty-two, but many women experience menopause much earlier, like yourself, Claudia. Premature menopause occurs before the age of forty, early menopause between forty and forty-five, and both can happen as a result of medical or surgical treatments for cancer and other health conditions.
[00:10:41] And why is that? So we know that chemotherapy, radiation, very effective for treating and targeting cancer cells, and they can also be very toxic to the ovaries. So the ovary tissue, the cells are damaged, and then the ovary can’t operate and can’t produce the hormones in the way that it typically does.
[00:11:06] And when that happens, the body will have many of these Effects of menopause, and often it comes all at once
[00:11:15] Claudia McConnell: Yeah so I was on the Lupron injections. I would say I maybe had five of those, so about five months. While I was going through the double mastectomy and the breast reconstruction, knowing I was going to have my total hysterectomy, that was, like, not even a question for me.
[00:11:37] It was an easy choice because I was already in chemical menopause, and I knew that some of the cancer medicines, like tamoxifen, that I’m on for up to 10 years, it can cause uterine cancers and other things like that. And so yeah, it was n- it was an easy choice. It was already not working due to the Lupron, so I had my total hysterectomy.
[00:11:59] My surgical oncologist was a little bit hesitant for that because he did worry about my bone health, and I do still worry about my bone health being younger and having that done. But it… That part, once you’re chemical, surgical, it felt like the same thing to me. I just wanted to just get it done, and the shots weren’t fun to have to go in monthly for.
[00:12:22] So now I’m definitely focusing on bone health
[00:12:28] Dr. Makeba Williams: Yeah, so when menopause is induced, women can experience significant bone loss, which can increase the risk effect of fractures. What we know is that the estrogen that is produced by the ovary is essential for maintaining the density of bones, and when those estrogen levels drop, especially when that happens abruptly, and then for many breast cancer survivors we use aromatase inhibitors, the bone loss can be rapid and significant.
[00:13:03] So you are wise to be focusing on your bone health because we want to prevent fractures from occurring. So when a breast cancer diagnosis is made and the treatment plan is formulated, it is often important to get a baseline assessment of your bone density, and we do that through what is called a DEXA scan.
[00:13:27] It’s essentially an image of your bones, and that can help us understand where you’re starting out at baseline. That test is often repeated every couple of years. In addition to that, we want to be proactive, as you said, about your bone health. So thinking about calcium, vitamin D, and weight-bearing exercise.
[00:13:51] All of those things are recommended for those who are experiencing menopause, particularly those who are experiencing an early or induced menopause. Because we want to preserve bone, we want to prevent fracture, and there are- Some treatment plans that will include giving you some bone-protective medications.
[00:14:14] Medications like bisphosphonates or zoledronic acid have strong evidence for pres- preventing bone loss. Have any of those been recommended for you, Claudia?
[00:14:26] Claudia McConnell: You know, I try and do weight-bearing exercises. I actually got a vibration plate recently because it’s all the rage on social media, and everyone’s on those wiggle plates.
[00:14:36] It’s supposed to help. I take calcium. I take vitamin D. That’s been about all that I have done so far. I am on the tamoxifen. They wanted to keep me on the tamoxifen longer because it keeps the estrogen in your bones. Is that correct? Versus
[00:14:58] Dr. Makeba Williams: the AR- Tamoxifen can be stimulatory to the bones.
[00:15:01] So tamoxifen is one of these drugs that we called a selective estrogen receptor modulator. The way in which it works in the breast, it can prevent those estrogen receptors from being stimulated, and tamoxifen in the bone can be stimulatory to counterbalance some of the effects, the negative effects of a loss of estrogen.
[00:15:27] Claudia McConnell: Okay. Yeah, that makes sense. They, yeah, and that’s why she wanted to keep me on that as long as possible versus go into an aroma-a-aroma inhibitor Aromatase inhibitors
[00:15:38] Dr. Makeba Williams: That’s a big word.
[00:15:40] Claudia McConnell: Yes.
[00:15:42] Dr. Makeba Williams: What other symptoms are you experiencing in your menopause, Claudia?
[00:15:47] Claudia McConnell: Joint pain, for sure. You know, my knees hurt.
[00:15:52] Just the one, one of the biggest things, though, is the hot flashes. It’s not knowing how to dress. Mood. You know I’m pretty … I’ve always been a laid-back person, so my family may say I’m maybe a little more snippy every now and again. But I … Like you said, that, that was very interesting earlier that you mentioned so many women are like, “I’m going to grin and bear it.”
[00:16:22] That’s been me because I am so thankful to be on this other side now, sitting here, you know. And I feel like I can do it. I can do all the things as long as I’m alive. I am fine with going through it all. But that’s not always the answer because you want your quality of life to also, you know be better or be like what it used to be
[00:16:50] Dr. Makeba Williams: You raise a really good point.
[00:16:52] So one, we know that hot flashes and night sweats, so those episodes where you may feel an intensity of heat that starts in your chest, that moves up your neck into your face, that can even radiate over your arms, can be very intense. And we see in many patients who– in women who undergo a premature or induced menopause, those symptoms can be more intense, of a longer duration, experienced more severely.
[00:17:25] And you’re right, too many women are gritting and bearing it. And what I would want all breast cancer survivors to know is that we have really effective treatment options. Certainly in those that ha– do not have a history of breast cancer, hormonal therapy, estrogen therapy is going to be the most effective treatment.
[00:17:48] And for breast cancer survivors, that would not be our first line. We do have non-hormonal therapies that are first line, and the list of those therapies is long. You have a real menu of options, and they are effective. So as you mentioned, Effexor and other antidepressants are genuinely effective at reducing hot flashes and night sweats.
[00:18:15] Other medications like gabapentin may be used. Oxybutynin, which is a drug for overactive bladder, has also been shown to have benefit when we look at clinical trials. One of the therapies I think we should highlight is cognitive behavioral therapy. It’s a specific kind of talk therapy. It has level one evidence, so good, consistent evidence that it is effective for the treatment of hot flashes, and it is effective for the treatment of mood symptoms as well as sleep, which also can be impacted during this phase.
[00:18:56] And I think, you know, we sit here at a time where we’ve had a lot of drug discovery and innovation. So for breast cancer survivors and other patients experiencing, other women experiencing menopause, I think this is a really exciting time because we have a newer class of drugs called the neurokinin B antagonist.
[00:19:20] They include two drugs that have been recently approved, vezolanatant and elazenatant. And as we have learned more about them, we’ve learned more about why hot flashes occur. And it is that decline in estrogen that can lead to overactivity of Nerve cells that trigger that thermostat to be a bit more sensitive and to turn up the heat, so to speak.
[00:19:48] One of these medications, elazenatant, has been studied in breast cancer patients, and we saw that patients who had hormone receptor positive breast cancer or those who were using endocrine therapy for the treatment of breast cancer to prevent breast cancer, we saw a benefit. So at baseline, these women were experiencing, can you imagine this, 11 moderate to severe hot flashes, and using this medication, elazenatant, was able to cut that by nearly half.
[00:20:27] And by week 12, women were experiencing close to fewer than eight episodes per day. So that’s very meaningful real-world impact, and that can have an impact in the quality of life. because what we see is the more frequent your hot flashes are, the more your mood can be impacted, the more your sleep can be disrupted, the more cognitive or brain fog symptoms you can have as well.
[00:20:59] So this is a really exciting time with newer therapies which give you more options for treatment.
[00:21:07] Claudia McConnell: Yeah. I mean, it is… When you put it that way, it’s like a circle. It makes sense it all kind of, the sleep the brain fog, all of that makes sense, and it feeds off of each other a little bit. So yeah, the sleep thing, you know, I do not sleep.
[00:21:22] A- and I don’t like taking something to sleep, but I’m up through the night, for sure. I can’t sleep without a fan. I’ve got a fan on turbo mode all the time.
[00:21:35] Dr. Makeba Williams: You know, I often think about sleep being the amplifier of so many symptoms during menopause, and what we see is about 40 to 60% of menopausal women will experience sleep disruption.
[00:21:49] And in part, we know that hormones specifically can be impactful for sleep, and when you’re suddenly thrust into menopause, you don’t have that transition or ramp-up period. We know that there is a, what we would say, a bidirectional relationship between sleep and mood. So if your sleep is disrupted, if it is impaired from hot flashes, from night sweats, then your moods can be impacted.
[00:22:20] So it is critically important that we treat the symptoms that may be Negatively impacting your sleep. So thinking about how do we optimize the management of those hot flashes, of those night sweats. And it also is important that we think about what are we doing from a behavioral standpoint that can be different.
[00:22:45] So optimizing our sleep hygiene, you know, thinking about getting those screens out of the bedroom, setting a bedtime, getting the temperature of our bedrooms optimized so that sleep can not be negatively impaired. And, you know, also thinking about regulating our caffeine intake when that occurs.
[00:23:09] Those are some of the more obvious things that we can do. And going back to cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, what we call CBTI, is a very effective way to manage some of that sleep disruption.
[00:23:28] Claudia McConnell: Yeah, that makes sense. I do love an afternoon cup of coffee and it’s just out of habit a lot of times.
[00:23:34] But, you know I think a lot of those things make sense, the screen time and the… I try and read before bed, but yeah. Yeah, I… All of that’s really good, and I want to write down the medicine that you talked about. I’m going to talk to my oncologist about that. So it’s like I talked to you earlier, but talking to my OB versus my oncologist, you know, a- and then you factor in your PCP as well, there’s a lot of different opinions and their outlooks are a little bit different.
[00:24:07] T- I wanted to speak on just estrogen creams. How do you feel about estrogen creams for someone like me?
[00:24:17] Dr. Makeba Williams: So the role of hormone therapy and the role of estrogen is one of those topics where we have to treat and tread carefully. And you mentioned you have your OBGYN, you have your primary care physician, you have your oncologist.
[00:24:35] What I would say, it is critically important when we consider the role of hormone therapy, whether that is taken systemically for hot flashes, for night sweats, or applied locally for some of the urinary or genital tract symptoms that are associated with menopause, we need to think about that- With a multidisciplinary lens.
[00:25:00] So it is important to have the whole treatment team at the table. We certainly do not want to do anything that’s going to be disruptive to the cancer treatment plan. So we need to get the OBGYN on board, the primary care physician on board, as well as the oncologist. And importantly, it has to be a conversation of shared decision-making as well as individualization.
[00:25:32] Not every breast cancer is the same, nor is every formulation of hormone therapy, nor is the treatment, the cancer treatment plan the same. So we must individualize. One of the symptoms that many women who are experiencing an induced menopause or undergoing breast cancer treatment will experience is what we call the genitourinary syndrome of menopause, and that can manifest as vaginal dryness, discomfort, recurrent infections in either the urinary tract, so UTIs, or vaginal infections.
[00:26:15] And this is a symptom that can be chronic, it can be progressive, and again, can blindside women. So it is important, I think, that we talk about that. And when women are experiencing these symptoms, you know, it’s important to first remove any potential irritants. So a lot of the products that we may be using, feminine products, alcohol-based wipes, washes, even sort of artificial fragrances or parabens that are in body washes, can be very irritating to this ever-drying, increasingly drying skin in the vulvar and urinary tract.
[00:26:58] So many women don’t realize that these products can make things worse. So when these symptoms are present, we want to eliminate anything that can be contributing to dryness. And one of the first ways we want to look at managing these symptoms, especially in our breast cancer patients, is to look at non-hormonal vaginal moisturizers.
[00:27:26] Those moisturizers that have hyaluronic acid, using that two to three times a week can be very effective on a long-term basis to reduce the symptoms, as particularly the dryness. A lubricant can also be used. Lubricants are different from moisturizers in that lubricants are used prior to intercourse to reduce the friction associated with insertion into the vagina But the lubricant will not moisturize the tissue.
[00:28:00] So both of those can be used, but they’re used for different purposes. And for women who are experiencing significant narrowing or pain that makes intercourse uncomfortable, we can use vaginal dilators, and there is a significant role for undergoing pelvic floor physical therapy to help minimize those symptoms.
[00:28:23] And when we have exhausted or we have employed these non-hormonal approaches when they are not enough and pain, discomfort, quality of life is being impacted, it is reasonable to have a conversation about local estrogen creams or tablets or a ring placed in the vagina that can slowly release the estrogen.
[00:28:52] These estrogen products are of low dose. They are locally applied to the tissue, so they don’t have the systemic effect. They’re not going to help your hot flashes or night sweats, but they can significantly relieve the symptoms associated with vaginal dryness, urinary tract changes that are associated with menopause.
[00:29:16] And there is a caveat, though. We want to make sure that we have all members of the treatment team on board. Many in the oncology community have come around to support the use of these products for breast cancer survivors, recognizing the significant impact that these symptoms have on survivors. And it is also important to recognize that every woman’s situation is different.
[00:29:51] Hormone therapies have different formulations. The routes, how we deliver them make a difference, and every individual treatment plan can be different. So this is an area where you want to have your oncologist talking to your gynecologist, having a conversation with your primary care physician, because we don’t want to deliver any therapy that may be disruptive to cancer treatment.
[00:30:19] Claudia McConnell: So I’m a mom of two girls, and that is terrifying to me that they’re going to walk these steps since mine is genetic. My ca- my breast cancer is genetic. Trying to just be open with them. You know how do I talk to them about this could be their life someday when they’re done having children, you know, the steps, what that looks like.
[00:30:49] Dr. Makeba Williams: Yeah, you raise a really important Question, Claudia, and I see so many women come to the office, and they are moving through fear for their own lives, what that means for their family, for their children. That’s just at baseline. Will you be around for them? I know that’s part of the thought process. And then when there is a genetic mutation, what does that mean for them in that particular situation?
[00:31:25] And I’m so glad that you raised this, and I think conversations like the one that we are having today are important for other women. But it’s also important to have these conversations with your family. Fortunately, we are learning a lot about the BRCA mutations, what that can mean for risk, and we are also operating in a space where we have good, effective preventative therapies, and we know when is an ideal time to consider risk-reducing therapies.
[00:32:02] Therapies like removing the fallopian tubes, you know, at the appropriate time, consideration of removing the ovaries, and also what are the things that we can do to be optimizing our health in general and also reducing our cancer risk. And so at an appropriate time with your daughters, it would be important to have that conversation with the support of a valued, trusted member of the healthcare team, and even a cancer geneticist can help inform the approach that you should take.
[00:32:43] And of course, we want to have an age-appropriate conversation. We don’t want to be moving about in fear or do our best to minimize the fear associated with this. And also recognizing what sort of long-term impact that carrying a BRCA genetic diagnosis might have. It’s just… It’s not just about cancer, but, you know, thinking about fertility and reproduction and, you know, will my daughters be able to get pregnant if they want to when they so choose.
[00:33:16] Those are all a part of the conversation. So psychological support and thinking about quality of life, family impact, wellbeing, those are all important. And that is why having a multidisciplinary team, healthcare team, is critically important, not only as you navigate this, but also as your family walks beside you and is navigating this too.
[00:33:44] Claudia McConnell: I like that. That’s good. I do. I’m very thankful for such a supportive family. I mean- It’s, it has been a lot getting that diagnosis three, almost three years ago, walking through this. This is not what I would’ve pictured my life to look like at 40, but man, I am so humbled, I’m so grateful, and I, at the end of the day, I almost feel I don’t know, I don’t want to say this, but I feel better for it.
[00:34:17] Life is precious, and I do feel better for it.
[00:34:22] Dr. Makeba Williams: We certainly can appreciate that, right? You are having this opportunity to value the life you have, and that is critically important. You s- you mentioned this is not what you expected to have at 40, and certainly I see this in patients who are undergoing a natural menopause.
[00:34:42] Many of them are blindsided by the symptoms. They don’t expect to be going through perimenopause or some of these symptoms that will occur in the late 40s. So that can be really unsettling, and certainly if you are having this in your 30s and early 40s, it can be quite impactful. And having conversations about this having support is important.
[00:35:09] We know that one of the symptoms that occurs during the menopause, during a natural menopause transition, during perimenopause, we call that a window of vulnerability, as we see women can have a two to fourfold increased risk of depression during this time. And so for the patient who is navigating a breast cancer diagnosis, and as we just talked about, thinking about, “What does this mean for my children?
[00:35:38] What does this mean for my family? Also, how am I going to survive that?” That can feel like a very heavy mental load, and you didn’t expect that at age 40. So having a network of support and also thinking about, and it’s so important that we loop in and think about behavioral therapy and our mental health during this time period, so we can move from a point of fear and with support, getting to a place where we are optimally treating some of these additional symptoms and feelings that come during this time period.
[00:36:20] Claudia McConnell: Yeah. I think that’s so good. I think mental health is so important with this, and I’m very grateful that my PCP recognized that early on, and she knows that I’m a overthinker and I’m very cautious. And so she, she did right by helping me with that, and but I do, I feel stronger. I feel stronger now.
[00:36:46] It’s just taken time. It’s definitely taken a lot of time, and I think now, on- being on the other side of things, I like doing this today. I love trying to help others, and if I can see the bigger picture here, if I can tell another woman, “Go get y- go get a mammogram,” you know, “Do your early detections,” all of that’s so important.
[00:37:11] Or, you know, those menopause symptoms, they don’t have to be the way they are. There’s options out there. There’s so many great, new, upcoming things that can help make your life better.
[00:37:25] Dr. Makeba Williams: For far too long, there has been too much silence about menopause, natural menopause, and certainly the conversations among breast cancer survivors and in the breast cancer treatment place have not been taking place.
[00:37:42] And that is why it is so important to have this real talk, real conversations, so that we can remove the mystery and the taboo, the silencing that keeps women from getting real treatment for these symptoms. It’s such an exciting time that we have good options available. We want to move from just surviving cancer treatment or just tolerating menopause.
[00:38:12] We want to move to a point where we can thrive during this time period. And so it is important to keep these conversations going, and I appreciate and I applaud you for sharing your story so that other women can be all the better for it.
[00:38:31] Claudia McConnell: Thank you, Dr. Williams. That means a lot. I- it’s really special to share my story and maybe help someone else out there.
[00:38:42] Dr. Makeba Williams: I’m certain that you are.
[00:38:45] Adam Walker: And I wanted to to ask a final question, if you don’t mind. This has been great to listen to, and I really appreciate just the honesty of the conversation. So our goal with each podcast is to give attention to what women are facing and what they’re grappling with, and we always like to leave with a piece of helpful advice.
[00:39:05] And so if there’s someone listening to this that’s facing menopause or it’s- experiencing unwanted symptoms, what’s kind of one thing you want them to take away from this conversation?
[00:39:17] Dr. Makeba Williams: Menopause, whether early, whether experienced naturally, is an opportunity to optimize health, to optimize your wellbeing, your quality of life.
[00:39:31] You don’t have to bare-knuckle this. You don’t have to grin and bear it. There are great treatment options available If your symptoms warrant it, you do not have to move through in silence or alone.
[00:39:50] Adam Walker: That’s great advice.
[00:39:53] Claudia McConnell: I think just knowing how strong I am I’m stronger than I ever thought possible, and I’m humbled from this experience and just asking for help, you know, when I need it, when I feel like I need it.
[00:40:09] I’ve never been good about that. But the whole picture, mental health, physical health, emotional, all of it is so important and just taking care of yourself, but you have to feed yourself so you can help feed your family, feed my children. And I think that I’m just more intentional with my day-to-day, and like I said, I’m just, I’m really grateful.
[00:40:37] Adam Walker: Well, that’s a great place to end. I appreciate both of you so much for sharing what you shared on the show. It’s been really insightful, very helpful. Dr. Williams, Claudia, thank you for joining us on the show today.
[00:40:48] Claudia McConnell: Thank you. Thank you.
[00:40:55] Adam Walker: Thanks for listening to Real Pink, a weekly podcast by Susan G. Komen. For more episodes, visit realpink.komen.org, and for more on breast cancer, visit komen.org. Make sure to check out @susangkomen on social media. I’m your host, Adam. You can find me on Twitter @ajwalker or on my blog, adamjwalker.com.