358. What Is True Health? Why Your Menstrual Cycle Matters More Than How You Look
The Hypothalamic Amenorrhea PodcastShow Notes
In this episode, Dani, Mishi, and Abby sit down to unpack a question that most people think they know the answer to…What does it actually mean to be healthy? Because right now, we’re being flooded with wellness advice, trends, and “healthy” lifestyles… But much of what’s being sold as health is actually just a look. And that’s where things start to break down. In this conversation, we challenge the mainstream definition of health and bring it back to what actually matters: 👉 your physiology 👉 your menstrual cycle 👉 and your overall well-being (not just how your body looks) We talk about why your cycle should be front and center in the health conversation and how ignoring it is one of the biggest blind spots in modern wellness. In this episode, we cover: Why most “health” advice is actually selling you an aesthetic The difference between looking healthy vs. being healthy Why your menstrual cycle is a key indicator of true health How to use your cycle (charting/FAM) as a diagnostic tool The disconnect between diet culture and female physiology How societal conditioning shapes your definition of health The mental and emotional side of health (that often gets ignored) Why many women are praised for habits that are actually harming them How to redefine health in a way that actually supports your body Key Takeaway: Health isn’t something you can see at a glance. It’s reflected in how your body is functioning and for women, your menstrual cycle is one of the clearest signals you have. If your version of health is costing you your cycle, your energy, or your relationship with food… it’s worth asking: 👉 Is it actually health? Or just what you’ve been taught to chase?
Metabolism article and video: https://www.thehasociety.com/articles/why-weight-gain-happens-during-hypothalamic-amenorrhea-recovery
Learn more about HHAP: https://www.holistichapractitioner.com/
Work 1:1 with us to get your period back http://thehasociety.com/coaching
Visit us on YouTube https://youtube.com/c/danisheriff
Follow us on IG http://instagram.com/thehasociety http://instagram.com/danisheriff https://instagram.com/ashley_marie_smith_ https://www.instagram.com/itsmishigarcia https://www.instagram.com/abbylowekey/
The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician.
More from The Hypothalamic Amenorrhea Podcast
In this episode we answer listener questions that range from: - I used to menstruate at X weight, why not now? - Cycling going backward when REDUCING coffee, is this possible?! - How does BC affect lab work & more - and we address a listener comment from a past episode, explaining that honestly, having HA probably isn’t very feminist either.
If you’ve ever thought, “I’ll do what it takes to get my period back…I just really don’t want to gain THAT much weight,” you’re going to relate to Ali. Ali spent years in and out of recovery, sometimes bleeding, sometimes not, but never really letting go of the food control or trusting her body. And when she finally decided she wanted to become a mom, she had to face the thing she’d been afraid of since childhood...allowing her body to change without knowing exactly where it would land. We talk about her years of “quasi-recovery,” trying to find a way to recover while staying thin, the very real fear of weight gain, and what changed when she finally said, essentially, screw it, I’m doing this. Once Ali went all-in, she got her first period in about 50 days, ovulated, and eventually got pregnant on her third ovulation. If you’re currently trying to figure out how to recover without having to fully surrender to recovery…this episode is for you.
Mady thought she’d go all-in on HA recovery, get her period back in 3 months and move on with her life. Instead, recovery took about a year and forced her to completely rethink health, her identity as the “healthy girl,” weight gain and her need for control. Ironically, it wasn’t until she stopped making recovery the center of her life and started actually LIVING again that her period finally came back.
You've lost your period, you know you're not pregnant... the good news is it's probably just something called hypothalamic amenorrhea. Easy to understand and simple to resolve but surprisingly difficult to actually execute. In this episode we walk you through why you should be relieved that it's not something else like polycystic ovaries, premature ovarian insufficiency or early menopause and how to approach it!
You've gained weight, you've been eating more food consistently, you've even reduced or stopped working out. This isn't making SENSE! I get it and as a coach who works with many women with amenorrhea all of the time, this isn't an uncommon concern.