Recently I had a great conversation with Dana from Menopause Made Easy. Which made me realize that I've never really addressed menopause — or its cute younger cousin, perimenopause — here on my own blog.

I've been skirting around this for far too long. Pretending — at least to the outside world and Instagram-verse — that it's not happening. To me or the people around me.

In fact, most of the world is also pretending. I mean, all the celebrities are focusing on anti-aging — Jennifer Aniston and her Smart Water, Nicole Kidman and her flawless, frozen face.

I get it. The stakes are high for celebs. Getting older = getting canceled, at least when it comes to landing a starring role.

But what about the rest of us? Should perimenopause, menopause and postmenopause really be something that we should endure alone, and in silence?

Should it be something that we only talk about if/when we notice that a friend is also having hot flashes — or if she mentions it first?

Hell no!

Not-talking about it isn't helping any of us.

So, I'll be talking about it more, because I realize that the vast majority of the people who read my blog or get my weekly emails are either approaching peri or menopause, and they need some tips on how to navigate this — shall we say, interesting — time of life.

Top tip for navigating menopause

This leads me back to my conversation with Dana, who is a treasure trove of knowledge and resources for navigating menopause. She's a licensed Acupuncturist and Herbalist who has helped hundreds of women find relief during what can be a really challenging time of life.

In our live session, we talked about one of Dana's top tips — a topic that's near and dear to my heart.

Can you guess what it is?

No, it's not getting on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) right away. That requires an in-depth conversation with your doctor.

Instead, I'm talking about something you can start doing right now, this very minute — or certainly at your next meal.

I'm talking about eating a high fiber diet.

Eating a high fiber diet — one that's rich in fruit, vegetables, whole grains and beans and legumes — is often talked about when people want to reduce their cholesterol or lose weight.

But guess what?

It can help support hormonal balance during perimenopause and postmenopause.

So what are you waiting for?

If you're struggling with symptoms such as weight gain and hot flashes, try getting more of those healthy plant foods onto your plate.

For starters, you can browse the recipes here on my blog.

And you can also check out my conversation with Dana below…

Also, here's where you can find Dana (website) and on Instagram.

I hope you found today's post on menopause helpful. Let me know what you think by heading over to Instagram @thehealthycookingcoach— I'd love to hear from you!

Need more support for your healthy cooking journey?

Get on the waitlist for my monthly membership: the More Veggies Cooking Club

Each month, I provide new recipes and step-by-step cooking videos to help people learn more about healthy cooking and add yummy recipes to their rotation.

If you could use some more support for your healthy cooking game, sign up for the waitlist and I'll let you know when enrollment opens.