Transitioning Through Menopause: 3 Tips for a Successful Experience

by Deborah Maragopoulos FNP | Apr 18, 2023 | Menopause, Hypothalamus, Women's Health | 0 comments

Transitioning through menopause can feel overwhelming for many women. Hot flashes, insomnia, brain fog, weight gain, and mood changes are common—but suffering is not inevitable. With the right support, mindset, and hormone strategy, transitioning through menopause can become a powerful time of renewal and strength.

Menopause happens to all of us women. Not all of us have an easy transition. Some women suffer for years from hot flashes, insomnia, brain fog, painful intercourse, weight gain, and fatigue.

You can make the transition through menopause so much easier, age more gracefully, and actually thrive with these three tips:

#1 Support your hypothalamus

The earlier you support your hypothalamus nutraceutically, the easier your transition through menopause will be. As soon as your hormones start to feel like they're out of balance and you start to get early signs of perimenopause with sleepless nights, hot flashes, increased PMS, brain fog, irregular periods, it's time to start supporting your hypothalamus.

One of the reasons I created Genesis Gold® to support your hypothalamus is to keep your Hormones in Harmony. That doesn't mean your ovaries are going to continue to make sex hormones after they've run out of eggs, which is what menopause is. It does mean that the rest of your endocrine glands, especially your adrenals, will help to support sex steroid metabolism. So you have more hormones on board going through menopause. And if you choose to use bioidentical hormone replacement therapy to ease the transition as well, supporting your hypothalamus with Genesis Gold® will help you metabolize those hormones much more safely.

Your hypothalamus needs at least 90 days of nutraceutical support in order to start to optimize its function. The longer you've been out of balance, the longer you'll need - one month per year you've been out of balance. Even if you're already through menopause and are suffering from postmenopause symptoms, it’s not too late to start supporting your hypothalamus with Genesis Gold®. If your symptoms are very severe - hot flashes multiple times a day, cannot sleep at all, brain fog is to the point where you're considering that you might have dementia, no libido whatsoever, and super irritable, then you would benefit by adding extra Sacred Seven® amino acids to your Genesis Gold® to ease the transition for the first one to three months. And then you can continue to take Genesis Gold® throughout the menopausal years.

I have found that my patients who support their hypothalamus with Genesis Gold® have a much easier transition through menopause and thrive. They don't look their age, they don't feel their age, they don't act their age.

#2 BHRT

To help ease your transition through menopause you may need to consider BioIdentical Hormone Replacement Therapy. Hormone replacement therapy is not recommended for all women going through menopause, especially if you have an active hormonally driven cancer or a strong family history of hormonal fed cancers. If you’re low risk, consider bioidentical hormone replacement therapy as you're transitioning through menopause.

The first hormone you're going to need is progesterone. In perimenopause, progesterone helps to regulate your cycles, mitigate PMS, and sleep at night.

Next, you're going to need some estrogen. Estradiol really helps with brain fog, staying asleep at night, and increasing your energy during the day. Estradiol can definitely help with your libido. Of course, if you're having urinary stress incontinence, vaginal dryness, or painful intercourse, you may need topical vaginal estrogen. My preference is vaginal estriol.

The third hormone that may be needed usually well after postmenopause is testosterone. I only recommend testosterone for my patients who have osteoporosis early in menopause or in postmenopause and if their estrogen/progesterone levels are well balanced and their libido is still not where they'd like it to be. Then small doses of testosterone can help. I never start with testosterone and never give estrogen without progesterone.

All of these hormones can be used transdermally. Estrogen can also be used sublingually and progesterone can be used orally. Now if you have any questions about how to transition through menopause as easily as possible, why don't you check out my Menopause Action Plan book.

Menopause is not an easy thing for any of us to go through. But with your own Menopause Action Plan, you will be able to develop a personalized plan with your healthcare provider that will work for you.

The next tip to transition through menopause as easily as possible is:

#3 Embrace the crone mindset

I know that word has negative connotations, but it actually means “crown”. Before society decided aging was a bad thing, historically cultures revered menopausal women. Why? Because they had the wisdom of experience to share with the younger generation. Menopausal women survived to help their communities navigate life’s challenges. They were the keepers of the secrets.

And this is your time now. This is your time to take care of yourself so that you can fulfill your purpose. Having a healing mindset in menopause will help you thrive. For me, embracing the Crone is a powerful position for my own well-being, my family's health, my patients, and my community.

I invite you to embrace menopause.

If you have any questions about transitioning through menopause, please join us in our Hormone Reboot Training where I answer your questions live. You can access it by signing up for my free Hormone Reboot Training.

Resources:

Effectiveness of BHRT

What is the best way to start transitioning through menopause?

The best way to begin transitioning through menopause is to support hormone balance early, address symptoms proactively, and work with a healthcare provider to create a personalized plan.

How long does transitioning through menopause last?

Transitioning through menopause (perimenopause to postmenopause) can last several years, depending on individual hormone patterns and overall health.

Is hormone replacement necessary when transitioning through menopause?

Not all women need hormone replacement. However, some benefit from bioidentical hormone therapy to reduce severe symptoms and improve quality of life.

Can you thrive while transitioning through menopause?

Yes. With proper hypothalamic support, balanced hormones, restorative sleep, and a positive mindset, many women thrive while transitioning through menopause.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Can your hypothalamus cause weight gain?

Yes. The hypothalamus is the master regulator of metabolism, controlling how your body stores and burns energy through its signaling to the thyroid, adrenals, and pancreas. When the hypothalamus becomes dysregulated by chronic stress, poor sleep, inflammation, or blood sugar instability, it defends a higher weight "set point" — causing the body to hold onto fat regardless of diet or exercise. This makes hypothalamic dysfunction an upstream root cause of stubborn weight gain.

What is a weight set point and why won't mine move?

A weight set point is the body weight your hypothalamus works to defend, calibrated over time by stress, sleep, hormones, and inflammation. When you diet, the hypothalamus perceives scarcity and responds by slowing metabolism, increasing hunger hormones, and suppressing satiety signals to return you to that set point. This is why most people regain lost weight within two to five years of conventional dieting — the set point itself was never recalibrated, only temporarily overridden.

Why do I gain weight under stress even when I'm not eating more?

Chronic stress raises cortisol, which disrupts blood sugar regulation, promotes abdominal fat storage, and signals the hypothalamus that the body is under threat. In survival mode, the hypothalamus defends fat stores and slows metabolism — so weight can increase even without any change in calorie intake. The stress chemistry, not the food, is driving the weight gain, which is why stress reduction is essential to any lasting metabolic reset.

Why do I regain weight after stopping GLP-1 medications?

GLP-1 medications work peripherally on appetite and gastric signaling, but they do not address the underlying hypothalamic dysregulation that sets your defended weight. Because the hypothalamic set point is never recalibrated, the body resumes defending its original weight once the medication stops — leading to significant regain. Long-term success requires restoring hypothalamic regulation so the set point itself lowers, rather than relying on appetite suppression alone.

How long does it take to reset your metabolism?

Genuine metabolic recalibration takes a minimum of 90 days, because the hypothalamus needs consistent signals of safety and sufficiency before it will lower its defended set point. This differs from a diet, which produces temporary suppression the body quickly corrects. A 90-day reset typically moves through three phases: stabilizing stress chemistry (days 1–30), rebuilding metabolic efficiency (days 31–60), and lowering the weight set point (days 61–90).

Why does my thyroid feel slow even though my labs are "normal"?

Under chronic stress, the body converts thyroid hormone into reverse T3, which blocks active thyroid receptors and slows metabolism at the cellular level — even when standard lab values appear normal. This means you can experience genuine symptoms of slow metabolism, such as fatigue, cold intolerance, and brain fog, while your thyroid panel looks unremarkable. Addressing the upstream hypothalamic and stress signaling often improves thyroid conversion and symptoms.

Is stubborn weight gain a willpower problem?

No. Stubborn weight gain is a signaling problem, not a willpower problem. The hypothalamus governs weight through survival mechanisms that operate below conscious control — defending its set point by slowing metabolism and increasing hunger when it perceives threat. No amount of discipline can override this system; lasting change comes from restoring hypothalamic regulation through reduced stress, balanced blood sugar, restorative sleep, and targeted nutritional support.

About the Author - Deborah Maragopoulos FNP

Known as the Hormone Queen®️, I’ve made it my mission to help everyone - no matter their age - balance their hormones, and live the energy and joy their DNA and true destiny desires. See more about me my story here...

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Last Updated: February 25, 2026