Six months ago I won a Life Coaching Scholarship; part of my winning the scholarship was to ‘Pay it Forward’. After working with my coach and figuring out the 7 year process to find my menopausal bliss; I decided to share it with other menopausal friends. My goal to ‘Pay it Forward’ was to help women find good health and perhaps save them some steps in the process.

I remember my first hot flash. I was 44 years old and standing in my office, suited up for business. My back was on fire, my chest was on fire and my fore head and upper lip had beads of perspiration. I wanted to shut the door, pull the shades and take off every article of clothing. This was just the beginning…weight gain, loss of energy and sex drive, all took its toll on my life. I lost a lover in the process and my passion for my business died. I spent a fortune on doctors and lab test. I switched doctors and went to a female doctor, thinking she would better understand what I was going through. She didn’t.

At age 49, I went to my new female doctor armed with a “MORE” magazine article regarding HRT. I poured my heart and soul out to her; only to be told that she would prescribe an anti-depressant prior to trying HRT. I left her office angry and hurt. I hated the anti-depressant 90 day trial and never reported the results to the doctor. At 50, with my weight beyond 235 lbs on my 5ft 8 1/2in frame, my energy gone, my anger barely contained I went back to

the Doctor armed again with the HRT article. I was not leaving the office with out a prescription for HRT therapy. I had to pay for yet another expensive round of blood work before she finally put me on ClimaraPro a synthetic HRT. Life improved somewhat but I still did not feel I had reached optimum health. I choose a patch to administer the drug and it irritated my skin; every week I created a circle sore on my body. I looked like I had been abducted by aliens.

And, this is when the divine intervened. On a whim to leave the cold tundra of Northern America, I booked a flight to Belize. I spent a month traveling around the country and spent some time in the costal town of Placencia. While lying on the beach a bright and cheery lovely women traveler struck up a conversation with me. As women of a certain age we got to the topic of menopause. Caren shared her story and clearly it was what I needed to hear. She sent me home with the assignment to read, T.S. Wiley’s book, “SEX, LIES and MENOPAUSE”.

Within two weeks of being home I went to my doctor and told her about the Wiley Protocol. She sent me to an HRT specialist; she wanted to shoot a pellet in me and wasn’t interested in learning a new protocol. I called my friend Caren, now in Santa Barbra, and asked for help to find a doctor knowledgeable about the protocol. She sent me to the best; Dr Patricia Ryan, a 300 mile road trip from my home.

Nine months later, I just hosted an informational seminar on bio-identical hormone replacement therapy with Dr Patricia Ryan as our guest speaker. Thirty women from my circle of friends and acquaintances showed up to learn and help me accomplish my ‘Pay It Forward’ goal. I started the seminar with my testimonial and I stood before them at 206 lbs, energized, sexually alive and feeling like my ole’ wonderful self again. I wore a pair of awesome, sexy jeans that were in the back of my closet for someday. I shared from my heart and if I save just one of them a step in their journey to better health, I win.