Watch the podcast, above, or listen below.

Sarah and I discuss the key things women need to know to advocate effectively for themselves and navigate our complex health care system in midlife, particularly with respect to their perimenopause and menopausal symptoms. Sarah explains why women often require a team of caregivers instead of one doctor, your rights as a patient, the difference between conventional pharmaceutical BHRT and compounded hormones, and what to do if you’re questioning the advice you’ve been given. I share my experience building my own team and navigating the health care system since dropping into full menopause very suddenly in 2020. There are so many great tips in this episode – don’t skip this one!

Grab Wendy and Sarah’s free peri/menopause checklist, here: www.wendymccallum.com/perichecklist

Watch the podcast, above, or listen below.

Inspired by a song called “I’ve Got No More Fuc#$ to Give” that I stumbled across on YouTube,  Sarah and I share how our feeling of having “no more fuc#$ to give” has shown up in our personal and work lives, and how common a headspace this seems to be for all women in midlife.

We discuss why this is happening, from a social, emotional, and hormonal perspective, and what to do about it if you’re feeling guilty about caring less. We also consider whether this midlife phenomenon isn’t really more a “shifting of fuc#$” as opposed to “having less fuc#$”, and how that shifting might benefit you as well as the other people in your life, including your children. Are you the adult you want your kids to become?

Join Sarah and me for a spirited, fun conversation with an important undercurrent: it’s totally OK to start focussing on you again as you move into your...

Watch the podcast, above, or listen below. 

On my 50^th birthday, I reflect on my life to date, my fears about hitting 50, and the surprising (and refreshing!) reality that came with the actual day. I share my goals for this decade including my commitment to having “fun for fun’s sake” and “filling up my joy bucket” to help me in the transition to empty nester that is coming soon.

“This is 50” will be a regular installment of the podcast going forward – sometimes featuring a 50-something guest with a story to share around her 50s to date, sometimes an update on my 50^th year, and sometimes a conversation with the always-popular Bite-Sized Balance co-host, Dr. Sarah Baillie.

Free resources here: www.wendymccallum.com/learnwithwendy

Watch the podcast, above, or listen below.

Sarah and I reflect on the first Women Talking Frankly coaching program that we ran in the early summer, including a discussion of our favourite parts and the lessons we learned from the incredible group of women in this first iteration of the missing conversation around women’s burnout, hormones, and midlife.

We talk about new bits of the missing conversation that bear exploring in future episodes, including the complicated nature of women’s libido in midlife, the gifts of pelvic floor therapy, the importance of boundaries when it comes to creating a life you don’t want to escape from, and weight management during perimenopause and menopause.

Grab our free perimenopause/menopause checklist, here: www.wendymccallum.com/perichecklist

Watch the podcast, above, or listen below.

Bite-Sized Balance is back!

In the Season 2 opener, Sarah and I reminisce about how we spent our summer, including our shared “dirty little secret” and our deepening friendship.

We update listeners on our personal hormonal journeys and experiences with hormone replacement therapy and Sarah explains the unexpected possible impact of the COVID-19 vaccine on her cycle.

We discuss the piecemeal nature of care for women in midlife in Canada and the role the patriarchy’s approach to women’s health plays in that.

Grab our new perimenopause/menopause checklist, here: www.wendymccallum.com/perichecklist

Watch the podcast, above, or listen below.

In today's episode, I interview Robyn Berman, who pursued a second career in the challenging primary care field of midwifery at the age of 40 while navigating parenthood and midlife (and all that comes with that.) 

I share a bit of my own birth story, and Robyn provides some insight from the midwife and doula perspective. Robyn talks about her recent burnout and decision to leave clinical practice, and what she learned from that. Robyn and I discuss the role of perimenopause and estrogen in their own “midlife rebirths” and reflect back on what we’ve learned in the first half of our lives around balance and stress management as busy working moms.

Watch the podcast, above, or listen below.

Ladies and GENTLEMAN: We have our first official male guest on the Bite-Sized Balance Podcast!

Chase Chewning is a health coach and host of the popular wellness podcast Ever Forward Radio, and he’s also no stranger to burnout. Chase joins me to share his personal story of multiple burnouts & recovery and what he’s learned along the way. 

Chase and I talk about the differences between men and women’s burnout, the warning signs, the importance of self-care for men (and what that word really means), and how to support someone you care about who is nearing or in burnout.

Got a guy in your life you love (partner, brother, dad, or son) with a lot on his plate? This is a very timely topic given the increase in burnout rates during the recent pandemic, so don’t skip this one!

Find out more about Chase here: https://chasechewning.com/

Watch the podcast, above, or listen below.

Sarah and I share a very exciting announcement (Women Talking Frankly: The Missing Conversation About Hormones, Burnout, and Midlife is officially open for registration!) and answer a couple of great questions from Bite-Sized Balance listeners around how to close the stress cycle when you get home from work (and it feels like you’re just starting your second job!) and practical steps women can take NOW to improve their sleep during midlife. This episode is jam-packed with useful information on topics we simply don’t talk about enough as women!

WTF Program Info: https://www.wendymccallum.com/wtf

Watch the podcast, above, or listen below.

There's also a new Bite-Sized Balance Episode today, and it's a really special one. 

My sister Meg and I share our recent experiences in the “sandwich”- raising a herd of teens while caring for a dying parent.

The last few years of our Dad’s degenerative condition included a medi-vac flight home from Florida, a grueling touch-and-go 4-month hospital stay, a year of around-the-clock in-home care, and our Dad's eventual passing two years ago. 

We share our most important lessons learned around navigating the care system, supporting each other and our mom, protecting our own wellness and fulfilling our many other responsibilities as parents and business owners in the process.

While there were lots of tough moments in those few years for our family, there were also so many unexpected gifts, including lots of very funny stories, many of which we share in this episode. 

...

Watch the podcast, above, or listen below.

Dr. Sarah Baillie’s back to answer some fantastic questions from Bite-Sized Balance listeners around how to manage hormonal shifts and some of the common symptoms of perimenopause and menopause better, including increased joint pain, breakthrough bleeding between periods, vaginal dryness and discomfort (“GSM”), and low mood and mood swings.

This episode is jam-packed with useful information on topics we simply don’t talk about enough as women!

FOR MORE INFO AND WAITLIST for the New Group Program WTF (Women Talking Frankly): The Missing Conversation About Hormones, Burnout & Midlife, go to www.wendymccallum.com/list