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.

I interview my friend and colleague Pam, who suffered a severe uterine prolapse in October 2018 while at a spin class. Pam shares her story of diagnosis, treatment, and recovery in the hope it might help other women who are struggling with prolapse and feeling alone and unsupported. Pam and I discuss the piecemeal nature of women’s health care, the importance of candid conversations around women’s reproductive health, and the role a good pelvic floor therapist can play when it comes to thriving in midlife. If you don’t know what a uterine prolapse, pessary, or vaginal vault suspension is, listen to this episode. To improve women’s pelvic floor wellness, we need to start talking about it more!

Prolapse Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/184143085606

Association for Pelvic Organ Prolapse Support: https://www.pelvicorganprolapsesupport.org/

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.

Sobercurious or looking to drink a little less? You won't want to miss this episode!

I interview fellow This Naked Mind Coach, Martha Wright, about her decision to become alcohol-free and her midlife career transition from wine importer and vineyard owner to alcohol-free beverage expert & advocate.

Martha and I discuss women’s gray-area drinking and the revolutionary approach to changing your relationship with alcohol: the This Naked Mind philosophy. Martha provides a few of her best tips for living life fully (including visiting wine country!) while staying alcohol-free, along with her best picks for alcohol-free wines, spirits, and botanicals.

Find Martha’s picks list at www.clearpowercoaching.com/resources

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.

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.

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