Know Thyself E176 - Dr. Mindy Pelz: Why Midlife Feels So Disorienting (And What It’s Trying to Teach You)
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Dec 16, 2025 Dr. Mindy Pellis, a functional health expert and bestselling author, dives deep into the complexities of menopause and its impact on women's lives. She sheds light on alarming statistics linking hormonal shifts to major life changes like divorce and suicide. Mindy also discusses the importance of reclaiming one's identity in midlife, encouraging women to embrace their inner worth and set boundaries. Offering insights on neuroscience and trauma healing, she empowers listeners with strategies for personal transformation and the power of solitude during life's transitions.
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Menopause Rewires The Brain For Leadership
- Menopause is a neurobiological rewiring that prunes people-pleasing circuits and readies women for independent leadership.
- This shift evolved to repurpose energy into fitness, cognition, and social leadership in later life.
Grandmothers Shaped Human Survival
- The grandmother hypothesis suggests postmenopausal women increased species survival by foraging and caregiving.
- Post-reproductive roles boosted social, cognitive, and language development across tribes.
Evacuating Through The Fires Shifted Her Life
- Mindy evacuated from the Palisades fires multiple times and felt acute trauma, memory loss, and dissociation.
- She isolated to reduce input, moved to Santa Cruz, and used solitude to heal and write her book.
