About
What happens in the gap between your last baby and your first hot flash? Dr. Mary Claire Haver sits down with Dr. Fran Haydanek — board-certified OB/GYN and the science communicator behind Paging Dr. Fran — to connect the dots most women are never shown. They unpack “reproductive hormone sensitivity”: why women whose brains react to hormone fluctuations with PMS, PMDD, or postpartum depression face a dramatically higher risk of depression in perimenopause — in the largest study to date, almost 13-fold — and why that history sits unread in your own chart.
They also get practical about diagnosis: why there’s no blood test for perimenopause, the conditions that mimic it — iron deficiency (and the new ferritin guidelines), thyroid disease, sleep apnea, diabetes — and what your pregnancy history predicts about your future health, from gestational diabetes to preeclampsia and heart disease. Because knowing your own history means you never have to be blindsided by symptoms that were completely predictable.
Guest links:
Dr. Fran Haydanek (Website): https://www.pagingdrfran.com/
Dr. Fran Haydanek (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/@PagingDrFran
Dr. Fran Haydanek (Instagram): https://www.instagram.com/pagingdrfran
Dr. Fran Haydanek (TikTok): https://www.tiktok.com/@pagingdrfran
Dr. Fran Haydanek (Threads): https://www.threads.com/@pagingdrfran
Dr. Fran Haydanek (Facebook): https://www.facebook.com/pagingdrfran/
I Did My Own Research (Apple Podcasts): https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/i-did-my-own-research/id1879906055
Books:
The New Perimenopause: https://thepauselife.com/pages/the-new-perimenopause-book
The New Menopause: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CKBZ4K1Z
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Medical Disclaimer: The information, including opinions and recommendations, on this platform is meant for informational and educational purposes only. Mary Claire Media, LLC, the unPAUSED podcast, and The ‘Pause Life are not medical organizations. Medical advice or medical diagnosis cannot be provided to you through the platform, any associated website, or customer portals. Using this platform does not establish a patient-physician relationship.