Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause

Black women are negotiating the different stages of menopause along with their ever evolving identifies, relationships, careers, responsibilities and societal tropes. This is a curated intergenerational exchange, a space for exploration, mentorship, intimacy and vulnerability around life, identity and change. It’s the excavation of the things that you need to know, but were never told. It’s the guide we wish we all had access to no matter our age.

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Episodes (42)

November 14, 2024 60 mins

Season of Orisii: The Burney Girls

Welcome to our 6th iteration of the ⁠Black Girl’s Guide to Surviving Menopause⁠ podcast: the Season of Orisii. Building on our international diasporic tour from last year, this season’s theme is Orisii, or ‘pairs’ in the Afric language of Yoruba. We’ve invited different types of pairs to explore the through-line between menarche and menopause. You […]
September 27, 2024 70 mins

Season of Orisii: Jasiatic Anderson Usher and Elsworth Usher

Welcome to our 6th iteration of the ⁠Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause⁠ podcast: the Season of Orisii. Building on our international diasporic tour from last year, this season's theme is Orisii, or 'pairs' in the Afric language of Yoruba. We've invited different types of pairs to explore the through-line between menarche and menopause. You will […]
August 1, 2024 74 mins

Season of Orisii: The Sisters Brown, adrienne and Autumn

Welcome to our 6th iteration of the ⁠Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause⁠ podcast: the Season of Orisii. Building on our international diasporic tour from last year, this season's theme is Orisii, or 'pairs' in the Afric language of Yoruba. We've invited different types of pairs to explore the through-line between menarche and menopause. You will […]
May 23, 2024 57 mins

Season of Orisii: Michelle Graham Freeman & Sterling Freeman

Welcome to our 6th iteration of the ⁠Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause⁠ podcast: the Season of Orisii. Building on our international diasporic tour from last year, this season's theme is Orisii, or 'pairs' in the Afric language of Yoruba. We've invited different types of pairs to explore the through-line between menarche and menopause. You […]
March 20, 2024 60 mins

Season of Orisii : gina Breedlove & Ash-lee Woodard Henderson

Welcome to our 6th iteration of the Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause podcast: the Season of Orisii. Building on our international diasporic tour from last year, this season's theme is Orisii, or 'pairs' in the Afric language of Yoruba. We've invited different types of pairs to explore the through-line between menarche and menopause. You […]

About

Black women are negotiating the different stages of menopause along with their ever evolving identifies, relationships, careers, responsibilities and societal tropes. This is a curated intergenerational exchange, a space for exploration, mentorship, intimacy and vulnerability around life, identity and change. It’s the excavation of the things that you need to know, but were never told. It’s the guide we wish we all had access to no matter our age.
  • Season of Orisii: The Burney Girls

    Welcome to our 6th iteration of the ⁠Black Girl’s Guide to Surviving Menopause⁠ podcast: the Season of Orisii. Building on our international diasporic tour from last year, this season’s theme is Orisii, or ‘pairs’ in the Afric language of Yoruba. We’ve invited different types of pairs to explore the through-line between menarche and menopause. You […]

  • Season of Orisii: Jasiatic Anderson Usher and Elsworth Usher

    Welcome to our 6th iteration of the ⁠Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause⁠ podcast: the Season of Orisii. Building on our international diasporic tour from last year, this season's theme is Orisii, or 'pairs' in the Afric language of Yoruba. We've invited different types of pairs to explore the through-line between menarche and menopause. You will […]

  • Season of Orisii: The Sisters Brown, adrienne and Autumn

    Welcome to our 6th iteration of the ⁠Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause⁠ podcast: the Season of Orisii. Building on our international diasporic tour from last year, this season's theme is Orisii, or 'pairs' in the Afric language of Yoruba. We've invited different types of pairs to explore the through-line between menarche and menopause. You will […]

  • Season of Orisii: Michelle Graham Freeman & Sterling Freeman

    Welcome to our 6th iteration of the ⁠Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause⁠ podcast: the Season of Orisii. Building on our international diasporic tour from last year, this season's theme is Orisii, or 'pairs' in the Afric language of Yoruba. We've invited different types of pairs to explore the through-line between menarche and menopause. You […]

  • Season of Orisii : gina Breedlove & Ash-lee Woodard Henderson

    Welcome to our 6th iteration of the Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause podcast: the Season of Orisii. Building on our international diasporic tour from last year, this season's theme is Orisii, or 'pairs' in the Afric language of Yoruba. We've invited different types of pairs to explore the through-line between menarche and menopause. You […]

  • BGG2SM Hits the Road Final Episode: Toronto and Puerto Rico!

    During 2023, the Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause continued to bushwack a maroon path for those menopause stories left at the margins by launching a diasporic tour that took our team to the UK, Harlem, Toronto, and Puerto Rico. Our intergenerational team has learned to hold the “both/and” dynamic tension of curating storytelling spaces […]

  • BGG2SM Hits the Road: The Harlem, NY Episode!

    Happy World Menopause Month! This year, the Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause has been deepening our intergenerational narrative shift work by co-creating peer learning exchanges to normalize the menopause experience of Black people in the UK, New York, Toronto, and Puerto Rico. We are also co-hosting intergenerational menopause storytelling events called "Orisii" ( "pairs" […]

  • BGG2SM Hits the Road: The UK Episode!

    This year, the Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause plans to deepen our intergenerational narrative shift work by co-creating peer learning exchanges to normalize the menopause experience of Black people in the UK, New York, Toronto, and Puerto Rico. We are also co-hosting intergenerational menopause storytelling events called "Orisii" ( "pairs" in Yoruba). The peer […]

  • Season 5: The Magical Menopausal Multiverse School Bus Tour!

    This year, the Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause plans to deepen our intergenerational narrative shift work by co-creating peer learning exchanges to normalize the menopause experience of Black people in the UK, New York, Toronto, and Puerto Rico.  We want to take you all along with us on our Magical Menopausal Multiverse School Bus tour! […]

  • Welcome to Black Technologies: BGG2SM Season 4 Recap!

    Welcome to the O. Estelle Butler Intragalactic Train Station, where all of our Milky Way is always within your reach. Please follow the illuminated paths to the ticket kiosk, your train line, and other needs you may have about the station. This is Omisade Burney-Scott and welcome to ‘Black Technologies of the Menopausal Multiverse.’ The […]

  • Ethos

    Black Girl’s Guide to Surviving Menopause measures our impact by the continuation of expanding and normalizing the conversations and understanding around menopause to be inclusive and centering all Black people—all gender identities, sexual expression, and ages. There is a growing ecosystem of Black people talking about menopause and aging. Black Girl’s Guide to Surviving Menopause […]

  • From Zane to Judy Blume

    There is a growing ecosystem of people talking about menopause and aging. The Black Girl’s Guide to Surviving Menopause sees ourselves as menopausal alchemists, doulas, cartographers, and advocates and has taken up an intentional role in ushering in intergenerational Black voices and narratives into the menopausal landscape.   We see our intergenerational work, healing, and […]

  • Light and Shadow: The Politics of Body Liberation

    “Above all else, Our politics initially sprang from the shared belief that Black women are inherently valuable, that our liberation is a necessity not as an adjunct to somebody else’s may because of our need as human persons for autonomy… We realize that the only people who care enough about us to work consistently for […]

  • What If?

    There is much we can learn– or maybe unlearn about menopause and aging if we apply a Speculative Fiction lens. Our current understanding of Speculative Fiction is tethered to science fiction and fantasy, and the way this genre broadens the story or narratives begging shared to include the potent age-old question of “what if.” This […]

  • Murphy's Law

    Since we launched the Black Girl’s Guide to Surviving Menopause, I have learned quite a bit about how Murphy’s Law plays a role in what we produce. We are all familiar with Murphy’s first law; if anything can go wrong, it will. However, I don’t think many of us know that there are two other […]

  • Made with Love…

    “If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.”  — Toni Morrison When I was a kid in the 1970s, School House Rock, short educational cartoon vignettes put to music, were ubiquitous on Saturday mornings. We learned about grammar, math and how the government […]

  • All You Gotta Do Is Say "Yes"!

    “This body does not bare destruction well. This body likes warm drops of rain and bare feet. Toes grounding in rich soil, and having my scalp greased. To move and to stretch just a little beyond reach, There is glory over there, a hallelujah in my feet. This body likes hot sun on bare shoulders, […]

  • Menopausal Multiverse Dispatch: Season 3 Recap!

    At the end of each podcast episode, I close by saying, “we will see you again on the dark side of the moon”. I chose this language because of the way moon phases have been divinely associated with menstruation throughout antiquity. The dark side of the moon is under the dominion of the crone, the […]

  • Grief, Rage and the Liminality of Menopause

    “Often, when people talk about going through “the change”, it brings up all the images of a tearful, rageful, sweaty and emotional woman. This journey is not seen or held up as a positive transformation with a spectrum of stages and manifestations, but an ending to be cloaked in fear. Another, more potent way to […]

  • Nothing but an OG Thang…

    Last year, in the middle of the pandemic, I was perusing through social media when something caught my eye. It was a post of the Original Bad Girl of Comedy, Luenell, modeling Savage x Fenty lingerie. BE STILL MY BEATING HEART! When I tell you our big sis/auntie Luenell was giving us something we could […]

  • Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause meets Stacy London and the State of Menopause!

    “There is no face of menopause. Why are there no celebrities and personalities out there really promoting menopause? It’s not a one comment conversation. It is not a one-time acknowledgement issue. It’s not a fad. This is a fact of life. And there’s nobody willing to take it on because frankly, I think they, it […]

  • Is There a Doctor in The House?

    The doctors are in the house!  You have asked for it and here it is! Black Girl’s Guide to Surviving Menopause is so excited to bring you all this fantastic interview with OB/GYNs Dr. Cindy Duke and Dr. Arianna Sholes-Douglas. We talked about what menopause is and what it is not, sex and menopause, menopause […]

  • Nonlinear

    “Transformation doesn’t happen in a linear way, at least not one we can always track. It happens in cycles, convergences, explosions. If we release the framyework of failure, we can realize that we are in iterative cycles, and we can keep asking ourselves—– how do I learn from this? Emotional growth is nonlinerar.” adrienne maree […]

  • From Calabash with Love

    “The calabash is a domesticated plant that depends on us for its survival, like wheat or almonds. Its closest wild relatives grow in Africa. When people domesticated the gourd, they bred a rugged, light-weight shell that could hold up for years. Archaeologists have found pieces of calabash dating back 11,000 in East Asia. In the […]

  • The Sweetest Taboo

    Before we jump in: a note on our content for this episode.  “The Sweetest Taboo” episode is a candid conversation with Sexologist Goody Howard about sexuality and sexual expression. It is created for adult audiences only. We advise listener discretion for graphic conversation about sexual expression, frank portrayal of sexuality, discussion of sex toys and […]

  • BONUS BIRTHDAY EPISODE: Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause Meets HBO's Lovecraft Country!

    It’s my birthday y’all!  So grateful for another rotation around the sun. So grateful for this 54 year old body that continues to carry me and teach me about how to love, heal and take risk to be more of who I am meant to be. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate […]

  • The Millennial Takeover!

    “As a culture worker who belongs to an oppressed people my job is to make revolution irresistible.” Toni Cade Bambara When my sister and I were little girls, we developed a skill set to be present in rooms with my mother and her best girlfriends without being detected. If we could be quiet and not […]

  • Sisters of the Yam

    “We are often ‘too busy’ to find time for solitude. And yet it is in the stillness that we also learn how to be with ourselves in a spirit of acceptance and peace. Then when we re-enter community, we are able to extend this acceptance to others. Without knowing how to be alone, we cannot […]

  • Can I get a Witness?

    When I was in my late 20s, I felt like I was going through a tremendous identity shift and growth spurt. The shift was from a more conventional aspirtationally bougie identity of my early 20s to one that was seeking to find my authentic self. The self at home in this body and understanding the […]

  • Healing is your birthright

    Emergency Care Of Open Wounds/When It Hurts by Indigo Calmly rinse the wound with copious amounts of cold tap water. This will significantly reduce the possibilities of infection. If available, use clean linen applied firmly against the wound to inhibit bleeding. If the pressure is not adequate, do it again. Another method allows the bottom […]

  • Between a rock and a hard place…

    Things I remember about being 12… Faded Glory jeans A terrible hair cut that took 2 years to grow out My parents got divorced Starting junior high school Being kissed for the first time Being pressured to have sex for the first time Starting my period  Starting a friendship that became a sisterhood that has […]

  • My Sister's Keeper…

    “I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.” ― audre lorde  When I started this podcast last year, I started with a vision of centering the narratives of Black women around menopause and ageing that resonated with me. Of course that meant that as […]

  • The Star of a Story

    ” we would never leave you. we would never leave you here. we would never leave the world like this. that’s why we put you here. you hear us? we put maps behind your eyes and over the entire sky. we put stories everywhere you stepped. but child services would have called it neglect.”  Dub […]

  • When Saturn Returns, Again…

    Many of us who follow astrology recall our first Saturn Return in our late 20’s. Some people refer to your Saturn Return as a “cosmic rites of passage”, a time period that happens between your 27th and 29th year of life and can last about 3 years (what fun). It is during that time that […]

  • Being Well is Gonna Cost You

    “There she is. . . the “too much” woman. The one who loves too hard, feels too deeply, asks too often, desires too much. There she is taking up too much space, with her laughter, her curves, her honesty, her sexuality. Her presence is as tall as a tree, as wide as a mountain. Her […]

  • Tea and Toddies

    ” Sister, You’ve been on my mind Sister, we’re two of a kind So sister, I’m keepin’ my eyes on you I betcha think I don’t know nothin’ But singin’ the blues Oh sister, have I got news for you I’m somethin’ I hope you think That you’re somethin’ too…” Miss Celie’s Blues, The Color […]

  • Gifts From The Oracle: The Muse and The Medicine

    North Carolina Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green drops blessings like ripe mango into our laps. Walls breathe a heavy sighs of relief as she shreds the puny narratives we have about who we are and our power to reanimate and reclaim our medicine… our magic. She calls forth specters who resemble our own shadows and […]

  • Aperture: Leo Season

    Lionsgate Stardate 080819 Sovereignty, Awakening, Creativity, Power, Prosperity, Portal, Stargate … Infinity. It’s Leo season and in this episode of The Black Girls Guide to Surviving Menopause, we are honored to share our interview with Leo Lana Garland with you!  Lana Garland IS aperture. She is the portal through which our diverse narratives as Black […]

  • It’s Cancer Season! Meet Crone Delores “Mama Dee” Eaton!

    Delores Sanky “Mama Dee” Eaton was born June 30, 1930 in Montgomery, Alabama. My mother, Mary Kinsey Mcconner Burney, Ibaiye, was born 16 days later on July 16th that same year in Pitt County, North Carolina. Though born under different circumstances and realities in the American south, their paths in life were oddly similar. If […]

  • Listener Letters!

    Hey Folks! The response to The Black Girls’ Guide to Surviving Menopause has been amazing! Thank you to all our new listeners and subscribers. We want to hear from you! Send us a listener letter to decolonizingthecrone@gmail and in the subject line put “LISTENER LETTER”. Your letters can be questions or thoughts that we can […]

  • The Dark Side of the Moon

    This is a new place. 52, divorced, one adult child, one preteen about to start middle school, parents gone, and reimagining what my work identity will be after 25 years of social justice work. It feels so foreign, exciting and scary. When did I arrive on the dark side of the moon? Am I alone […]

  • What is the Black Girls' Guide to Menopause?

    What is the Black Girls Guide to Surviving Menopause? Who is Omisade Burney-Scott and why does she want to curate spaces and dialogues which Black women over 50 that cultivates open conversations about “the change”, shapeshifting, menopause, love, life, white supremacy, patriarchy, moon phases and the crone identities? There is no guide, book, journal or […]

  • Is alcohol doing more damage in midlife than you realise? – with Prof David Nutt

    Most of us know alcohol isn’t ideal for our health. But the specific ways it affects the brain, gut, hormones and our sleep, and why those effects become more pronounced as we age, are less well understood. Leading psychiatrist and neuropsychopharmacologist Prof David Nutt joins Liz to explain exactly what happens in the body from the […]

  • The Tamsen Show podcast image

    How to Find the Meaning of Your Life (From Harvard's #1 Happiness Expert)

    Arthur C. Brooks is a happiness expert, Harvard University professor, and best-selling author. You live a good life, but you still feel unhappy. You put yourself out there, but every relationship seems to fail. You have your dream job, but something feels off. What is going on? In today’s episode of The Tamsen Show, Arthur […]

  • Eps 400: Why Your Midlife Symptoms Aren’t Just Hormones with Crystal Andrus Morisette

    No one tells you that the real shift in midlife isn’t just physical… It’s personal. In this conversation, we’re unpacking something that doesn’t get talked about enough,  how so many of us have been taught to override our needs, push through, and take care of everyone else… until our body finally says “I can’t keep […]

  • Bonus: When hormones are missed in mental health

    In this episode, Dr Louise Newson is joined by mental health nurses Jayne and Diane to discuss the often overlooked role of hormones in women’s mental health. Drawing on their experience working in mental health services, they share how hormonal changes are rarely considered when women present with symptoms such as anxiety, depression or mood […]

  • This Simple Mindset Shift Will Change the Way You See Your Life

    Life doesn’t always go according to plan.  And even the changes you choose can bring uncertainty, questions, and moments where you wonder what’s next.  Today’s episode will show you how to move forward and find something better on the other side.  In it, Mel sits down with Dr. Maya Shankar, a cognitive scientist, expert on […]

  • If Nothing Seems to Be Going Your Way, Listen to This

    Life doesn’t always go according to plan.  And even the changes you choose can bring uncertainty, questions, and moments where you wonder what’s next.  Today’s episode will show you how to move forward and find something better on the other side.  In it, Mel sits down with Dr. Maya Shankar, a cognitive scientist, expert on […]

  • “I wish I was chic-er!” Fearne on personal style and learning new skills

    What’s been going on for you this week? What are you happy about, and what’s making you not so happy? Fearne’s here with more chat about what’s putting her and the Happy Place team in a good mood, and what’s feeling a bit rubbish …and Fearne has really really been feeling rubbish this week… This […]

  • S4 Ep198: Preventing Dementia: Estrogen? Testosterone? Prevogen?

    Preventing Dementia: Estrogen? Testosterone? Prevogen™?On November 10, 2025, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Dr. Marty Markary, along with the head of the FDA, RFK Jr, announced that hormone therapy would “reduce Alzheimer’s by 35%.” Where does that statistic come from? And should all women take hormone therapy to stave off dementia later in life? In […]

  • JoBeth Williams Returns to Talk Hollywood and Becoming a Grandmother

    JoBeth Williams returns to HFCT! We are thrilled to continue our conversation with actress and producer JoBeth Williams.  JoBeth is busier than ever with the movie, Not Without Hope, and producing the recent Actor Awards.  She also shares more great stories from her past movies including Kramer vs. Kramer. Her most exciting new position is […]

  • image of woman with dark hair named Mary Claire Haver

    Brain Fog, Memory Loss, and Alzheimer’s Risk During Menopause with Dr. Lisa Mosconi

    In this episode of unPAUSED, Dr. Mary Claire Haver continues her conversation with Dr. Lisa Mosconi, neuroscientist and associate professor of neuroscience in neurology and radiology at Weill Cornell Medicine, New York Presbyterian Hospital. Dr. Mosconi directs the Alzheimer’s Prevention Program, including the NIH-funded Women’s Brain Initiative and the Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic, and was recently […]

  • EP. 211 – Menopausal Skin Concerns and Rescue with Debbi Barber

    In this eagerly anticipated return to the podcast, Dr. Fiona Lovely welcomes back skincare innovator, Debbi Barber, to share her experience treating our menopausal skin and give us her best tips to looking great, no matter your age. Their last conversation became one of the top three most downloaded episodes of last year, and this […]

  • Step Three to a Regulated Nervous System: Building your Capacity

    In this episode, I’m taking you into the third step of regulating your nervous system — and this is where things really begin to shift. We’ve already explored awareness and regulation, but if you’ve ever felt like you’re still getting pulled into stress again and again… this is the missing piece. Today, I’m talking about […]

  • Step Three to a Regulated Nervious System: Building your Capacity

    In this episode, I’m taking you into the third step of regulating your nervous system — and this is where things really begin to shift. We’ve already explored awareness and regulation, but if you’ve ever felt like you’re still getting pulled into stress again and again… this is the missing piece. Today, I’m talking about […]

  • 52 – Why psychiatrists must start thinking about hormones

    In this episode, Dr Louise Newson is joined by consultant psychiatrist Dr Gareth Jarvis to explore the important, and often overlooked, connection between hormones and mental health.   Louise and Gareth discuss how hormonal changes can often contribute to depression, anxiety, sleep disturbance and severe mental illnesses. They also explore why psychiatrists are rarely trained to consider hormones […]

  • The Tamsen Show podcast image

    If You’re Going Through a Friendship Breakup You Need To Hear This

    If you have ever lost a friend and felt like you weren’t allowed to grieve it, this episode is for you. In this deeply personal solo episode, Tamsen opens up about one of the most painful experiences women carry quietly: the friendship breakup. Whether it ended with a blowup, a slow fade, or a silence […]

  • Eps 399: You’re Doing All the Sleep Tips — So Why Are You Still Awake?

    If sleep hygiene and all the “sleep tips” aren’t working for you… this is why. This is the final episode in our sleep miniseries, and I really wanted to bring everything together in a way that actually makes sense for your body. Because so many women are stuck thinking they just need more discipline, a […]

  • The Ultimate Guide to Women’s Sexual Health, Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) & Menopause

    This episode is a MUST listen. Mel calls it one of the most important conversations she has ever had on The Mel Robbins Podcast.  Most women don’t know this, and this information could save the life of a woman you love.  If you are thinking you’re “fine,” while quietly suffering through symptoms that are treatable, […]

  • Ruth Langsford: “We all go through sh*t!” My life with divorce and dementia

    How do you cope when you’re going through a really rough time? Broadcaster Ruth Langsford has needed a balance of big cries, therapy, and just choosing to dust herself off and get to work. In this chat with Fearne, Ruth talks through the ways counselling and female friendships are moving her through the grief of […]

  • The beauty advice I got completely wrong

    After nearly 40 years researching health, beauty and wellness, Liz has learned that looking well and looking young are two very different things – and that the most powerful beauty advice she ever received had nothing to do with what you put on your skin.   Plus: why period pains can get worse in midlife, […]

  • The Truth About Weight Loss Injections In Menopause (GLP-1)

    Can weight loss injections help with menopause weight gain?In this week’s episode, Dr Naomi Potter is joined by menopause specialist Dr Kari Nightingale to unpack one of the biggest topics in women’s health right now: GLP-1 weight loss medications. They discuss why weight can become so much harder to manage in perimenopause and menopause, how […]

Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause

Black women are negotiating the different stages of menopause along with their ever evolving identifies, relationships, careers, responsibilities and societal tropes. This is a curated intergenerational exchange, a space for exploration, mentorship, intimacy and vulnerability around life, identity and change. It’s the excavation of the things that you need to know, but were never told. […]

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