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If you feel like you're eating well, exercising, and trying to manage stress, but your energy, weight, or symptoms still aren't improving, this episode will help you understand why.

In this episode of It's Not Just Menopause, I walk through the first thing I assess when a woman tells me she's "doing everything right" and still feels exhausted, foggy, or stuck.

It's not calories.
It's not macros.
It's not another supplement.

It's load.

As women move through perimenopause and menopause, the body's tolerance for stress, under-fueling, and over-functioning changes. When total load stays high for too long, even healthy habits can start to backfire.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why "doing everything right" can actually keep symptoms stuck in midlife

• What stress really looks like in the menopausal body (beyond feeling anxious)

• Why pushing harder with food and exercise often makes things worse

• How nervous system load impacts energy, weight, sleep, and hormones

• Why regulation has to come before optimization in menopause

I also touch on tools some women use to understand their stress and recovery patterns, including apps like Peak Watch, and why data is only helpful when you know how to interpret it through a menopause-specific lens.

This episode is for you if:

• You're exhausted no matter how much sleep you get

• Exercise leaves you drained instead of energized

• You feel wired but tired

• Your metabolism feels unpredictable or stalled

• You've been told to "just try harder" and it's not working

If this episode resonated, here are a few ways to go deeper:

• Take the What's Really Behind Your Menopause Symptoms? Quiz Get clarity on what's actually driving your symptoms and what to focus on first.

  👉 cindistickle.com/quiz

• Book a Menopause Hormone Clarity Call
  If you're ready for personalized guidance and a clear starting point, this is where we talk.

• Share this episode
  Know someone who's doing "everything right" and still struggling? Send this episode their way.

And if you haven't already, make sure you're subscribed to It's Not Just Menopause so you don't miss upcoming episodes focused on stress, metabolism, and nervous system support in midlife.

If you're over 40 and feel like you're doing everything "right" but still waking up exhausted, snapping at your partner, and relying on coffee just to function, this episode will help explain why.

Many women in perimenopause and menopause assume nothing is working because they aren't disciplined enough or haven't found the right plan yet. In reality, hormonal and stress-related changes alter how your body responds to food, exercise, sleep, and pressure — which is why old strategies stop working.

In this episode, I break down why menopause symptoms don't improve by trying harder, how chronic stress and hormonal shifts keep the body in protection mode, and why starting in the wrong place leaves women feeling depleted and frustrated.

This episode lays the groundwork for understanding what your body actually needs now — and why effort alone isn't the answer anymore.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

• Why nothing seems to be working the same way after 40

• How perimenopause and menopause change your stress response

• Why willpower and pushing harder often backfire

• The connection between exhaustion, irritability, and coffee dependence

• Why symptom-focused fixes don't stick in menopause

• What needs to come first before real change can happen

Resources Mentioned:

Free Workshop:

It's Not Just Hormones™! Why Nothing's Working in Menopause — And the 3 Things You Need Now to Stop Waking Up Exhausted, Arguing With Your Partner, and Relying on Coffee Just to Function (Even If You Think You've Tried Everything)
https://cindistickle.com/its-not-just-hormones-workshop

If New Year's resolutions keep falling apart, especially in your 40s, it's not because you lack discipline or motivation. It's because your physiology doesn't respond to pressure the same way it used to.

In this episode, we break down why traditional resolutions backfire in perimenopause, how hormonal and stress-related changes affect your energy, metabolism, sleep, and motivation, and why "trying harder" often makes symptoms worse instead of better.

This isn't about willpower, restriction, or starting over in January. It's about understanding how your cortisol, blood sugar, sleep, and stress response shift in perimenopause — and what your body actually needs now to feel steadier and more predictable.

Whether you're dealing with fatigue, afternoon crashes, bloating, stubborn weight changes, poor sleep, or that constant feeling of being "on edge," this episode will help you understand why resolutions stopped working and what to focus on instead.

⭐ In this episode, you'll learn:
Why New Year's resolutions fail more often in perimenopause

How hormonal changes affect your response to stress, food, and exercise

Why willpower-based approaches stop working in midlife

How January pressure can worsen fatigue, bloating, and sleep issues

What to focus on instead of resolutions if you want lasting results

How stability and support help your physiology respond — not resist

⭐ Free Resource Mentioned
Not sure what's actually driving your symptoms right now? Take my free menopause quiz to identify your biggest hormone and stress patterns and your best place to start. 👉 https://cindistickle.com/quiz

⭐ Get Personalized Support
If you're tired of guessing, pushing through, or being told everything is "normal," book a Menopause Hormone Clarity Call. We'll look at what's really driving your symptoms and what will actually support your body. 👉 Schedule here

⭐ Join the Community
Come join us inside It's Not Just Menopause: The No-BS Support Group for Women Who Want Real Answers — a supportive space for women who want practical, physiology-first guidance without shame, judgment, or extremes. 👉 Join group here