https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/i69fwr/malone1_-_10_3_22_1128_AM7r60j.mp3
EPISODE SUMMARY:
Dr. Sharon Malone, women’s health expert and chief medical officer of Alloy, is using her years of experience to help educate midlife women on how menopause affects our bodies. In today’s episode, we sat down with Dr. Malone to discuss post-menopausal bleeding, how HRTS affect menopause, new symptoms we experience after perimenopause, and how her company, Alloy, is helping women in midlife receive access to education and medical care.
First, we asked Dr. Malone to explain what exactly it means to be “post-menopausal.” She told us how while many people refer to the stage after perimenopause as “post-menopause”, it’s more accurate to simply call it menopause. Menopause is not a single moment or event; from a year after your last period, you are in menopause for the rest of your life. However, while bleeding during perimenopause is considered normal, bleeding after you’ve entered menopause should be watched. A cancer that can occur in midlife is endometrial cancer, and one of the symptoms is bleeding after perimenopause. It’s important to check in with your body and be aware of any abnormal bleeding or changes. Even forgetting to take an HRT, hormone replacement therapy, can cause breakthrough bleeding. However, resuming taking your HRTs can help stop the bleeding and reset your body’s hormones. When asked if women can still take their HRTs after beginning menopause, Dr. Malone spoke about how recently, the North American Menopause Society came out with a study discussing this very issue. They said that according to their research, as long as there are no underlying health conditions such as breast cancer, blood clots, or undiagnosed bleeding, there is no need to stop taking hormones at a certain time or age. Women who have previously had breast cancer are not candidates for taking HRTs, but only having a family history of breast cancer does not mean you are unable to take HRTs. There is a lot of misinformation about the connection between HRTs and breast cancer, and through her work, Dr. Malone strives to help give women access to as much information as she can. She wants women to decide to take or not take hormones based on their own feelings, not because they are afraid.
Perimenopause comes with a slew of physical, mental, and emotional symptoms, many of which can be taxing on the body. When asked about symptoms during menopause, Dr. Malone said that some perimenopausal symptoms such as brain fog, mood disturbances, and hot flashes may start to improve once you’ve entered menopause. However, while some symptoms will get better, new symptoms may arise. Vaginal dryness and thinning, vulva changes, UTIs, and loss of bone density are all changes that can occur during menopause. Other symptoms include skin wrinkling, dryness, and itchiness, as well as UTIs, and bladder urgency and frequency. Hormone levels also fluctuate and change during menopause, and while HRTs can be effective treatment, not all women require oral or patch hormonal therapy. Topical estrogens including vaginal creams, tablets, and rings are also ways to increase hormone levels. However, like most treatments, the topical estrogens have to be taken consistently in order to work properly.
Finally, we spoke to Dr. Malone about Alloy. She explained that after working in women’s health for decades, she’s noticed an unfortunate amount of misinformation being spread. With a lack of recent discoveries and research, many women only have past data to rely on. There are also numerous women who are in areas where there is no access to a local OBGYN, making it difficult to receive proper care and treatment. Through Alloy, Dr. Malone ensures that information is accessible to all women. She strives to provide education, community, and access to physicians that can provide necessary medications. While Alloy is not a replacement for doctors, it does provide low dose birth control and FDA approved menopausal hormone therapy, all of which is bioidentical, meaning that the hormones used in the medication are the same native compound used by the ovaries when making hormones.
Dr. Sharon Malone
Dr. Malone uses her decades of clinical and real-life experiences to help treat women in menopausal transition and post-reproductive years. Dr Malone, born the youngest of eight children in Mobile, Alabama, was raised by her siblings after the death of her mother. After moving multiple times in her adolescence, Dr. Malone found strength and resilience in community, her work ethic, and the strong belief that there are no accidents in the universe. She graduated cum laude from Harvard with a degree in Psychology and Social Relations and later graduated with honors from the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. After completing a residency at The George Washington University, Dr. Malone worked in Washing D.C. as an OBGYN for nearly 30 years. Now, as Chief Medical Officer of Alloy, Dr Malone strives to use her expertise to help women on a larger scale. She believes that all women should be able to make vital decisions about their health and quality of life based on facts rather than fear.
In this episode, we discuss…
- [0:01] Bossa Bars
- [0:48] Guest Introduction
- [4:46] Start of Interview
- [5:36] Post Menopause and Abnormal Bleeding
- [12:03] How Long Women Should Stay on HRTs After Menopause
- [22:24] Symptoms After Perimenopause
- [27:16] Vaginal Creams
- [33:20] How Alloy is Helping Midlife Women
- [40:42] Closing Thoughts
- [42: 29] Outro
Useful Resources:
Alloy I [https://www.myalloy.com/]
Alloy’s Facebook I [https://www.facebook.com/Alloy-106248924869724]
Alloy’s Instagram I [https://www.instagram.com/myalloy/]
Alloy’s YouTube Channel I [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWqpCxO05TNzGQ3Me92jGLA/videos]
Alloy’s TikTok I [https://www.tiktok.com/@myalloy]
Dr. Malone’s LinkedIn I [https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharon-malone-76446832/]
Dr. Malone’s Twitter I [https://twitter.com/smalonemd?lang=en]
Dr. Malone’s Instagram I [https://www.instagram.com/smalonemd/?hl=en]
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