No, I had no idea either!
Before I became one, I thought a menopause coach was someone who made menopausal women run up hills while shouting motivational quotes.
(Turns out that is a thing. I saw it on Bad Sisters.)
That’s a hell nooooo from me.
But then as I got curiouser, Facebook did its freaky thing and I started to see ads for “Become a Menopause Coach in a Weekend” and I got dragged in.
Why I Don’t Trust “Weekend Certificate” Menopause Coaching Courses
Now 2 things of note here, firstly, any qualification you can “earn” in a weekend by answering a multiple choice quiz isn’t really a qualification, is it? I mean if someone can become an expert in your hormones over a weekend, I’d be asking some fairly serious questions. (Although it IS more training than GPs get on peri/meno. I kid you not).
Secondly, by this point I had masses of peri/meno experience of my own, in fact, I felt I knew more than the weekend certificators lol, and I got frustrated by all the things they WEREN’T talking about.
- I’d spent years desperately trying to understand what had happened to my own body.
- I’d Googled “what are the signs of early onset dementia” because I genuinely thought that was the only logical explanation for what was happening inside my brain.
- I’d read everything.
- I’d taken every single fucking supplement.
- I’d spoken to doctors.
- I’d lived it.
Yet most of these courses barely mentioned nervous systems, burnout, workplace performance or identity.
What a Menopause Coach Actually Focuses On
So before we get to why I chose this path, let’s look at the key areas I focus on:
- Nutrition, are you fuelling your body in the right way
- Sleep, making sure you get some – here’s why you’re waking at 3am, and I’ll show you how to fix it
- Nervous system dysregulation, getting you out of a fight or flight you don’t even know you’ve been in for years
- Identity, who are you now at this point in your life?
And yes, I have a big diploma, a 900hr one. Try getting that in a weekend 😉
Who I Work With
I meet women at various stages of hormonal disarray:
- I think I’m in peri. Am I?
- I think I’m in peri but I don’t have the right symptoms.
- Something’s going on because my periods are like buses
- I have no f*cking idea what’s going on
- I went straight from the pill to HRT so actually I haven’t had a period in over 10 years
And wherever you are on that rollercoaster, I’ve got you. And I bring snacks.
My Qualifications and Experience
And I bring as much real life experience to the table as I do science and education:
- 25 years in leadership management and coaching, most of it as a People and Performance Manager
- Someone with extensive periods of depression, who knows how it feels to be wavering on the edge of the abyss
- A mother who was destroyed from the inside by symptoms no one recognised back then as menopause, and who wouldn’t even have been given HRT if they had
- A mental health first aider with a qualification in counselling
More than that, I don’t just understand menopause because I studied it. You can read the fuller story of how I got here.
I understand it because it nearly took everything from me.
- I’ve sat in leadership meetings trying to remember what I walked in to say.
- I’ve lived through anxiety that convinced me I was broken.
- I’ve spent entire weekends in bed because it was the only way I could regather enough energy to survive another week at work
- I’ve spent three years rebuilding a nervous system flattened by Long Covid.
Then I did what I always do. I went looking for answers. Proper ones.
That’s why I went and completed a 900-hour diploma.
I understand where you are. And I know how to help you.
It’s true, menopause doesn’t have a map. And so I created one. And just like I will meet you wherever you are on your journey, you can join me at whichever point feels right for you.
How Menopause Coaching With Me Works
There are four ways in, depending on where you are. You can see them all on the 1:1 menopause coaching page, or read on.
The Compass Call
You’re sick of feeling knackered, irritable, wired, itchy and having the cognitive skills of Dory from Finding Nemo.
Surely a menopause coach can’t help?
Try me. Literally.
We’ll have a 20 minute chat, you tell me what’s going on, all the things you’ve been scared to say out loud, and then, I’ll point you in the right direction. (Just like a compass 🙂 )
Sometimes, I suggest you go to your GP. Sometimes I’ll make a simple recommendation about what you’re eating. And sometimes I’ll tell you how I can help.
And the choice is yours, what feels right for you? What is going to help you to start feeling like you again?
And you’ll leave with a recording of our conversation too.
The Menopause MOT
If you decide you’d like to work with me, I’m going to give you a thorough assessment, just like your car gets every year. Imagine lifting the bonnet of your body for the first time and actually seeing what it’s telling you. THAT’S the Dashboard.
I’m going to check your key pressure points, fuel, sleep and nervous system, as well as how your body feels to drive, your anxiety, your capacity and whether you even feel like you anymore.
You complete a full audit before you come in for a chat, and you leave with a Menopause Dashboard and personalised action plan.
(And it’s not really a chat, it’s a structured 90 minute session).
And for the first time, you get to see a visual representation of what your menopause looks like. Where are you struggling, and which dials do we need to turn to get you feeling like you’re thriving again?
It’s quite an emotional experience, because you finally have a starting point, and for some women that’s enough. They just needed to know.
But for some women, now they know where they’re starting from, they want to plan out where to get to. They need a map.
The Menopause RoadMAP
Think of the starting point like a train station. It doesn’t matter where you’ve come from or how you’ve entered the map. We know what we want to leave behind and where we want to get to.
The journey is in 2 halves.
The Road:
- Recognising what’s happening in your body
- Optimising fuel, nutrition, hydration and movement
- Addressing the elephant in the room, sleep
- Down-regulate your nervous system and creating safe spaces for your mind
And then the MAP, welcoming you home:
Mindset, Alignment and Purpose
We’ll spend a minimum of 6 x 1hr sessions looking at how we get your body functioning again.
We start with fuel, what are you putting into your body? Grade A unleaded or red diesel? And we start here because the right fuel can change so much even within 4 weeks, and you’ll usually be sleeping through the night again by week 8 (assuming there are no other complicated, underlying issues).
Once you’re sleeping again, so many symptoms will start to lighten, particularly the brain fog, and then we can start working on what’s left. Usually this means the nervous system, boundaries and your need to be everything to everyone all the time. We’re going to put you back at the top of your list.
For some women, 6 sessions is enough, but just as many sign up for more. Because if we’ve neglected ourselves for a while, it can take longer than 6 sessions to find our way back home.
The Menopause Mastermind
Some women will want a wing woman for their menopause journey, and that’s where the Mastermind comes in. It’s a 12 month program, with group sessions and 121s, and it keeps things moving, because healing isn’t linear and every wobble deserves the best support.
It helps you stay on track with your own MAP, and it helps you understand who you are now all the hormones are under control and you’re ready to cut swathes of bullshit out of your life.
You can only join the Mastermind if you’ve worked with me already (because you need to know the areas I’m focussing on).
You can join the waitlist here.
So does that answer your question? I’m Debbie and I’m going to:
- Help you stop surviving and start sleeping again
- Help your brain feel like you can rely on it again
- Help you stop feeling guilty for needing rest or being at the top of your own list
- Help you understand what your hormones are actually trying to tell you
- Be the person who reminds you that you’re not broken
- Be your biggest cheerleader
- Challenge you to understand who you are NOW
- Your compassion and kind voice, when you can’t rely on your own (because yes, I’ve experienced that too)
That’s what a menopause coach really does.
She helps you stop guessing.
And when you’ve spent months, or even years, wondering whether you’re losing your mind, that’s often the greatest relief of all.
Book Your Free Compass Call
A quick PS before you book your Compass Call.
Most women spend the first few minutes apologising.
“Sorry, I’m rambling…”
“Sorry, I’m all over the place…”
“Sorry, none of this probably makes any sense…”
Please don’t.
I know how noisy it is inside your brain.
I know what it feels like when your thoughts seem to arrive all at once.
You don’t need to organise them.
You don’t need to make them make sense.
Just blurt it all out.
The Menopause Coach will see you now 🙂