Hi Eliana, it's nice to know I'm not alone! I've come so far, and ... I'm still finding my way. I look forward to learning more about what we have in common!
Eliana, I appreciate the honesty in "I'm still on it," because one of the most reassuring parts of Jessie's story is that she does not present healing as a destination she permanently arrived at. She describes it as an ongoing relationship with herself, her body, and the changes life continues to bring. Your comment also reflects something many readers likely felt: there is comfort in hearing from someone who has found steadier ground while still acknowledging that the lessons keep unfolding. Thank you for sharing your experience so openly and for reminding us that progress does not require having everything figured out.
Hi Judith! Oh my gosh, I was just checking out your Substack and website. I think our paths were meant to cross. I'm a total astrology lover, and how you're combining that with business and human design sounds so powerful. I can't wait to get to know you more!
Judith, I appreciate this perspective because it highlights how much the conversation around perimenopause has changed, and how much it still needs to change. So many people have had to navigate profound physical, emotional, and identity shifts with little information and even less community. Your comment also reinforces one of the essay's central themes: while resources cannot remove the difficulty, they can reduce the isolation. Thank you for encouraging Jessie and for reminding readers that creating spaces of understanding today may spare someone else from feeling quite so alone tomorrow.
I can completely relate. After having our baby (7 years ago), I thought I could balance motherhood and business. God had another plan because our son was diagnosed with Autism at age three! I am pouring all my knowledge and skills into his development and being stable at home. I share my story of shifting from Chaos to Sacred Calm. This year, I turn 44!
Thanks for sharing your experience! That's a lot to hold and I'm glad you've found your way from chaos to calm. I hope you and your son are doing well. I'm in Colorado.
YES! I am here for the community part. There's something about that level playing field where we all show up and are alchemized by our sharing and listening - very powerful.
Jessie, what resonated with me is that this essay is ultimately less about perimenopause and more about identity. The physical symptoms were real and disruptive, but the deeper upheaval seems to have come from losing two futures at the same time: the possibility of motherhood and the version of yourself built around your work. I was especially moved by your realization that healing arrived not through having everything figured out, but through being loved and accepted in the middle of your unraveling. Thank you for sharing such an honest account of discovering that worthiness does not depend on a role, a title, or a path chosen, but can exist even when life asks us to become someone new before we know who that person is.
I’d heard hints about menopause causing emergency shifts in ones health (from an acupuncturist.) I didn’t know what that meant until I ended up in an ambulance being shuttled to the nearest hospital where I was diagnosed with a ruptured diverticula and massive infection and started on a course of intravenous equine antibiotics along with morphine every four hours. I transferred to a different hospital after I realized the incompetence I was experiencing was likely going to kill me. There’s so much baggage emotionally when this happened like my husband of more than thirty years telling my high school aged son that he regretted not dating more women before he settled down all when the doctors were telling me how sick I was and they weren’t sure I’d make it. When I asked him if I could be moved to a different hospital, he told my son that the hospital I was already admitted to was more convenient. When my younger brother returned my call to tell me what an inconvenience it was that I was in the hospital and that I’d ruined his day.
Right now I’m experimenting with microdosing and feeling like psychedelics might be too dangerous for me because of incidences like these or the fact that I lost my mother to cancer when I was fourteen years old. I have felt alone since her death, largely unable to make, and more importantly, keep women friends. I am currently writing my memoir and I’m not even sure who this tome will attract if anyone. And so i am here on substack experimenting if I will be seen or loved in this space. My husband tells me, “you are too filled with unrealistic expectations” to which I replied, “my father surrounded himself and therefore his children to some of the most creative minds of the sixties, people like Bob Dylan and George Harrison and Miles Davis. With that kind of exposure how could I not have high expectations after witnessing all that creativity? If you read and like this post, I would be grateful if you would turn your attention to my substack and let me know if I should just give up. After all, I’m 68 and I’m running out of time.
Hi Brett, thank you for sharing your experience. I hope you find peace and purpose. I know that can be challenging when it feels like our closest relationships don’t believe in us. You matter and I know your writing will connect with the people who need it. I’m finding Substack to be such a supportive space. Keep going if it brings you joy. 🫶
I can relate so much with this, we have a lot in common. I’m happy you found your way and you could figure out how to handle it. I’m still on it lol 😂
Hi Eliana, it's nice to know I'm not alone! I've come so far, and ... I'm still finding my way. I look forward to learning more about what we have in common!
Sure! I’m sharing the first essay I posted here, maybe you can see what I saw, maybe you don’t feel related at all 🤭🤭 let me know what you think!
https://substack.com/@itselianadiaz/note/p-190747019?r=2ai3mt&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action
Oh yes, I can relate on so many levels! Just left you a comment on your post with more ❤️
Eliana, I appreciate the honesty in "I'm still on it," because one of the most reassuring parts of Jessie's story is that she does not present healing as a destination she permanently arrived at. She describes it as an ongoing relationship with herself, her body, and the changes life continues to bring. Your comment also reflects something many readers likely felt: there is comfort in hearing from someone who has found steadier ground while still acknowledging that the lessons keep unfolding. Thank you for sharing your experience so openly and for reminding us that progress does not require having everything figured out.
Ay Reverend, if you knew… 🤭 I don’t even have a “fig” in that figured out… but her we go 🫶🏻🫶🏻
So glad you’re holding the space and doing this work. When I was 39 there were so few resources and it does help to have it.
Hi Judith! Oh my gosh, I was just checking out your Substack and website. I think our paths were meant to cross. I'm a total astrology lover, and how you're combining that with business and human design sounds so powerful. I can't wait to get to know you more!
Absolutely!!
Judith, I appreciate this perspective because it highlights how much the conversation around perimenopause has changed, and how much it still needs to change. So many people have had to navigate profound physical, emotional, and identity shifts with little information and even less community. Your comment also reinforces one of the essay's central themes: while resources cannot remove the difficulty, they can reduce the isolation. Thank you for encouraging Jessie and for reminding readers that creating spaces of understanding today may spare someone else from feeling quite so alone tomorrow.
I can completely relate. After having our baby (7 years ago), I thought I could balance motherhood and business. God had another plan because our son was diagnosed with Autism at age three! I am pouring all my knowledge and skills into his development and being stable at home. I share my story of shifting from Chaos to Sacred Calm. This year, I turn 44!
Where are you located? We live in Arizona.
Thanks for sharing your experience! That's a lot to hold and I'm glad you've found your way from chaos to calm. I hope you and your son are doing well. I'm in Colorado.
Subbed! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for reading!
YES! I am here for the community part. There's something about that level playing field where we all show up and are alchemized by our sharing and listening - very powerful.
Yay! I’m so glad you’re here for it! I’ll be opening up community spaces soon!
Jessie, what resonated with me is that this essay is ultimately less about perimenopause and more about identity. The physical symptoms were real and disruptive, but the deeper upheaval seems to have come from losing two futures at the same time: the possibility of motherhood and the version of yourself built around your work. I was especially moved by your realization that healing arrived not through having everything figured out, but through being loved and accepted in the middle of your unraveling. Thank you for sharing such an honest account of discovering that worthiness does not depend on a role, a title, or a path chosen, but can exist even when life asks us to become someone new before we know who that person is.
I’d heard hints about menopause causing emergency shifts in ones health (from an acupuncturist.) I didn’t know what that meant until I ended up in an ambulance being shuttled to the nearest hospital where I was diagnosed with a ruptured diverticula and massive infection and started on a course of intravenous equine antibiotics along with morphine every four hours. I transferred to a different hospital after I realized the incompetence I was experiencing was likely going to kill me. There’s so much baggage emotionally when this happened like my husband of more than thirty years telling my high school aged son that he regretted not dating more women before he settled down all when the doctors were telling me how sick I was and they weren’t sure I’d make it. When I asked him if I could be moved to a different hospital, he told my son that the hospital I was already admitted to was more convenient. When my younger brother returned my call to tell me what an inconvenience it was that I was in the hospital and that I’d ruined his day.
Right now I’m experimenting with microdosing and feeling like psychedelics might be too dangerous for me because of incidences like these or the fact that I lost my mother to cancer when I was fourteen years old. I have felt alone since her death, largely unable to make, and more importantly, keep women friends. I am currently writing my memoir and I’m not even sure who this tome will attract if anyone. And so i am here on substack experimenting if I will be seen or loved in this space. My husband tells me, “you are too filled with unrealistic expectations” to which I replied, “my father surrounded himself and therefore his children to some of the most creative minds of the sixties, people like Bob Dylan and George Harrison and Miles Davis. With that kind of exposure how could I not have high expectations after witnessing all that creativity? If you read and like this post, I would be grateful if you would turn your attention to my substack and let me know if I should just give up. After all, I’m 68 and I’m running out of time.
Hi Brett, thank you for sharing your experience. I hope you find peace and purpose. I know that can be challenging when it feels like our closest relationships don’t believe in us. You matter and I know your writing will connect with the people who need it. I’m finding Substack to be such a supportive space. Keep going if it brings you joy. 🫶