Tamsen Fadal on the Menopause Symptoms Women Aren’t Warned About: Brain Fog, HRT, and Reclaiming Midlife

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Tamsen Fadal was an experienced news anchor when heart palpitations, anxiety, insomnia, and severe brain fog left her on the bathroom floor of her newsroom. Despite spending decades in the media, she had no idea she was experiencing menopause.

In this episode of hol+ with Dr. Taz MD, Tamsen shares how that frightening experience led her to investigate why so many women remain unprepared for perimenopause and menopause.

Tamsen reflects on losing her mother to breast cancer and later realizing that her mother had experienced medical menopause following chemotherapy and a double mastectomy. Nearly 28 years separated their experiences, yet both women suffered without the information or support they needed.

That realization inspired Tamsen to step away from a three-decade career in television journalism and devote her work to menopause education and advocacy. She explains how social media revealed the scale of the problem and gave women a place to share symptoms and experiences that had been ignored or dismissed.

Dr. Taz and Tamsen also discuss the confusion surrounding hormone replacement therapy, the importance of personalized care, barriers to finding informed doctors, and the role telehealth may play in improving access. They explore how brain fog, anxiety, sleep disruption, and other symptoms can affect women’s confidence, careers, relationships, and sense of identity.

Tamsen also shares the story behind The M Factor: Shredding the Silence on Menopause. After being told there was no audience for a menopause documentary, Tamsen and her partners self-funded the project, brought together leading experts and women’s personal stories, and ultimately secured national distribution through PBS.

The conversation turns toward reclaiming menopause as a powerful stage of life rather than a period of invisibility or decline. Tamsen discusses her book, How to Menopause, and the practical lifestyle changes that have helped her take better care of herself at 54.

In this episode:

Tamsen’s frightening menopause experience in the newsroomHeart palpitations, anxiety, insomnia, and severe brain fogWhy she did not recognize her symptoms as menopauseHer mother’s experience with medically induced menopauseWhy menopause care has changed so little across generationsLeaving a three-decade journalism career for women’s advocacyThe fear and financial uncertainty of making a major midlife changeHow social media helped