The MIS-EDUCATION OF WOMEN

April Showers brought May heat and cold! Happy May! Wow! The weather here in Minnesota has been whacked for sure. One week we had hot, dry weather in the late 80s and then the following week, we were in the 50s and 60s! I confess, I did not care for the heat but I also don’t like putting the heat on either. I just want a nice 70 degree weather day and nice, cool, nights to help me sleep and not sweat when I take a stroll outside! 

It’s been two weeks since my last blog (late April). I wasn’t intending to take two weeks off but during my first week off, let’s just say, my health demanded that I rest and take care of myself. 

During my second week off, it was actually my intentional week off. I went outside (in the heat), watched the dogs play, listened to the birds sing,  looked out at the Mississippi River, while listening to nature, and took my moments of silence in hopes for clarity. 

I also took my journals outside as I re-read my journals from last year and earlier this year. Wow! What a journey I have had! I can see my growth, my healing (ongoing), and how much my mindset has changed. Writing each day along with positive affirmations have altered my life for the better and by reading it, it shows just how much internal work I have done. 

For anyone who is feeling stuck, unsure, or doesn’t feel that they are growing, writing in a journal can be a tool for you to measure your progress or just remind you of how far you’ve come, especially on those days when you don’t think and see tangible evidence to show that you’re doing great! 

There were so many parts from 2024 that I was so unsure of. This included the changes of my body, work, relationships, and blocking my own blessings. Many things were about me as an individual but also things as a woman and what I have been taught to be acceptable or not. 

I had to work through all of that, become better informed, pissed people off because I was no longer convenient or a doormat for them. I had to create my own foundations, boundaries, as a person and a woman in order to be happy and be in my authenticity. 

Being a woman in 2025 is so empowering and yet, there are so many things that we continue to have to battle. Feminism has been villainized from conservatives to the trad-wife movement, in which they want to pick and choose how they get to benefit from feminism. Darling, it’s because of feminism that YOU even get to CHOOSE. 

May is Women’s Health Month and in this week’s blog, my intention is to focus on the holistic health of women and how we can advocate, empower, and take our power back after the mis-education of women. As in my journal, there were areas in my life where I felt unheard, shamed, and judged in all  areas of my life, simply because I dared to say “this is how I am feeling” or “No. That is NOT what I am feeling” and “I don’t believe I am too young to feel this way and I am NOT imagining this.” 

As a woman, how many of you have been told this? How many of you have been dismissed, belittled, gaslighted, or mansplained? As if you don’t know your own damn body and mind! I don’t know about you all but I may not know everything but I sure as hell know my own damn body and mind! 

This week’s blog  is dedicated to all of you; to all the amazing, badass, women, who continue to show up, speak up, advocate, and do amazing work both personally and professionally. As a society, we have been mis-educated on the needs and health of women. For so many years, we’ve been told to be quiet, endure in silence and shame, and not challenge the narrative. We’ve seen our mothers and grandmothers struggle through so much by calling it “silent strength.” 

I am all about strength but I’m not going to be silent anymore. I’m going to be loud and bold with my strength by encouraging all women to speak up, challenge, and OWN their worth and remind them that no one gets to dismiss or tell you “you’re crazy.” If they want crazy, make sure you show them how “crazy” you can get! 

As this month is  Women’s Health Month,  it’s the perfect time to move beyond the surface-level wellness tips, the pretentiousness of external self-care,  and dig into what women actually need in order to thrive and the changes that we need to strive and advocate for. 

Here are the key topics that deserve space:

• Mental Health (Not Just "Self-Care") Women are more likely to report experiencing trauma, abuse, and discrimination. Women are facing burnout, anxiety, depression, and do most of the emotional labor in relationships and family units. There is still much stigma around women, especially when expressing anger or exhaustion. Women do attend therapy at higher rates but access to therapy,  especially for women of color, mothers, and caregiver is still limited. Unfortunately, society still views receiving and access to mental health as a luxury; it should be a right and a foundation of health. 
• 
  Reproductive Justice & Health: I’ve said this over and over on this blog and will say this again; no matter how uncomfortable this may be, the reality is, there is a war against women, especially in America with this current presidential regime by blocking access to affordable birth control, abortion care, and fertility support. In certain parts of the world (rural areas of India and countries in Africa), menstrual equity (period poverty is still real). This prevents young girls from attending school by pushing their education back. Research wise, there is still limited understanding and stigma when it comes to understanding postpartum health, miscarriage, and perinatal mental health. Everyone seems to have a F-ing opinion (often people without uteruses) about reproductive justice and health for women.  It’s important to stress that reproductive health is not just a “women’s issue,”  it’s a public health issue! 
• 
  Medical Gaslighting and Misdiagnosis: Every  woman that I have spoken to has a medical gaslighting or misdiagnosis story! Sadly, it has become so normalized and dismissed that it does not phase us! Often, a woman’s pain is  minimized or dismissed. Conditions like endometriosis, PCOS, heart disease, and autoimmune issues go under-diagnosed. How many of us have been told that it’s all in our “head?” Or my favorite, “You just need to lose weight.” In the past, I have been told by several providers that I was on the “heavy side” after I expressed concern about having pain related to working out!! Women are enraged and the old explanation of “you’re fine” is no longer acceptable for us! We are sick of being medically neglected and “you’re fine” is not a diagnosis — it’s medical neglect in a different tone.
• 
  Menopause and Aging: Women age like milk and men age like fine wine! Is the old  misogynistic belief that we have been taught to believe. It’s to scare women into settling, accepting less, and to diminish our worth and value. Sadly, this is why some women feel the need to settle down to have a family before they become “geriatric” but some old ass who relies on viagra is deemed as a stud who can still reproduce even though their physical health is shit? (I know I am being sassy but also real here). See the double standard?  My own story is that once I hit 40, I started noticing changes in my body and I started asking the women in my family if they had the symptoms as I was having. They all denied it and that made me feel like I was crazy! My Primary Care Provider also told me I was “too young” to feel what I was feeling and dismissed my labs. I finally found a naturopathic provider who had me do a detailed lab and confirmed that I was in perimenopause and helped me come up with a plan that worked for me. Topics like aging, perimenopause, and menopause are still taboo and under-discussed. There needs to be more education, support for hormone shifts, sexual health, bone health, and identity changes as women continue to live and thrive. Aging is a privilege,  not a decline, and it’s a powerful evolution.
• 
  Rest, Boundaries & Autonomy: One of the reasons why I started this blog was to empower women to establish boundaries, rest, create and have their own autonomy. Too many women take on the burdens, responsibilities, trauma, and abandon themselves to meet the shortcomings of other people. Professionally, I have worked with so many women to help empower them to reclaim their time, space, and peace by saying NO. NO is a COMPLETE sentence! By embracing saying no without guilt, putting yourself first, being “selfish” you get to have autonomy and live your life the way you want. We’re also saying YES to rest! No more overworking to prove a point, being busy for the sake of being busy, and wearing exhaustion like a badge. As a solo business woman entrepreneur, one of the hardest things I’ve had to reset my mindset to is that rest is necessary! We’ve been told that success equates to overworking, lack of sleep, exhaustion, and if I’m not doing that, I will never be successful. I am learning to heal from this by listening to my body, being intentional, and rebuilding foundations that work for me holistically. I came to the conclusion that I had to resist a system that profited from my exhaustion. 

There you have it darlings! There are so many more points that I could have added and I felt that these were the main areas that I wanted to address. Let this month be about unlearning the myths, judgements, and mis-education about women’s health needs. 

The only way to combat these myths is to keep advocating for yourself and others. We need to speak out boldly and not be embarrassed or ashamed. To all my badass ladies out there, I know that many of you as part of your platform create spaces where you educate in your area of speciality by combusting myths, toxic beliefs, and help so many women heal by helping them through your education and empowering them to make informed decisions that best benefit them. 

Lastly, women’s health is more than just being recognized, it’s about being RESPECTED  and this begins with all of YOU AMAZING BADASS QUEENS WHO SHOW UP BY DOING YOUR THING! Keep at it BABES!