It actually makes no sense. At the risk of sounding like someone who only talks about good ol’ days when I peaked in life, I am really confused about how I went from pandemic parties (holding my cup up to the TV and dancing to TikTok DJs) to whatever this is now.
First of all, everyone loves to talk about slippery slopes, but there is no sled like the one you get on when you get pregnant in a pandemic in your mid-thirties, and suddenly you are post-partum, perimenopausal, and unclear every month on whether it’s your period or pregnancy threatening to pop up. Bottom line, I am the definition of pushin’ p. (I think, because to be honest, I never actually knew what that meant, which is … fitting).
And that is something most of us (in this situation) almost never really have time to focus on in any dedicated or structured way.
Don’t get it twisted. There have been tons of critical approaches for women at this stage to optimize how they appear. Botox or Sculptra? (Both.) Protective styles or natural? GLP-1 or keto? Stay-at-home mom or content creator? There are a million resources to help you rebrand and redefine yourself externally so that you can keep up.
But did our internal systems ever get the much-needed attention to adjust for the next phase of life? If your children are under 10 or you’re close to 40, chances are you’re still dealing with new internal changes that have no clear answers. I know mothers who have faced everything from wrecked cortisol to crippling endometriosis to debilitating mental health conditions. I’m definitely one of many who have struggled to physically feel fully back on track. And the answers have not come with a clear injectable solution and an aesthetic community.
In between meetings, I’ve spoken to women’s health experts about what my blood work or irregular cycles mean. After bedtime, I’ve researched PCOS and endometriosis. During the late-night doom scroll, I’ve watched countless videos about perimenopause and pregnancy after 40 (because the symptoms are eerily similar). This morning, while hiding in the bathroom (IYKYK), I texted my best friend about post-partum prolapse. The physical changes feel endless, and the information feels both extensive and vague. We’re Pushin P with 99 problems and 99,000 answers.
While I don’t have solutions, I do think it’s a topic worth opening the group chat for. Literal years of research have helped me find a few helpful resources (not withstanding the gross amount of money I’ve wasted sifting through grifters selling supplements and Reddit threads scaring me half to death).
Let’s open up a bit and start sharing what we know and what we don’t. Because it’s a weird time, which means we’ve got to start talking about it.
(P.S. - Sorry for any typos. Wrote this without AI while managing snowed-in kids.)