A few years ago, I asked my doctor for two simple blood tests: fasting insulin and vitamin D
He said no.
Even when I offered to pay out of pocket, the answer was still no. In that moment, I realized something that changed everything: I wasn’t allowed access to my own health information. I had a healthcare provider, but I didn’t have a healthcare partner.
That’s when everything clicked into place—my 25 years in rehabilitation services, my certifications as a brain health coach through Dr. Dale Bredesen and the Amen Clinics, my functional medicine health coaching credential, and my personal journey through perimenopause. All of it was pointing me toward one mission: teaching women how to become advocates for their own health.
Why This Matters Right Now
I’m 56 years old. My family history includes my father’s Lewy Body dementia and my mother’s glioblastoma brain tumor. I’ve watched smart, accomplished people (my rocket scientist dad included) accept the message “there’s nothing we can do” without questioning it.
I decided I would never accept that. Not without data. Not without asking questions.
When my own sleep started falling apart during perimenopause, I didn’t just accept “that’s what happens.” I got an Oura Ring, tracked my data, and discovered my ferritin was critically low – low enough to mimic hypothyroid symptoms. That single data point became actionable information I could bring to my provider. We’re now optimizing it together.
That’s the difference between being a patient and being a partner in your healthcare.
What You’ll Get From This Podcast
Every week on The Healthy Life Approach Podcast, I’ll break down evidence-based strategies to optimize your brain health during perimenopause and postmenopause. You’ll learn:
- What questions to ask your doctor, and how to ask them in ways that get real answers
- How to understand your own lab results and track meaningful data
- Practical, actionable steps you can implement immediately
- Why “there’s nothing we can do” often just means “we don’t know what else to try”
This isn’t about dismissing medicine. I’m pro-science, which means I respect pharmaceuticals when they’re the right tool. But I’m also passionate about integrative strategies; the ones that empower you to optimize your health with your healthcare team, not despite them.
A Different Kind of Health Podcast
I’ve spent a quarter-century working in rehabilitation services, which taught me something crucial: real change happens when people understand their own data and feel genuinely heard. Most women in midlife don’t need another list of supplements to buy. They need permission to ask questions, tools to interpret their own bodies, and to know that their best cognitive years are still ahead if they’re willing to be intentional about it.
That’s what this podcast is. It’s me teaching you what I wish someone had taught me years ago.
Subscribe Now
New episodes drop every week on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and everywhere else you listen.
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You deserve to understand what’s happening in your body, access to information, the ability to ask questions, and to be respected. You deserve to be a partner, not just a patient.
That’s what we’re building together.
Kristen Beasley is a Certified Functional Medicine, Nutrition, and Brain Health Coach and an Elite Brain Health Trainer through Amen Clinics. All content on The Healthy Life Approach Podcast is educational and should be discussed with your qualified healthcare providers.
