The Ones Without the Hashtags
Just back from another trip to the doc, and had a moment — one of those unexpected reflections that hit you when you’re sitting in your car, midlife hair doing its own thing, brain a little foggy, body just trying to keep up.
I’ve been thinking about my GP.
She’s helped me immensely on this wild menopause journey.
And she’s not on Instagram.
She doesn’t have a following.
She’s not looking for one.
She’s not turning menopause into a marketing strategy.
No hashtags, no hook lines, no ROI — just real support, quietly offered.
And I trust her.
She’s the kind of practitioner I wish more people could find — calm, informed, unflashy, and deeply competent. The kind of woman who’s walking through menopause herself and has the training, humility, and integrity to support others through it without needing to build a brand out of it.
These are the people we don’t see online.
They’re not influencers.
They’re not pushing a product.
But my god, they have something special to offer.
She’s a fan of Dr. Louise Newson — as am I — and she often recommends her podcast to her patients, just as I do to the women who come through my yoga studio in search of something, anything, that might help.
When I asked her what to do about the many women I see — those who are clearly struggling, but not being heard — she suggested I point them toward Newson’s work, and to GPs like her who actually listen.
I even invited her to speak at the studio.
She gently declined.
Why?
Because every woman’s experience is different.
Because she doesn’t need that kind of exposure.
Because she doesn’t need a stage or spotlight or curated reels to validate her expertise.
She’s not performing wellness. She’s living it. Quietly. Responsibly.
And that made me think.
I’m really cautious about who I recommend.
It’s rarely someone on Instagram.
More often, it’s someone I’ve met — face to face.
Not because online doesn’t work.
It just doesn’t work for me as a teacher.
(I learn plenty online when I need to — but even then, it’s personal. One-to-one conversations, not broadcasts. Not content chasing clicks.)
I just don’t have the time or the bandwidth for curated menopause advice served up as a marketing strategy.
I’ve stopped listening to podcasts like Diary of a CEO and Andrew Huberman’s.
I find their ethics questionable — especially in the way they’re now targeting women in midlife.
A very lucrative market, apparently.
It’s clickbait disguised as care.
(And it’s cashing in, big time.)
But that doesn’t mean there’s no truth in what they share.
Of course there is — that’s how manipulation works.
If you’ve ever dealt with a narcissist, you’ll know how that feels.
They’ll mix in just enough truth to make the rest of it palatable, even when it’s misleading, misinformed, or downright dangerous.
So I’m not here to tell you what to listen to.
Or what to believe.
But I am here — as always — to tell you what’s helped me.
And to offer a reminder: don’t let that be you.
Don’t fall for the smoke and mirrors.
Find a GP who listens.
Seek help.
Trust your lived experience.
Share what works with other women — honestly, generously, without judgment.
Because that’s what we do here in the studio.
Whether you choose HRT or not, whether you’re breezing through this or drowning in it — we show up, we share, and we support each other like a good old-fashioned women’s circle.
No mud, no lotus.
And yeah, I know it’s a bit of a cliché... but honestly?
“We’ve got this.”
We actually do.