Women, Wellness & Politics

Where women’s health and politics collide. 💥

This week, I’m sitting down with one of my absolute favorite TikTokers and women’s health advocates — Victoria Kerby, founder of Victoria Kerby Wellness, LLC
and Co-host of the Faded to Fabulous podcast. With over 35,000 followers on TikTok, Victoria is changing the conversation around menopause, perimenopause, and holistic health—one real, raw talk at a time.

In this episode, we dive deep into what it means to navigate womanhood in today’s political climate, how wellness is being weaponized, and why every woman deserves autonomy over her own body. It’s powerful, it’s personal, and it’s everything we’ve been needing to say out loud.

Follow Victoria Kerby:

🎧 Faded to Fabulous Podcast

🌐 Victoria’s Website: victoriakerbywellnessllc.com

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TikTok,  Facebook, Instagram, Threads: @ChristiChanelle

Youtube: @sassypolitics 

https://youtube.com/@sassypolitics?si=cDg0BVQ6droha05-

 🌐 ChristiChanelle.com

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📬 Mail:
Sassy Politics
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Next on Mindf*ck Monday | November 10, 2025
The Monday Breakdown
I’ll be back next Monday with my latest take on the political environment — the headlines you didn’t ask for but damn well need to know. Because the news should come with a trigger warning.

Disclaimer:

This content may include satirical commentary, altered media, or opinion-based analysis intended for educational, entertainment, or advocacy purposes. Any video clips, images, or quotes that have been edited or recreated are clearly intended as political or cultural critique—not factual representations. Viewer discretion and independent research are encouraged.

Chapters

• 0:00 Why Menopause Pushes Women From Work
• 0:20 Meet Victoria Kirby And Her Mission
• 2:16 Defining Perimenopause And Menopause
• 6:15 The Real Symptoms Few Talk About
• 9:20 Careers, Confidence, And Cognitive Fog
• 10:04 Fasting, Cortisol, And Midlife Metabolism
• 12:05 The Midlife Toolkit: Strength And Sleep
• 14:37 Programs, Community, And Access To Care
• 18:00 Holistic Care Versus Quick Fixes
• 21:10 Hormone Therapy For Long-Term Health
• 23:20 Sleep Struggles, Pellets, And Red Flags
• 27:10 Finding Qualified Menopause Providers
• 29:20 Breaking Stigma And Talking Openly
• 31:15 Rights, Policy, And Women’s Health
• 35:20 Abortion Is Health Care
• 38:20 Surveillance Fears And Access Barriers
• 42:00 SNAP, Cruelty, And Community Care
• 46:00 Media Bubbles And Family Strain
• 50:20 Stress, TikTok, And Nervous Systems

Transcript

SPEAKER_01: 0:00

Twenty-five percent of women think about leaving their careers menopause and ten percent do.

SPEAKER_02: 0:04

It's a big deal. Yeah. Wow. Yeah. I am dusting off the headphones today. I haven't done an interview in a very long time. But today, I'm willing to do that for somebody who's really special. You know when somebody shows up online and immediately makes you feel seen? That's Victoria Kirby. She's a holistic wellness practitioner specializing in menopause and perimenopause. And she's built a community of over 35,000 women on TikTok who trust her to bring clarity, humor, and healing to one of the most misunderstood chapters of our lives. But this conversation, this one goes deeper because the truth is women aren't just dealing with hot flashes. We're dealing with heat from every freaking direction. From the political atmosphere to the legislation that directly impacts our bodies. It's no wonder so many women are carrying quiet fear right now. Today, like I said, we're dusting off the headphones because this conversation matters. We're gonna talk about what's happening inside our bodies, what's happening to our rights, and how we can take our power back. One conversation, one connection, one truth at a time. She's got a podcast, and she's leading a wellness revolution for women everywhere. So buckle up because this beautiful human, Victoria Kirby, is on Sassy Politics today. Let's do it. I'm Christy Chanel, and this is Sassy Politics.

SPEAKER_01: 1:44

Well, it's nice to meet you. Nice to meet you too. You are beautiful. I wish I was there with you. I would give you a giant hug. Oh, I would give you a hug too.

SPEAKER_02: 1:52

I I hopefully one day you never know. Yeah, I will say this. I met Victoria on TikTok. So it is possible to meet really cool people and have a fantastic community around you. And this is proof right here. So I'm gonna introduce you to Victoria. I'm gonna let her do it because nobody can explain her better than herself.

SPEAKER_01: 2:14

So let's do it. All right. So um I'm a family nurse practitioner. I've been practicing for uh 26 years. I did family practice medicine for a long time, kind of transitioned into integrative medicine, started my own practice in 2018, and then really kind of um my entire practice at this point is hormones, perimenopause, and menopause care for women in midlife. Um, married, second and final. Yeah. This is it. This is the last. We're done. Yeah, we're done. Um, and I have two girls who are 19 and 22. Um, sorry, a dog who's in the room with me because he has anxiety and is neurotic without me. Yeah. Uh I'm really thick into the sandwich generation right now. I have a mother who I am the POA for with Alzheimer's, who's in memory care. So I definitely feel like that helps me relate to the women I'm taking care of because there's just it adds like a lot to this season of life.

SPEAKER_02: 3:24

Can I ask you uh for the people that don't know, including myself, you said sandwich community? Sandwich generation.

SPEAKER_01: 3:31

So generation, okay. What is that? So this is a term that we're using to describe women in midlife or you know, people in midlife who are still, you know, parenting, because again, even if our kids are kind of out of the house, they're they're kind of like practicing adults, they're getting used to it, so they still need us. And um, some of us who had children older are still in the throes of parenting while also now caring for your aging parents in some capacity.

SPEAKER_00: 4:01

Okay.

SPEAKER_01: 4:01

Yeah. And so going, being there in the same season that you're also in, let's say, menopause and um, you know, is is a lot. Um, but I think that's kind of describes my life. I'm also in the throes of my own menopause. Thank you for my patch. And um, yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 4:20

So that's kind of a bit about me. So I'm going to be very transparent with you. And I don't know hardly anything about it. And I'm in it. So, so this is gonna I I'm the one that you're like, oh my God. I got you. What are you doing? That's me. Okay. And I will be the first to admit it, but I will tell you for myself. Well, first I want to say how amazing that you have two daughters and you're able to educate them and all the things that I think people like myself and other people don't know about. Um, so they're very lucky to have you. Uh, I wish I had somebody that was explaining to me, but my mom passed away at 45. So I never really got to learn a lot about what happens afterwards. I am in menopause. I have haven't had a period. This October will be two years. Okay. Yeah, you're you're post-menopausal. Yeah. And for me, I didn't really have a lot of symptoms. I did have frozen shoulder, uh, which did impact me. And of course, at the time, I didn't know anything. I was afraid because I had had neck surgery in my in my neck, and I thought it was connected to that. So I had all of these x-rays done. And he said, Well, you're either diabetic or and he never said anything about menopause. So it was my own research that figured it out, and people my age actually having frozen shoulder. Um, maybe you can tell me a little bit about what that's all about.

SPEAKER_01: 5:50

Yeah. So um, I'll just dive in. I'll give kind of like a general like um in case people I think people are becoming more aware because we have things like podcasts and social media. Um, but menopause is literally a day. So it's 12 months without a period. After that, you're postmenopausal for the rest of time. That seven to 10 year window before that is perimenopause. And I think that we're starting to talk about this more, but that is really a tough season. And so unfortunately, before now, we really weren't recognizing this. And so women would come in, right? So women in their late 30s, even late 30s, 40s, you know, um, they go in because they're anxious, right? So they're like, I'm anxious, or I can't sleep. Um, I hate people, I'm irritable, I can't stand myself, right? Big one. Um, I don't feel like myself. I'm tired. I'm gaining weight. I have no idea why, because I'm doing all the same things that I've always done. I could never have sex again, be totally happy. P.S. My shoulder hurts. And I think I have Alzheimer's because I can't remember anything, right? And so they keep go, women keep going in to access care and say, I'm having all these things. And really what they're being told is, you know, it's well, anxiety, here's something for your anxiety. Let's send you to PT for your frozen shoulder, right? If this this is just the season of life, you're just a busy mom. So a lot of like it's inadvertent gaslighting, right? Because it's it's people in primary care medicine and gynecology are doing the best with what information they have in a system where they had virtual, virtually zero training about perimenopause and menopause. So that's kind of like what we're seeing. And and the reason, Chrissy, that people are this is happening for women is because in perimenopause, you're having drops in your progesterone, your testosterone leaves the building, and your estrogen is wild. So it's a it's a it's seven to ten years of a woman's life. And some women can say, you know, uh we talk about hot flashes, right? Because you think you you picture in menopause like women throwing their clothes off, and that's what it is. I can't tell you how few women actually come to see me for hot flashes. So really, yes, it's it's not the presenting symptom. It's it's weight, it's it's libido, it's I don't biggest thing, and this is this is really tough. Non-specific, I don't feel like myself. And I hear this one, it it's heartbreaking because this is when women will cry in my office because you know it, they're like, I just don't enjoy things, I don't have the motivation for things, like I I don't, I don't have my spark. And that is something that we're not talking about enough, but it's so impactful on women's lives.

SPEAKER_02: 8:47

I I would say for me, um, I didn't know I was I was there, I had no idea that I was there, but I can tell you, looking back, I do see the signs that you're talking about. And for me, I was with a job for 10 years. I loved it. They were like family. And then this is before I my period had stopped. I decided, I started weighing the options here and saying, I'm not happy. I'm I'm more unhappy than I am happy. And I left that job and went and did something totally different in the same field, but a whole new company. And I and now I looking back, I'm like, I think that was me just not being happy and needing something different. But it was pivotal in my life.

SPEAKER_01: 9:29

So 25% of women think about leaving their careers in menopause, and 10% do. It's a big deal. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 9:37

Wow. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 9:38

Okay. Not only because of that, like I'm just not happy with this, because I think midlife puts us in a position anyway to kind of reevaluate, like, what am I doing? You know, what's my purpose, that kind of thing. But when you're in a really high power career and you're giving a presentation and you um you literally your mind goes blank and you don't remember what you're gonna say, I mean, that's that's tough.

SPEAKER_02: 10:03

I still don't really know. I haven't gone and done any hormone. I haven't done anything. Um, and and I probably have a few symptoms, but I think it's more with memory than than how I'm feeling. I think I feel okay. Um, and and I wanted to ask you, does that have anything to do with intermittent fasting? Is there a connection there? Because I have been doing that for years.

SPEAKER_01: 10:25

Yep. I'm gonna tell you the bad news about that. So I know I'm not an anti-anything, like whatever somebody's doing that works for them. And I think that in the 20s and 30s and the 40s, even, there's something to be said. And I do believe that there's a lot to be said for overnight rest. You know what I mean? And not and having a break, and you know, um, but really what we're looking at is it's more cre especially if it's a long fast, we're creating more stress on the body. Um, and more stress is what cortisol, sleep disruption, and then you're talking about insulin resistance. So it's it can be there's some people that swear by it. I never yuck anybody's yum. Um but at the same time, like I think I have a lot of women who come to me and say, I'm doing this and it used to work for me and it doesn't. One of the things that I talk to women a ton about is what we did at 20 and 30 goes literally out the window once we hit midlife. And so it's like where before it was eat less, move more, I'm gonna do this weird fad diet, I'm gonna do, you know, whatever it might be, I'm gonna kill it at the gym, can dig you into a hole. Like if I had to give somebody like the little here's your care package for menopause, protein, heavy lifting, restorative activity, prioritizing sleep, nourishing your body. Because a lot of us gen X, let's be real, we spent our whole lives trying to be in smaller bodies. Like that was the ultimate goal.

SPEAKER_02: 11:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 11:50

And I try to encourage women to really shift into a mindset of stronger bodies, healthy bodies, because women, if you go go look at a nursing home, we live longer, but we don't live healthier.

SPEAKER_02: 12:01

I'm trying to do that. I know it's true because osteoporosis and all the things that are gonna happen or could happen. Right. Um I I'm not being proactive and I definitely, you know, probably need this, needed this episode more than you realized. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 12:18

Um, I actually, so a couple of years ago when I was getting excited and relearning everything because I treated menopause in the 90s, and then fast, you know, 2002, I called my patients and said, Oh my gosh, you gotta stop. These hormones are dangerous. And then now, you know, I I had to relearn. And and the way we're doing menopause care is radically different. So I had a full year of pretty significant learning about menopause before I felt confident to add it into my practice. So in the meantime, I was very fortunate to pair up with my friend Kim, lovely. She's lovely, and she's a dietitian and a life coach. And we created a bunch of programs together for women in menopause so we could, you know, get the word out. We do a we do a podcast, um, whatever it might be. Yeah. We need to get back to that. We are circling back to that. It's been really fun. But it's um, it's really we both have that. We say it in probably every episode or when we meet with women, strength training becomes non-negotiable. It and I will tell you, so she is a fitness freak. Like she is like, I've always loved exercise. And I enjoy, I used to run, I do more walking yoga, but I hate I hate strength training. I hate it, but it's the thing that I have to force myself to do. So it's just figuring out, like for you, if you don't love it, what could you have it stack it with? Like, for example, could you find a girlfriend who you want to do it with? So then at least you're getting like some joy out of that time. Or like in my case, I found a gym that's all women. It's solely focused on strength training. So then somebody tells me what to do. I I need somebody to tell me what to do. It's just not I'm the same. I'm the same.

SPEAKER_02: 13:59

An accountability partner really helps the whole process. Um, for me, I grew up dancing, so I love to dance, not necessarily strength train. So my son put on the Apple TV for me, and it has like this fit, it's hip-hop, but I could put something on my my ankles, right? And make that whole thing work. So I think my daughter's gonna do it with me just to kind of bring back the the I I need music. I think that's what it's all about for me, is the rhythm and the music. So I will try to figure that out. I don't know. Okay, you have a podcast.

SPEAKER_01: 14:32

So how did the how did this whole thing start? Okay, so Kim Luckley and I um created something called we we got really excited because we were sharing office space and we're sharing the same patients, and we're literally sitting down every day at lunch and going, um, we're seeing the same patients and they're not getting better. And this really was what prompted us to dive into you know, menopause care. So we decided that we would kind of put together uh a program. So we created something called Faded a Fabulous, and um it was a really comprehensive like online modules about nutrition and menopause, movement, stress management, like everything we interviewed um providers that were like pelvic floor PT. So we kind of made it like a team approach and then basically kind of helped women so that if it wasn't somebody that could come see me in New Hampshire, if it's somebody who's in another state that I can't help, like help them access care because access to menopause care is really the pits right now. It will get better over time. So we created Faded Fabulous. Um, we ended up doing a lot of like we would go and do free talks for women and things like that. I'd still do it. I love it. Kim was the one who was pushing on the podcast. She's like, this would be really fun. Yeah. And so it is it's been a blast. I think we've actually done 11 episodes. We've only put out six, but they're 15 minutes. So it just is kind of focusing on whatever topic, you know, and it's it's yeah, it's been really fun.

SPEAKER_02: 16:01

I've been doing this for about two years now, and I I love it. I think uh it gives me an outlet. I actually used it and worked through a lot of trauma. I didn't start in politics, I started kind of in mental health, not that I'm an expert, but just that I had a lot to get out to get off my mind. Um, and when I did that, I started to really work through it. It was it was absolutely amazing for me. I feel like I'm a healed person. Um, I've gone through a lot in my life, you know, losing my mom. And ironically, this ties in because you do holistic, right? And my mom actually passed away because of she have she was diagnosed with bipolar. And uh her fill-in doctor prescribed her medicine that mixed with her medicine and it killed her. It stopped the heart.

SPEAKER_01: 16:47

Oh my god, Christy, I'm so sorry.

SPEAKER_02: 16:49

Yeah, thank you. Um, and and so kind of a lot of what I what I pull from is the feeling of you know, big pharma and and all the ties there and how there is an alternative to what they're trying to sell you, uh, the greed and everything associated with it. Unfortunately, you mention that and you get strikes and ban warnings. And so I couldn't stay there and actually get the message out. But that's where I started.

SPEAKER_01: 17:17

Um so when I say holistic health, so the the what I like about like kind of my individual practices, I come with years in traditional medicine. So I had the background of it. Um I think if I look at like my sort of practice, I holistic means whole person. And it and it and I think that medicine right now, I don't think there's people are not gonna ban this statement. Everybody knows it, but medicine's a mess. Like traditional system is a mess. Um, and it's not because you don't have wonderful providers, it's because all of the systems that are in place. So the traditional medicine model in particular, they have very limited time traditionally to see you. It's very focused on problems. So a lot of times it's like, oh, you have again to go back to the perimenopausal woman, you have um anxiety, here's your anxiety medicine, you know, you have insomnia, here's something for sleep. Oh, your shoulder hurts, here's an anti-inflammatory. Where I think if you if you're doing more holistic-based practice, you're kind of looking, going, what's causing all these things in the first place? Right. And with menopause, and you're looking at its absence of hormones. Like, you know, even though there's tons of people kind of grifting and saying, um, you know, oh, take this probiotic, it'll fix your menopause or whatever. No, it won't. Uh it's just really expensive. Um, but yeah, so there's, I mean, there's there's flaws. You need you need the traditional model as well. But I think that um anybody who's really doing evidence-based menopause care today for women is again mostly utilizing FDA approved hormones, but we're using body-identical hormones, meaning they're the same chemical structure as the hormones we have in our body. So that's what you want to kind of look at and look for when you're um looking for a provider. So you were talking earlier about how your menopause was kind of a breeze. Menopause, um when we're looking at options, right, or we're thinking about a why, what I encourage, like so I always say not every woman is a candidate for hormones, not every woman wants hormones, but every woman deserves to have a conversation about it.

SPEAKER_00: 19:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 19:34

And if if a woman's considering it, it's I I always encourage them, because uh obviously if they're coming to see me, there's a problem, right? There's typically they're they're seeing me because they're like, oh my gosh, whether it's the weight gain, the hot flashes, the low libido, all the things. They want to do take something that's gonna make them feel better now, right? But I I always challenge women to think about again hormone therapy in terms of your long-term health. So what we know is that women on hormone therapy have a decreased incidence of fractures, right? So osteoporosis, heart disease, diabetes, uh Alzheimer. So we we've got lots of reasons to do hormones beyond, right? Um, just that I don't feel so well. So for disease prevention, I that's where I really, you know, I I my goal is for every woman to be 80 years old, playing pickleball, having sex, like doing the things, you know what I mean, being vibrant, you know.

SPEAKER_02: 20:34

Yeah. I I I think right now, I think one of my biggest things is sleep for some reason. I never had a problem. I was the one that had two alarm clocks because I couldn't get up. And now I'm really it's hard for me to sleep. If something's on my mind, it's even harder. But uh it's not I moved, I'm thinking, oh, maybe it's because I moved and I always sleep on the right side and my bed's weird, so I'm on the left side now. But I think it might be more about what you're saying. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 21:02

It definitely uh in earlier uh perimenopause, a lot of times it's low progesterone, and then um low estrogen kicks. And so a lot of times progesterone's like that anxiety, I can't get to sleep, and a lot of times with estrogen, it's like that two to three a.m. wake up.

SPEAKER_02: 21:17

You know, thinking you need a checkup. I have friends in the past that have told me that they went and they got uh a testosterone that I don't know what it is, they put it in their back or something. Pellet. I I a pellet, yeah. Yeah, and they were really happy with it, but I was like, I don't want to put a pellet in my back.

SPEAKER_01: 21:37

Um desire. Yeah. So you know how I said I don't yuck anybody's yum? That this is the one. I'm gonna yuck that yum. Yeah, so I'll uh and I'll just give you my two cents on it. Sure. Um I that exists for a reason because for 20 years we stopped treating menopause and stopped learning virtually anything about menopause. In desperation, women are like, I need help. Well, uh here come the med spas offering pellets. So realistically, what that is is they're pellets that you actually have surgically um implanted into your buttock with hormones in them. And typically testosterone is the the big one. And women feel great, they have so much sex drive and energy and everything is wonderful. And then they don't. And now they've spent thousands of dollars right over the course of months to do this. If you hate it, you can't take it out, it's not FDA approved. The women who are doing the women who are doing hormone therapy, their training is by the company that creates the pellets. So it typically. And so I'm not a fan. Also, you can get because we're giving you such enormous doses of hormones, you can get an enlarged clitoris, you can get um deepening of your voice, chin hair. Yeah. So for me, wow, for me, that's one that's a no.

SPEAKER_02: 23:06

That's a no for me, too. Oh wow, I had no idea. I had two friends of mine that did it and they were just so happy, but I couldn't afford it. So I was like, I'm gonna stay away from it, which I guess was a blessing in disguise.

SPEAKER_01: 23:18

7% of providers feel comfortable managing menopause. So again, accessing care, you want to be careful because when there's such a need and women are really desperate and you have a system, you're gonna have people come out of the woodwork who are not necessarily doing the right thing. So I always tell women, if you're looking, you look for somebody who's menopause society certified. Or even better, which because I I did menopause society certification and it was great, and I learned a lot about women in midlife and general things. I didn't get as much, I didn't get what I needed for being a prescriber of hormones, the ins and out nuances. So Heather Hirsch MD, which if you've ever seen any of her content on TikTok, she is an internist and has been doing menopause care for 10 years before any of us were talking about it. And she is amazing and created a provider course. So I did her coursework. I took coursework under Kelly Kasperson, who's um amazing. She wrote the book You're not broken. She's a urologist and talks a lot about testosterone and women's health. Um, so we've got some good like pioneers in there. But that would be Heather Hirsch has a directory for clinicians who've taken her course. So that's what you want to kind of look at. And and you can ask questions of an office ahead of time to make sure you're not gonna leave frustrated. Like, does this person use compounded? Do they use FDA approved? Like you're gonna want to find somebody who's a fit for you.

SPEAKER_02: 24:47

You know, I think that a lot of women they don't want to age. And because they don't want to age, they don't want to talk about it. It's embarrassing. It's like, I'm not youthful anymore. I don't have that. The more we can break the stigma and talk about it, the better off we are. I mean, it's only gonna help us to make it okay to talk about it.

SPEAKER_01: 25:06

Yeah, it's happening. If you live long enough, we're all going to get older, right? And so, yeah, we should be talking about it. Our mother's generation, you know, you had mentioned your mom and said, you know, she wasn't able to talk to you about menopause. There's a good chance that she wouldn't have anyway. Because I can tell you that that generation, a lot of people in our generation will say the same thing. My mother never told me about this. Or even funnier, one person said to me, Her mother said, Oh no, I didn't have menopause. I'm like, No, you did.

SPEAKER_02: 25:35

Like, um, so I'll tell you.

SPEAKER_01: 25:37

Yeah, or or some of our mothers will be like, Oh, I uh my menopause was fine. I don't know what you're talking about. And you're like, Do you remember how unhinged you were for a few years? Like, you were not fine, you know?

SPEAKER_02: 25:49

Yeah. And I I didn't have, I wasn't with anyone at the time. Uh, so you know, my kids had to endure that I didn't even realize. And so they're probably like, mommy's not psycho anymore. Yay, mommy's left crazy. Hooray. So there's a chance for us. We're not gonna get that trait. Um, so how did how do you feel with the political climate uh right now for women? I'm as you know, that's my realm. And I am terrified of what's coming for us. Uh so just in the climate, because you actually work in it, what do you think is coming for us?

SPEAKER_01: 26:31

So I will share, um, and I am in a place of privilege. I will admit that that I have a private practice. I don't have to worry about somebody firing me for saying my beliefs. And I'm I'm, as you know on TikTok, pretty outspoken about that. Um so I cried in 2016 on the day that of the election, election results, I was devastated. Um, and I was called dramatic. And my fear having two daughters and being somebody who loves women was that we were gonna have Robbie Wade overturned. And I was told I was so dramatic. And and yet here we are. And so that's that's one piece. So we'll start with that. Like the abortion piece, and I I did get vocal this year about that on Facebook, which is just dangerous land, right? That's hard. Yeah. And um, a bunch of some people came at me, um, you know, Christian, like, how could you? And what I had to explain was as a healthcare provider, what I want everybody to understand is that abortion is health care. Women who are having an ectopic pregnancy or a miscarriage that's incomplete require an abortion. Okay, it's termination, right? Um, and because there isn't a medical, there is no medical code for miscarriage, it's it's uh called an abortion. So when we I didn't know that. Absolutely. So when you say this is why we have women in places like Texas who go in with their ruptured ectopic and can't get care, because if they've outlawed abortion care, those physicians are like, and the hospitals aren't gonna let the physicians do anything, even if they wanted to go against that. So uh my fear is enormous for women. Uh so that's one piece, right? The the abortion care. But health care.

SPEAKER_02: 28:29

Can I jump in on that? Even I I think it even scares me further because I'm worried that they want our health records. Okay. They want to see what's going on. They want us to be able to take a pregnancy test before we get on an airplane. And I'm in Texas, so I see what exactly is happening here, and I am terrified for the females. I'm terrified for my daughter who is 23. I'm I am extremely vocal about it. And there have already been documented deaths on this. And nobody is freaking out. I don't understand. Like, I how do they not put the correlation and all the stuff together to know that it could be you or your child because they're cult?

SPEAKER_01: 29:12

I I mean, do you know what I mean? Like, yeah, yeah, yeah. It's it's all about like the fetus, the fetus, the fetus. Um, and I'm not saying that's a wrong stance for somebody to be pro-life, but when it becomes so hyper fixated on that it's easy enough to look away until it's you, right? Because wasn't it in Florida that um I'm not I'm gonna butcher this. It was in Florida. It was um, I don't know if she was a senator, uh, she voted for this, right? And then but her but had an atopic pregnancy and had to get an exemption and got an exemption, right? Yeah. So yeah, that's that's a scary place like reproductive health. Um but For me, I'm a kind of a big picture person. And I've been, ever since anybody even mentioned things like Project 2025, I have been terrified. Like the whole let's get back to women in the kitchen, let's make more babies in this country, RFK talking about teenage boy sperm counts. We have that aspect. Don't even, I know, like who's testing teenage boy sperm counts? And why are we talking about that? And then you have, you know, now we're gonna defund Medicaid and Planned Parenthood. Like, what is gonna happen to women in this country? And I'm getting really too heated. I should probably take that. No, no, I I want you to get heated. Honestly, honestly, we need to be more heated. I know, I know. We need to be more worked up. And then, you know, if they're saying things like birth control won't be covered or any of those things, birth control is more than just birth control. Hormones are used for PCOS and endometriosis. And so I just and and people will say, can you know, that's again, they're gonna say that's being dramatic. These things are not gonna happen, but so much has happened, and we need to look at that. The story I wanted to share with you because I thought you would really be blown away by this. I use progesterone commonly in menopause hormon therapy, like it is generic and super inexpensive, right? I got a prior authorization. I've had two prior authorization requests for progesterone. Like, what? It's generic, it's inexpensive. Why am I getting a prior authorization? Coincidentally, both of these people were government employees. So I'm prior authors are a pain. You gotta call, you gotta talk to somebody who doesn't know what they're talking about and answer some questions. So I'm like, I'm gonna do this anyway because I want to know what this is. The two questions they asked me is this patient seeking gender-affirming care? And was this patient born female? So this is happening.

SPEAKER_02: 32:10

First of all, it's none of your fucking business. Amen.

SPEAKER_01: 32:12

Okay. Yes, I was very, um, I wasn't very friendly.

SPEAKER_02: 32:15

No, I bet you weren't. But I think also you uh you got it right in your face. Like, no, this isn't what hearsay. It's it's happening in in your own industry. It's unbelievable. I have heard that there are some uh and I'm gonna butcher this. Uh, there are some medications that are used to for like uh giving yourself an abortion that that are also used for cancer uh related things. And so they're trying to stop that from coming into America because they're tying it together with that. Again, don't have the specific details. I can probably put it in the episode.

SPEAKER_01: 32:53

Um yeah, yeah, they're looking to because it again, anything that can be abortion related. Um, but also the woman who has the ectopic pregnancy early enough along can do a medical abortion versus having to do a procedure without that access. I'm I'm just scared overall. And again, if they do come after like birth control or it's not considered care, um, you know, and you get take away Planned Parenthood at a time when we are facing significant increases potentially in healthcare premiums that people will not be able to afford. We're gonna have a whole bunch of uninsured people who don't have access to Medicaid, who are gonna have in unintentional pregnancies. And I don't understand what the push is for more babies in this country because we cannot take care of what we have now.

SPEAKER_02: 33:47

I have my own theory on that. And uh it may be controversial, but I believe that it's because the white person, the white male, is starting to be overtaken by other ethnic groups and by a certain time frame, it will happen. So therefore, they're trying to reduce that to have more white babies. Unfortunately, I think that's what's happening. And there's a lot of proof that ties that all together: white supremacy, all the things that are happening in our government, project 2025. It all ties to that. Unfortunately, that's they want us home barefoot and pregnant, and no access to anything else but being a mother in the kitchen with your child.

SPEAKER_01: 34:29

And you know, uh, one of the things that did make me sad too is that, you know, with this administration, uh, there's a lot. The um I was getting, as before this election, I was getting really excited about the rising up of excitement around women's health. And like women are finally realizing we weren't using women in medical studies until the 90s. Everything was men, yeah. So it's it's bad, but we're recognizing how stupid that like we're not men, we're totally different beings here, and so um there was getting to be a lot of excitement around doing more women's health um, you know, research. Well, now what are we doing with research? And then they're stopping IH, C D C like we're gonna, it's gonna take so long to recover from the damage that's been done that that will again set back um women's health because you know, uh we need to be practicing evidence-based medicine. And when you get into the world of like menopause care, like there's you know, uh there needs to be more data to to show effectiveness of hormones and even like things like testosterone. It's not FDA approved in this country for women. It can be a beautiful part of menopause care. But, you know, it's I don't know. Anyway, yeah, I could go on and on for days and days about what's happening and how it impacts women's health.

SPEAKER_02: 35:56

Yeah, I think one of my questions would be uh looking at the overall aerial picture of what's happening in the world, well, specifically the United States, uh what do you think? Just as an observer, why do you think they're doing what they're doing? Do you have any opinion on that? Because I'll give you mine. I I feel like they are purposely making us panicked and fearful. And you know, with the snap benefits being taken away tomorrow, if if it doesn't open back up, tomorrow it happens, the the 27th of October, because we're gonna have this air later. Um people without food, like I I watched a video the other day of a mom and she said with snap benefits, she chooses to go to sleep early because then she won't feel her stomach rumbling. And and now they're gonna take that away from her and and the panic that everybody is feeling right now. I I I'm a single mom. I understand what it's like to to have to live paycheck to paycheck. I understand it with every part of my being. And and I can't, I I've never been on Snap, but I can't imagine if that was my lifeline. How I talk about no sleep.

SPEAKER_01: 37:17

It's cruelty. It's cruelty. Um it's entitlement and cruelty. It's people um, you know, look at him or her. She needs this, I don't need this. And I made a post about this yesterday. We are all one problem away from possibly needing assistance. Like that's the truth. I try to not see those videos of people disparaging anybody who's on assistance because it just grosses me out. And I do believe and I think that it's it's put in your face to elicit a response when I believe that there's more people like you and I in the world who care about hungry children. I hope that um we all come together and do what we can to feed people.

SPEAKER_02: 38:04

As you know, I said before, I'm in Texas, so a lot of my family falls into that category. Like I have to like I w I watch the Dallas Cowboys. It's one of my favorite football games. It's on today, actually. Um, and I I've always traditionally watched it with my dad. I would go over there and I'd watch the game with my dad. And a couple of weeks ago, I go over there, not even calling. I'm like, I just go over there to watch it. And the whole family is sitting around the TV watching the Charlie Kirk memorial. And I I didn't even know how to react. So I'm like, I'm gonna go in the bedroom, even though I came to hang out with dad. I'm gonna go in there by myself and watch the game. So I go in there, my dad comes in, and he's like, Don't you don't you know who he is? And I went, yeah, he's a podcaster, like I am. Like, what's the difference, truly? And uh he's like, he loved his country, he loved God. And I'm like, where am I? I'm in the freaking Twilight Zone right now. Like I literally was like, I'm out of here. I had to leave. And I love my dad. And I know that inside he's a good guy, but he has Fox News on 24-7.

SPEAKER_01: 39:18

Uh, it's uh yeah. Um, I love I love people who follow Christ and love Christ, right? Like um, and we have you know family members who are Christian. Um what's happen this the the absolute disconnect between what Jesus would do if he was here and what's actually happening in this country is alarming. And I don't know how people can actually still believe that that's what they're doing when they're doing very anti-Christ-like things in not taking care of the poor, the all the things. We can get into it all day. It's tough when you family, um you know I'm a strange. I think if you didn't know this, I'm estranged from my dad and have been since 20 2016. Um I didn't know that since the election. So um so you get it.

SPEAKER_02: 40:06

You totally get what I'm saying.

SPEAKER_01: 40:08

Yeah, and and I I am not um estranged from my father because he you know, because of politics as much as because he's a jerk. But you know what I'm saying. But Fox News, we used to be able to banter. We used to be able to banter politically and then he retired and just watched Fox News on uh all day on like volume 200 and it changed so much. But I I do believe that people are I do have to believe that people are inherently good, and I do think that if all you see is just the piece that's presented to you, where you and I, I know both look at even though it's painful, I'll watch Fox News and trying to get a sense of what is everybody seeing. You know, I don't want to be only seeing my little slice and missing something either. So I think it it's sad, and I've seen more and more, you know, family estrangement. I have a lot of people in my life who don't think the same way that I do, and we just do not, we don't I know that in order to maintain those relationships, we don't discuss politics.

SPEAKER_02: 41:15

Yeah, on Facebook, I think it's where the biggest mix comes in. And so I have been slowly building up my my bravery, I guess you could say. That's a tougher, that's tougher than TikTok. Yeah. It is so much tougher. And so I'll post clips on there knowing I'm gonna get a reaction, but also I want to see who's posting stuff that are the opposite of what I'm saying, so I can block them. I know it's horrible. I know it's horrible, but I don't I don't want somebody that would point to the attic if I was up there. And the way things are going, Trump wants everybody to point out the terrorist in the group because they believe differently or oppose him. And I don't want somebody in my life that would point to me and say, her. And that's how I view people now. Yeah. Would you point to the attic? Right.

SPEAKER_01: 42:06

I have never been so stressed ever about what's happening as I have been since January of this year. And um it's interesting because my husband, although we feel the same, I feel it much more deeply and think about it much more, and it takes up more room in my brain. So it it's tough. And I I know lots of people who are actually their partners feel the opposite, and that's been a struggle for a lot.

SPEAKER_02: 42:37

Do you think it's TikTok? Do you think TikTok is what makes us a little bit more aware, hyper-aware of what's happening everywhere? Sometimes for me. Agreed. No, agreed. Because I and that's why I go and I try to check myself by going to other places just to make sure I'm not in falling into this culty thought. Right. But every time I go out, Trump proves me wrong. Every time, nope, you're definitely not. It's it's him. It's absolutely him.

SPEAKER_01: 43:06

And it's just not a no, you watch clips of things. And I feel like it's every day, it's it's at least weekly, if not every day, that the next shocking thing happens. And we keep thinking he won't or it can't, and it does. And so I think um that's another thing. Like, I, you know, just tying tying this into menopause for a second. Women women in midlife in general, like this is a season where resilience is down in a lot of us. Um and our nervous systems already need some help. So this past year, I've had more women say what's happening in the world is just it's like lighter fluid on the fire of me not feeling well to begin with. Like it's really tough to watch.

SPEAKER_02: 43:58

Has anyone ever asked you, a patient or a potential patient, what your political views are? Is that like a pre-resiquit? How do you pre-resiquit? I can't even say the word.

SPEAKER_01: 44:07

Requisite requisite. I'm gonna send you some estrogen path just thing. Um so yeah, yeah, no, it's real. Menopause brain is real. Uh in fact, what were we just talking about?

SPEAKER_02: 44:28

Has anybody ever asked you your political views?

SPEAKER_01: 44:32

Okay, thank you. Um yes, but not in the way they don't come out and blatantly ask. I think if you watch any of my, even my if you look at my website for my business, if you know that I'm a women's health, you know, nurse practitioner, you probably kind of can guess where I would land. I'm not private about it on Facebook. Funny, one of my patients actually found me on TikTok. So I'm like sitting, I would never I'm sitting in the room and I, you know, how did you find my practice? She's like, I saw your videos on TikTok. I'm like, ooh, I'm a little unhinged on there sometimes, but you know, it's okay. I have my own practice, so I can be a little bit unhinged. Um yeah, uh yeah. So I feel like most of the time women you you feel each other out, right? Like any other stressors, yeah, you know what's happening in the world. And I just say something like, yeah, it's pretty crazy. And then I know, but based on the next thing they say, kind of where they land. But I don't feel like I can't tell you. I think most of my patients would be thumbs up with where I am. And I think, yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 45:50

And I have to go ahead. I have to tell the audience, she has like 35,000 followers on TikTok. So she's not just like a hundred followers, so she's pretty yeah, I don't know.

SPEAKER_01: 46:01

I do not know how that happened. So I have been making videos and doing menopause care and you know, for about menopause and stuff like that, and funny things about my family. I got on there in 2020 because I was bored, right? In pandemic, I had to escape. And then um, I after the election, I made a post. I said, if you look like me and you voted for her, how are you going to, how are we going to let people know that we're actually safe when we look like this? Because how many percentage of white women voted for him? And that was the one, that was the one. That was the that was when you know a lot of women. And so I love, like, I don't get, I get some, you know, nasties on there, um, which I'll sometimes have fun with, but uh, for the most part, it's just this beautiful like group of women who are in the same place that we are.

SPEAKER_02: 46:56

And I love that. And I think that's like the really great thing about TikTok is that you do meet really great people. Like for the first time I met somebody on TikTok when I went to the protest, the No Kings recently. I did. She jumped into my DMs and she's like, she's in Dallas or in Texas, and she's like, How do you get down there? Is there special parking? I said, No, just take the train, it is so much easier. Sorry. And I'm walking. No, that's oh my God.

SPEAKER_01: 47:23

This is my son. That was so cute. He's my empty nap savior.

SPEAKER_02: 47:30

We all need one of those. Um, my son graduates this year. He's my last of three, so I totally understand. Um, so I so I got off the train, and me and my daughter there were walking, and all of a sudden I hear somebody go, Thank you for the advice on the train. And I look over and it's Danny, and I'm just like, I met somebody on TikTok. This is real.

SPEAKER_01: 47:48

That's cool. So cool. That is so cool.

SPEAKER_02: 47:50

Yeah, it was really cool. And I got to meet you. You know, I'm so I was so excited for today. I was nervous and excited and all the things. And I have to tell you, I I am really a bad interviewer. Like I'm gonna say I'm really good at talking by myself. No, I was like, I didn't even plan anything. I'm like, let's just go off the cuff, you know, and see what happens. But I that's why the beginning was kind of weird where I'm just like, okay, let's do this. I don't know what I'm doing. So I'm just a normal human.

SPEAKER_01: 48:19

You give yourself way more credit than that. You're fantastic. And I all day long would rather just sit here and that's your your the feel is you're chit-chatting with your girlfriend, and that's you know, yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 48:30

And it's true. I really wanted to learn from you. Like, I I love to have people on that can that are smarter, that can teach me things, and then we can teach somebody else, and and to know that maybe somebody took something away where they're like, you know what? I want to reach out, I want, I need help, and and nobody seems to understand what's happening. And that is so important. Like, we need to take care of each other as friends, as the community, uh, you know, in this political climate, but also just for your health, just to be we need you strong, ladies. We need you strong. Yes, we do, which is the biggest thing. And um, so is there anything that you want to close and and tell the audience about before we leave?

SPEAKER_01: 49:10

Sure. Um, I think what I my biggest take-home is as women, we have taken care of everyone our entire lives. Midlife should be a season where we get to take a breath, we get to reprioritize ourselves and take care of ourselves, pour into ourselves. This should be a season of joy. And if it's not, and you're in the struggle, um, particularly if it's, you know, um hormones or you have unhealed trauma, like this is the season, take care of it. Like go go do your therapy, get on hormones, like if if you want to, and are a candidate. Um make this season amazing and and and go into this next season um healthy and happy. Deserve it.

SPEAKER_02: 50:04

Yeah, I I I loved having you on. And I'm gonna give you a second to brag about yourself and tell people where they can find you because I know after seeing this, they're gonna go look you up. So give us your website, give us your podcast, tell us where you're at.

SPEAKER_01: 50:20

Um, so for website, you can go to either Victoria Kirby Wellness. Um that's my business uh for my personal practice. And then I also um have faded to fabulous.biz, and you can find the link to the podcast on there. And that's just fun connecting with women in midlife. And they can find you on TikTok, which is where I found her. Yeah, and TikTok again if you want to hear my um angry ranting.

SPEAKER_02: 50:47

You can do it. Misery loves company.