Redefining menopause means rethinking estrogen.

Estrogen plays a larger role in women’s physiology than it gets credit for, and menopause education pays the price.

My Story

My name is Juliet Handelman, and I am a rising senior at River Hill High School in Clarksville, Maryland. Through my school’s Independent Research G/T Program, I am studying women’s approach to symptom ambiguity amidst menopause and thyroid disease. I was motivated to research this by my passions for medicine, women’s health, and education.

Thyroid disease is only one condition that can co-exist with menopause, but understanding it is one degree closer to midlife preparedness. With this website, I hope to leave women of any age feeling more confident in the menopause transition than how they arrived.

‘25-26 Review of Literature -Midlife Symptom Heterogeneity: Reinventing Women’s Approach to Menopause and Thyroid Disease


  • "When you already have mental health issues, the first conclusion many doctors make is that it is your mental health. They don't look at the bigger picture."

    — Survey Respondent, 2026

  • "Do not accept short answers from your physician. Be your own advocate to better understand your physical and mental health."

    — Survey Respondent, 2026

  • "Going through it I cannot believe how no one prepared me for this. It is awful."

    — Survey Respondent, 2026

  • "It took 4-5 visits with different MDs to finally get one to hear me and be open to treating me."

    — Survey Respondent, 2026

  • "All of my menopause knowledge comes from my mom. I wish I would learn more about it in school and other relevant changes of my body, but that just never happens."

    — Survey Respondent, 2026

Preparedness is both a process and destination:

→

01
Education

→

02
Collaboration

03
Application

Women deserve to understand what their body experiences during menopause.

This begins with an understanding of estrogen.

Introduction