Episode Description
In this episode of The Hotflash inc Podcast, journalist Ann Marie McQueen interviews Dr. Kirsten Smith, ND, a naturopathic doctor and certified menopause practitioner practicing between Ontario and Costa Rica. Together, they grapple with the exploding conversation around menopause hormone therapy – what’s grounded in evidence, what’s being overstated, and what gets lost when urgency turns into dogma.
This is a candid, nuanced look at the current “meno-rush” – where hormone therapy is hailed as life-saving by some, dismissed by others, and increasingly positioned all around as the only solution. Dr. Smith brings 17 years of clinical experience blending conventional diagnostics with holistic medicine, offering what she calls a third path: thoughtful, individualized care rooted in both science and lived reality.
If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed by the polarization – this conversation is for you.
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What we explored this episode:
00:00 – Why menopause hormone therapy has become so polarized
07:45 – The “meno-rush”: how Instagram accelerated the hormone conversation
12:10 – Pharmaceutical influence and the pendulum swing from neglect to hype
18:45 – Who hormone therapy doesn’t work for (and why that matters)
23:20 – The pathology problem: when everything gets blamed on perimenopause
28:10 – Speed culture, nervous systems, and why true healing takes time
Memorable quote:
“We’ve gone from ignoring menopause to hyper-medicalizing it – and neither extreme serves women.”
Where to follow Dr. Kirsten Smith
IG @drkirstensmithnd
Facebook drkirstensmithnd
Linked In drkirstensmithnd
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