EPISODE 3: Hormones, covid cuties & education is key 💕with SPECIAL GUEST MELISSA KROUPA 💕WELCOME TO THE BRIT & BROOKE POD 💅🏼 Get to know Brit & Brooke and how their journey led to this friggin' podcast! 🎙️ In this episode, Brit & Brooke talk to Melissa Kroupa, a specialist in hormone and wellness. Brit grew up with her and is working with her one-on-one for overall health and hormone analysis. We talk about Melissa’s upbringing in a Filipino immigrant household, expectations of her future, and what it meant to walk down a new career path in the medical field. We talk about hormones, perimenopause, motherhood, shifting careers after burnout, education of women’s health, and how we want to shape the future for generations to come. It was a pleasure speaking with Melissa, and we learned so much - we hope yo u do, too. ✨ You'll learn what it looks like when career burnout has taken its toll, and how to pivot to a new career journey ✨ You'll hear why so many of us know so little about women’s health after 30, and what Melissa and so many others are doing to change that ✨ You'll hear touch points on different courses of treatment for hormonal fluctuations in perimenopause ✨ You’ll be inspired to learn more about women’s health & what it means to put your health first when everything feels like it’s rapidly changing In this episode: :00 Welcome to Episode 3! 3:30 Puberty 2: Perimenopause 4:13 Guess what…we both have COVID. 5:30 New COVID strain is gnarly…heads up people 6:00 Teenage life for us vs. Teenage life now 8:20 Made in Her Image Event in New York brings nostalgia 10:32 Introducing our Special Guest, Melissa Kroupa 11:26 Brit & Melissa grew up in Lisle together 14:50 Melissa’s experience growing up in a Filipino immigrant household 16:40 Burnout comes 17:00 Having the empowerment and support of other women 19:16 Melissa has to ask “who am I?” 21:55 “Ah-ha” moment for career change 26:07 What the heck is “Perimenopause”? 28:00 Why does it feel like perimenopause came out of nowhere? It’s all over the algorithm. 30:46 What is hormone replacement therapy (HRT)? 34:02 Brit is going to take the hormone “Dutch” test with. Melissa - what the heck is that?! 37:38 The work Melissa does now is very reflective of the change she made in her own life 38:50 Our healthcare system has to change through education 39:05 How can GLPs fit into overall wellness outside of known benefits? Melissa gives *SO* much info we did not know here! 42:40 Viewer questions answered! (Terrific questions ya’ll, thank you for sending!) 50:23 Most medical studies are based on men’s anatomy, not women’s as they were deemed to “complicated” because of our reproductive systems 51:27 BIG FACT THAT BLOWS OUR MIND WTF WTF WTF 53:30 Brit speaks on the experience of watching her Grammy with vaginal cancer 55:00 Education is power. The system has to change. 57:00 See you soon New York! Okay, back to bed. We still have Covid. — WE ARE SO HAPPY TO BE HERE - THANK YOU FOR JOINING US! xoxo — OUR SPECIAL GUEST, MELISSA KROUPA Melissa Kroupa, also known as Mel, earned both her BSN and MSN from Loyola University Chicago and is a board-certified Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner. She began her career in the ICU before transitioning into her role as a nurse practitioner for lung transplant patients. Mel brings her clinical experience to Bix Beauty & Wellness at Spa Lane in Naperville and Barrington. She runs the hormone and wellness program where she helps women and men feel their best and achieve their health goals. Outside of work, Mel loves cooking, traveling, and staying active. Most of all, she enjoys spending time with her husband and three boys, who keep her grounded, inspired, and always on the go. IG: @melbeing_wellnessnp Appointments available with Mellissa at: https://www.bixbeautynp.com/ https://www.spalanenaperville.com/ — Follow Us: Instagram: @britbrookepod TikTok: @brit.brooke Email: britbrookepod@gmail.com Brit's Instagram: @queenbkenyon Brit's TikTok: @queenbkenyon Brooke's Instagram: @brooketrantor Brooke's TikTok: @brooketrantor Pink Among Men: @pinkamongmen — Subscribe to Brit & Brooke's channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@BritBrookePod — Listen to Brit & Brooke Podcast 🎧 Apple Podcasts Spotify Amazon Music & wherever you listen to podcasts! — Want to see more of what these two are up to? www.brooketrantor.com Email: britbrookepod@gmail.com — Brought to you by Pink Among Men Productions Executive Producer, Amy DePaola www.pinkamongmen.com Subscribe: @pinkamongmen6268 — "Whoop" by Anno Domini Beats Sourced & Licensed by Youtube Studio
