What happens to your skin and hair during perimenopause and menopause, and why does it sometimes feel like everything changes overnight? In this episode of The Shift with Sonia Azad, I sit down with integrative dermatologist Dr. Corinne Erickson to talk about the often-overlooked connection between hormonal changes and skin and hair health in midlife. We talk about why estrogen matters to the skin, what can contribute to hair loss in your 40s and 50s, why melasma can suddenly appear, and how GLP-1 medications and rapid weight loss can intersect with hair shedding. Dr. Erickson explains why these changes aren't simply about "getting older" or something you need to fix with Botox, filler or an endless collection of skincare products. Hormonal changes can affect collagen, elastin, hydration, inflammation, skin-cell turnover and the hair-growth cycle—and understanding the biology can change how we approach them.

ABOUT THE SHIFT WITH SONIA AZAD

The Shift is a podcast about navigating the big transitions of life with more intention, curiosity and self-trust. I'm Sonia Azad, a longtime TV health journalist, yoga and meditation teacher, and global wellness retreat leader, and I have spent more than two decades talking to experts and asking questions about how we can live healthier, more meaningful lives. If you're navigating a major life shift, whether it's midlife, a career change, a relationship transition, a health journey or simply realizing that the life you've been living no longer fits, you're in the right place.

Subscribe to The Shift for more honest, expert-informed conversations about healthy ways to navigate major life shifts. If this conversation helped you understand your own skin or hair changes a little differently, share it with a woman in your life who needs to hear it.

This conversation is for educational purposes and is not a substitute for individualized medical advice. Talk with your own healthcare professional about your symptoms, medications and treatment options.

TAKEAWAYS

1. Hormonal changes can dramatically affect your skin and hair. Estrogen interacts with skin cells and plays a role in collagen, elastin, hydration, inflammation, blood flow and skin-cell turnover. As estrogen fluctuates and eventually declines, women can notice significant changes.

2. Midlife hair loss is often multifactorial. Hormones may be part of the picture, but iron/ferritin, thyroid function, vitamin D, nutrition, rapid weight loss and other factors can also contribute.

3. Rapid weight loss associated with GLP-1s can trigger telogen effluvium, but nutritional changes and previously underlying female-pattern hair loss may also play a role.

4. Melasma isn't just sun damage. Sun exposure, visible light, heat, hormones, inflammation and genetics can all contribute.

5. Your healthcare team may need to evolve with you. The doctor who was right for one season of your life may not be the right person for another.

6. Skin health deserves medical attention, not just cosmetic attention. A dermatologist can distinguish normal changes from conditions that deserve treatment.

7. Midlife skincare doesn't have to mean doing more. Dr. Erickson's philosophy is simple: protect what you have and replace what you've lost.

Fertility preservation is changing how we think about family planning.

In this episode, Sonia Azad sits down with fertility specialist Dr. Katie Doody to explore the evolving world of reproductive health and the options available today. We break down egg freezing vs embryo freezing— what it means, how it works, and what to consider.

You'll learn:

• The difference between egg freezing and embryo freezing

• How age impacts fertility and outcomes

• What the process actually looks like (timeline, injections, retrieval)

• Common myths about fertility preservation

• How technology is changing success rates

• What to consider when planning for your future family

Subscribe for more conversations on health, wellness, and life transitions.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction

01:00 Meet Dr. Katie Doody

02:30 Fertility vs Infertility (Why language matters)

04:00 Who seeks fertility treatment today?

06:00 Age, health, and fertility factors

09:20 How fertility technology has evolved

11:50 Egg Freezing vs Embryo Freezing

14:20 What the egg freezing process is really like

17:30 How many eggs do you actually need?

20:00 Success rates explained

21:30 Choosing between eggs vs embryos

24:00 GLP-1s, weight, and fertility

28:00 Future of fertility technology

30:00 Common myths about egg freezing

32:00 Different paths to building a family

34:00 Final thoughts

Key Takeaways:

Fertility preservation is not a guarantee, but it increases options

Egg freezing and embryo freezing follow the same initial process

Age impacts egg quality more than quantity

You don't need a partner to start planning your future family

Technology is improving success rates, but expectations matter

There are multiple paths to building a family

Fertility is one of the most misunderstood areas of women's health, and most people don't realize how early planning actually matters.

In this episode of The Shift podcast, Sonia Azad sits down with reproductive endocrinology and infertility specialist Dr. Kimberly Yau to break down everything you need to know about fertility, egg freezing, IVF, AMH testing, PCOS, irregular periods, and how age impacts reproductive health.

You'll learn:

• When to see a fertility specialist

• What AMH actually means (and what it doesn't)

• The truth about egg freezing success rates

• Fertility in your 20s, 30s, and 40s

• IVF, embryos, and reproductive technology advances

• Male factor infertility and sperm health

• Fertility preservation for medical reasons (like cancer treatment)

This conversation is designed to give you clarity so you can make informed decisions about your reproductive future.

📌 Subscribe for more conversations on health, wellness, and navigating life transitions.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Introduction

01:00 Meet Dr. Kimberly Yao — her 15-year journey to fertility medicine

02:30 The state of women's health today

03:00 Who sees a fertility specialist — and why

04:30 Sonia's personal experience freezing her eggs at 35

05:15 When is the right time to see a fertility specialist?

06:30 Fertility by decade: your 20s

07:45 How to find the right fertility clinic (look for SART)

08:45 Fertility by decade: your 30s

09:45 Why egg quality declines — the science explained

11:15 What AMH is and what it actually tells you

13:30 AMH ranges and what they mean

14:15 Fertility by decade: your 40s

15:30 What "60% abnormal eggs" actually means

16:30 Aneuploidy, chromosomes, and miscarriage risk explained

17:30 Fertility in your 50s — and the role of frozen eggs

18:45 How much does the male partner contribute?

19:45 What causes male factor infertility?

20:15 What a male fertility workup looks like

21:00 How much has egg freezing technology changed in 10 years?

22:00 Vitrification — the flash-freezing breakthrough

23:00 The most common questions Dr. Yao gets asked

24:10 The full fertility workup: what to expect

25:30 Tracking ovulation and irregular periods

27:00 When irregular periods become a red flag

28:00 Fertility preservation before chemotherapy

29:30 Cancer, fertility access, and insurance coverage

30:45 Sperm freezing — an undertalked option

31:00 Is there anything you can do to naturally preserve fertility?

32:00 Dr. Yao's message to anyone who's been putting this off

33:00 You can still get pregnant with one ovary or one fallopian tube

33:40 How to connect with Care Fertility

34:10 Closing thoughts

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

You don't need a fertility problem to see a fertility specialist

The best time to go is before you need to

Age 35 is when egg quality begins an exponential decline; the ideal time to freeze eggs is before that

AMH tells you how many eggs you have remaining, but it does not predict your future fertility

Up to 50% of infertility cases involve a male factor; it is never just a "woman's issue"

Vitrification (flash freezing) has dramatically improved egg survival rates after thawing

Freezing your eggs is not a guarantee, but it expands your options

If your period has been irregular for 3 or more months in a row, get evaluated

Cancer patients should ask about fertility preservation before starting treatment — coverage is expanding in many states

You can still conceive naturally with one ovary or one fallopian tube

Knowledge is the first step — being pre-contemplative puts you ahead