Menopause, often called "the change of life," is a significant transition marked by a cascade of hormonal shifts. These changes can bring a variety of symptoms, including hot flashes, sleep disruptions, mood swings, and weight gain. This article explores a curated selection of books, recommended by experts, that offer evidence-based advice and empathetic guidance to help women navigate menopause with confidence and clarity.
Understanding the Change
Perimenopause and menopause can be long processes, and no two women experience them in the same way. These books aim to demystify what's happening in your body, brain, and sex life, and empower you with knowledge. Many women experience menopause without a clear understanding of what's going on. It’s not their fault: a large percentage of OB/GYNs have no training in menopause, so there can be a serious information gap, especially at the beginning of perimenopause when symptoms are still mild or vague, and your periods haven’t stopped.
Books as a Starting Point
Books on menopause written by experts who specialize in women’s hormonal health and have seen it all in practice can be a great starting point. Pick up a few of these titles to help you feel more calm and prepared about what’s going on now and what’s still to come. Take what you've learned and share it with a menopause specialist who can personalize treatment to your unique experience.
General Guides
The New Menopause: Navigating Your Path Through Hormonal Change with Purpose, Power, and the Facts by Mary Claire Haver, MD
Written by The Galveston Diet author, Dr. Mary Claire Haver, currently ranks #1 in menopause books on Amazon. This book gets down to brass tacks about finding science-backed ways to minimize the major risks that come with hormonal changes, dangers like osteoporosis and heart disease.
The Galveston Diet: The Doctor-Developed, Patient-Proven Plan to Burn Fat and Tame Your Hormonal Symptoms by Mary Claire Haver, MD
In this book, Dr. Haver shares her own experience with weight gain and how she cracked the code on how to eat that got her-and thousands of other women-to a healthy, maintainable weight. The word “diet” is in the title, but this is less about deprivation and more about creating a sustainable way of eating healthy during menopause, which is when many women experience weight gain and increased belly fat. It’s part cookbook, part meal plan, and part realistic guide to how to eat to reduce fat and feel your best.
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Dr. Mary Claire Haver is a wife, mom, board-certified OBGYN, MSCP, certified culinary medicine specialist and author who has devoted her adult life to women’s health. Over the years, as her patient population aged, Dr. Haver was overwhelmed with the number of complaints and concerns her patients had about weight gain while going through menopause. Determined to make a difference, she embarked on extensive research and created The Galveston Diet nutrition program. This innovative approach is tailored to address the specific challenges women encounter during middle age, offering a refreshing departure from outdated mantras.
The Galveston Diet meal delivery is perfect for when you want an easy, on-diet plan. Get fresh, personalized, organically sourced, inflammation-fighting meals, delivered to you and ready to eat in minutes. No subscription required. As we age, inflammation rises, especially with decreasing estrogen levels in perimenopause. Menopausal inflammation often hides behind vague symptoms like fatigue, mood swings, and abdominal weight gain. That's why our nutrition program targets chronic inflammation. Here are some tips to help combat it. Load up on anti-inflammatory foods such as foods containing omega-3 fatty acids. Cut back on or eliminate inflammatory foods such as white rice and refined sugar. Make time to exercise within your routine. Work on a healthy gut by improving the gut’s microbial arrier with fermented foods like tofu and miso. Manage stress using whatever methods work for you! Some of our favorites include meditation, yoga and journaling.
Grown Woman Talk: Your Guide to Getting and Staying Healthy by Sharon Malone, MD
This essential book comes to us from Washington, DC-based OB/GYN Sharon Malone, Chief Medical Advisor of Alloy Women’s Health (telehealth for menopause treatment) and a trusted expert to the likes of Oprah Winfrey and Michelle Obama. The book’s goal is to reduce your anxiety, give you real solutions, and cheer you on as you go through this phase of your life. The advice centers on how to advocate for yourself and feel in control in healthcare settings.
Finding Me in Menopause: Flourishing in Perimenopause and Menopause Using Nutrition and Lifestyle by Dr. Nitu Bajekal, MD
This book answers the question of just how much of an impact lifestyle changes can have on menopause symptoms. It was written by an OB/GYN based in the U.K. (she was one of the first board-certified lifestyle medicine physicians there) and the chapters break down what science shows about how changing your habits around diet, exercise, stress, and sleep can have a huge impact on how you feel.
The Definitive Guide to Perimenopause and Menopause by Louise Newson, MD
This book is designed to get you up to speed so that you feel prepared and empowered about what’s to come. From what is really going on with your hormones to how menopause can impact your career, it’s all here. Sprinkled throughout are stories from women the Dr. Newson has seen in her clinic, which will help you feel a little less alone.
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The Menopause Diet Plan: A Natural Guide to Managing Hormones, Health, and Happiness by Hillary Wright and Elizabeth Ward
With honesty and optimism, The Menopause Diet Plan encourages a positive, fad-free approach to managing your physical and emotional health during perimenopause and menopause. It highlights current scientific knowledge about the best diet and lifestyle choices to manage your weight; keep your heart, brain, and bones healthy; and decrease the risk for cancer and other chronic conditions. It also offers natural strategies to help diminish hot flashes, manage sleep difficulties and mood swings, improve energy, and more.
The Menopause Diet Plan takes a unique approach to eating before, during, and after menopause. Registered dietitians Hillary Wright and Elizabeth Ward provide a customizable, plant-based eating plan that is rich in protein, fiber, and other beneficial nutrients, moderate in carbohydrates, and low in saturated fat, sodium, and added sugars. Balancing evidence-based advice with real-life circumstances and personal experience, it combines the best of the world’s healthiest diets with the latest nutrition research for women in the menopause transition.
Science Deep-Dives
Estrogen Matters: Why Taking Hormones in Menopause Can Improve and Lengthen Women’s Lives - Without Raising the Risk of Breast Cancer by Avrum Bluming, MD, and Carol Tavris, PhD
While lots of books touch on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to improve menopause symptoms, this one is truly a definitive guide to it. When it was published in 2016, it was instrumental in helping dispel the durable and damaging myths around HRT and opened the door for more and more women to try this life-changing treatment.
The Upgrade: How the Female Brain Gets Stronger and Better in Midlife and Beyond by Louann Brizendine, MD
Throughout the menopause transition, your brain is being reshaped and it’s possible to end up feeling more clarity and purpose than ever before. Packed with personal stories of women who noticed this shift-and tips for how to optimize your brain health for decades to come-this book is a must-read for anyone stressing out about what menopause means for their cognitive well-being.
The Menopause Brain: New Science Empowering Women to Navigate This Pivotal Transition with Knowledge and Confidence by Lisa Mosconi, PhD
You know the hormonal changes of menopause impact your physical health, but this book focuses on all the ways it can also affect your brain health. Dr. Mosconi, a neuroscientist and expert in everything related to women’s brains, shows how hormones can impact mood, memory, and cognitive function and, perhaps more importantly, what the latest research shows you can do about it.
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All About Sex
You Are Not Broken by Kelly Casperson, MD
When urologist Dr. Casperson felt unable to help her patients who struggled with sex, she decided to learn everything she could about the intersection of hormones and sexuality. And she poured all of that insight into this book, which will teach you everything you need to know to have better sex, whether it’s fully understanding your anatomy, or shifting your mindset.
Come as You Are: The Surprising New Science That Will Transform Your Sex Life and Come Together: The Science (and Art!) of Creating Lasting Sexual Connections by Emily Nagoski, PhD
A sex educator, Dr. Nagoski has spent decades teaching others about the intersection of psychology, sexuality, and relationships. These two books have been touted as game changers, showing that the key to a fulfilling sex life starts in your brain and that you can, in fact, keep sex exciting when in a long-term relationship. While not focused on menopause specifically, the practical advice given can help you navigate the ebbing libido that often accompanies dropping estrogen levels.
Personal Stories
Hot and Bothered: What No One Tells You About Menopause and How to Feel Like Yourself Again by Jancee Dunn
Too often, the taboo surrounding menopause means nobody talks about it with their friends and, instead, we all end up suffering silently. Dunn, who is also the author of the amazingly titled How Not to Hate Your Husband After Kids, is on a personal mission to change that and crafted this entertaining guide based on plenty of research, in-depth interviews, and her own lived experience. It was the book she wished was around when she began perimenopause, and we’re all grateful she filled the gap.
Black and Menopausal: Intimate Stories of Navigating the Change edited by Yansie Rolston and Yvonne Christie
Like many other health topics, the stories around menopause tend to center on the white woman’s experience. That can leave women in other cultures feeling left out of the conversation. That’s where this collection of personal stories comes in. By telling their own truths and sharing intimate details, the Black authors are helping show that menopause isn't one-size-fits-all and that, in fact, there is beauty in that diversity.
Additional Resources
Beyond these highlighted titles, numerous other books can provide valuable insights into menopause. Resources like The Menopause Guidebook by The Menopause Society and The Menopause Manifesto by Dr. Jen Gunter offer comprehensive information and evidence-based advice.
The Importance of Diet
In Healthy Eating for the Menopause, Marilyn Glenville explains how your diet can work as a natural alternative to hormone replacement therapy and give you results far superior to any drug. Devising recipes rich in the three beneficial food groups - phytoestrogens, essential fatty acids and antioxidants, which are contained naturally in many everyday ingredients - Marilyn Glenville and Lewis Esson have created menus for all the meals in the day.