Before You Buy Another Supplement: A Menopause Coach on Focus, and Getting the Right Help
Many women who suddenly find they can't focus or get things done assume something has gone wrong with them personally. According to the founder of The Clarity Collaborative, a coaching practice offering personalized support for daily challenges, the more useful question is what is happening in their body — and when it started.
It Usually Starts Earlier Than People Think
Asked what clients typically assume when they say they can't focus since menopause began, the coach first corrected the timeline. She noted that these things are "usually beginning in perimenopause, the 6-10+/- years leading up to menopause," adding that "menopause by definition is 12 months without a period."
That distinction matters, because the struggles often arrive well before the milestone people are watching for. In her experience, clients describe it in stark terms: "A lot of times, sadly, clients say 'I feel like I'm going crazy' or 'I feel like I am not myself anymore.'" She added that "it is heartbreaking to hear this -- yet (having experienced it) I completely understand!"
What makes it especially disorienting is the contrast with the past. Clients "almost universally say that for years they've managed just fine -- work, school, childcare, parenting, social/romantic relationships, etc. -- but during perimenopause, they feel like they've lost the ability to keep all of the plates spinning, or all of the balls in the air at once."
What the Online Advice Leaves Out
The second question asked what keeps coming up that common advice about menopause and focus misses. Her answer centered on education. She cited "lack of education about what is really happening in/to their body," and observed that people are "often inundated with info on supplements, lifestyle 'hacks', and just unhelpful advice." In her view, "there is a gaping hole in this space where patient education needs to be."
That gap is a useful frame for anyone trying to sort credible guidance from noise. General resources on perimenopause and menopause and on how menopause symptoms can affect daily life can help ground the conversation in what is actually happening rather than in quick fixes.
The Decision People Make Too Quickly
The third question was about what people decide too fast, before working out what is really going on. Her answer was concrete: "Sometimes I see women who want to buy supplements, exercise equipment, anything to just 'make it all better.'" Her caution was not that these things are useless, but that the order is wrong. "While some of those things might be helpful -- it's better to work out what your body -- and your brain -- need first!"
That is part of why she became a certified menopause coach. "I love helping women understand this transitional period of their lives -- validating them, supporting them, and cheering for them."
Practical Takeaways
For readers in this position, the interview points to a few grounded steps:
- Check the timeline. If focus and follow-through changed years before menopause, perimenopause may be the more relevant frame.
- Treat the feeling as information, not a personal failing. The sense of losing the ability to keep every plate spinning is a common description, not evidence that something is fundamentally wrong with you.
- Be skeptical of the supplement-and-hack pipeline. Education about what is happening in the body comes before products.
- Work out what you need before you buy. As she put it, it's better to understand what your body and brain need first.
For those who want support through the transition, the practice offers individual and group coaching, workshops, and ClarityResets, alongside broader guidance on midlife transitions. The through-line in her answers is simple: understand the transition, then decide what to do about it.