I am writing to try and express to the best of my ability the life-altering difference Michelle’s advice, knowledge, direction, and willingness to share her insights, resources, medical contacts, experiences and observations have made in my life. For a few years, Michelle would talk to me about the women whose lives have been limited in living a fulfilling life due to their lack of accurate and affordable medical information OR bad medical instructions and recommendations from top medical experts. Since I did not really have any need at the time in my life to need assistance, I just admired her persistent and ongoing passion and willingness to help strangers and friends get well and feel better. Over the years, Michelle would encourage me to monitor my thyroid levels and get tested regularly and recommended that I take Twin Labs magnesium pills to help with my digestion. I took her advice and did notice a remarkable difference. Fast forward a few years, when half of my month my body was completely out of whack requiring me to wear a separate wardrobe at those times then I would wear for the early two weeks of my cycle. And the many days leading up to my period (almost 7 – 10 or longer) I would find myself withdrawing socially because I felt so thick in my hip and thigh area that my clothes wouldn’t fit properly and I had low energy, and was down, blue, lethargic and experiencing dark thoughts. I finally confided in Michelle on a holiday weekend that I was in one of the loveliest resort communities in the US and was paralyzed and did not want to answer my phone, respond to emails and leave my hotel room. This had been going on for over 6 months at this point I told Michelle. Michelle encouraged me to get specific blood work tested and see what my estrogen levels were. I was 42 at the time. The result showed that I had virtually no estrodial. Michelle sent me numerous books to inform me about the importance of hormone levels in my body. After I started an estrodial patch, Michelle encouraged me to get my testosterone and progesterone levels tested which I continue to do on a bimonthly basis along with my thyroid. Michelle also encouraged me to reach out to others (and she also reached out to her network) because my experiences are different than Michelle’s because I still have my uterus. Apparently, premenopausal and menopausal women are different than post menopausal and their hormones change hourly, daily weekly, etc. So I consult with my peers and doctor to try and fine tune my program accordingly. Currently I am taking testosterone in addition to my patch and go for blood work soon because I have missed my past 2 periods. Again, as Michelle, doctors and my other friends have told me this is a journey that requires constant monitoring and tweaking the results of which all having me feeling so much better. In closing, my doctor believes my hormone levels may be depleted due to my heavy exercise schedule and he is not convinced I am perimenopausal yet. Only time will tell, but this much I can say, thank you Michelle for exposing me to women’s health issues and helping me begin to drill down to identify mine. Your constant availability to explain the science and biology in layman’s language to me changed my life and I will always be eternally grateful. Additionally, I have many friends with illnesses that range from staph to other infectious diseases that Michelle helped, counseled, researched and provided them with tools to make informed decisions that led them down a path of healing. -- Cathy