Piece of Mind Psychology

20/11/2025

Hormonal changes lower energy and stress tolerance, and the cost of constant self-monitoring becomes harder to hide. This “unmasking” isn’t regression—it’s the nervous system asking for rest and authenticity.

If you notice rising irritability, tears, or social exhaustion, it may be time to reassess expectations. Communicate sensory needs, simplify routines, and give yourself permission to show up more honestly.

The goal isn’t to hide better—it’s to live truer.

When you can safely let the mask slip, self-compassion can take its place.

13/11/2025

For autistic women, this can mean stronger mood swings, faster frustration, or emotional “shutdowns.” It’s not weakness; it’s the brain adjusting to new hormonal rhythms.

Estrogen fluctuations influence stress and reward pathways, changing how we process emotion and motivation. Combining CBT or ACT with interoception training (tuning into body sensations before emotions escalate) can strengthen self-awareness and recovery after stress.

Try gentle daily grounding—feel your feet, notice your breathing, name one body sensation. Over time, this builds emotional fluency.

Emotions aren’t the enemy—they’re information the body sends when it wants care.

06/11/2025

Autistic women can experience heightened sensory discomfort during perimenopause, especially with fabrics, heat, and touch. This often triggers anxiety or withdrawal from social and work settings.

Sensory-aware self-care helps: choose breathable fabrics, carry cooling tools, reduce sudden temperature changes, and create calm visual spaces.

These small, intentional changes can transform daily comfort and confidence—reminding you that sensory needs are not indulgent, they’re biological.

Listen to your body’s signals—they’re data, not drama.

30/10/2025

Looking forward to sharing this conversation :)

The truth? Many women are discovering their neurodivergence at the same time as they enter perimenopause — and it can feel like living in two worlds at once.

Join Kirstin Bouse and Karen Fossey (Piece of Mind Psychology) for a free live webinar —
💡 The Double Shift: When Peri/Menopause Meets the Neurodivergent Brain
🗓️ 11th November | 4pm AWST / 7pm AEDT

We’ll explore:
✨ Why hormone changes can amplify ADHD and other neurodivergent traits
✨ Emotional regulation, sensory sensitivity & executive function in midlife
✨ Practical tools to support both brain & body

We’d love to hear from you — what questions or experiences would you like us to cover?
👇 Comment below or drop us a DM.

30/10/2025

These changes aren’t imagined—they’re biological. Research from 2024–2025 shows that fluctuating estrogen affects serotonin, dopamine, and executive-function pathways. For autistic brains already working hard to manage sensory and emotional input, these hormonal shifts can amplify stress, fatigue, and overwhelm.

Understanding this connection can reduce self-blame and open doors to tailored care—whether that’s hormone review, therapy, or sensory regulation support.

You’re not losing skills; your body is changing its chemistry. With awareness and compassionate adjustments, this stage can become a time of recalibration rather than loss.

13/10/2025

🌸 You don’t have to overhaul your life to ease perimenopausal anxiety. Sometimes the smallest shifts make the biggest difference.

For example, prioritising sleep — going to bed and waking up at consistent times — helps stabilise both mood and hormones. Reducing caffeine and alcohol reduces pressure on the adrenal system, making it easier to manage stress. Gentle movement such as yoga, tai chi, or mindful walking reduces physiological arousal and reconnects you with your body in a calming way.

Therapeutic approaches can also play a powerful role. Evidence-based strategies such as CBT help reframe unhelpful thinking patterns, while EMDR and schema therapy address deeper layers of emotional triggers. Importantly, you don’t have to do everything at once. Even a single supportive shift, repeated regularly, can build resilience and restore calm.

Perimenopausal anxiety is not a personal failing — it’s a response to real biological and life stressors. With the right supports, your nervous system can find balance again.

Feel welcome to share your experience or reach out for support.

06/10/2025

🤔 Is it anxiety… ADHD… panic… or burnout? In perimenopause, anxiety often disguises itself as something else.

This overlap can create confusion and frustration. Women may feel dismissed, misdiagnosed, or unsure of what’s really going on. The truth is that hormonal changes affect many body systems at once, from brain chemistry to cardiovascular function, and can amplify stress responses. Anxiety becomes both a physical and psychological experience.

Understanding this overlap is empowering. It means your symptoms are valid — and that they may not neatly fit into a single box. A menopause-informed, holistic approach can help untangle what’s hormonal, what’s situational, and what might benefit from targeted psychological support. By seeing the whole picture, you can access care that actually fits your experience, rather than trying to force yourself into a label that doesn’t quite match.

Feel welcome to share your experience or reach out for support.

29/09/2025

During perimenopause, however, hormone fluctuations make the nervous system more sensitive to this surge, turning what should be a natural rhythm into a stressful start.

This experience can feel confusing — especially if you’ve gone to bed feeling fine, only to wake anxious. Over time, it can contribute to poor sleep patterns, avoidance of morning routines, and dread about the day ahead.

While we can’t remove cortisol’s natural rhythm, we can soften its impact. Gentle strategies like slow breathing before getting out of bed, a short stretching or mindfulness practice, stepping outside into natural light, or delaying screens until after breakfast can all help calm the nervous system. Small, compassionate adjustments like these can change the way your day begins — and set a steadier tone for what follows.

Feel welcome to share your experience or reach out for support.

22/09/2025

Hormonal changes play a key role. As estrogen and progesterone fluctuate, so too do brain chemicals like serotonin and GABA, which help regulate mood, calmness, and sleep. When these systems are disrupted, the body can become more reactive to stress.

At the same time, perimenopause often coincides with high-pressure life stages — caring for teens or ageing parents, juggling work responsibilities, or navigating big transitions. Add in sleep disruption and physical symptoms such as night sweats or hot flushes, and the nervous system can feel constantly “switched on.”

The result? Heightened worry, restlessness, irritability, and a sense of unease that doesn’t easily switch off. The good news is, recognising this connection helps reduce self-blame. Perimenopausal anxiety isn’t a weakness — it’s a response to real biological and life changes. And with the right supports in place, it is treatable.

Feel welcome to share your experience, or reach out if you need support.

08/09/2025

Many women enter the perimenopausal transition bracing themselves for the worst: hot flushes, mood swings, sleepless nights, and the sense that something is “ending.” While there can be challenges, much of the distress comes not just from the symptoms themselves — but from the stories we’ve been told.

Here are a few common myths that deserve rewriting:

MYTH: Menopause means you’re past your prime.
TRUTH: This stage can bring clarity, confidence, and self-assurance. Many women report feeling more authentic, less apologetic, and more in tune with who they really are. You're not fading — you're evolving.

MYTH: Everyone goes through it the same way.
TRUTH: Every menopause experience is different. Some women struggle deeply, others glide through. There’s no one-size-fits-all — and no shame in needing support.

MYTH: It’s all about hormones.
TRUTH: Hormones matter, but so do stress, relationships, identity shifts, and life changes. Mental health can be affected, but it’s not just physical — it’s psychological and social, too.

MYTH: You just have to get through it.
TRUTH: You deserve more than survival. With the right support — including therapy, lifestyle shifts, and informed care — you can feel grounded, connected, and even renewed.

Menopause isn’t the end of the road. It’s a transition — one that, while complex, can open space for growth, freedom, and reconnection with what truly matters.

💬 If you’re feeling overwhelmed, uncertain, or simply curious about what this phase means for you — therapy can offer a space to explore and feel supported as you navigate it.

31/08/2025

When you reach the intersection of perimenopause and a late-in-life understanding of ADHD or Autism, it can feel like your world is shifting beneath your feet.

Maybe you’re exhausted from years of masking.
Maybe your usual coping strategies no longer work.
Maybe you’re grieving the time you spent not knowing.
Or maybe you’re just trying to make it through the day without dropping any more balls.

Whatever your experience, you don’t have to navigate this alone.

Support during this time isn’t about “fixing” anything — it’s about understanding yourself more deeply and building a life that actually works for your brain and your body.

In therapy, that might look like:
🛠️ Unpacking long-held beliefs about who you “should” be
🌀 Learning to manage overstimulation and emotional intensity with compassion
🧩 Exploring traits or patterns through a neurodiversity-affirming lens
💬 Processing grief, anger, relief, or confusion after a late diagnosis or self-discovery
🌱 Finding ways to unmask gently and safely, at your own pace
🧘 Rebuilding a sense of identity, agency, and self-trust

And importantly — recognising that the midlife shift isn’t a breakdown.
It’s often an invitation to rewrite the rules you’ve lived by for so long.

You are allowed to stop pushing through.
You are allowed to be supported.
And you are allowed to build something softer, clearer, and more you.

24/08/2025

When the hormonal shifts of perimenopause begin, they can magnify or unmask neurodivergent traits that have been quietly managed, masked, or misunderstood for years. You might begin to notice things that feel “new” — but are actually longstanding patterns becoming harder to suppress.

Here are some common signs that may emerge or intensify during perimenopause — especially in those with late-diagnosed or self-identifying ADHD or Autism:

📍 Increased overwhelm from noise, lights, or multiple demands
📍 Struggling to start tasks (even simple ones), or jumping between many without finishing
📍 Feeling mentally scattered, forgetful, or constantly “behind”
📍 Sudden drops in emotional resilience – crying easily, feeling shut down, or snapping unexpectedly
📍 Deep fatigue or “burnout” that rest doesn’t seem to fix
📍 Frustration with social expectations, or feeling more withdrawn from others
📍 A sense of no longer being able to cope like you used to — even if “nothing” has changed

Sometimes this is dismissed as “just hormones” — and hormones are part of it.
But for many women, perimenopause also brings a deeper truth to the surface:
🔹 I’ve always been different. I’ve just worked hard to hide it.

Recognising these patterns can be unsettling at first — but it can also bring clarity, relief, and a chance to explore your needs with self-compassion rather than self-criticism.

It’s not all in your head — and you don’t have to keep holding it all together alone.