Pause Lumiere

Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Pause Lumiere, Medical and health, Castle Hill Medical Centre, Murrumba Downs.

Dr Emily Watters
GP 👩🏼‍⚕️ Perimenopause & Menopause
Founder of Pause Lumiere, F2F & 📞
Helping women navigate the Pauses with better health than when they started ✨

03/02/2026

Night sweats are a form of vasomotor symptom — not just “being hot at night.”

As estrogen fluctuates during perimenopause, the brain’s temperature control becomes more sensitive. The thermoneutral zone narrows, so small temperature changes can trigger exaggerated heat responses during sleep.

This is why night sweats often cause sudden waking, a racing heart, and difficulty falling back asleep — even in a cool room.

They are hormone-driven, common, and treatable.

If you’d like to know more, or to start exploring your own perimenopause or menopause journey, visit Pause Lumiere. We can’t wait to meet you!

02/02/2026

Progesterone is intimately related to sleep. Sleep is intimately related to every single facet of our mental health and physical health.

29/01/2026

Thermoregulation (the body’s temperature control) is governed by specialised neurons in the hypothalamus known as KNDy 🍭 neurons (kisspeptin, neurokinin B, dynorphin for extra points). These neurons play a central role in both reproductive hormone signalling and temperature regulation.

As estrogen fluctuates during perimenopause — and declines post-menopause — our temperature control system becomes destabilised.
The “neutral” zone narrows, meaning even very small changes in core body temperature can trigger exaggerated responses, resulting in sudden vasodilation, hot flushes, night sweats, and rapid temperature drops.

For some women, vasomotor symptoms resolve within a few years. For others, they persist for a decade or more — and in a subset, for several decades. The oldest patient with hot flushes I’ve seen was in her mid-80s.

Importantly, more frequent and severe hot flushes are associated with a higher long-term risk of cardiovascular disease. Hot flushes provide meaningful insight into central nervous system and vascular health during the menopause transition and you do not have to put up with discomfort!

If you’d like to know more, or to start exploring your own perimenopause or menopause journey, visit Pause Lumiere. We can’t wait to meet you!

28/01/2026

Nutrition is a really interesting topic and if you google “best diet & menopause” you’re going to be overwhelmed with conflicting and not necessarily evidence based information.

The reality is, there is not one best way to eat. The best “diet” is one that helps you accomplish your goals, that you can stick to for the rest of your life.

We should not, however, ignore the nutritional landscape that we live in (over-nutrition) or the disease risks that climb in Perimenopause and post-menopause.

During perimenopause, fluctuating estrogen alters insulin sensitivity, lipid metabolism, vascular function, and inflammatory signalling.
This helps explain rising rates of central adiposity, dyslipidaemia, glucose instability, and cardiovascular risk during this transition. Post-menopause, in the absence of estrogen, these changes can persist.

The Mediterranean diet is one of the most consistently studied dietary patterns.
It is associated with improved insulin sensitivity, lower LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, reduced systemic inflammation, and improved endothelial function. Large prospective studies show it lowers cardiovascular disease events and all-cause mortality, particularly in women.
It is also linked to better glycaemic control, reduced visceral fat accumulation (!!), and improved cognitive and vascular ageing.

This style of eating isn’t about calorie restriction or perfection, it’s more of a framework to use nutrition as a tool to stabilise metabolism and protect long-term health as hormonal support declines.

21/01/2026

Sleep is not a luxury — it’s foundational to long-term brain, metabolic, and cardiovascular health.

In perimenopause, hormonal variability disrupts sleep architecture and nervous system regulation, making high-quality sleep harder to achieve without support. Post-menopause, absence of hormones can continue or initiate insomnia.

Small, targeted lifestyle changes can meaningfully improve sleep quality and reduce symptom burden. This is vital if sleep has been disrupted for a period of time, as the brain has to unlearn sleep behaviours that develop from hormone shifts. Importantly, the cortisol spikes that can start overnight only respond to behaviours - meaning HRT should always be supported with lifestyle change for sleep.

If you’d like support with sleep during perimenopause or menopause, visit Pause Lumiere. We can’t wait to meet you!

19/01/2026

Changes to menstruation are a common early symptom for many women, though they’re often not the first sign of perimenopause.

Previously, only cycle irregularity has been considered - the definition of perimenopause has historically been based on changes of 7 days between cycles.

Now, we know that menstruation has nuance and more subtle changes may occur - days of bleeding and character of bleeding often change before cycle length.

Menstruation is a report card, and any variation should be considered within perimenopause.

If your cycle has changed and you’d like to discuss it, visit Pause Lumiere. We can’t wait to meet you!

18/01/2026

Sleep disruption is one of the earliest signs of perimenopause.

Hormonal fluctuations fragment sleep, increase nighttime awakenings, and reduce restorative rest - if sleep feels different to how it used to, it’s worth paying attention.

If you’d like to understand what’s affecting your sleep, or explore personalised support, visit Pause Lumiere. We can’t wait to meet you!

16/12/2025

👩🏼‍🏫 can start WELL before your 50s

Too often women come to me having been told you’re too young for Perimenopause, or that it’s not possible because their hormone blood test was normal.

This misinformation leads to so much unnecessary suffering. We empower women with education, so that there is a demand for better healthcare.

Visit Pause Lumiere to take charge of your perimenopause symptoms. We can’t wait to meet you! ✨

07/12/2025

Meet Pause Lumiere … she’s doing a giveaway just in time for Christmas!

My long term plans for a medical centre and wanting a cohesive brand have meant a pivot. Lumiere is for women, by women.

Pause Lumiere will continue to function as The Pause Clinic did, with some colour changes and a new website. The same applies for Pause Cosmetic Medicine, which is now Aesthetics Lumiere. Keep your eyes peeled for new brochures and business cards soon!

To celebrate the rebrand, I’m giving away a & pack to 2 people. The winners will be picked at random & you can enter as many times as you like!

Each pack contains a LBF shampoo & conditioner and a three pack of creams, as well as 2 Rationale Radiance Booster Serums - pack RRP $400.

1 comment with a tag = 1 entry
1 share to your story = 2 entries

Tag & share as many times as you want to increase your entries!

In addition, a different pack is available to whoever spots a grammatical or spelling error on my website first - containing a voucher, LBF cream and a Radiance serum. There’s only so much proof-reading my eyes can do!
Website link is in my bio!

Competition closes 21st December & prizes will be posted before Christmas.

Thank you all for giving me the best job in the world x

06/11/2025

Estrogen and blood pressure
If there’s a disease that makes me quick to treat, it’s hypertension. High blood pressure has been minimised, partly because it’s common — but it is one of the major risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease, heart attack and stroke. It also increases the risk of kidney disease, type 2 diabetes and vision loss.

The old cut-off of 140/90 is too high. To reduce risk, blood pressure should be closer to ~120/80.

Estrogen supports blood vessels by increasing nitric oxide and maintaining flexibility in vessel walls. As estrogen fluctuates and declines in perimenopause, vessels become stiffer, salt sensitivity rises, and stress hormones have a stronger effect. This is why blood pressure often climbs during perimenopause and after menopause, especially when sleep is poor, exercises reduces and central weight gain occurs. Sleep is incredibly protective for hypertension!

Before menopause, women typically have lower blood pressure than men. After menopause, blood pressure rises sharply — and by 60–70, women are more likely than men to have hypertension.

Hypertension usually has no symptoms. “White-coat” hypertension isn’t benign either — a 24-hour monitor is the best way to assess true blood pressure patterns.

Starting hormone therapy within ten years of menopause may help maintain vascular health, particularly in the absence of other major risk factors. Transdermal estrogen with micronised progesterone has been shown to slightly reduce blood pressure in some women.

Treating hypertension is not a failure, it’s a decision about longevity and disease prevention. Lifestyle is very important as well: sleep, nutrition, strength training, nervous system support, hormone therapy, and medication are all tools.

If you’re interested in reducing your risk of disease long term, visit the pause clinic. We can’t wait to meet you!

29/10/2025

Brain fog in perimenopause is not joke and you’re not imagining it. Up to two-thirds of women experience cognitive changes, often described as “foggy thinking,” word-finding issues, or forgetfulness.
Multiple factors contribute to brain fog:
- Fluctuating estrogen levels affect brain regions involved in memory, attention, and processing speed. Neurotransmitters like acetylcholine, noradrenaline and dopamine are affected.
- Other symptoms compound the problem — sleep disruption, night sweats, mood changes, and chronic stress
- Perimenopause also coincides with high life load, which increases the mental load on women

These changes are typically temporary and non-progressive, meaning they’re not a risk (that we know of yet) from dementia or neurodegenerative disease - but they can definitely feel like it!! Temporary is also a tricky word … it’s not forever but even a few months can significantly impact quality of life.

There are some evidence-based ways to support cognition include: - Regular physical activity – aerobic and strength training improve brain blood flow and neuroplasticity. - Optimising sleep improves memory and concentration. - Stress management – mindfulness, therapy, and relaxation techniques reduce cognitive load. - Structured supports – lists, reminders, and routine reduce working memory strain. - A Mediterranean-style diet rich in fish, olive oil, vegetables, and whole grains supports brain health. - Hormone therapy – can hugely reduce brain fog both directly and also indirectly by reducing sleep disturbance, anxiety, and vasomotor symptoms
-A medical review for other possible contributing factors like thyroid and nutritional deficiencies
- Creatine!

Cognitive changes during perimenopause are real, common, and reversible for most women. Addressing contributing factors and optimising overall health can significantly improve clarity and focus. If you’re experiencing brain fog, visit the Pause clinic. We can’t wait to meet you!

10/10/2025

20 years is too long.

Too long for women to be told it’s anxiety.
Too long for brain fog and night sweats to be shrugged off as “just getting older.”
Too long for menopause care to be left behind while every other field of medicine moves forward.

We can edit genes, grow organs in labs, robots can drive —
but we still treat menopause like it’s a mystery or an after-thought.

Women deserve care that reflects today’s science and technology. Luckily, is here to deliver a patch for women, by women. Something much better than what’s on the market - outdated, decade old choices. Follow along & lend your support!

Address

Castle Hill Medical Centre
Murrumba Downs, QLD
4503

Website

https://www.hotdoc.com.au/medical-centres/murrumba-downs-QLD-4503/castle-hill-medical-centre-murrumba-downs/doctors/dr-e

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