At 39, on the other side of my third postpartum and after nearly two decades on the Pill, my body began sending signals I couldnāt ignore. My cycle, which had once been textbook regular, started to shift dramatically. Iād wake drenched in sweat, feel waves of inexplicable rage, then sink into a fog I couldnāt think my way out of. At first, I chalked it up to the usual suspects: work stress, lack of sleep, kids. But as the symptoms intensified, it became harder to explain them away.
When I finally went to my GP, the answer was casual: āProbably just stress.ā
That moment of dismissal, though subtle, was seismic. It marked the beginning of what medical literature calls the climacteric transition, and what Iāve come to understand as one of the greatest blind spots in modern medicine.
The Hidden Spectrum of Hormones
Here is the first shock: women spend more than half their lives in states of shifting hormones, puberty, contraception, pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, menopause. Each phase rewires the brain, reshapes metabolism, alters immune function, and modulates mood. And yet, outside of fertility, most of these transitions are either under-researched, under-taught, or ignored.
When I was prescribed the Pill at 17 for acne, no one told me it would suppress ovulation, mute the natural rise and fall of oestradiol, progesterone, and testosterone, or alter brain regions responsible for mood and attraction. That silence wasnāt unique, it was systemic.
So when perimenopause arrived after my third baby, I had no education to fall back on. And when I looked for answers, I found an even more disturbing truth: most doctors had no training either.
A medical education stuck in the past
In the U.S., fewer than 20% of OB-GYN residency programs include formal menopause training. Among internal medicine residents, nearly 80% say they donāt feel competent to diagnose or treat menopause. In the UK, menopause barely features in most GP curricula.
Pause on that for a moment: 100% of women, if they live long enough, will go through this transition. Yet fewer than one in five specialists are trained to manage it. That is not a gap. It is a scandal.
The study that set us back decades
Layered on top of this is a research bombshell that reshaped an entire generationās care. Through ongoing research, the Womenās Health Initiative (WHI) has reported that hormone replacement therapy (HRT) increased risks of breast cancer, heart disease, and stroke. The media exploded. Eversince, prescriptions plummeted by 50%. Millions of women were taken off treatment.
What the headlines buried: the average participant was 63 years old, well beyond the optimal window for HRT. Later analyses proved that when started earlier (before 60 or within 10 years of menopause), HRT lowers all-cause mortality, protects bones, reduces cardiovascular disease, and improves quality of life.
But the damage was done. Fear replaced nuance. Doctors still hesitate to prescribe. And women continue to suffer, untreated, sometimes for more than a decade.
The true cost of silence
Hereās the reality: this isnāt about a few night sweats.
-
60% report cognitive decline: brain fog, memory lapses, difficulty concentrating.
-
Depression and anxiety rates double in perimenopause.
-
In the UK, more than 14 million workdays are lost each year to unmanaged symptoms.
-
In the U.S., the cost is $1.8 billion annually in lost productivity.
And thatās just the short-term toll. Low oestrogen is directly linked to higher risks of Alzheimerās, osteoporosis, and heart disease - diseases that could, in many cases, be mitigated with timely intervention.
British menopause expert Dr. Louise Newson has called this āone of the greatest health scandals of our time.ā She is not exaggerating.
The invisible hormone hijackers
As if systemic neglect werenāt enough, I discovered another invisible enemy: endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). These are substances we meet daily, phthalates in fragrance, parabens in preservatives, chemical UV filters in sunscreen.
A landmark review in Endocrine Reviews confirmed that even low-dose, chronic exposure can derail hormonal regulation. These chemicals mimic oestrogen, bind to receptor sites, disrupt the HPA axis, and interfere with thyroid and reproductive health.
They are linked to infertility, early puberty, thyroid disorders, and even premature menopause. And they are everywhere, skincare, shampoo, receipts, plastics, household cleaners, candles.
We talk about diet. We talk about exercise. But almost no one tells women that what they put on their bodies could be disrupting the very hormones they are fighting to balance.
Why We Built The SABI
That realisation, that lifestyle is the single most powerful lever we have to support our bodies through hormonal change, was the turning point. Medication, supplements, even HRT can play a role, but the foundation is always lifestyle: how we eat, how we move, how we sleep, how we recover, how we relate to stress, and even what we choose to put on our skin.
We built The SABI not to offer āprettyā wellness products, but to create true lifestyle allies, endocrine-safe formulations that sit at the heart of daily rituals. Each blend is designed to anchor the bodyās natural rhythm, reduce the background noise of chemical disruptors, and offer women a way to participate actively in their own health.
Our formulations are grounded in both modern science and ancestral plant traditions. For centuries, herbs have been used to ease transitions, calm inflammation, and restore balance. What weāve done is bring that wisdom forward - refining, sourcing with integrity, and formulating with hormonal safety as the non-negotiable standard.
-
The Calming Herbata: A nightly ally. Passionflower and Lemon Balm work on GABA receptors to ease overstimulation, calm racing thoughts, and quiet cortisol so the body can enter restorative sleep. For women in perimenopause, when insomnia becomes almost epidemic, this ritual can be transformative.
-
The Gentle Period Blend: A monthly anchor. Red clover delivers antioxidants and micronutrients depleted by blood loss, while Raspberry Leaf and Ladyās Mantle support uterine tone and reduce prostaglandin-driven inflammation. This isnāt about masking pain; itās about building resilience cycle after cycle.
-
The Digestive Herbata: A daily stabiliser. Moringa, Cinnamon, and Cardamom ease bloat and spasm, while bitter herbs like Stinging Nettles stimulate bile and support liver detoxification, critical when hormone clearance slows. Digestive resilience isnāt cosmetic; itās foundational to hormonal balance.
The science of resilience: What finally helped me
Herbs were part of my healing, but they werenāt enough. I had to rethink daily life in ways science supported but culture had never taught me.
-
Light Anchoring: Within 30 minutes of waking, I expose my eyes to natural light. This resets circadian rhythm, strengthens cortisol awakening, and improves nighttime melatonin release. It is one of the most powerful, underrated tools for hormonal stability.
-
Infradian Living: Instead of fighting my 28-day rhythm, I aligned with it. During follicular and ovulatory phases, I plan creative and social tasks; in the luteal, I slow down. Research on infradian biology shows this reduces PMS, balances energy, and prevents burnout.
-
Neuro-Somatic Reset: I practice two minutes of vagal toning daily, humming paired with 4-8 breathing. This stimulates the vagus nerve, reduces cortisol, and improves heart rate variability (HRV). Over time, I noticed a measurable increase in calm and recovery.
-
Topical Vigilance: I became ruthless about what I put on my skin. If I wouldnāt eat it, I donāt apply it. Considering that up to 60% of what touches our skin is absorbed, this is not vanity,itās physiology.
-
Post-Meal Pausing: Instead of rushing after meals, I sit for 15 minutes. This simple pause improves parasympathetic digestion, stabilises glucose, and supports metabolic resilience,critical during perimenopause, when insulin resistance often creeps in.
These arenāt wellness trends. They are research-backed, biology-aligned interventions that restored my sense of agency when medicine and culture failed me.
Redefining hormonal care
The scandal is not that womenās bodies change. The scandal is how unprepared we are, how little our doctors are taught, how absent systemic support remains.
We need more than platitudes about āageing gracefully.ā We need:
-
Medical training that treats menopause as fundamental, not optional.
-
Research across races, ages, and lived realities.
-
Transparency in consumer products, free of endocrine disruptors.
-
Integration of science and nature, not fear of either.
And we need to end the silence. Because silence is not neutral, it is complicit.
At The SABI, this is the work we are committed to: in our formulations, in our education, and in our lives. Because when one woman learns how her hormones truly work, she doesnāt just heal herself. She begins to dismantle the culture of neglect around her.
And that is the real revolution we need.
ABOUT ANNA
Anna is a Co-founder of The SABI and has spent the past 13 years working in or for governments, senior businessmen and politicians around the world. Living in Bogota, Colombia, she recently renovated one of Colombiaās oldest and most iconic coffee estates, developing a unique taste and travel experience. She lives with her husband and three boys Lorenzo, Alfie and baby Salvador who are responsible for the beautiful journey that inspired her to pursue The Sabi.
-
HORMONAL & PROUD
Created as a brand to help women navigate the toughest moments in pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum ā and practically every stage of life, the SABI aims to change the narrative around our hormones from one of taboo, embarrassment and loneliness, to awareness and even pride. Much more than a wellness brand, SABI offers a carefully crafted line of products to carry you through your hormonal journey; a set of rituals, supportive tools, and ancient herbal remedies that have been tested time and again by women and now, backed by medicine. SABI is a blend of science and nature conceived by women who have experienced the joys and deep implications of bringing a child into the world, the pains of a heavy and difficult period, miscarriage and difficulty conceiving
Here is an invitation to get to know your body and its cycles better and to really understand what is going on inside. Learn to use your hormonal cycle to your advantage no matter your stage of life, and know that you can always support and balance your hormone levels. Look for the right sources of information, know that there is help, and know that youāre supported.
DISCLAIMER
The SABI blog and articles are not meant to instruct or advise on medical or health conditions, but to inform. The information and opinions presented here do not substitute professional medical advice or consultations with healthcare professionals for your unique situation.
REFERENCES
-
https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/science/womens-health-initiative-whi
-
https://case.hks.harvard.edu/the-hormone-therapy-controversy-what-makes-reliable-evidence/
-
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2110996
-
https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mayo-clinic-study-puts-price-tag-on-cost-of-menopause-symptoms-for-women-in-the-workplace/
Ā
