Perimenopause, Medical Gaslighting, and Why Gen X Won't Just Disappear | Beth Crosby (Garbage Mom)
Beth Crosby — actress, comedian, and the woman behind Garbage Mom — has 250,000 subscribers who found her because she refused to make perimenopause sound manageable when it wasn't. She's also the creator of Perimenapalooza™, which started as a joke post about a music festival and became something Alanis Morissette actually commented on. Yes, that Alanis Morissette.
Before any of that, she spent years getting iron infusions. Nobody tested for celiac disease until she pushed hard enough to get the right answers finally. The symptoms had a cause the whole time. It just took finding someone willing to look for one.
In this episode, Beth and I talk about anxiety as the perimenopause symptom that wrecks your life before anyone connects it to your hormones, what it's actually like trying to sustain a career in an industry that runs on short notice and wasn't built for mothers, and why Gen X women are done accepting "it's just your period" as a complete medical response. She's also honest about the fear behind being that unfiltered online — knowing exactly what she wanted to say and still having to talk herself into posting it. Eight years postpartum, before she felt like herself again. The math of trying to keep a marriage intact through all of it.
Hilarious, vulnerable, and completely unedited about what perimenopause actually looks like from the inside.
Topics covered in this episode:
Anxiety is an early perimenopause symptom that rarely gets flagged as hormonal
Medical gaslighting: years of iron infusions before anyone tested for celiac disease
Working in an industry with no structure, no safety net, and no room for mothers
Why Gen X is demanding real healthcare instead of accepting the status quo
Vaginal estrogen and what it actually does for libido
Couples therapy as a practical tool for navigating perimenopause together
How Perimenapalooza™ went from a joke post to a real movement — and caught Alanis Morissette's attention
What to do when your doctor dismisses your symptoms as normal
If your symptoms don't feel right, they're not. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise — and don't stop pushing until you find someone who will actually look. 🔔 Subscribe so you don't miss what's coming next.
Every episode of Gyno Girl Presents is a conversation I wish more women could have with their doctors — without the 10-minute clock running. Subscribe wherever you listen, and if this episode helped you, share it with a woman who needs to hear it.
