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In this episode of The Hotflash inc Podcast, journalist Ann Marie McQueen interviews Kristeen Pollock,a a Scotland-based fitness coach, speaker, and podcast host who is helping women finally break free from toxic exercise culture and reclaim their relationship with food, movement, and themselves.

Kristeen gets real about what it was like to live inside the exhausting loop of dieting, restriction, and chasing “perfection” – and what changed. Together they explore the emotional rollercoaster of perimenopause, learning to actually rest, dealing with body image shifts, and how to find your way back to freedom in midlife.

The Hotflash Inc Summit All Access Pass https://summit.hotflashinc.com/hotflash-inc-summit-all-access-pass

Thank you to our Hotflash inc Summit gold sponsor:
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What we explored this episode:
00:06 – Why the fitness industry is toxic and out of touch
00:11 – Body image, disordered eating, and midlife triggers
00:16 – From binge eating to food freedom + exposure therapy
00:22 – Letting go of control + emotional release in perimenopause
00:30 – Doing less, resting more, and embracing the shift

Memorable quote:
"If you can’t do it for 10 years, don’t do it for one day." – Kristeen Pollock

Connect with our guest:
Website: https://kpfitandwell.co/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kpingfit/
Podcast: Keeping it Real
LinkedIn: Kristeen Pollock

Join the Hotflash inc perimenoposse:

Web: hotflashinc.com
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Episode website: Hotflashinc

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Am I neurodivergent?

In this episode of the Hotflash inc Podcast, host and journalist Ann Marie McQueen sits down with Skylar Liberty Rose – a meditation guide, pro-aging advocate, and ceremony creator – to explore the layered intersection of neurodivergence and perimenopause. The two friends share a candid, nuanced conversation about realizing they may be neurodivergent later in life, how that connects with the hormonal shifts of midlife, and what it means to drop the mask and fully show up.

Sponsored: Thank you to MenoLabs for being a gold sponsor of the first-ever Hotflash inc Summit. Their science-backed probiotics, including the bestselling MenoFit, are designed to support women through perimenopause and menopause. Right now, you can get 20% off with code HOTFLASH20 at menolabs.com.

Highlights:

• 5:30 – Growing up with sensory sensitivities but having no language for it
• 8:00 – The misunderstanding and shame around being an introvert
• 10:00 – Coping with alcohol, masking, and perfectionism
• 11:30 – Perimenopause as “the great unveiling” of truth
• 13:00 – Losing the ability to mask in midlife
• 14:00 – The collapse of executive functioning in perimenopause
• 16:00 – What it feels like to remove long-held coping tools
• 17:00 – Navigating social situations without alcohol
• 21:00 – The relief of realizing you’re neurodivergent
• 22:00 – Pursuing (or not) a formal diagnosis
• 25:30 – On external validation and trusting yourself

Skylar Liberty Rose
Website: skylarlibertyrose.com

Skylar offers personalized guided meditations and custom ceremonies to support women in midlife and beyond. Her work focuses on embracing aging, dismantling anti-aging narratives, and honoring the major (and often invisible) thresholds of life.

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Join the Hotflash inc perimenoposse:

Web: hotflashinc.com
Newsletter: Hotflash inc. on Substack
TikTok: @hotflashinc
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Episode website: Hotflashinc

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This episode of the Hotflash inc Podcast is hosted by Ann Marie McQueen, journalist and founder of the world’s only reader-supported, research-based platform covering all aspects of perimenopause, menopause, and the midlife transition.

This week's guest is Maryann Selfe, the Zurich-based private banking expert turned women's health investment advocate. After 25 years advising ultra-high-net-worth clients, Maryann became laser-focused on the lack of funding flowing into women’s health – and she’s doing something about it.

Maryann is the founder of Femme Health Alliance, editor of the widely-read Substack The Billion Dollar Blind Spot and author of the forthcoming book of the same name. In this conversation, she breaks down how midlife women represent an invisible economic powerhouse, how both capital markets and healthcare systems are failing to meet our needs – and how that is slowly changing.

Fact check

• Major firms like JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley have introduced menopause-friendly workplace policies, including flexible work and education.
• A 2025 Nature Cardiovascular Research study found women achieved heart health benefits with about half the weekly exercise men required — with even greater mortality reductions, including among those with existing heart disease.
• The $10.7B invested in women’s health in 2024 includes conditions that disproportionately affect women, according to SVB’s 2025 Innovation in Women’s Health report.
• Blackstone and TPG’s acquisition of women’s health med-tech leader Hologic is expected to close in early 2026.

Sponsorship: We do take on partnerships with aligned companies. Reach out at connect@hotflashinc.com *We do not accept funding from the peptide or pharmaceutical industry.

Highlights include:

• Why so little capital flows into women’s health
• What she means when she says midlife women are “an invisible economy”
• Insomnia trials were done mostly on men
• Women’s health isn’t a trend
• Why this isn’t just “women’s health”
• The missed opportunity in progesterone research
• Why financial return and impact can (and must) coexist

Engage with Maryann Selfe

• The Billion Dollar Blind Spot by Femme Health Ventures Alliance on Substack
• LinkedIn: Maryann Selfe
• IG Femme Health Ventures Alliance

Join the Hotflash inc perimenoposse:

Web: hotflashinc.com
Newsletter: Hotflash inc. on Substack
TikTok: @hotflashinc
Instagram: @hotflashinc
X: @hotflashinc

Episode website: Hotflashinc

Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | YouTube | Substack

See hotflashinc.com/privacy-policy for privacy information