The Upgrade

How the Female Brain Gets Stronger and Better in Midlife and Beyond

By: Louann Brizendine

Narrated by: Nancy Linari

Length: 12 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

Welcome to the better half of your life. The New York Times best-selling author of The Female Brain explains how a woman’s brain gets “upgraded” in midlife, inspiring and guiding women to unlock their full potential.

“This is an important book. I want all women to read it. I wish I had read it years ago!” (Jane Fonda)

Dr. Louann Brizendine was among the first to explain why women think, communicate, and feel differently than men. Now, inspired by her own experiences and those of the thousands of women at her clinic, she has a message that is nothing short of revolutionary: In the time of life typically known as menopause, women’s brains are reshaped, for the better, in a way that creates new power, a bracing clarity, and a laser-like sense of purpose if you know how to seize it.

With guidance for navigating the perimenopausal and menopausal storm while it lasts, and actionable science-backed steps for preserving brain health for the rest of your life, The Upgrade is a stunning road map, told through intimate stories, to a new brain state and its incredible possibilities. Dr. Brizendine explains the best science-backed strategies for:

• Hormones: If timed and handled properly, hormone management can save your life. Brizendine cuts through the controversy to give you the latest guidance for HRT.
• Exercise: Leg strength correlates directly with healthy brain function at age 80. Here are the strategies for maintaining your strength.
• Sleep: It’s critical for maximizing the upgrade, and Brizendine shares how to achieve healthy rest during challenging transitions.
• Mindset: Brizendine shows how to seize the opportunities of your midlife brain changes by shifting your mindset and vision with intention.
• Brain Health: The upgraded brain requires special care when it comes to sugar, alcohol, inflammatory foods, and the microbiome. Here’s advice for fueling and maintaining cognitive function for decades.

The Upgrade amounts to a celebration of how women step into their power and an entirely new—and radically positive—understanding of aging.

*Includes a downloadable PDF of diagrams from the book

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2021 Louann Brizendine (P)2021 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Dr. Louann Brizendine’s The Upgrade is uplifting and upbeat about the physical, mental, and social health of women in the upper chamber of the life cycle. As she did in The Female Brain (a bible for all women), Dr. Brizendine writes clearly and jauntily, this time explaining why, generally, we get happier as we age. The Upgrade is an engrossing read, rich with science and psychology and hopefulness.”—Leslie Stahl, correspondent, 60 Minutes

“This fine book integrates information from many fields of studies. It is holistic, filled with useful insights, and inspiring. Brizendine is one of America’s great cultural educators.”—Mary Pipher, PhD, New York Times bestselling author of Women Rowing North

“Dr. Brizendine is a trailblazer and in her groundbreaking, science-backed new book, she not only shows how much we can do naturally to optimize the menopausal brain but also explains why the mature brain is so much better than what came before. Read this book and you’ll learn how to seize the possibilities afforded by your amazing brain.”—Anna Cabeca, DO, bestselling author of The Hormone Fix and MenuPause

Validating!

Lots of reminders, helpful perspectives, current info (as of 2022). Any woman 40-80+ - this could be helpful.

amazing

this book is something to listen to before menopause it's an eye opener.. fantastic

The Upgrade

Perfect book for me during the current times. I love calling the hormonal challenges females have into their sixties and upgrade!

a great book for my health toolbox

great content, Dr. Brizendine is a wealth of knowledge! I will keep as a reference.

Im a male in my 50's read 3 of her books

I read male brain, female and now the upgrade. 3 daughters and married 35 y. Why does the author feel that she has pause the science to wave the flag for poor suffering women everywhere and assure them that we men could never understand how much they suffer and oh brother.... "man made global warming" emphasis on man. The science and research is fantastic and I have read many books on the brain. I would say even the last couple chapters resonated with other authors research. I only pulled one star for crying about how women are so disrespected but at one point it almost made me get a refund and stop reading it.

Excellent Resource

Highly recommended for dealing with or getting ready for menopause and aging. Lots of practical advice and the scientific reasons behind what’s going on and what can help.

helps more than 100 hours of therapy

the first chapter is uplifting, encouraging validating women, empowering women nearing menopause or further. at least a few chapters on dosing hormone replacement therapy specifics. she's brilliant. I wish she was my OB. this book is an amazing resource on everything for women second half of life. I thoroughly recommend it

Enlightening and On point

Louann Brizendine continues to bring forth the issues behind the cyclical and neurochemical processes of a woman’s life. Even better, she has practical tips for responding to these challenges. Very helpful! I hope more women AND men educate themselves using this book! It will shift the culture

Unrealistic, but does have some merit.

I read both The Female Brain and The Male Brain by this author and learned a lot about human physiology, but they were missing the impact of an environment with a heavy male perspective. The Upgrade I found was similar in that I learned about my current physical changes and what can be done to help navigate this difficult period. I'm already doing everything suggested except for HT, I am not a fan of prescription drugs and prefer to use more holistic remedies. I was again struck by Louann's harshness toward men and her lack of empathy for their own transition.

I was the only female child of four siblings and the youngest. My father was the mother and father in my family, both parents worked, and eventually the marriage ended and so did my family as I knew it. Not every female has maternal instincts and cares for others - my mother wallowed in mental comorbidity my whole childhood and never sought help and interventions didn't work. We are estranged today because of it. My husband of over 30 years cooks, cleans, and works and his maternal instincts have always been higher than mine! The keys for both women and men through the transition are learning how and when to say NO (nicely!), exercising (and yes, sex at least once a week included), regulating food/drink, participating in non-isolating activity, and communicating your thoughts and feelings. And it doesn't have to be FDA-approved.