OvaryActive

Ep 40 | Brain Docs, Part 1: Brain Fog, Dementia Fears, & Perimenopause

May 14, 2026·27 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

Perimenopause can make your brain feel like it left the room — not that it remembers why it went there in the first place. In this first part of a two-part series with the Brain Docs, OvaryActive is talking all about dementia, brain fog, and the very real panic that happens when midlife memory glitches start feeling a little too ominous. Dr. Rebecca Dunsmoor-Su and Dr. Amy Voedisch welcome Dr. Ayesha Sherzai, one half of the Brain Docs, for a reassuring and science-backed conversation about what is actually happening in the brain during perimenopause. They talk about estrogen, memory, sleep disruption, hot flashes, mood changes, and why midlife brain fog is common, distressing, and usually NOT the beginning of dementia. Part one is a hopeful, practical episode about brain health, dementia risk, and why You're Not Crazy continues to be the most medically useful sentence in perimenopause. What you'll hear in this episode: [0:28] Meet the Brain Docs [1:21] Why study preventive medicine in neurology specifically? [4:18] Migraine mea culpa [5:49] Modern migraine science [9:29] CGRP treatments explained [11:37] Hormones OCP stroke risk [17:24] Midlife brain fog fears [19:20] Estrogen and cognition [21:25] "When to worry" signs [25:16] Referrals, prevention and what's coming in part 2  Links: thebraindocs.com Find the Brain Docs on Instagram: @thebraindocs Find the Brain Docs on Facebook: @BrainDocsFB Find the Brain Docs on YouTube: @theBrainDocs Purchase The NEURO Plan Playbook: thebraindocs.com/playbook    Follow the show @OvaryActive Instagram | YouTube | perimenopausedrs.com/ovaryactive Estrogen, Interrupted by Dr. Rebecca Dunsmoor-Su & Dr. Amy Voedisch Meet the Docs: More information about Dr. Rebecca Dunsmoor-Su:  Gennev:  www.gennev.com/clinician/dr-rebecca-dunsmoor-su LinkedIn @rebecca-dunsmoor-su More information about Dr. Amy Voedisch: Stanford Medical Clinic: stanfordhealthcare.org/doctors/v/amy-voedisch.html This episode was produced by Audiotocracy Podcast Production.

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