Nonfiction

The Upgrade: How the Female Brain Remakes Itself in the Second Half of Life

The Upgrade: How the Female Brain Remakes Itself in the Second Half of Life

  • Downloads：3214
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-04-19 03:19:35
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Louann Brizendine
  • ISBN：0525577173
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

Heather ，

This book could not have come into my life（Kindle） at a more perfect time。 I am a woman in my mid 40s。 I have started to experience some of the things discussed in this book。 I honestly felt like as I was reading it， Louann had been listening into conversations I have been having with my friends。 Some parts of the book are ahead of where I am in my Transition， but I will be referencing this book and making use of it for years to come。 I have already told some of my friends about it and they have This book could not have come into my life（Kindle） at a more perfect time。 I am a woman in my mid 40s。 I have started to experience some of the things discussed in this book。 I honestly felt like as I was reading it， Louann had been listening into conversations I have been having with my friends。 Some parts of the book are ahead of where I am in my Transition， but I will be referencing this book and making use of it for years to come。 I have already told some of my friends about it and they have added it their TBR list or pre-ordered the book。 I truly believe that most if not all Gen X woman need to read this book。 Thank you to NetGalley and Rodale Inc。， Harmony for the ARC of this book。 All opinion expressed are my own。 。。。more

Kathleen Gray ，

An interesting look at what happens to women's brains as their estrogen levels decrease。 That said， you， like me， might not identify with all of the issues or with her theories， especially wrt hormone replacement。 This will mean different things to different women and it's a good step forward in addressing life changes，， both biologic and other， that have previously been in the shadows。 Thanks to netgalley for the ARC。 An interesting look at what happens to women's brains as their estrogen levels decrease。 That said， you， like me， might not identify with all of the issues or with her theories， especially wrt hormone replacement。 This will mean different things to different women and it's a good step forward in addressing life changes，， both biologic and other， that have previously been in the shadows。 Thanks to netgalley for the ARC。 。。。more

Ginger Hudock ，

This book discusses female health and the brain during menopause and post menopause， which the author has renamed "the upgrade"。 As a nutritionist I had learned much about hormones and their affect on the body。 She discusses how a healthy microbiome， sleep and diet can help the brain。 The appendix， with actionable items to take to keep yourself physically and mentally healthy after age 50。 If you are approaching this age and need some help navigating your health， this could be a useful book。 I r This book discusses female health and the brain during menopause and post menopause， which the author has renamed "the upgrade"。 As a nutritionist I had learned much about hormones and their affect on the body。 She discusses how a healthy microbiome， sleep and diet can help the brain。 The appendix， with actionable items to take to keep yourself physically and mentally healthy after age 50。 If you are approaching this age and need some help navigating your health， this could be a useful book。 I received a complementary copy from the publisher via NetGalley。 。。。more

Sandy ，

Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book， in exchange for a fair and honest review。I really wanted to like this book。 Since I am well into the second half of life， fully "upgraded" in the author's terminology， I had hoped for interesting information， tips， etc。 Instead， I plowed my way through the author's theories and found myself， for the most part， unable to relate to most of her stories about her patients and herself。I tried to figure out， while I was reading， why this all seemed so remot Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book， in exchange for a fair and honest review。I really wanted to like this book。 Since I am well into the second half of life， fully "upgraded" in the author's terminology， I had hoped for interesting information， tips， etc。 Instead， I plowed my way through the author's theories and found myself， for the most part， unable to relate to most of her stories about her patients and herself。I tried to figure out， while I was reading， why this all seemed so remote from my own experiences， and those of my friends。 Perhaps it was because the author is a psychiatrist， and the book appears to be primarily based on the experiences of her patients - so， if the reader doesn't have these issues， it all seems pretty remote。 From reading the book， you'd think that all women have the problems she describes - losing their jobs when they hit 50 or so， being unable to emotionally detach from their grown （and well functioning） children， and so on。 Not to mention her own story of having a glass of red wine and a second piece of cake， and then being up and sick all night and the next day。 She has my sympathy - but that doesn't convince me of her theory that any alcohol or dessert is essentially poison！She also is massively pushing hormone therapy， and when I was at the appropriate stage to consider it， I read a lot and discussed it with my doctors， and decided against it。 Again， she may be conflating her personal experience， and that of women who came to her for psychiatric treatment， with "all women。" 。。。more

Tammy Chaffins ，

Received my copy from a contest on goodreads， so glad I did！ Very informative。 I would recommend this book to anyone of any age。

Mary C ，

A look into how menopause impacts women's lives。 Changes are mostly for the better and are quite liberating。 Women discover it's okay to say no and set boundaries which results in a more powerful sense of self。First part of the book was slow going， but my interest increased the more I read。Thanks to NetGalley for a copy。 A look into how menopause impacts women's lives。 Changes are mostly for the better and are quite liberating。 Women discover it's okay to say no and set boundaries which results in a more powerful sense of self。First part of the book was slow going， but my interest increased the more I read。Thanks to NetGalley for a copy。 。。。more

Sheila ，

I received an ARC of The Upgrade， by Louann Brizendine， MD。 This book really did not interest me that much， it was well written， but pretty dry。

Danna ，

Stats: 38 years old。 Frequent night sweats。 Hormonally-induced amenorrhea。 Amount of time spent on menopause research or knowledge prior to reading the Upgrade？ Nearly zero。 I was invited to review this book by the publisher based on reading history。 I’m glad because I would never have picked it myself and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it。 This is an easy to read science for laypeople book。 I appreciate Dr。 Brizendine’s approach to sharing science with personal and shared anecdo Stats: 38 years old。 Frequent night sweats。 Hormonally-induced amenorrhea。 Amount of time spent on menopause research or knowledge prior to reading the Upgrade？ Nearly zero。 I was invited to review this book by the publisher based on reading history。 I’m glad because I would never have picked it myself and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it。 This is an easy to read science for laypeople book。 I appreciate Dr。 Brizendine’s approach to sharing science with personal and shared anecdotes about the hormonal changes that happen to women in mid-life。 She refers to menopause as the Upgrade， and the hormonal changes that happen leading up to it as the Transition。 For me， it was motivating to hear about the positive changes alongside the challenges。 Hearing about the broad range of experiences helps normalize them。 Some of the research quoted is mind-boggling （I。e。 fecal transplants minimizing anxiety in lab mice？！）。 While I do think Dr。 Brizendine’s bias shows up， overall， I heard her message that this is an individual journey—listen to your body， find healthcare providers who you can trust and that validate your experience， take care of yourself and socialize。 I’m surprised that these conversations haven’t become more present in my world… maybe in another 5 years？Given this is my first book on the Upgrade， I don’t have a good reference for comparison。 However， I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this to friends or family amidst these hormonal changes。 Well done。 As this is an ARC， it’s possible some of my concerns about informational redundancy will be resolved by final publication。 。。。more

Karen ，

Many thanks to the author and publisher for my ARC。 This book made me feel whole again。 I was so looking forward to reading this and was not disappointed。 Not only is this me but it is a must read for us women of a certain age。 Let's go girls！！ Many thanks to the author and publisher for my ARC。 This book made me feel whole again。 I was so looking forward to reading this and was not disappointed。 Not only is this me but it is a must read for us women of a certain age。 Let's go girls！！ 。。。more

Literary Redhead ，

The Upgradeby Louann Brizendine， MDRodale Inc。， HarmonyPub Date: 19 Apr 2022A unique look at women's lives post-menopause， suggesting that physical changes -- i。e。 less estrogen -- free a woman from seeking caregiving roles and instead， allow her to come into her own， say "no" more， and focus on what SHE considers most important in her life。 Emotional health improves， and women are more able to leave behind past traumas and negative self-image。 Instead of a time of multiple losses， post-menopaus The Upgradeby Louann Brizendine， MDRodale Inc。， HarmonyPub Date: 19 Apr 2022A unique look at women's lives post-menopause， suggesting that physical changes -- i。e。 less estrogen -- free a woman from seeking caregiving roles and instead， allow her to come into her own， say "no" more， and focus on what SHE considers most important in her life。 Emotional health improves， and women are more able to leave behind past traumas and negative self-image。 Instead of a time of multiple losses， post-menopause can bring great joy as women finally reach a stage of genuine authenticity。 A fascinating read！ Thanks to the author， Rodale Inc。， Harmony， and NetGalley for the ARC。 Opinions are mine。 #TheUpgrade #LouannBrizendine #NetGalley#RodaleHarmony 。。。more