Author- Deborah McBain CNM, MSN  

I have been a registered nurse for over 30 years, most of those as a maternity nurse.  In 1994 I went back to school and earned a Master’s of Science in Nursing (MSN) from Case Western Reserve Unversity in Cleveland, OH. I also attended Frontier Nursing Service in Heyden, Kentucky becoming a Certified Nurse-Midwife (CNM).  In 2002 I joined Henry Ford Health System in Detroit Michigan and continue as a staff midwife at Henry Ford Hospital coaxing little ones into the world.

As a certified nurse-midwife I not only take care of pregnant women,  I care for women throughout the life-span.  Routine annual exams, urinary tract and vaginal infections,  irregular periods and menopausal complaints often find their way to my clinic exam room.   Many of my patients are experiencing the challenges  of menopause.   “Listen to Women”  has been a motto used by the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) and that is what I have done for my years as a nurse, midwife and women’s health provider .   What I have heard behind closed doors has been an amazing education.    The same skills that allow me to midwife women through the changes of pregnancy and childbirth is also appreciated  by women during the changes of menopause.

With more and more baby boomers reaching  this certain age, the expectation for knowledge and support is growing.  Self-determination, when it comes to making health care decisions, has been this generation’s Modus Operandi.  We are after all, the generation that revolutionized obstetrical care, making childbirth education and natural childbirth commonplace.  We want information and we want control of our health.

 Experiencing a need personally and through my patients, I became credentialed as a menopause practitioner through the North American Menopause Society (NAMS).  In October of 2006 I did a very well attended talk for consumers on  menopause and received many requests to start a support group.  Since  April 2007 we have had monthly support group meetings with topics ranging from heart health to sexuality.  Participation is growing but I would like to reach a wider audience.  What better way than a blog?